Prepared by Cathie Hopkins Editor’s Note These ideas are arranged in weekly programs for ease of use. The weeks are numbered but you do not have to use them in order. All ideas can be used alone as well, & are by no means exhaustive (although my brain was exhausted afterwards ) I am hoping that for those of you who are time challenged or inexperienced, that you will be able to pick this up and prepare your *bit* and run with it. It is not meant to be the entire input for the achievement, but having said that, I hope to make it possible to use the content in its entirety and still be able to give the girls enough to earn their achievement. HERE ARE SOME THOUGHTS - You could “mix and match* the weeks… to put one story in a different week, or an activity in a different position. You might change the suggested method of story or memory verse presentation. You may like to use the resources in here for other achievements, for example the Burning Bush week for “Camping” or the Balaam Week for “The Animal Kingdom” for example. (although you may have to change the focus slightly or the memory verse.) Do not be afraid to change the order, usually we present the game, learning, story, memory verse and craft in that order. Why not mix it round a bit? Think laterally!! Do not feel you have to do EVERYTHING for each week. (You can spread it out) For easy identification at the head of each page is a coloured strip. Red is for devotions, Green is for learning and information, yellow is for craft and blue is for games. I hope this helps. Blessings on your great woolly heads, ~ Cathie NOTES ON GAMES A good way to get the girls into fairly equal teams is to line them up in one long line according to school year. Youngest at the front. Then starting at the front, number them off according to how many teams you have. So if you have three teams 1, 2, 3… and then 1,2,3. Then put the teams together by number and you will have a good cross mix of girls in each team. When awarding points for games, instead of giving one point for a win, give 100 or 1000. That way when the losing team doesn’t feel so bad; they may have lost but they scored 1300 points!!! (I watched a girl once go running to her mother when she picked her up and cry out “Mum, we scored 900 points!” It did not matter that she lost!) Always make sure that you tell the girls the name of the game. The name of the game is significant. It gives the kids their first impression of what they can expect. Before you get into rules, tell the kids the primary objective of the game. If you start with rules the kids won’t know how to apply the rules, give them the objective of the game first and then the rules will make more sense. Explain the rules fully. Ask them to wait until you have finished explaining as their questions may be answered. Lead clearly, strongly, loudly and enthusiastically. Be excited about the game! Your demeanour sets the tone for the entire game. The more fun you have the more the kids will enjoy playing the game. Focus on the fun, not the winning, though I don’t think competition is a bad thing, you should award and thank all of the participants. If it is an “elimination” type game, give those who have been eliminated tasks to help with the game. Like standing at the “end point” to make sure no one goes over, or sitting on the empty chairs, or keeping score, etc. NOTES ON CRAFT *ALWAYS* have a finished craft to show the girls. NOTES ON MEMORY VERSES If you like them to learn the verses and give awards, give them awards according to their ability and the effort made. If someone is capable of getting it right, then do not give them a sticker or whatever until they do. If a girl is not able but you can tell she has made a genuine effort, then she should be rewarded. Always have a small copy of the memory verse for each girl to take home, if it is not incorporated in your craft. 2 WEEK ONE DEVOTIONS GOD COMMUNICATES THROUGH A BURNING BUSH EXODUS 3: 1 -15 God desires to communicate with us all the time. Sometimes however we are just too busy to listen to God. Perhaps we feel God has more important things to do than talk to us. But that cannot be further from the truth. God loves us very much and wants to tell us many things. That's why we need hear what God has to say. Moses and the Burning Bush Theme: God speaks to Moses and he speaks to us. Scripture: "Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." Exodus 3:5 (NIV) What you need: You need a LARGE drawing of a tree with lots of green leaves. If you put it on card and laminate it you can use it again… or you can just use butchers paper … Have the leaves different shades of green. Now the story below is divided into “leaf” sections. Have some leaves in orange, red and yellow, sized to fit over the green leaves. (It doesn’t matter if the green leaves still show… but cover some of them.) Have the Bible story printed out in sections on the back of the orange, red and yellow leaves. Read off the back (it saves you having to remember it) and then when you have read it, stick it with the story side down, in no particular spot so the girls only see the colour onto the green tree. (Number the leaves with a small number somewhere so you have them in the right order) I just numbered them by writing L1, L2, L3.. etc I have laminated my leaves and contacted my tree so I can use them again. 3 LEAF ONE This is a TRUE story, it comes from Exodus, in the Bible. God told Moses to take off his shoes while he communicated with him! LEAF TWO You may already know why God said that, but I think it might be good for us to take off our shoes during the lesson today to help us to think about why God told Moses to take off his shoes. I'm going to do that. If you wish, you may join me. (Take off your shoes.) LEAF THREE As our story begins, Moses is out in the field taking care of the sheep and goats of his father-in-law, Jethro. He led the sheep out into the wilderness near the mountain called Sinai. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared to him as a flame from the middle of a bush. LEAF FOUR The most amazing thing was that the bush was on fire, but it wasn't burned up! "That's strange," Moses thought. "Why isn't the bush burning up? I'll go closer and see." LEAF FIVE As he came closer, God called out to him, "Moses! Moses!" "Here I am," Moses answered. LEAF SIX "Don't come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, because you are standing on holy ground. I am the God of your father -- the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." LEAF SEVEN When Moses heard those words, he hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. God continued speaking to Moses. "I have heard the cries of my people in Egypt. I know all about their pain and suffering at the hands of the Egyptians. LEAF EIGHT I have come to help them to be freed from Egypt and enter into a good land that flows with milk and honey. It's time for you to go back: I'm sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the People of Israel, out of Egypt." LEAF NINE "Why me? What makes you think I could go to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?" asked Moses. LEAF TEN "I will be with you," God said. "And this will be the proof that I am the one who sent you: When you have brought my people out of Egypt, you will worship God right here at this very mountain." LEAF ELEVEN But Moses continued to offer excuses. "But, suppose I go to the People of Israel and I tell them, 'The God of your fathers sent me to you'; and they ask me, 'What is his name?' What do I tell them?" 4 LEAF TWELVE God answered, "I-AM-WHO-I-AM. Tell the People of Israel, 'I-AM sent me to you.'" LEAF THIRTEEN What a story! Now, do you remember why God told Moses to take off his sandals? Because, God said, "You are standing on holy ground." It was holy ground because God was there and wherever God is surely "holy ground." LEAF FOURTEEN Does God speak to us today? YES!! He uses GB leaders, Sunday School Teachers, Ministers, other Christians, and the Bible. LEAF FIFTEEN Father, we are gathered in your name. Just as you spoke to Moses long ago, speak to our hearts today. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. MEMORY VERSE Psalm 85:8 “I will listen to what God the LORD says” Using an almost identical tree as the one you used for your story, combine red and green and yellow and orange leaves.