PreTeen Teacher Guide

PreTeen

TEACHER GUIDE

UNITS

1. God the Father 2. Being a Witness

3. Our Bible and Books of Law

PreTeen Teacher Guide Grades 5 & 6

PRETEEN TEACHER GUIDE is published quarterly by Gospel Publishing House, 1445 N. Boonville Ave., Springfield, Missouri 65802.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

KJV stands for King James Version.

To find out more about quality discipleship resources for all ages, visit www.GospelPublishing.com or call toll-free 1-855-642-2011.

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• TEACHING HELPS The ABC’s of Salvation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 Steps to a Successful Sunday School Class. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Age-Level Characteristics.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Teacher Skill Builders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Feedback Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Review Activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

• LESSONS UNIT 1: GOD THE FATHER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 September 6—God Is Faithful. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

September 13—God Is Living. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

September 20—God Is Love. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

12 18 24

UNIT 2: BEING A WITNESS. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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September 27—Witnessing with Our Words. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

October 4—Witnessing with Our Actions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

October 11—Witnessing with Our Work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

October 18—The Great Commission.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31 37 43 49

UNIT 3: OUR BIBLE AND BOOKS OF LAW. . . . .

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October 25—Everyone Needs the Bible.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

November 1—The Bible Is God’s Inspired Word. . . . . . . . . . . .

November 8—The Bible Is a Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

November 15—The Book of Genesis.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

November 22—The Book of Exodus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

November 29—The Books of Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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978-1-60731-818-7

© 2026 by Gospel Publishing House 1445 N. Boonville Ave. Springfield, Missouri 65802.

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

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THE ABC’s of SALVATION Leading a Child to Christ

†

Evangelism is a privilege. There’s nothing quite so exciting as helping a child accept Jesus as Savior. As you teach, look for opportunities to lead children to Christ. When children respond to a salvation invitation, use this plan to guide them as they accept Jesus as Savior.

Admit you are a sinner.

• Read Romans 3:23 (NLT) with the child: “Everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”

• Say, “Everyone disobeys God. That is sin.”

• Ask, “Do you understand that you have sinned?”

Believe in Jesus.

• Read John 3:16 (NLT) with the child: “This is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

• Say, “God hates sin but loves each of us—even though we all sin. He loves us so much that He gave Jesus, His Son, to die and take the punishment for our sins.”

• Lead the child in the sinner’s prayer: “Dear Jesus, I am a sinner. I have disobeyed You. Please forgive me. Come into my heart and life. Help me love and follow You. Thank You for the gift of salvation. Amen.”

Confess (or declare) that Jesus is your Lord.

• Read Romans 10:9 (NLT) with the child: “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

• Say, “Asking Jesus into your heart is the start of a new life—a life where Jesus is your Leader, your Lord. He will never leave you alone.”

• Ask, “What has happened to you?” and let the child respond.

• Encourage the child to tell someone about his or her new life with Jesus.

• Tell the child’s guardian the good news of the child’s salvation. Ask if the child would like to be baptized in water as a sign of his or her decision to live for Jesus.

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5

Steps to a Successful Sunday School Class

1 Start with Curriculum

You’ve made the right choice in choosing this curriculum. It provides solid biblical teaching at a level your preteens will enjoy and understand. The lessons are designed for easy preparation, and the activities will keep your students interested and reinforce your lesson. As you begin your preparation, use the following checklist to keep track of the curriculum pieces you will be using.

 PreTeen Teacher Guide —13 easy-to-use lessons, plus helpful hints and tips  PreTeen Resource Packet —lesson helps for your classroom, downloads information  PreTeen Student Guide —activities that coordinate with your lessons  PreTeen Bible Explorer —lesson-related puzzles  Bible Fact-Pak ™ —576 questions covering biblical people, places, events, and teachings

2 Think About Your Class Next, consider what you already know about your class.

T ime­—How much class time do you have? Be sure to consider total time as well as actual teaching time (after greeting, transitions, etc.). Estimating the time it will take for each activity will help you decide which ones to use.  S etting —What is your classroom setting like? Is your classroom arranged in lecture-style? Do you have a table? Don’t be afraid to get creative in your classroom arrangement. Arrange the chairs in a circle, or bring pillows and have everyone sit on the floor one week. If you have a small space, adapt activities to better fit your needs.  Teachers —How many teachers and helpers do you have? Divide responsibilities among them and choose (or modify) activities accordingly.  S tudents —Who are your regular attendees? How do they learn best? Do you frequently have visitors?

It’s a good idea to plan your lesson for the regular attendees, but be prepared in case of visitors.

Now consider what you know about your regular attendees. You may want to keep notes (see sample) on each student describing how he/she learns best and his/ her attention span.

ars old

Nate— boy, 11 ye

ng g. He’s always getti Learns by hearin to g, always the first in trouble for talkin to and loves to listen answer a question, stories.

years old Michaela— girl, 12 hing. She uc ns by seeing & to

Lear gether,” matching always looks “put to s e loves to write, ha from head to toe. Sh g, and remembers beautiful handwritin wn. things she writes do

ars old

ye Austin— boy, 12

s g. He’s athletic, enjoy Learns by movin s sit ely rar y, ugh—pla energetic—even ro . down, etc

Amber— girl, 11

years old

undecided. She’s Learning style is g, and touching! It’s always moving, talkin main focused on the difficult for her to re s ADHD. task at hand. She ha

If your regular students cover all the learning styles* (like the sample note), you won’t have to plan other activities for less frequent attendees. If your class has primarily one or two learning styles, you may want to have variations or additional activities ready for visitors. *To learn more about learning styles, see page 5.

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PreTeen Teacher Guide

The “Teacher Focus” will help you become familiar with the lesson and how it relates to your students. “Life Application” and “We Believe” will show you how to apply to students’ lives the doctrine within the lesson.

C. T he Living God—Poster 1 Seeing Visual activities will target preteens who learn best by seeing. This ­particular activity will also reinforce the story and help students apply the lesson to their lives.

A. Music (as students arrive) Seeing & hearing

B. B aal Fact Search

As students arrive and get settled, you may want to take a little extra time to talk to your students about what is going on in their lives as well as reviewing last week’s lesson. Asking questions about last week’s lesson will prepare their minds to focus on this week’s lesson. The songs support the lesson topics.

D. T he Living God—drama

Moving, seeing, & hearing

Hearing & moving

An activity that gets students out of their seats and moving at the start of class will boost their ­energy, making them more alert to learn. This s­ pecific activity will appeal to students who learn by moving, seeing, and hearing. It is a good choice since it covers so many learning preferences.

Drama is an excellent tool in teaching ­preteens. Most preteens love acting; plus, acting out the Bible story helps them learn it better by experiencing it.

(downloadable)

Info:

A

D

LT KJV and N verses

C B

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Plan Your Lesson

|

At this point, sit down with your PreTeen Teacher Guide and adapt the ­lesson to fit the needs of your class. Highlight, circle, or mark the activities that your preteens will enjoy and, most importantly, will meet their learning styles.

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3 Plan Your Lesson (cont.)

E

LT

KJV and N verses

G

F

H

E. Applying God’s Word Do Bonus Option Seeing & touching Using activities from the Bible Explorer will reinforce the lesson for your preteens who learn by seeing and touching. Since there is only one visual/tactual learner in this class, you might opt to provide an alternative activity for the others or choose another activity altogether.

G. Memory Verse Do “The True God” in student guide Seeing & touching Learning the memory verse by using the PreTeen Student Guide activity will help students learn the verse while reinforcing their problem-solving skills.

Have additional activities prepared in case you finish early or need to fill time.

Review questions are a great time filler. Make it even more interesting by bringing candy or gum to toss to each student who answers correctly. Also, optional review activity ideas are provided in the back of the PreTeen Teacher Guide.

F. L iving God’s Word Hearing Reading or telling stories and discussing lifeapplication questions will engage your preteens who learn by hearing, plus the discussion will help students learn how to apply the biblical principles to their everyday lives.

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PreTeen Teacher Guide

H. M aking Christ My Savior If you have students who have not made a commitment to Christ or if you have visitors and you don't know them well, it’s a good idea to present the plan of ­salvation. This gives everyone the opportunity to accept Christ. You never know when a student might be ready to make a life-changing decision.

4 Teach the Lesson As you teach the lesson, constantly evaluate: • Your students —What things are you ­discovering about them and how they learn?

• Your lesson —Are the students grasping the concept and objective presented in the lesson?

• T he activities —Are they working well?

Is the order flowing like you’d hoped?

• T he time —Do you have extra activities or games planned? Are you keeping your students’ attention? What fun activities can you do to reinforce the lesson?

5 Evaluate

After each class, evaluate the lesson as a whole using the questions from step four.

Evaluation: * The lesson went well. option activity! * Glad I had the bonus baseball game. the * The students loved them up and get to ion opt y An Note: ! moving is a winner

There’s no set formula for a successful Sunday School class, and there’s no guarantee that all your preteens will remember what you teach them and make the life applications. But God promises that His Word will not return void. And by following these five simple steps, you can teach biblical ­principles so that many of your students will remember and apply them. And that’s what teaching is all about.

Take a closer look at …

HOW YOUR STUDENTS LEARN SEEING (visual) Miguel likes to “see” his world.

He enjoys colors, contrast, bulletin boards, and videos.

He gets bored when there are no visuals.

HOW TO TEACH MIGUEL: • D isplay posters from the resource packet • Do student guide, Bible Explorer, and copy master activities • Use object lessons

HEARING (auditory) Allison “hears” her world.

She loves to hear stories and listens when you tell her to do something. She becomes bored when she hears information she already knows.

HOW TO TEACH ALLISON: • Tell Bible and life-application stories • Use listening and sharing activities • Sing songs and listen to skits from the downloads (resource packet)

TOUCHING (tactual*) Stephanie likes to “feel” and “feel good about” her world.

She needs to “get in touch” with new concepts and learns best when she can feel and compare information. *also known as tactile HOW TO TEACH STEPHANIE: • Use interactive posters from the resource packet • Make lesson-related objects or crafts • Draw and create lesson-related pictures or collages

MOVING (kinesthetic) Zack loves to experience his world through movement. He moves a lot during class and loves ­participating in things like dramas, action songs, and plays.

HOW TO TEACH ZACK: • Act out the Bible story • Utilize dramas and skits • Play movement games for review or memory work FallFall 2010

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S O C I A L

S P I R I T U A L

All children at this age grow through similar stages. Some characteristics will occur earlier or later. Knowing how children think, feel, and act in general helps you relate to them so that you can plan lessons to help them in their spiritual growth.

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C OMMO N C H A R AC T E R I S T I C S

W H AT T H I S S AYS TO T H E T E AC H E R

Have a good memory; eager to learn

Provide them with foundational Scripture verses.

Many accept Christ at this age

Provide opportunities to accept Christ.

Give doctrinal t­raining also.

Many receive the Holy Spirit ­baptism

Provide instruction and opportunity to receive this gift.

They seek heroes

Provide them with stories, books, or videos of Christian heroes.

them pray. Encourage daily devotions. Explain Bible Aware of their need to please God LetCharacteristic New Age-Level spread stories simply, and honestly try to answer questions. through prayer and Bible reading Can help others

A class project of helping someone encourages this.

Are influenced by teachers

Be a good example. Live a life consistent with what you teach.

C OMMO N C H A R AC T E R I S T I C S

W H AT T H I S S AYS TO T H E T E AC H E R

Have a strong sense of justice

Preteens watch how the teacher acts. Be a good example.

Teach them that God is faithful and just. Show what the Bible says about these things.

Group acceptance is important and should be recognized.

Are influenced by their peer group Allow times for them to work with others who may not be part of their group.

Ready to discuss simple social problems

They are aware of their world. Discuss ways your class can help in the community.

Keen competitors; will often compete with others to gain recognition

Provide for team competition. Show them the right and wrong ways to compete. Discuss what the Bible says about competition.

PreTeen Teacher Guide

PHYSICAL

M E N T A L EMOTIONAL

C OMMO N C H A R AC T E R I S T I C S

W H AT T H I S S AYS TO T H E T E AC H E R

Are in the healthiest time of life

Expect them to attend Sunday School on a regular basis.

May be restless and tired at times

A physical change is beginning. Provide a variety of activities.

Girls are typically more mature than boys by about a year.

Girls are more developed physically Some girls will be self-conscious. Be sensitive to ­individual needs.

C OMMO N C H A R AC T E R I S T I C S

W H AT T H I S S AYS TO T H E T E AC H E R

Are good readers

Provide Christian books to be borrowed and returned.

Like challenge

Stimulate interest through such things as puzzles, contests, quizzes, and codes.

Developed sense of time and distance

Discuss more Bible facts and places. This is a good age to introduce the use of maps when explaining biblical places.

Like to take part in group planning

Allow groups to participate in planning socials and class events.

Respond to visual stimuli

Use posters, charts, and pictures.

Enjoy creating stories, poems, drama, and art

Direct their creativity into drama, songs, art, and other participatory methods. Be sure these relate to the lesson.

C OMMO N C H A R AC T E R I S T I C S

W H AT T H I S S AYS TO T H E T E AC H E R

Able to make choices

Give them things to do. Offer choices of activities when possible.

Can get absorbed in doing something and won’t hear you talking

Channel their energy into creative things. Let them become absorbed in these. Do not insist on a strict s­ chedule. Be flexible.

Experience unsteady emotions and may be moody

Accept them. They are undergoing emotional changes and at times cannot help themselves. Your understanding will help.

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Teacher Skill Builders

SUNDAY SCHOOL

CAN BE A GOOD EXPERIENCE

You reach your classroom on Sunday morning with high hopes for an interesting class where everyone is involved.

Your hopes are dashed when your lesson presentation is lost amid classroom chaos. As the last student leaves, you wonder what happened. Did you make a mistake by agreeing to teach?

If this sounds familiar, the following tips are for you.

Use variety.

An interesting presentation is crucial for maintaining student attention. An interested class has fewer behavior problems.

Practice your presentation during the week. Don’t read the entire lesson to the students. If you do, • your students will think you don’t know the material, • you won’t have eye contact, • you won’t see signs of potential misbehavior.

As you study your lesson, select activities to provide variety and evoke interest and understanding. Lecture has a place among teaching methods, but any method used all the time becomes monotonous.

Students will be more interested in the lesson if variety is used in its presentation.

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Let the students help set behavior boundaries.

Have an informal class discussion and let the students suggest what behaviors should or should not be permissible in Sunday School. List their suggestions on the marker board.

Some students may try to be funny or shocking in their suggestions, but you will probably get several excellent ideas. Help the students understand that their conduct shows how much they love and respect God. You

God wants you to be a successful teacher.

He wants Sunday School to be a good experience for you and your students. may be pleasantly surprised at how well the students respond to forming their own guidelines for behavior.

Communicate your own behavior expectations.

Tell the students what kind of behavior you expect from them.

PreTeen Teacher Guide

Explain, for example, that you want them to read their lesson before class or that you don’t want them to interrupt while you or someone else is talking.

Telling them what you expect lets them know if their behavior is acceptable.

Reinforce the positive.

A misbehaving student receives attention while wellbehaved students often blend in or go unnoticed.

Children often feel good about pleasing the people who are important to them. By complimenting their positive behaviors, such as contributions and attentiveness while others are speaking, you are providing examples of how you want all the students to act.

Make your room cheerful.

A bright room filled with interesting items is inviting. Although you may face limitations in decorating as you wish, you can still do things to brighten a room.

• Add brightly colored posters.

Purchase inexpensive posters or let the students make them to give them a sense of ownership.

• Work out arrangements with leaders of groups who share the room. Decorate portions of the walls assigned to you.

Teacher Skill Builders

ESSENTIALS Enjoy your students.

Children can sense if you want to be their teacher. When they know you want to be with them, misbehavior, apathy, or chaos is diminished and interest and involvement increases.

• Like your students for who they are.

• Consider the strengths or talents of each student.

• What is particularly likable about each student?

• Ask God to help you see positive characteristics in difficult students.

The more you enjoy your students as people, the more you will enjoy your teaching ministry. Your students will also sense they are accepted for who they are and will begin to relax and enjoy the class—and you.

FOR I M PROVE M ENT

There will be days when it seems nothing works. Children are naturally more energetic during holidays or drastic changes in weather (the first snowfall or the first few days of warm weather after winter). It is also impossible to know all the events happening in each student’s personal life. As a teacher who wants to improve, do these things:

Pray Ask God to help you be the teacher He wants you to be. Ask Him to show you ways to improve your teaching ministry. Seek to be open to the Holy Spirit’s direction as He convicts and deals with students in your class.

Pray for each student individually. You may not know every need each student has, but God does. Pray in your classroom before the students arrive. Dedicate your class time to God to be used for His glory. God can work through your prayers.

Evaluate progress After every class, evaluate it.

• How did the students react to the lesson topic?

• Did the students identify how the topic related to them?

• Did your presentation keep them interested?

• Did students have a chance to respond to the lesson topic?

• Did you begin to lose control of the students? If so, when?

By evaluating each lesson, you will become more aware of which ideas work with your particular students and which ideas don’t. This will give you guidelines for future lessons.

Depend on God’s help You are not alone in your teaching ministry. God wants you to be a successful teacher. He wants Sunday School to be a good experience for you and for your students. Let God help you be the teacher He wants you to be.

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Teacher Skill Builders GROWING SPIRITUALLY Daily prayer and Bible study are essential for both you and your students. Daily Bible study and prayer can benefit you as a teacher by • helping your own life to grow spiritually stronger, making you a better role model.

• providing spiritual help for your teaching ministry.

If you have a hard time developing a consistent pattern of Bible study and prayer, perhaps the following points will help.

1. Make an appointment with God. Develop

a habit of having your devotions at the same time every day when you can be alone with God. Remember, God spoke to Elijah in a still, small voice (1 Kings 19:11–13). Hearing God speak is easier if your mind is uncluttered with the day’s activities. If necessary, keep a notepad handy. When something you need to remember comes to mind, jot it down, then return to your devotions.

If you begin to have your devotions at the same time each day, this will soon become a normal, yet special, part of your day’s schedule. The day may even seem incomplete if you fail to have time with God. It is a spiritually uplifting habit.

2. Find a “secret place.” This may be noth-

ing more than sitting beside a certain window or in a favorite chair during your devotions. In your secret place, you can shut yourself away from the problems and trials of daily life and spend quiet and special moments with God.

3. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Jesus knew we could not understand His Word by using our minds alone. We need His help to understand spiritual truths. The Holy Spirit provides that help.

As you prepare to read God’s Word, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand what it says and how you can apply it to your life. Then be sensitive to the Spirit’s direction.

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PreTeen Teacher Guide

4. Come just as you are. Prayer is a privilege God has given us to express our deepest feelings to Him. Talk honestly with God. He knows how you feel.

Psalm 139:4 says, “You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord” (NLT). God wants you to come to Him as you are. He understands you because He created you.

5. Incorporate praise. Prayer is also a time to

praise God for who He is. God deserves our praise and adoration. God can do great things as we praise Him. He commanded the army of Jehoshaphat to let the singers lead them into battle. When they obeyed, they found their enemy completely destroyed. There is power in praise (2 Chronicles 20:20–24).

6. Include your teaching ministry. As you

spend time in prayer, ask God to prepare you for the coming Sunday. Let the Holy Spirit guide you into a deeper understanding of the truths you teach your students. The Holy Spirit may also reveal other passages of Scripture that will be useful in teaching your class. Then pray for each student in your class.

7. Share your devotions. Tell your students

about some new things you have learned from God’s Word or an answer to prayer you have had in your personal devotions. You will be setting a good example of daily devotions for them to follow. They need to know you practice what you teach.

Your personal devotions should be productive— time well-spent with intentional growth in Christ as the goal. Let God speak to you as you, in turn, speak to Him. Then minister to others through your growing, maturing spiritual life.

God the Father In this unit of study, you will be looking at the nature of God in His relationship with us. His nature is to be true to His word. He will keep His promises to love us, to help us, and to provide a home in heaven for us.

We can trust this God above all gods. He has made a way for us to know Him and to become part of His family forever. No other god could do that.

UNIT VERSE KJV: Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. Isaiah 44:6 NLT: This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: “I am the First and the Last; there is no other God.” Isaiah 44:6 The unit memory verse is provided for those teachers who prefer that the students learn one verse each unit rather than a new verse each week. The unit memory verse can be learned over the course of an entire unit.

By the end of this unit, your students should be able to

discuss how Noah showed confidence in God’s faithfulness, explain how God showed himself a living God by the sign He gave Israel, and summarize how God’s love for them should affect their relationships with others.

UNIT REVIEW Give each student a copy of the review from Copy Master 1 at the beginning of the quarter to see what they need to learn. Give the review again at the end of the quarter to see what they learned.

See below.

CLASS PROJECT IDEA Graffiti Wall

You will need a large sheet of paper, markers, and tape.

Post a large sheet of paper on the wall of your classroom. Tell the students this is a graffiti wall where they can jot down things they’ve learned in class, encouraging messages to friends, prayer requests, and praise reports. It gets students involved and encourages interaction and communication.

You may even start things out by writing your own encouraging note to the class. Leave the paper up for this unit, allowing the students to add to it each week. At the end of the unit, use the graffiti poster to review the lessons and talk about answered prayers.

The numbers referenced in the lessons refer to the Bible Fact-Pak Question Cards used with Junior Bible Quiz. These questions correlate with the lessons. For more information, visit www.GospelPublishing.com.

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Lesson 1

God Is Faithful UNIT 1: GOD THE FATHER

Objective

The students will be able to discuss how Noah showed confidence in God’s faithfulness.

Life Application

Confidence: To encourage the students to name ways they can show confidence in God’s faithfulness

Memory Verse

Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Matthew 6:33 (KJV) “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

Matthew 6:33 (NLT)

We Believe

The Bible: We believe

the Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the revelation of God to humankind, giving us absolute rules of faith and conduct.

God: We believe there is one God, existing in three Persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is the creator of heaven and earth.

Teacher Guide 12 PreTeen Lesson 1

Bible Text

Genesis 6:5 to 8:22; Matthew 6:25–34

Teacher Focus Noah faced a big problem. God was sending the Flood and, in order to survive, Noah had to put his trust completely in God. God is faithful to keep His promises. We can have the same confidence Noah had in God’s faithfulness if we seek after Him with all our hearts. We don’t have to worry about the troubles of life. We can trust God to take care of us because He is faithful.

LESSON STEP

ACTIVITY

MATERIALS NEEDED

Animal Shuffle...............

Names of animals on slips of paper

Option: Confidence Drill. ....

Sponge ball or beanbag

Learning God’s Word

Noah’s Story..................

PreTeen Student Guide, pages 1 and 2

Applying God’s Word

Noah’s Confidence............

PreTeen Student Guide, pages 2 and 3

Option: Part One..................

Bible Explorer, page 1

Confidence in Action.......

None

Getting Started

Living God’s Word

Closing Activities

Memory Verse ................

Student guide covers and stickers

Option: Seek First................

PreTeen Student Guide, page 4

Making Christ My Savior............................

Page 1

Review............................

Activities: pages 94–95

Bonus Option: Part Two.......

Bible Explorer, page 2

Download symbol

Music Sing “Who Is God?” and “Glory to You” (downloadable).

Option See the resource packet.

Review Last Week’s Lesson ? What are the last three events of the end times? (Satan’s final destruction, the Great White Throne Judgment, and the New Jerusalem) ? What decisions did you make this week based on the fact that the body is mortal (it dies) but the spirit is immortal (lives forever)? (Answers will vary.)

Learning God’s Word with the Bible lesson.

This segment presents students

Animal Shuffle Write on slips of paper the names of several different animals (e.g., cow, parrot, horse, cat, whale, fish, snake, lizard, jellyfish, dog, deer, bear, lion, hippo, squirrel). Seat the students in a circle. There should be one less chair than the number of students. Instruct a student to stand in the center of the circle. Have each student draw a slip of paper with an animal name. The person standing in the center of the circle now names an animal characteristic. (Examples: I am a mammal; I can fly; I swim in the ocean; I lay eggs; I am covered in scales; I eat plants; I have horns; I eat meat; I have fur.) All the students whose animals have that characteristic need to get up and find a new chair. The student in the center needs to find a chair as well. Then the student left in the center must name another characteristic. Continue playing until several students have been in the middle of the circle. Then ask the following: ? What man from long ago had to put many animals in a small space? Hint: He built an ark. (Noah) ? What do you know about Noah and his story? (Possible answers include these: He built an ark, survived the Flood, gathered all the animals; it rained for forty days and nights; he had three sons; God sent a flood.)

Write the words confidence and faithfulness on the board. Can you tell me what these words mean? You may need to help students formulate their definitions. Definitions are provided in the sidebar.

In today’s lesson, we will discover how Noah showed confidence in God’s faithfulness.

Definitions Faithfulness—being reliable or trustworthy; a person who is faithful does what he says he is going to do.

Confidence—assurance, being certain, having faith or believing that you or another person will act in a right, proper, or effective way.

These Bible Fact-Pak Question Cards are relevant to this lesson: 33–37, 530, 539

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Teacher Tip Activities that allow the students to move around rather than sit appeal to preteen students. They also respond well to lessons that are broken into short segments of teaching in different styles, such as interactive, lecturing, and discussion groups. This change of activity also helps the student who has a hard time staying focused for long periods of time.

Note to Teacher: Students may have many worries in their lives, and they have probably been let down at times by people they trusted. Whatever their circumstances, students need to know they can trust God to take care of them.

He supplies our physical needs, and He provides for our emotional, social, and spiritual needs as well. God doesn’t promise to keep us from trouble, but He does promise to help us through it.

Teacher Guide 14 PreTeen Lesson 1

Confidence Drill An alternative way to introduce the lesson topic is to give a small sponge ball or beanbag to a student. When you get this, you must name something or someone in whom you have confidence. Confidence means “being certain, having faith or believing that you or another person will act in a right, proper, or effective way.” Each of you will pass or toss the ball to another student who then must name something in which he is confident, such as the sunrise, a teacher, a parent, a light switch, or a chair. Continue this until all the students have shared. ? How do you show your confidence in the things or people mentioned? (Possible answers: Confidence in athletic ability is shown by playing a sport with gusto or walking around with pride; confidence in a parent's love is shown by asking for their help or by giving them a hug.) ? When is it important to have confidence? (Possible answers: When you have to rely on someone else, when you have to perform to a certain degree of excellence.)

Confidence helps us achieve goals, put our trust in others, and affects our relationship with God. Today’s lesson is about how Noah showed confidence in God’s faithfulness.

Learning God’s Word with the Bible lesson.

This segment presents students

Noah’s Story Genesis 6:5 to 8:22; Matthew 6:25–34

Have students take turns reading aloud the story, taken from Genesis 6:5 to 8:22 and Matthew 6:25–34, on pages 1 and 2 of the student guide. As one student reads, the rest should listen for ways Noah showed confidence in God’s faithfulness.

• God’s heart was filled with pain. The people He had created had turned their hearts away from Him. They were doing wicked things. God was sorry He had made humankind because of their wickedness. He decided to send a flood to wipe out all the wicked people. But one man, Noah, was a righteous man. He loved and obeyed God. • God wanted to save Noah and his family from the Flood. God told Noah He was going to destroy people because of their evil.

He gave Noah detailed instructions on how to build a boat that would save his family and many animals. Noah believed God would be faithful. He did everything just as God commanded.

• When finished, the ark was 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. (That’s about one and a half football fields long, as

wide as the length of a basketball court, and as tall as a fourstory building.) The ark Noah built was huge. It took a lot of hard work and about 100 years to build. But Noah had confidence in God, so Noah obeyed.

• Then God told Noah to take into the ark one pair of every kind of animal and seven pairs of those that were good to eat. Noah believed and obeyed God. Then God told Noah to go into the ark with his family and the animals. Noah had confidence that God would be faithful. He did all that God had commanded.

• Then God shut the door, and it rained for forty days and forty nights. The land was completely flooded just as God had promised. Everything was destroyed. But Noah, his family, and the animals were safe on the ark. God had been faithful to His promise to take care of them.

• Noah, his family, and the animals lived on the ark for over a year as they waited for the water to dry up. When the water was gone, God told Noah to come out of the ark with his family and animals. Noah obeyed. He showed his thankfulness for God’s faithfulness by building an altar to the Lord.

• Noah didn’t worry about his needs or even his life. He knew God would take care of him. In the New Testament, Jesus says to us, “I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear” (Matthew 6:25). God took care of Noah’s needs, and He will take care of our needs too. Our Heavenly Father knows what we need. He will provide for us. He will be faithful.

• When we seek God’s kingdom and concentrate on the things that matter to Him, we will become more aware of God’s faithfulness. We can have confidence that He will do what He has promised.

Noah’s Ark For a wooden vessel, the ark was enormous. By modern standards it is comparable to a small cargo ship.

The ark was constructed with three stories, or decks, of “rooms” or separate compartments. It had an opening for light and a door in its side.

Ship builders today still use the dimensions God gave Noah to build the ark. It is the ideal size and shape for a large vessel to withstand a rough sea.

The ark could have held some 7,000 kinds of animals.

(Adapted from Full Life Study Bible, Zondervan)

Ask the students the following discussion questions, then read the “Noah’s Ark” facts from the sidebar (right). ? What are some ways Noah showed his confidence in God? (Every time he did what God commanded, he was showing his trust that God would do what He said.) ? If you were Noah, what might have shaken your confidence? (Building the ark was a big job; people probably criticized Noah for believing there would be a flood, etc.) ? What was Noah’s response to the challenges? (Read Genesis 6:22; 7:5.) ? What challenges might we face that take a lot of confidence? (Answers will vary.)

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Preteen Problem Keira’s friends have stopped sitting with her at lunch and have stopped inviting her for their weekend sleepovers. Keira doesn’t understand why they don’t want to be her friend anymore. Maybe they are doing things she wouldn’t approve of. Keira’s tired of doing things by herself, waiting for them to come around.

• What do you think Keira should do?

• How can she show confidence in God’s faithfulness in this situation?

Applying God’s Word connect the Bible to their lives.

This segment helps the students

Noah’s Confidence Matthew 6:25–34

Ask the students to complete “Noah’s Confidence” on pages 2 and 3 of the student guide to see how well the students understood the point of the story. (Answers: Page 2—A. Noah and his family got in the ark before the Flood; C. Noah took one pair of every kind of animal and seven pairs of the kind he ate onto the ark; E. Noah built a very large ark; H. Noah built an altar to God; Page 3—1. God promises to take care of our needs; 2. God takes care of the birds and the grass. He will take care of us. We need to have faith. Don’t worry; 3. Seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness; 4. All the things we need.) ? How do we know that God will be faithful to us and meet our needs as He did Noah’s? (Jesus promised that He would. See Matthew 6:25–34.) ? How did Jesus say we could show our confidence in God’s faithfulness? (By not worrying and by doing things that are important to God.) We can put our confidence in God’s faithfulness because He has always been true to His word. God keeps His promises.

We can have faith that He will take care of us.

n Part One

io Opt

If time allows, have the students complete Part One on page 1 of the Bible Explorer to help the students review what Jesus said we can do to show our confidence in God. (Answer: Don’t worry, seek God.)

Bible Explorer, page 1

Living God’s Word

This segment helps students use God’s Word in daily living.

Confidence in Action Divide the students into small groups. Have each group act out a scene in which one of the students shows he or she has confidence in Teacher Guide 16 PreTeen Lesson 1

God’s faithfulness. Discuss the importance of attitude when it comes to showing confidence in God. (Some suggested situations are these: Family has no money for food; Dad has lost his job; person wants to be baptized in the Holy Spirit; preteen needs new shoes to play soccer; grandmother is in the hospital; preteen has a big test the next day) You may read the Preteen Problem in the sidebar on page 16 and discuss the questions.

Closing Activities Memory Verse Divide the class into three groups and divide the verse into three phrases. Assign each group a different phrase. Have the first group say the first phrase, the second group say the second phrase, and the third group say the third phrase and reference. Do this several times until the class can do it smoothly and quickly.

KJV: Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33 NLT: “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” Matthew 6:33

n Seek First

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An alternative way to study the memory verse is to have the students complete “Seek First” on page 4 of the student guide. (Answer is shown—NLT.)

Review Questions 1. Why was God’s heart filled with pain? Because of the people’s great wickedness 2. What did God plan to do because of the people’s great wickedness? Send the Flood 3. How was Noah described?

He was righteous.

4. What does it mean to be faithful? To do what you say 5. What is confidence? Being certain about something 6. What is one thing Noah did to show he had confidence in God’s faithfulness? He obeyed and built the ark; he took in the animals; he stayed on the ark during the Flood; he built an altar of thanks to God. 7. What did Jesus say to us about worry? Don’t worry; God will be faithful to meet your needs.

8. What should we seek? Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

Making Christ My Savior

When we try to go through life without God, we have no one to go to with our worries. We all need God’s forgiveness and help. Pray with any who desire to accept Christ into their lives. See “The ABC’s of Salvation” on page 1 for further guidance.

Review See activities on pages 94–95 to use with the questions in the sidebar.

P

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s art wo nu Bo tion If time permits, have the students complete Op

Part Two on page 2 of the Bible Explorer to review the lesson and find out what kind of man Noah was. (Answers: 1. tar, 2. side, 3. eight, 4. high, 5. forty, 6. wide, 7. long, 8. hundred, 9. cypress; RIGHTEOUS)

Hand out Welcome to Holsom Self-Evaluation • Did the students explain comic ICON here,how Noah showedDavid confidence in

God’s faithfulness?

• Can they say what they will do this week to show confidence in God’s faithfulness?

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