SCRIPTURE: Matthew 1, Luke 1-2

STORY POINT: Jesus was born.
 
CHRIST CONNECTION: God kept His promise to send a Savior! This is very good news. Jesus was not like other babies. He is God’s Son! God sent Jesus into the world to save people from their sins.

KEY PASSAGE:  "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

BIG PICTURE QUESTION: Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Son of God who came to earth to save us.

Directions:
You will have a nativity scene to let the kids play with during play time, this is a great time to explore the story and teach the kids the different people involved in Jesus’ birth.

Say: 
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Directions:
Using the masks, retell the story either from the cards or in your own words and have the kids act out the parts.

Say:
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Directions:
We have tried a puzzle once before and the kids really liked it.

Say:
This puzzle shows Jesus’ birth. Show me where Jesus’ picture is. Praise God! Jesus was born! Jesus is God’s Son who came to earth to save us from sin.

Directions:
Have the kids sit on the rug and close their eyes (this only last for about 5 seconds) then hide the pieces from the nativity scene around the classroom. Hide them in sort of obvious places, please do not hide them in places the kids are not supposed to go, like under the shelf covers, in the cabinets or in the closet.

Say:
Around the room are special figures. Let’s find them and take them to the large group area. Our big picture question asks, Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Son of God who came to earth to save us. Our nativity helps us learn about a time when Jesus was born. You found the pieces to the nativity scene. Let’s see who they are as we put them into the stable.

Directions:
Give each child a packet for their craft. There are 3 stickers to put on the cross to make their craft, it’s best to put the cross piece on first as it helps the other 2 pieces line up easier.

Say:
God kept His promise to send a Savior! This is very good news. Jesus is God’s Son. He came into the world to rescue people from their sins.

Directions:
For Go & Serve Saturday we planted flowers outside the Early Childhood classroom. There are mini watering cans you can use to take the kids outside and water the flowers. This is an ongoing activity for the season. There is a hose outside by the flowers you can use to fill up the cans. (It’s also nice to do this ahead of time if you want.)