Crown of Thorns Bible Playdough Mat

I had mentioned in earlier posts that I love the Playdough Mats created on the FLAME website.  I printed them, put them in page protectors, and have a binder that my 3 year old son is allowed to work with during communion time each Sunday at worship.

He knows when the screen says the words "communion" that he can get his binder and playdough out, and he waits anxiously every week!

I read the mat to him in a whisper, and I love that he gets to listen to important scriptures about Jesus' sacrifice during this time.  Then he responds with the playdough in different ways, according to the various mats.

For communion time I printed the mats that have to do with communion, Jesus' death and resurrection.

This is a genius idea and I am so glad the Flame website created these!

I used their idea to make a couple more for our communion binder.  This would also be a great playdough mat for the Lenten season and for Holy Week preparation.

This week I made a CROWN of THORNS mat to add to our collection.  I will also put a handful of toothpicks into our bag for him to add to the crown.

If you'd like a copy, you can DOWNLOAD HERE for the printable pdf.

CLICK HERE if you'd like to download my other Playdough mat.

My try....my first playdough mat! Isaiah 53:5 Playdough Mat

I love the concept of playdough response mats so much....I used them Sunday during communion with 3yo Beck to great success!  He loved them and we had some great whispered dialogue between the two of us as we processed some of the elements of remembering Jesus' sacrifice.

I decided to make another mat that could go along with my communion set.  I've been wanting to use this verse and provide some type of response/interaction to it for a long time, and these mats were the perfect venue!

You can download the mat HERE to print in .PDF.

Maybe more to come?  So thankful to Flame  (click for link) for this awesome idea and all of the mats I downloaded and printed and am using from their site!

Good Friday with toddlers, preschoolers and elementary kids

This is the second year we've gotten the opportunity to celebrate Good Friday (yes, I know it was in MARCH....I'm a little behind with posting!) with friends.  We invited several families with little ones and for the past two years it has been my family and one other that has been able to make it--and it's been perfect.  Our friends always bring some neighborhood kids along, too, which is awesome!  This year they brought a little girl that doesn't go to church or know much about Jesus, so I spent some time thinking of how we could participate (in a child-appropriate way) in Good Friday--some of us not knowing much about Jesus.

To begin with, we held our festivities at a park near our house.  We lined the entryway with some palm branches (from our previous "Hosanna" activities) and the wooden cross my kids had made with Daddy--covered in a purple fabric.  I spent a little time talking with the children about these emblems and what they represent and remind us of.  ay wt

I decided we needed to move around a lot.  So we started the day with a hunt.  We had kids from 0-8 years in the group.  Of course the babies just kinda hung out and participated how they could....the 3-4-7-8 year olds were very excited by the hunt.  I had already hidden (or put in plain view) glass canning jars filled with objects.  I assigned each child a jar of certain objects to find and hid the jar with a difficulty relating to their age.  For example, I told the 3 year old to find the jar filled with red feet beads and I put hers right in the middle of the path.

The 4 year old had to find the cross beads, and hers was on this bench.  The older kids each had something to find, too, and theirs were a little more hidden.  

Everyone brought their unopened jar back to the table.  We talked for a bit about kings--I asked things like "What do kings wear?  Who does everything kings want? (servants), Do kings go to war a lot?  Where do kings sit?  What do kings have a lot of? (treasure)  Who do kings care most about?  (themselves) "  Then we talked about how Jesus was the King of Kings, but he was so different from other kings, and he calls us to live like him.  I told them we'd be making a bracelet to see how Jesus was a different kind of king.

To start with the kids could each put some of these beads on their bracelet--we talked about why they are purple, black and red (royalty, blood and darkness (when Jesus died))

Then we added other symbolic beads (or items) and talked about each one.

 I had already twisted some closures on a piece of wire that would be used for stringing the beads.  The stiff wire meant we didn't need to use needles.  

 
Dove bead--Jesus came to bring peace.

 
Jesus didn't have a throne--instead he died upon a cross for our sins.

Jesus wore a crown of thorns--the soldiers and the people made fun of him and he endured that because of his love for us, and to show us how we ought to act.

I had picked out several different styles of each kids' initial and put it in the jar--so they got to find their letter and choose which one they wanted to use.  We talked about how Jesus died for each one of us--he knew we'd sin and we'd need him and he went to the cross because he loves each of us.

We put a heart next to the initial to remind us he loves us.

We put a little foot on the bracelet to remind us that Jesus came to serve others, not be served.  He washed his disciples feet then called us to be servants, too.

Gold coins--to remind us that our treasure is in Heaven, where we'll get to be with Jesus--and not on earth.

So here's the finished bracelet--and using the beads the children could tell the "story" of Good Friday--the VERY good news!

 I bought a few of the beads at Walmart (Hobby Lobby would totally have a better selection but I didn't have time to get by there that week) but I really tried to use what I already had in my bead stash.  So you could change the particular items to match what you have, if necessary.  The crown of thorns was made using a piece of wired twine and I just made a circle shape with it.
The kids did great with this project--they listened very intently and were answering questions as we talked.  My Q was very proud of hers and could tell her Daddy what each thing meant later that night.  I love projects (crafts) that leave the maker with a symbolic item that can drawn them into a time of remembrance and worship with God--not just something cute.  I know we'll get ours out next Lent and go through the beads again.  I hope this will be a valuable meditation tool for the kids.  

After the bracelets we had a footwashing time.  We read the story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet from a children's Bible.  Then the moms washed their kids' feet.  I think this was almost more powerful for me as a mom than it was for the kids.  And I watched my good friend wash her baby daughter's feet--her daughter who had been adopted from Ethiopia this last year--and I thought about the trail they had been on to be together....what a beautiful thing to watch this Mama wash her little ones' feet.  

 

Then we had the Lord's Supper together, like Jesus did with his disciples.  We read that story, as well.

I had the table set with a cross draped in purple, a crown of thorns (made from some thorny vine found near our house),  some purple flowers, and some candles.

I had brought glass, metal and ceramic mugs of all different types so each child could choose the one they wanted.  Someday I hope to get some ceramic or wooden goblets made for my kids to use each lenten season.  Wouldn't that be so cool?  In the meantime, I wanted to use something beautiful and that would add a sense of "this is important" to the ceremony.

I had baked some homemade unleavened bread.  This is the second year in a row I planned to do this activity with Q and it just didn't work out, so I made it myself.  Might have to be my own tradition from now on!

 
We ate the bread and drank the juice--the kids all used chalk to draw a heart around the items--we talked about the fact that communion is God's way of reminding us every week of His great love for us.  

 

We had some simple "favors" in brown paper bags for taking home--the Mommas got:

And the kids got:

Extra piece of communion bread (they all love that stuff!), a palm branch that says "Hosanna  Save Now" on it and a piece of black fabric--we talked about this, saying they could go home and put it over a cross in their house.  When Jesus died many people thought it was over....but on Sunday he rose from the dead and triumphed over sin and death--and this is when we remove the cloth just as Jesus removed the graveclothes.  A good visual and tactile way for children to connect with the Bible story.  

Then the kids had a great time playing together for a little while.

I love the tradition this has become for our little family and our friends.  I love seeing the serious, reverent looks on the faces of the kids as they listen and absorb.  I love having a table full of all different-aged kids who are learning a little more about Jesus all at the same time.  Such a neat experience!

Hosanna-- Celebrating the Triumphal Entry with toddlers and preschoolers

Sunday was a busy day for us.  I'd been out of town over the weekend shooting a wedding, we had church, Matt and I had an evening "errand date" and it just wasn't a good day to do our Hosanna activities.  So we started out with them on Monday morning.

First we got everything ready.  We borrowed some rocks from our neighbors' flowerbed and made a road.  It was important to have the rocks because they come into the story later, but it also made the perfect road and let the kids help with the set-up.  Quinn got the broom to sweep all the pollen and pine needles and leaves off the path to get everything ready for Jesus.  (Which is the exact picture of the Lenten season, right? Sweeping our hearts and lives clear to be ready to open our hearts to the message of the crucifixtion and resurrection?)

Sunday night we saw a huge stack of palm branches in a neighbor's trash.  PERFECTO!  Matt even threw it in reverse so I could load them onto the top of the car because they were too big to fit in.  I was so excited to have the perfect props!  If you don't live where there are palm branches there are still lots of choices--use other branches (pine, etc.), cut palm branches from paper or felt or fabric.....the palm part isn't important.
Notice our very spiritual cat overlooking the Bible story.

Then we threw our coats down.  Which was interesting, because when I told the kids to grab their coats Quinn knew the story well enough to know what we were going to do with the coats.  "I am going to get an old coat because I don't want my favorite one on the ground."  We stopped and had a talk about sacrificial giving and what it tells Jesus when we choose him over our things--especially our favorite things.  Mama needs that lesson, too.......

Then I wanted to write the part of the verse "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord" in chalk near our "road," so while I did that, Q chose to draw a person praising God with a palm branch saying, "Hosanna."

 

 

 

(Q's person)

And our donkey:  Q's bike, with some grey fabric and Q's coat under "Jesus," a boy doll we happen to have.  Try not to notice that Jesus is entering Jerusalem in his footie PJ's, okay?  

(additional sidenote--older kids could be put to the task of making a sign that says, "Jerusalem" on it for the area....writing, simple woodworking could be involved....)

The donkey's head was saved from LAST YEARS' Hosanna project.  

 We just taped the head on the bike with masking tape.

We read the story from Luke to make sure we had everything set up right.  The tape was my paperweight as it was windy and kept blowing away my notes!

Then we acted out the scene.  We waved our palm branches (also--I used some garden shears to cut the pokey parts off the stalks so they wouldn't cut our hands) and Beck wanted to wave a stick, which was fine. We sang "Hosanna" and we said "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord."  

Then I pretended to be a Pharisee and Q pretended to be Jesus.  I said, "Jesus, tell your disciples to stop this!  They are saying things that are untrue!"  And Jesus (Q) replied, "If they don't praise me the rocks will cry out!"  Then Jesus (Q) got to the end of the road and turned to weep over Jerusalem.

 And of course Little Man needed a turn to be Jesus, too, so we reinacted it lots of times, and we still have it set up because they want Daddy to do it with us some evening this week.  

 So the important parts of teaching a Bible story--
*spend time preparing
*take the kids to the actual scriptures in the Bible and what it says in the scriptures
*let the kids help you set up and talk about why you are using the objects you've chosen
*tactile, hands-on materials
*repeat as many times as children are interested
*let them respond through play with the materials

Lent with Toddlers and Preschoolers

Lent is a season my family chooses to participate in as a means to focus an extra amount on the stories and truths behind Jesus' path to the cross.  Obviously we live every day of our lives "near the cross," but Lent is a good time to focus our studies, decorations, and family traditions around Jesus' path to the cross, and his subsequent resurrection on Easter. 

For young children, they need to connect the stories to things they can touch and see.  I like to use a seasonal table as a tool for this.  This is actually a square chair (the wooden kids' kids kinds that won't tip over--a cargo chair).  We turned it on its side and draped it in purple cloth.  We've talked about how the souldiers put a purple robe on Jesus to mock him, but they didn't know he WAS the king.  We look for crosses as we're out and about driving--most of them are draped in purple, and when we see them we point them out and say, "KING OF KINGS!"  Quinn and I have had some great conversations on why Jesus is the king ABOVE all kings--and she's very into kings and queens and princess, etc., right now, so this is very meaningful to her.  She is learning to connect the color purple to Jesus' royality. 

Our little table has a metal cross the kids can put the purple fabric on and off of.  This one works well because it's steady and doesn't tip well.  I want to get a wooden crucifix to add, so I am keeping my eyes open for one for them to hold and touch.  There are also two candles.  We talk so much about Jesus being the light of the world.  I hope my kids leave this home someday and aren't ever able to look upon a candle without connecting it to Jesus' words. 
There is also a grapevine wreath.  We have a real "crown of throrns" but because Beck is only 18 months, I keep it on our kitchen table so he is safe--because it is REALLY sharp.....the grapevine wreath reminds us of the crown of thorns.  There is also an illustration I took a photo of and printed out from our JESUS STORYBOOK BIBLE that Beck is particularly drawn to.  We locate all the "boo-boo's" on Jesus' body and the crown on his head and make the sign-language sign for "hurts."  We also have taught him the sign for Jesus, and he knows are fingers are nails going in Jesus' hands.  These two signs are great ways to introduce toddlers to the crucifixion story in a developmentally appropriate fashion. 
Next year I will likely include a nail on this table, but Beck likes to walk around with things sticking out of his mouth, and I know he'd be very drawn to a nail, so for now that will stay put up in our "Stations of the Cross" kit, which comes down when Mommy is helping. 
All of the items at our seasonal table are meant to hold, touch, and explore.  The kids like to clip Jesus' picture off and on the wreath. 

Additionally at our table we have a candle liturgy we do at dinner.  Basically we lit all the candles and light one less each week leading up to Easter, when they will be all dark.  Easter morning we'll light them all.  Q and I have talked extensively about how Jesus' followers did not understand his words that he would leave them but come back, so as it got closer to the time for the cross, they were sadder and sadder.  When he did die, the earth went dark.  But the best news of all is that he arose on Easter morning and the light was in the world--and now can be inside our hearts.  Q gave Daddy a mini-sermon on this last night at the dinner table.  :)
Candles are such an allure to children, and finding ways to connect routines and traditions to spiritual concepts are very powerful tools when teaching preschoolers and toddlers. 

I made the crown with some horribly thorny vines I found in the woods.  And yes, I did bleed making it.  Making a crown of thorns is definitely a holy experience as you think through what it meant and the pain it caused.  Next year it may go on our seasonal table as Beck will probably be old enough to learn how to touch it safely. 

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday

 Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.  Last year was my first time to experience this tradition, and I knew it was something I wanted to develop a little further in my kids' spiritual education.  Tomorrow afternoon I am getting together with three other Mommies and all our little ones to talk about the significance of Ash Wednesday and put ashes on the heads of any kiddos who want to participate.  I am breaking one of my own rules and writing a blog post on a day I usually don't, but I want to put this out there in case anyone wants to do Ash Wednesday at home with your own kids. 

 

I've been doing a lot of reading about using sacraments/sacramental days to teach my children about things of God.  I love this stuff and what it brings--joy and tangible experiences that are appropriate for young children, especially preschoolers.  I am learning through my readings to avoid the temptation to "explain away" these concepts and traditions.  From what I read, it's recommended to give a little bit of explanation but then to simply let our kids become immersed in the experience.  Too much talk takes away from the magic of the experience.  I relate this to what a friend of mine has shared with me about the Classical Conversations education method--that at a young age children spend a lot of time just memorizing dates, events, etc., and then at a later age spiral back to those same concepts (which have already been given a foundation through memorization) and add meaning to them.  That's what I am seeing encouraged as we lead our children to experience spiritual traditions.  Of course this is really hard for me because I want my 4 year old (who is barely venturing into abstract thought....) to understand to the depth I do how Jesus had to die for her sins and the subsequent emotions she should be feeling.....ridiculous....I know.  And at the same time I think about my Heavenly Father, shaking his head at the shallowness of MY understanding of Jesus's sacrifice for me.  Thankfully He does the same thing....lets me spiral back, again and again, to build on my understanding, and best of all, loves me even though I'll never fully grasp it all.

So tomorrow I'll have my little chiminea at the park and the kids will each get to put in some palm branches to be burned to make ashes.  We'll sit in on the ground ("in the dirt"), have a brief talk about the ashes and any child that wants to will then get a chance to have their mom put ashes on their head in the shape of a cross.  I'll be bringing a mirror so they can see what it looks like.  We'll have a prayer and sing the song "Lord, We Lift Your Name on High" (the one with the hand movements).  And that's it!

I hope to keep a tone of quiet and reverence tomorrow, which seems appropriate in light of the subject matter--and the fact that this is important stuff. We'll be quiet and reverent as we enter the park and during the ash time.  I will have everything set up right as the children arrive, as I know little ones' reverence does have its limits.  :)  And after our 10ish minute Ash Liturgy (that sounds so official, but I don't know what else to call it....ash bash?) the kids can run wild and crazy at the park and enjoy some playtime. 

 

I am so thankful I have friends who stand together with me as we impress Jesus on our children's hearts.  And if this whole thing totally bombs and nothing goes right.....we'll learn better for next year, right? 

I am excited!! 





I sat down and wrote a "script" of what I want to say tomorrow--enough to explain what we're doing, but hopefully not too much.....I'll be praying that the Spirit will lead me when the time comes to speak to these little souls tomorrow.  I wanted to share it in case you want to do your own Ash Bash with your kiddos tomorrow. 

Additionally, here's the LINK to my post from last year, when I introduced 3 year old Quinn to Ash Wednesday.  I share these in hopes you can be inspired to find a way to use this season as a tool to teach your kids even more about their Savior....and also because I have had a hard time finding information on Ash Wednesday and Lent and how to involve preschoolers, so here is some of the information I gleaned, put together in a way that makes sense to me. 
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 Today starts a time of 40 days that we work to get our hearts ready to remember that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose from the grave so we can someday go to heaven with him.  During this time called Lent, we look into our hearts we take out the things that don't help us love God,  some of the things we want out are our sins. 

I want to show you something we're going to do to remind us how sad our sins make us feel and God feel.  A long time ago when people were sad they would sit in the dirt and dress in rags and rub ashes on themselves to show how their heart was feeling (have some sackcloth (burlap) to hold up and show the children).  On Ash Wednesday, some people want to remember how sad our sins make God feel, so they put ashes on their head to show their sadness.  But they do something special with those ashes--they put them in the shape of a cross, because even though our sins make God so sad, He has given us Jesus to take away our sins by dying on the cross. 

(invite children to sit on the dirt)

If you want to, your Mommy will put some ashes on your head in a cross. (demonstrate)

Triumphal Entry Activity

We started out our week by studying the story of the triumphal entry.  We read the story in Q's children's Bible.  Then we had fun doing a craft we found here. 

First we made gray paint.  A good art lesson for Q on mixing a new color--she has never made gray before!

Then we painted her feet

and turned them into donkeys!

We cut them out and taped them onto her rocking horse to turn him into a donkey.  We tied a rope on it.  We went outside and cut some palm branches and got out our coats.  Then we acted out the story.  We had fun singing the different versions of "Hosanna" songs we know.  We put our coats on the ground and waved our palm branches.  We said the lines that are recorded in the gospels.  We talked about what Hosanna means ("save now").  We got out a rock for Jesus to point to when he (or the person acting as him) says "the rocks will cry out." 

Quinn LOVED this activity--every part of it!  We've acted out the story about a half dozen times.  Yesterday after we finished acting it out I went to make dinner and she had more fun just playing with the props--the donkey, the palm branches and the coats. 

Next year we're going to try to talk Daddy into letting us get a REAL donkey so we can use her for this activity.  Sounds good, right?  ;)