My World is one of the four investiture requirements for Little Lambs. I had so much fun finding and creating materials for My World: Creation. I hope you and your Little Lambs enjoy it too.
Opening Circle Time
Story: The Story of Creation
Since we are focusing on creation, I wanted a book that covered the seven days of creation and what happened each day. The Story of Creation by Beth Atchison does a nice job of this. I think I found this easy-reader at my local ABC. Most bible story books will include the creation story too.
Craft: Creation Wheel
Valerie at Christian Preschool Printables designed these Creation wheels, and you can download the pdf on her website.
I cut the wheels out ahead of time, but parents could cut these out during the meeting. This year, our creation wheels were a wonderful cooperative craft between parent and child. I have no idea how that came about, but I was delighted to see the finished crafts and to see they each had one circle colored by the lambs and one circle colored by a more experienced hand. As the kids are coloring , you could be discussing what happened on each day of creation.
Supplies: printed wheels, something to color with, brads, and possibly scissors
Activity: Creation Day 3: Plant Petting Zoo
Do you have plants in your house? Take a look and see what makes your plants interesting. If you have sturdy plants that can handle a little travel and little hands, bring them to show day 3 of creation. We encouraged the kids to use a “one-finger touch” while petting the plants. I created label cards for each plant this year. But, if I were teaching the class, I would just tell the kids what the plant is and what I find interesting about it.
This activity is from the Little Lambs Leader’s Guide.
Play: Creation Day 6: Animal Scavenger Hunt
Our Little Lambs meet in the Beginners’ Sabbath School classroom. Like, most Beginners’ classrooms, there are a ton of stuffed animal friends decorating the room. For some unexplained reason, this week, the animals escaped to explore the church! And, they got lost. Fortunately, the Little Lambs were up to challenge of finding the missing friends and returning them to their classroom.
To keep the animals safe from truly getting lost or confused with animals that belonged in other rooms, each animal took a tag with them before they headed out to explore. I used a loop of stretch string to quickly loop the tag around each animal’s neck. Yarn, ribbon, or string would also work.
Some of our animals hid in the sanctuary. As the sanctuary is a very special place, I want to use this game as an opportunity for the kids to practice how to behave in the sanctuary. I posted a sign on the door to both alert the kids that they should go inside, and also to remind them how to behave while they are inside.
Preschool Skills: Creation Matching/Memory
Valerie, at Christian Preschool Printables, also created this creation memory game, and you’ll find it on her website. I love how easy it is to modify the difficulty level when playing memory. For young kids/a quick game, we leave the cards face up, and the kids take turns matching one set. Flipping the cards over to become a memory game will make in more challenging. I printed two sets of cards per child so they could play against their parent. With two sets, they can match the two identical pictures. For a more advanced game, they can match the number card to the creation picture.
Encourage parents to talk with their child about what happened on the days of creation while they play. “Ooh.. You matched two animal cards. God created animals on the sixth day.”
Closing Circle Time
Question for your Little Lambs:
What is one thing you learned about Creation? Another question option might be “What is your favorite animal?”
Story: God Made Them All
I love the book God Made Them All by Melody Carlson. It doesn’t go over the days of creation, but it is a sweet book telling us about all the animals God created – from the biggest to the smallest. It’s a board book, but it’s a longer book (for a board book). Unfortunately, it may be hard to track down. Fortunately, there are many great books about everything God has made. Look around your home and your church library. There’s a good chance you’ll find a great book on your shelf that fits our creation theme.
Song: The Trees are Gently Swaying
Yes, this is the cradle roll favorite that you probably remember. I’ve included the lyrics in the printable pack just in case you need a refresher.
If You’re Happy and You Know It
My Little Lambs co-teacher many years ago insisted that we end Little Lambs with If You’re Happy and You Know It. And ever since, it’s always seemed like the right way to close a meeting.
Prayer
We finish each Little Lambs meeting with an abbreviated version of the Lord’s Prayer.
Reminder
I chose these activities to fit my club’s meeting length and needs. Your club is different than mine! I have more activities here than are required to complete the award. If you have less time, prioritize a book, a game, a craft, and a song. Add more activities in to fit your time constraints. If you have extra time, you could repeat a fun activity or add in other lamb-related activities. Pinterest is a great resource! Your Little Lambs Leader’s Guide will also have ideas for you.
What is your favorite activity to do with your Little Lambs when you teach the My World requirement? Please share with us in the comments!