December TFF Lesson

December 4, 2020

When is your birthday? Did you know that God’s son Jesus has a birthday too? Christmas Day is Jesus’ birthday. Birthdays are exciting, aren’t they? How do you get ready for your birthday? (balloons, invitations, presents, a cake, family/friends come over for a party). Well, just like you get ready for your birthday, we also get ready for Jesus’ birthday—Christmas. The time that we get ready for Jesus’ birthday is called Advent. During Advent, we wait for Jesus to come, and prepare for his arrival. How do you prepare for Christmas/Jesus’ birthday? (Christmas cards/invitations, desserts, presents, decorations) —all things that we have at our own birthday parties. Each Sunday of Advent as we wait for Jesus’ birthday/Christmas Day to arrive, we light another candle on our Advent wreath. The first Sunday we light a Purple candle, the 2nd Sunday we light a Purple Candle, the 3rd Sunday we light a Pink Candle, and the 4th Sunday we light a purple candle. (Point to each candle as you talk about it.) This Sunday is the ___ Sunday of Advent, so we are lighting the ____ candle.

Advent Chant: PURPLE, PURPLE, PINK, PURPLE. Each time that you chant PURPLE tap your legs, and each time you chant PINK clap your hands. (Kids really enjoy motions to the words and are more likely to remember them this way.)

The Bible tells us about the birth of Jesus. Jesus is God’s son. Jesus was born in a stable in a place called Bethlehem. A stable is a place where animals are kept! Mary is his mommy and Joseph is his earthly daddy. If you have a Nativity scene show the children each of the characters—Ask them: Which one do you think is Mary?, Joseph?, the shepherds?, the Wise Men? and baby Jesus? Ask them what animals they see. The Angel of the Lord told some shepherds about Jesus and they came to see Jesus. Three Wise Men followed the star and brought gifts to Jesus.

Craft Advent Week 1: Make an Advent Wreath – Cut the inside circle out of a paper plate so that you are left with the outside circle of the plate (a wreath). Cut 4 bumps out of an egg carton (candles) and staple them to the wreath evenly so they are positioned at North, South, East, and West. Color the wreath green (or add green tissue paper). Color 3 of the candles purple and 1 pink.

Craft Advent Week 2: Handprint Wreath - Lightly draw a circle on construction paper. This is the outline you are going to follow for a wreath. On a paper plate, squirt a large amount of green paint. Roll up the child’s sleeve and press their flat hand into the green paint. Then place the hand on the white construction paper, following the circle, repeating the handprint in the circle to create a wreath. Let the child dip a cork or something else that makes a circle into red paint and create berries on the wreath.

Craft Advent Week 3: Make a Christmas Card - As we celebrate the joy this Sunday as part of the Advent season, let your child make a Christmas card for someone they love and they want to share the joy of the Christmas season with! Let them decorate the front of the card with green and red squares of construction paper, turn their fingerprints into reindeer, or see Pinterest for other ideas. Send it to your child's special someone and talk about the joy the special someone will feel when they get the card.

Craft Advent Week 4: Make an ornament for the Christmas Tree - As we celebrate the peace this Sunday as part of the Advent season, let your child make an angel Gabriel ornament for the Christmas Tree! Tell your child that Gabriel told Mary she was going to have baby Jesus! Take a cupcake liner and fold it in half (the angel's wings and body). Cut a small circle out of construction paper for the head and glue it to the body, letting your child draw a face. You can even add a halo with a pipe cleaner. Attach a string to the back so that you can hang your angel Gabriel on the tree.

Craft Week 5: Make a baby Jesus in a manger - Turn a paper plate into a manger by folding a paper plate in half. Cut off the outer rim of of the plate. Take the outer rim (folded in half still) and position it like a rainbow (these are the legs to the manger). Take the inner piece (folded in half still) and connect it to the outer rim so that the flat fold of the inner piece is up and the curved semi circle is the bottom of the manger. Decorate the manger, adding straw (construction paper, straw, or tissue paper). Add a baby Jesus to the manger - a circle for the head and an oval for the swaddled body.