Pictures of Christmas festivities

 Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year to all of you! Here are some pictures of our gingerbread week and our present opening- 

Jj is for Jesus

 

This week we are listening for and looking for the letter Jj. We are learning about Jesus' birth and using the candy cane to see the shape of J.

Our KDI for the week is diversity- Children understand that people have diverse characteristics, interests and abilities. We look at the Christmas story- shepherds, an innkeeper, wise men, a young woman, a carpenter and all those around the world who believe in the same Savior!

Table Activities- This week's table activities include Christmas playdough, making an ornament suncatcher, trimming a paper tree, stamping a string of lights, Christmas experiments, dot painting, a ribbon and wrapping paper cutting bin and making clear ornaments.

Small Group- Our small group activities this week include making a beaded candy cane, making a nativity craft, adding Jj is for Jesus to our journal and our Christmas party.

Large Group- Candy Cane fishing and a tinsel dance are some of the fun group activities we'll do this week.

Books of the Week- "Mortimer's Christmas Manger" by Karma Wilson, "Christmas in the Barn" by Margaret Wise Brown and "A Night of Great Joy" by Mary Engelbreit.

Bible Story- Our Bible story this week is the story of Jesus' birth. Last week we heard about the angel coming to Mary and Joseph. This week we continue as the young couple is commanded by the Roman government to make the trip to the town of Bethlehem, where their ancestors come from, to be counted. They are not alone on this journey. Hundreds of people from all over made their way to the City of David. Mary and Joseph took their time as Mary was close to the end of her pregnancy. By the time they arrived in Bethlehem, there was no place for them to stay. An innkeeper offered the solution of his stable, which was most likely a cave carved in the side of a hill. It was warm and dry, but not ideal. Mary and Joseph had little choice since Mary was about to give birth! Probably unlike most births at that time which were attended by a group of female relatives- moms, aunts, cousins, sisters- Mary and Joseph were by themselves. As Joseph helped, Mary gave birth to a son and they gave him the name Jesus- Joshua or Yeshua in Hebrew- meaning "He Saves" just like the angel instructed them to do. Meanwhile, in fields outside of Bethlehem, shepherds were watching over their sheep. Shepherds were probably men, but also boys and girls were most likely there also. An angel appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them and they were terrified!! The angel told them not to be afraid- he had great news! Their Savior was born, in Bethlehem!! This is how you will know- he will be wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger! All of a sudden, there were thousands of angels praising and singing. I like to imagine that one angel came out from behind the curtains of the heavens to give the message and then the curtains were opened and all the angels, bright, shining and glorious, were there singing praises to God! What a glimpse to be given!! When the angels left, the shepherds decided to go and find the baby Jesus! When they found him, they praised him and then went back to their fields telling everyone they saw about what had happened to them that night. Mary treasured up all these events and thought about each one. May we be like the shepherds, glorifying and praising God for all we have heard and seen!!

Have a great week!

Gg is for gingerbread!

 

Gg is for gingerbread this week!

Our KDI for the week is Movement- Children express and represent what they observe, think, imagine and feel through movement. We'll do this as we pretend to be gingerbread cookies and read books about gingerbread come to life!

Table Time- Table activities this week include gingerbread create with paper, gingerbread playdough, gingerbread cookie cutter stamping, making a gingerbread shaped bird feeder, gingerbread clay mats, decorating a giant gingerbread person together, making gingerbread foam ornaments and gingerbread coloring pages.

Small Group- Our small group activities this week include lacing or sewing around a cardboard gingerbread person, decorating and eating real gingerbread cookies, adding Gg is for gingerbread to our journal and cutting paper and filling a gingerbread shape.

Large Group- Large group activities include gingerbread tag, learning a gingerbread fingerplay, Ginger says (like Simon Says) and Gingerbread twister.

Books of the week- "The Gingerbread Boy" by Paul Galdone and "Gingerbread Friends" and "Gingerbread Christmas" both by Jan Brett.

Bible Story- This week we move into the New Testament and begin with the story of the Angel appearing to Mary. Mary was a young woman, probably 13 or 14, who lived in the town of Bethlehem. She was engaged to a man named Joseph who was a carpenter. In those days, when you were engaged, it was as if you were married. Joseph was in the process of building on to his parents' house and when it was completed, he would come and get Mary and they would be married. One day, while she was working in the home, an angel appeared to her. Mary was terrified!! The angel told her not to be afraid, but that he had come to give her wonderful news. She would be the mother of the promised Messiah, the Savior. She wondered how this could be, since she wasn't married. The angel told her that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and she would give birth to a child that was true God and true man, 100% of both. Impossible for anyone to understand! Mary bent her will to God's will, saying, "May it be to me as you have said."  Unknown to Mary, her older cousin, Elizabeth was expecting. She had given up on being a mother because she was too old, but the same angel that had appeared to Mary had appeared to Zachariah, Elizabeth's husband and told him that his wife was going to have a child that would prepare the way for the coming Savior. Zachariah didn't believe him and was not able to speak until his son, John, was born. Mary's husband to be, Joseph, didn't know what to think. He was going to quietly set her aside, so not to embarrass her, so she could marry the father of her child. He didn't believe her that she was going to be the mother of the Messiah. Then, an angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him that what Mary said was true, so Joseph took Mary as his wife. Sometimes we think of the Christmas Story as some kind of fairy tale...and they lived happily ever after... It was a story full of sinful people fulfilling the promises of a perfect God. Confusion, stress, tumult, disbelief, conflict were all part of that first Christmas. God came to earth in Jesus to take care of all of that and bring us a peace that was like no other peace we had on earth, peace between God and man. May you have the comfort of that peace this Christmas season!