Jesus Without Language

Joseph’s two dream accounts are the focus of this craft. The end result is subtle but once you get the speed right you can actually see the angel speaking and flapping in the dream bubble. I will warn you right at the beginning that this craft is ink heavy and you need to have suitable acetate for your printer or photocopier. That said it’s so simple to construct that kids can almost be left unsupervised.

 
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This is a craft, a puzzle, a game, it’s made for Joseph and Mary but it could be adapted for just about any character on the site. Hide it round the room, use each piece as a reward for a comprehension question, or just put it out as a puzzle to reveal which character we will be looking at today. These are rather fun to play with afterwards for any age! It’s not a new idea, but it’s great for a series of characters where the images the kids made slowly build up a story. Throw in an angel and shepherd and if you wish you could even make a baby Jesus.

 
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Here are the images you need for the hero’s attributes linked to Joseph & Mary (Matthew 1)).

Each hero set contains a high quality graphic of the character, a take home bible card and a colouring page.

The images are displayed small here, click on the image you wish to have, then save the image that loads.
(Please note : these images have no watermark but are not copyright free, they are only intended for classroom use.)

English

 
The worksheet for Joseph is deliberately designed to be paired with the worksheet for Elizabeth and Mary, so one focuses of fatherhood and the other on motherhood. For that reason I’ve shown the image from the sister worksheet (in grey), if you want that worksheet you need this link

The worksheet for Joseph looks at what fatherhood is, how God changes our plans and how Joseph must have felt taking on the challenge of being Father to Jesus. The activity at the end of the sheet ties into the carpenter idea, building a crib that Joseph didn’t get to finish before leaving to Bethlehem. Please note: the bible verse is taken from the message, because the idea and language was most clearly expressed in that paraphrase, you may want older children to look up the biblical words.

To complete this worksheet the children will just need something to write with.

The PDF can be downloaded by clicking on the coloured image.

Joseph is a wonderfully underplayed character, his actions are only noted twice, both prompted by dreams, both effectively save Jesus’ life. This lesson tries to bring forward his fatherhood as a gift and a blessing and bring him out from the shadow of Mary.
 

Picture Sticks – This is a really simple game that can be adapted for a large space or played on a table, it can be used like a treasure hunt, a puzzle, or a reward for comprehension questions. For instructions follow see this post. link to idea that Joseph was a carpenter, skilled at putting wooden pieces together.
 

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Nail it – Hone you carpenter skills by recreating a picture with nails . You need a pile of small nails, a basic line drawing, and a pin-board (could use a thick piece of packing cardboard). Set up the pin boards and pins in a separate place to the drawing so that they can not be viewed at the same time. Kids can work as teams or individually to complete the challenge. Examples of pictures : very young – star, young – house, older group – bicycle, teens – horse.
 

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If you want the teachers page then please click on the image for a print worthy copy – the pdf is not working but will be fixed soon.

Today’s hero is Joseph, husband of Mary, because he shows us the gift of Fatherhood

Essential Teachers notes:
If there was ever a story that has been committed to memory it’s the story of Christmas, of Joseph & Mary. It’s really easy to put this text in your own words by never actually reading it, and for that reason I’ve deliberately tried to pull in facts from around the bible and culture to make this less of the Christmas fairytale and more the life of one man who is faced with a challenge, a challenge to obey, a challenge to be the male role model to an infant who is God.

Main Passage : Matthew 1
Additional Passages : Matthew 2, Luke 2, Matthew 25.

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