Jonah

Art Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Teaching method: Focusing on learning the sequence of the story, create comic strips that tell the story using thumbprints. (Modeled after the book Ed Emberley's Great Thumbprint Drawing Book.) [Note: 4th – 6th graders visited this workshop.]

For scripture, objectives, and background- see above.

Leader Preparation:

• Read the scripture for this lesson.
• Read and reflect on the overview material provided for this lesson.
• Gather the materials.

Supplies List:

• The book Ed Emberley’s Great Thumbprint Drawing Book
• An easel; appropriate marker
• A set of pictures that depict the story (see resources)
• Masking tape
• Enlarged fingerprints (three copies)
• “Today’s English Version – Good News” Bibles
• Story paraphrase: “Runaway Jonah Learns a Lesson” (see previous post above)
• Comic Strip Basics (see resources)
• Comics Examples (see resources) several copies to share among students
• Paper – Bristol board & sheets of sketch paper (one sheet of each per student)
• Pencils, Colored Pencils, Pens or fine-point markers
• Rulers
• Washable ink pads (at least one for every 2 students)
• Wet wipes

Before Start of Class:

• Use a copier to enlarge the pictures that depict the story. (Make them large enough to be seen by all the students in the room.)
• Distribute Bibles around the seats at the table.
• Write the key Bible verse on the easel. Flip to the next page and hang the fingerprints on the easel paper. Embellish these fingerprints to show how arms & legs & facial expressions can be added. (Refer to Ed Emberley’s book.)

For example: make one fingerprint walking and looking over his shoulder. Add a thought bubble to this fingerprint, saying: “Nineveh! No way!” Over the second fingerprint draw a speech bubble, saying: “Repent or else!” Have this fingerprint be holding his hands up and shouting. Make the third fingerprint be sitting. Add a dark cloud over its head & give it an appropriate facial expression – to demonstrate how Jonah may have been feeling at the end of the story. (Refer to “Comic Strip Basis” – see resources.) Flip the easel paper back to the key verse page.

Note: the photo at the right shows fingerprints our Art Workshop leader embellished when we used this technique for the story of Moses, Plagues & Passover.

• Take a look at the individual pictures that depict the story. Notice how the pictures relate to the paraphrase. Create loops of masking tape equal to the number of pictures in the set. Place these loops near where they will be displayed (suggested: a long blank wall).

Presentation

Opening- Welcome and Lesson Introduction:
Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the Art Workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.

Ask: Has anyone ever given you a second chance? (perhaps a teacher, a parent, etc.)
Why do you suppose you got a second chance? (allow a few responses)

Say: Today we are learning about the story of Jonah. In this story Jonah got a second chance and lots of other people, the people who lived in a city called Nineveh, they also got a second chance.
Ask: What can you tell me about the story of Jonah?

If the students mention a portion of the story for which there is a picture, show them the scene and use a loop of masking tape to attach it to the wall.
[The scenes are numbered. Leave space on the wall to place missing scenes not mentioned by the students.]

Say: These pictures sort of look like they were part of a comic strip. Today we are going to be creating comic strips that tell the story of Jonah. We’ll have a special way to create our comics. Let’s look in the Bible to see if we’ve left anything out of the story.

[Note: Even if kids have told you the entire story have them find the story; it’s good practice.]

Dig- Main Content and Reflection:
Ask: Where would we find a story in the Bible that takes place many years before Jesus was born? (Old Testament)
Say: Besides being divided into two testaments, the books in the Bible are further divided into collections. We find the book of Jonah in the collection known as “Prophets.”

Ask: What is a prophet?
Say: A prophet was a messenger of God.

Make sure that everyone has a “Today’s English Version – Good News” Bible to use.
Have everyone open to the Table of Contents. Point out how the “Prophets collection” starts with Isaiah and includes all the way through Malachi. All these books (with the exception of Lamentations) are names of prophets - messengers of God.

Have everyone find Jonah, chapter 1, in the Bible.
Refer to the heading by chapter 1: “ Jonah Disobeys the Lord.”

Ask: How did Jonah disobey God?
[In the first week kids might not know – just say that they’ll find out when you tell them the story.]
Say: Even prophets, God’s messengers, sometimes didn’t always obey God. Jonah is called a “reluctant” prophet because he was averse to going to Nineveh, an enemy of Israel.

Using the paraphrase, tell the story. As you come to the portion of the story with a picture, refer to it on the wall or hang it up if it’s missing, using loops of masking tape.

After reading "While in the fish, Jonah prayed to God" … have everyone find Jonah chapter 2 and look at the heading: “Jonah’s Prayer.”

Ask: What do you suppose you’d pray for if you were Jonah? (allow a few answers)

Encourage everyone to read Jonah’s prayer at home this week.

Say: Let’s see what happens next. The third heading in our Bible is Jonah Goes to Nineveh.

Continue with the paraphrase, pausing after reading: “I’ll just sit here and wait to see what happens to Nineveh.”

Say: The final act in the story is Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s Compassion.

Read the rest of the paraphrase.

Start the art project:
Say: Today we will be making comic strips that tell the story of Jonah.

Say: Comic strips tell a story where the focus is on the pictures. Usually, there are very few words. [Show examples of comic strips. Refer to examples or use local newspaper.]

Ask: What are some components that you may want to use in your comic strip? (thought or speech bubbles, action and emotion). [Refer to comic strip basics.]
Can you find these components in the examples we just looked at?

Say: See how each scene is drawn in one box or frame. Note when the artist used a thought bubble. Notice how different actions and emotions are illustrated.

Say: We are going to use a special technique today to create your comic strip. Anyone can do it! It only takes your thumb!

[Show them the 2nd page on the easel. Point out how movement and expression can be added to thumbprints. Point out speech bubbles and thought bubbles and sour expressions! Show them how easy it is to draw emotion referring to page 9 in Ed Emberley’s Great Thumbprint Drawing Book. Pages 15-16 show how to draw action. Pages 31-34 show how to group thumbprints to create different scenes and comic strip characters.]

Say: Here’s the process we’re going to use today. Think about the story I read and the different scenes depicted on the wall. Decide how many frames you will draw and what will happen in each one. If you’re drawing 4 frames, divide your sketch paper into four quarters. Quickly sketch with pencil what happens in each frame. This will be your plan for making your thumbprint comic strip.

[Provide each student with a sheet of sketch paper and pencil. Encourage them to sketch quickly—not adding too much detail to their plans—so they have enough time to embellish their final comic strip. When they have their plans complete, provide them with the ink pads, wet wipes and Bristol board.]

Say: Now that your plans are sketched out you can begin adding the thumbprints to the Bristol Board paper. Apply your thumb to an ink pad and press it on your Bristol board. Make all the thumbprints first before adding detail so the print can dry. Wipe off your thumb when changing colors to keep from mixing colors on the ink pad.

Say: Once your thumbprints are complete and dry, you can add faces, arms, legs and action to your thumbprints using the colored pencils, pens and fine point markers. If they are not quite dry, add your frame titles, thought and speech bubbles before you add detail to the prints themselves.

Discussion: (while the kids are working)
Say: The key bible verse for this story is: “I knew that you were a gracious and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.” Jonah 4:2d

Ask: How do we know God is gracious and compassionate? (it might be an example from the story or a personal anecdote)

Ask: Who in the story received God’s unfailing love? (Jonah when he was saved from the fish and got a second chance to go to Nineveh; the sailors in the storm; the Ninevites from destruction; Jonah when God gave him a vine to protect him from the sun)

Ask: What do you think Jonah was thinking when he was swallowed by the fish? Was he feeling punished and trapped in the fish? Or was he grateful that he didn’t drown and for the protection the fish provided?

Say: We learn in the story of Jonah, that Jonah prayed a prayer of thanksgiving that he was saved from the depths of the water. His gratefulness led him to go to Nineveh to deliver God’s message when the fish spit him out on dry land.

Ask: How did the Ninevites repent of their wicked ways? (they declared a fast, put on sackcloth, gave up their evil ways and violence and prayed to God)

Ask: What happened to the Ninevites when they repented? (God did not punish them by destroying their city)

Ask: How can we repent? (turn away from the thing that is hurting our relationship with God (sin) , to be sorry for what one has done and to promise not to do it again)

Say: Jonah is the only book in the Bible that ends with a question.
Ask: Why did God ask Jonah “Should I not be concerned about that great city (Nineveh)? (Jonah was angry about the compassion God showed the people of Nineveh)

Say: When God took the vine away from Jonah, he learned that God gives second chances to anyone who repents and has compassion for all people and all of His creation. Isn’t it reassuring to know that God’s love knows no bounds and there is enough for all of us!

Closing:
Say: Let’s close with prayer.
Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Use the Lord’s Prayer as the ending. A suggestion: Our Heavenly Father, the story of Jonah taught us that your love is unfailing and abundant for all. Bless those who were mentioned in prayer requests today. Help us to show your love to others even when we feel they may not deserve it. We pray together the words our Lord taught us to say: Our Father who art in heaven… Amen.

If you have extra time:
Encourage students to embellish their cartoons with color using colored pencils—maybe add background detail and color. Have students swap finished cartoons and share with others in the room.

Resources:

“Comic Strip Basics” 2007 (see note below). Emberley, Ed.

Ed Emberley’s Great Thumbprint Drawing Book. Boston: Little Brown, 1977.

Hanson, Jan. “Wilderness Wanderings: Art Lesson.” 2004. (a lesson that uses this art idea.)

Wood, Lynn C. “Art Methods for Story Sequencing.” Rotation.org. 24 May 2004. (original idea for this lesson)

Scenes of the story are from: http://www.christart.com/christianbooks/read/4764/4 (Refer to this post to see which pictures were used.)

Fingerprints created by doing a Google image search and enlarging them using a copier.

A lesson written by Barbara Hoffman and Carol Hulbert for First United Methodist Church
120 S. State Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48104

If you use this material, even in a modified form, please include the following reference:
Hoffman, Barbara and Carol Hulbert. "Jonah: Art Workshop." Jan. 09. Place URL where lesson found inside angle brackets<>.

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Note: It has been brought to my attention that the link to the "Comic Strip Basics" no longer works, so this link has been removed.

What was this? It was a graphic that showed how comics could be constructed - it showed and described the purpose of a speech bubble, a thought bubble, a light bulb, a sound effect (like BAM from Batman comics!), and what one can do to illustrate a grumpy mood (like Charles Shultz used in his Peanuts comic strips. Sorry but this is a copyright document so I can not share it.