Other Art Ideas for the Lord's Prayer...

Anglican Prayer Beads

Question: I would like to add a craft to one of our Lenten lessons to include Anglican Prayer Beads. I have found some good instruction and ideas on how to make them, but I need some simple prayers for 8 and 9 year old children to recite with their beads. Any ideas?

• By Hilary Schroeder: Since you are doing this in Lent, find some prayers from devotional books written for kids at their level. Creative Communications for the Parish, Augsburg Fortress and Liturgy Training Publications all produce excellent inexpensive booklets. Or, have kids write their own prayers (if given some pointers/themes). What about taking the Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting, and alms-giving as topics for prayer.
  
  
• By Tonya: We just made Anglican prayer beads and I made up a handout to give the kids in my classes.

Prayer Pillows

Using T-Shirts

• By JRzmom: My idea isn't original, and I would be happy to give credit if I could track down the source. We are using prayer pillows as an art project for the children. The pillows are made of infant or children's (size small) t-shirts. Adult volunteers sew the bottom and sides closed on the shirts, including where the sleeve meets the body of the shirt, leaving the neckline open and slipping a piece of cardboard inside to keep the permanent markers from going through. The children choose a prayer or scripture to put on the shirt and then decorate it to their liking with fabric markers. They then remove the cardboard, stuff the pillows and the older children or adult helpers can slip stitch the neck opening closed. T-shirts with pockets would cost a little more, but the pockets can hold prayer cards or small prayer notebooks for the children.
  
  

Using Fleece - no sewing required!

• By JCarey: Use fleece to create wonderful pillows with no sewing. The older kids would cut and tie knots, the younger kids would just knot and the youngest could stuff the pillow. Maybe some adults in the church could make the pillows and let the kids decorate with fringe and beads or use paint to place a design on them. I can see the older children saying a prayer for each knot that they make. You would have to sew or iron on with fabric tape a pocket.
  
  

Thrift Store Pillowcases & Fabric Markers

• By Scurlock, AR: In my SS class, I used old pillowcases that I got free from our local thrift store. Before class, I made a template of a large lion paw print (which also happens to be our school mascot). The children traced two or three paw prints anywhere on their cases. Then they took fabric markers and wrote a prayer in each paw print. They chose a good morning, a good night, and the other prayer was whatever they wanted it to be about. (Most chose to write a prayer about world peace.) By using markers instead of paint, the children can take the cases home that day! I do believe they have enjoyed this activity more than any other one we have done. I got this idea from www.christiancrafters.com. This is an absolutely wonderful site to use for SS. I hope this works as well for you all as it did for me!!
  
  

Moderator Notes:  Anyone who has made a prayer pillowcase - have said it worked great!

Creating a Prayer Booklet

• By Hilary: Our kids just made prayer booklets using inexpensive dollar store photo albums. The clear pages allow you to easily change the page as you update prayer requests! One of our clergy uses this method for keeping track of his intercessory prayer list. He has an "emergency" list, one for every day of the week eg. Monday: missionaries, friends abroad, Tuesday: all pastors... (you get the idea).
  
  
• By keywestkel (Kelly):  We are creating Lord's prayer books. I have broken the prayer down so that each child adds a page to their Lord's prayer book (on page 1 - "Our Father," on page 2 - "who art in heaven," etc.) I printed labels on the computer with the prayer sentences for the younger kids; older kids can write the portion of the prayer. Then kids illustrate what this portion of the prayer means to them.