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The Book of Esther: Doing the Right Thing - Lessons for Families at Home

Esther's Purim story is a timeless and timely story for children of all ages about "doing the right thing" for others even when you think you are powerless, trusting that God will be with you. It's especially a great story to teach during trying times.


Below are 5 "at-home" lessons about Esther based on the Writing Team's Original full "Story of Esther" lesson set. They are based on the Writing Team's original in-class lessons and have been shortened and adapted for home use, intergenerational, and "short class time" use. Each lesson presents the story with different media and a slightly different emphasis.

  • Boo Haman! Boo Evil! Start with this lesson (seen below). It includes a short YouTube video that summarizes the book of Esther, discusses the kinds of superheroes (like Esther) needed today, and has the participants making "Groggers" -- Purim noisemakers against evil. → Download and Share the PDF, or see the lesson below and print it.

  • Watch and discuss a short video retelling Esther's story, then participate in a truly “hands-on” reflection to carry the message with you.
    Download and Share the PDF, or see the lesson below and print it.

  • Bake Hamantaschen Cookies, a reminder of the bad guy in Esther’s story, as you consider how God gives us power over evil.
    →  See the lesson below, or download and share the PDF.

  • Play through the Story of Esther in the Free Computer Game: Awesome Bible Stories. It's a great retelling of the story with a story quiz and learning activities.
    → See the lesson below or download the PDF, and also download the software.

  • Make Challah Bread to give to your neighbors, a Purim tradition! and great way to show you stand with them in challenging times.
    →  See the lesson below, copy or print it; or download and share the PDF.


We recommend using more than one lesson to improve retention and recall of these important scriptures and life applications. Each is different enough to not feel repetitive.

Note that these lesson plans are open to our amazing Supporting Members who help make our website and its resources possible. Thank you!   

Be sure to see the FULL Esther lessons you are using the adaptations from. You may find their extra details and content helpful in your teaching.


Some Background

purim-logo1The Festival of Purim celebrates Esther's story in a humorous way laughing at evil — knowing God is good and working through us. It celebrates the victory of the Jews over the evil intent of the despised Haman during their Babylonian Exile, and the freedom to worship God and live in peace.

The Biblical story and Purim Festival makes a HUGE point of Esther's beauty. And indeed, many young Jewish girls grow up wanting to be her and looking forward to dressing like her at Purim. But the story also makes a point that her beauty was MORE THAN SKIN DEEP.  Her faith put-into-action makes her one of the great super-heroes of the Bible and is at the root of the modern tradition of dressing up as "superheroes" for Purim.

A critical point in this story is when Mordecai speaks these immortal and always timely words to Esther: “Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.” (Esther 4:14b) 

For adults who want to dig a little deeper into the study of this story, we recommend our Bible Background.

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Last edited by Neil MacQueen
Original Post
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