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David and Jonathan

Workshops in this lesson set :

  • Computers: tell the story with a PowerPoint
  • Drama: Enact a purchased script of a TV talk show where people talk about their personal lives
  • Games: Play a Jeopardy-type game
  • Science: Science experiments to illustrate the bond of friendship through molecule bonds
  • Storytelling: hear the story of David and Jonathan’s friendship from the perspective of a “silent” observer at the palace—a member of the housekeeping staff (not sure what happened to this lesson, possibly lost in a site upgrade.)

Scripture Reference:
I Samuel 17:57-20:42;
Core of the story is I Samuel 17:57-18:16, 19:9-12, and 20:1-42
For supplemental information:
I Samuel 13:1-3—Jonathan’s victory
I Samuel 23:15-18—David and Jonathan’s last meeting
I Samuel 31 and II Samuel 1—The death of Saul & Jonathan

Memory Verse:

“Some friends don’t help, but a true friend
is closer than your own family.” Proverbs 18:24 (CEV)


Bible Background

What's going on here?
David, the son of Jesse of Bethlehem, comes to the attention of King Saul when David, with a slingshot, kills the mighty Philistine giant Goliath (I Samuel 7:55-59). David is brought into the king’s household, and entertains the king with his music—especially on the harp. David develops a very close friendship with King Saul’s eldest son, Jonathan. Sadly, King Saul seemed to be mentally unstable. Saul became suspicious of David, resenting David’s successes, his popularity with the people, and his friendship with Jonathan. Ultimately, he decided to kill David. Jonathan got put in the middle between obedience to his father, and devotion to his dear friend.

This story reaches its climax the second time that David runs away from Saul in order to protect his own life (I Samuel 19:9-12). He contacts Jonathan for advice, and together they devise a plan to determine if Saul really intends to kill David, or not. They also come up with a signal for Jonathan to relay the information to David. At a banquet for the New Moon Festival, Saul was very explicit about his intentions to kill David (20:30-34). Jonathan gave his friend the agreed-upon signal that he must run for his life, and they say good-bye to one another.

Why is this story important?
First of all, this story is one of the most powerful stories in the Bible about human friendship—a good way to begin our theme this year, “Best Friends/Blessed Friends.” These two young men remained faithful to each other, seeking each other’s best interests.
Secondly, this story shows two young men acting with integrity and faith in God in what is a terribly unjust situation. David had always been loyal to King Saul, despite the king’s distrust of him. Jonathan also was faithful to David, even though as the eldest son of the King it would have been in his interests to dispose of anyone seen as a threat to the throne. He helped David escape, but then returned to faithful service to his father, until they died together in battle.
Finally, this story is important because David went on to become the greatest king in Israel’s history. The New Testament sees his kingship as a precursor to Christ’s eternal reign. This story gives us some background about David. We also later see David’s integrity and faithfulness to Jonathan’s memory as he protects and provides for Jonathan’s disabled son, Mephibosheth (see II Samuel 4:4 and II Samuel 9:1-13).


A lesson set from Augustana Lutheran Church
St. James, MN

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

Last edited by Luanne Payne
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David and Jonathan

Computer Workshop

Grades k-3

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Uses a Power Point presentation to tell the story.

Scripture Reference:

I Samuel 17:57-20:42;
Core of the story is I Samuel 17:57-18:16, 19:9-12, and 20:1-42
For supplemental information:
I Samuel 13:1-3—Jonathan’s victory
I Samuel 23:15-18—David and Jonathan’s last meeting
I Samuel 31 and II Samuel 1—The death of Saul & Jonathan

Memory Verse:
Proverbs 18:24 (CEV), “Some friends don’t help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.”

Lesson Objectives:

  • To remind the children of the story of David/Goliath and David/Saul and add Jonathan and Mephibosheth to the picture.
  • To show the faithfulness of God in protecting His people
  • Show that Jonathan was faithful to his friend David even when his father Saul was trying to kill David.
  • Show how important friendship is and how David made sure that Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth was taken care of long after Jonathan had been killed.

    TEACHER NOTES: This is a slide story done in Power Point. The children can forward to the next picture by clicking on the Red Heart, as you read the script. It should last about 10 minutes. Please feel free to add to the script as it is being viewed or to ask questions as you feel inspired. Perhaps it would be best to have the computers at the opening screen “David and Jonathan” before the children arrive.

Supplies List:

  • Computer with Power Point viewer.
  • Power Point Story (*see Moderator's note below)
  • Pencils and journals for each student
  • Computer Program

Leader Preparation:

  • Read the scripture ahead of time.
  • Gather the materials.
  • Explore the software.

*Moderator adds:
Appears they used portions of the free downloadable Power Point stories on David found at http://www.bibleforchildren.org/
Directions - once at site - click on language (example: English), then scroll down.  It appears they used portions of three different Power Point stories:
- #19 David the Shepherd Boy
- #20 David the King Part 1
- #21David the King Part 2
right click on each story and save to your computer.
Then you need to figure out which slides they used, going by their script below (they rewrote some of the text.)
Once you've compiled the story, as you like it, save copies to disk or USB and copy to your computer(s) at the church.



Presentation

Opening- Welcome and Lesson Introduction:
Today we are going to learn about two very special friends. One boy was a poor, shepherd boy who became a king named David. The other by the name of Jonathan was the son of a king. Both David and Jonathan loved the Lord.
PRAYER:
Let us begin with a word of prayer: “Dearest Father, thank you for bringing us here today to hear about two of your special servants, David and Jonathan. Thank you for giving us friends and for one very special friend, Jesus. Amen

Bible Verse:
Before we begin, let’s all say the Bible verse for September together:
“Some friends don’t help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.”
Proverbs 18:24

Questions:

  1. Do any of you have friends?
  2. Do any of you have one very “best friend”?
  3. What are some of the things that you do with your friends?
  4. Do any of you ever spend the night at your friend’s house?


Today on the computer, we are going to watch a story about two very special friends, David and Jonathan. Although David and Jonathan were not brothers they were such very special friends that they treated each other like brothers. Jonathan’s father, Saul, invited David to stay at their house and play the harp for him. It is during that time that David met Jonathan and they became friends right away.
**We’ll talk a little more about these questions after we have looked at the lesson.


David and Jonathan Script

Slide 1: The Story of David and Jonathan

Slide 2: Credits (no need to read these)

Slide 3: Long ago, in the days of King Saul of Israel, a boy named David helped his seven brothers look after their father’s flocks. Though he was youngest, David was a strong, brave boy who loved and trusted God. He lived in the town of Bethlehem.

Slide 4: Once a lion attacked the flock to snatch a little lamb for supper. Young David attacked the attacker. Pulling the lamb away, he grabbed the snarling beast by its beard and killed it. David knew God had helped him.

Slide 5: Samuel, God’s prophet, was still sad that King Saul had failed God so badly. “How long will you mourn for Saul?” God scolded Samuel. “I am sending you to Jesse . . . . For I have provided Myself a king among his sons.” Jesse was David’s father.

Slide 6: Even though Samuel knew King Saul might kill him for going to find another king, the prophet obeyed God.

Slide 7: When Samuel arrived, Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chose these.” That only left David, the youngest. He was out with the sheep. They brought David in. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is the one.”

Slide 8: In Saul’s palace, the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and he became a very troubled man. His servants thought good music might settle Saul’s mind. One of them knew a young man who played the harp well. Can you guess who that young man was? Yes, David.

Slide 9: David’s music soothed Saul and helped him to think straight. Saul asked Jesse to let David stay in the King’s service. Whenever Saul had an attack of depression or fear, David played the harp for him. It helped.

Slide 10: Now Saul had a son. His name was Jonathan. David and Jonathan became very good friends right away when they met.

Slide 11: After David went home to his father, Jesse, Saul had a big battle with the Philistines. David’s brothers fought in Saul’s army but David stayed at home to watch his father’s sheep. Jesse sent David to the battle with food for his brothers. David got to see the army and the giant, Goliath.

Slide 12: A HUGE Philistine Giant, Goliath, had scared all the Israelite soldiers.

Slide 13: “Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me!” Goliath shouted. “If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” All the men of Israel when they saw the giant, fled from him and were dreadfully afraid.

Slide 14: Then David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” Saul wanted David to wear armor and carry a sword. Instead, David took his sling and picked five smooth stones from the brook.

Slide 15: Goliath laughed when he saw that young David wasn’t even wearing armor. “I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” he roared. “I come to you in the name of the LORD!” David answered. “This day the LORD will deliver you into my hands. . . for the battle is the LORD’s!”

Slide 16: Then David ran straight toward Goliath. As he ran, he fired one stone from his sling—right into Goliath’s forehead. Goliath fell and died!

Slide 17: King Saul did not remember that this was the same David who had soothed him with the harp. He put David in charge of his army – then got jealous when the people honored David’s victories. “Now what more can he have but the kingdom?” Saul thought. So Saul eyed David from that day forward.

Slide 18: Again, King Saul’s mind was troubled. So David played music to try to soothe him. Three times Saul threw his spear at David. But David escaped each time. Saul was afraid of David because he knew the LORD was with him, but had departed from Saul.

Slide 19: But Jonathan, Saul’s son, loved David as a brother. “My father Saul seeks to kill you,” he warned David. So David escaped. His wife put a dummy in his bed, and let David down from the window in the middle of the night. When Saul’s men came in the morning, David was gone.

Slide 20: Sadly, the two friends said goodbye. David set out to find a place where he could live without fear of Saul’s soldiers finding him.

Slide 21: Young David was on the run. King Saul wanted to kill him. David lived in the wilderness, in a huge cave with four hundred followers.

Slide 22: Sometimes, King Saul’s soldiers almost found them. But David kept moving.

Slide 23: The Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled. The Philistines killed Saul’s sons, including Jonathan, David’s good friend.

Slide 24: Saul was severely wounded by the archers. And he said to his armour-bearer, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these wicked men come and thrust me through and abuse me.” But his armour-bearer would not, for he was greatly afraid. So, Saul took a sword and fell on it.

Slide 25: When David heard the terrible news, he mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul, for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, because they had fallen by the sword.

Slide 26: Even though Saul had tried to kill David, David honored Saul as God’s anointed one until the end. Now God honored David, making him the king in Saul’s place.

Slide 27: Then all the tribes of Israel came to David and anointed him king over Israel. At long last, David was king over all the nation.

Slide 28: David had to fight many battles in the early years of his reign. He was a wise soldier and a humble man who prayed for God’s guidance.

Slide 29: David wanted to help any survivors of Saul’s family. He found only Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, who was crippled. “He shall eat at my table like one of the king’s sons,” David said. David was kind to Mephibosheth because Jonathan had been his best friend.

Slide 30: As long as David trusted God and obeyed Him, God helped David to prosper. David thanked God for his friend, Jonathan, and for Jonathan’s father, King Saul.

Source

This lesson has been adapted from http://www.bibleforchildren.org/

License: You have the right to copy, print or distribute each Bible Story, as long as you do not sell it.

Questions:

  1. First of all, does anyone have any questions? (Perhaps you can re-read some of the verses to the children if there is confusion)
  2. In this story from the Bible, was Saul a happy man? (No)
  3. Why not? (The Spirit of the Lord had left Saul)
  4. Why was David invited to live with King Saul? (David could play the harp and the music made King Saul feel happier)
  5. Who else lived with King Saul? (His son Jonathan)
  6. Did Jonathan and David like each other? (Yes, they became very good friends)
  7. Have any of you ever spent the night at a friend’s house? (answers will vary) Can any of you share what happened?
  8. Were any of you really ready to go home the next day? (Let them share for a bit)
  9. When David was living with Jonathan and King Saul the first time he wasn’t very old and he was away from his father Jesse and his seven brothers. Do you think he missed them? (We don’t know for sure, but because he had found such a good friend in Jonathan, he thought of Jonathan like a brother)
  10. Why did David go back to live with King Saul and Jonathan? (David had killed Goliath and Saul wanted him in his army)
  11. Were David and Jonathan still good friends? (Yes)
  12. Why didn’t King Saul like David any more? ([This may not have been very clear in the story] - the people in the kingdom liked David; he was a hero and Saul was afraid that they liked David better than they liked the king—which they did!)
  13. Why did David have to leave Saul’s house? (Saul was trying to kill David.)
  14. Were Jonathan and David sad that they had to say goodbye to each other? (Yes) They were best friends and both loved God very much. They knew that they may never see each other again but Jonathan helped David escape and saved David’s life.
  15. What happened to Saul and Jonathan later in the scripture that made David very sad? (They were killed)
  16. After King Saul was dead, who became the next king? (David) Remember back to the beginning of the story when God sent Samuel to anoint David as the next king? This is fulfilling God’s plan that he had started many years before.
  17. Even though King David was a very important person after he became king, he never forgot what a special thing his friend Jonathan had done for him by saving his life. Although David couldn’t do anything to help Jonathan any more, he did something very special for Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, what was that? He brought him to live with the king and to eat at the king’s table for the rest of his life.


Memory Verse:
Before we do our Journal time for today, let’s repeat the Bible verse for this month: “Some friends don’t help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.” Proverbs 18:24 (CEV)

Journal Time:
We just heard the story about two very special friends, David and Jonathan. Can you draw some pictures of some of the things special friends today do together? Maybe you can add some pictures of some the thing you think David and Jonathan did together.

Extra Time:
Bibleland.Com (out of print) has some games that could be played to fill in some time. One is a game where David is suppose to hit a target with his sling shot. There are a couple puzzle games that could work.

Moderator Notes: you could finish the lesson by having the kids use Kid Pix 4 or the newer "3D" version

Write it up and illustrate it in the program I call "powerpoint for kids."

  • Kid Pix 4’s creative writing and drawing tools let your students create their own multimedia pictures and slideshows about any subject.
  • Kid Pix 4 can speak out-loud over the computer speakers whatever is typed on the screen using the text tool.
  • You can import graphics, including photographs, illustrate them and add captions.

to create a picture of David & Jonathan and write what each valued in their friendship. Kid Pix will speak out loud those friendship thoughts.

Closing:

Dear God, Thank you for teaching us about David and Jonathan today. Help me to be an extra special friend this week. And all God’s children said AMEN!




A lesson written by Diane from: Augustana Lutheran Church
St. James, MN

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

Last edited by Luanne Payne

David and Jonathan

Games/Missions Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

In this workshop, the learners will review stories of David using a Jeopardy-type game.

Scripture Reference:

1 Samuel 18:1-12, 20:1-42

Memory Verse:

Proverbs 18:24 (CEV), “Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.


Supplies List:

  • Copy of the story “David and Jonathan”
  • Jeopardy grid with five categories—Bible Blessings, Living It, People, Places, and Odds and Ends (grid should be copied onto a transparency and one copy with answers is needed for the teacher); post-it notes; overhead projector; NRSV Bibles and Children’s Bibles; pencils.

Teacher preparation:

  • Read the Bible passage.
  • Read over the background material included in your teacher packet as you become familiar with the Bible story and the lesson plan.
  • Arrange the projector to project the Jeopardy grid onto a wall, making it large enough to see from a distance.
  • Cover the questions with post-it notes.


Presentation

Opening-Welcome and introductions:
Greet the children and introduce yourself. Invite the children to pray with you:

Loving God. Thank you for these friends who are here to worship you this morning. Open our minds and hearts to learn more about your loving ways as we study the story of David and Jonathan. In Jesus Name, AMEN.

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:

Lesson Plan:
1. Gather the children together and read this month’s story of David and Jonathan using a version from a Children’s Bible or ebible.com. Then review the story using the following:
What gifts did Jonathan give to David?

  • Why was Saul angry with David?
  • What differences did Jonathan and David have to overcome to be friends?
  • Why was David afraid of Saul?
  • How was David a friend to Saul?
  • What did Jonathan promise to do for David?
  • In the end, what did David do for Jonathan after Jonathan’s death?

2. Review the story of David we learned two years ago—“David Spares Saul”. This can be done by rereading the stories, either from the NRSV Bible, from The Children’s Bible, or from ebible.com. It can also be done by letting the children tell the stories themselves. If you ask them to tell the stories, you may need to prompt them for events and details.

3. Hand out Bibles and/or Children’s Bibles. Help the children locate the stories of David we have studied. The Jonathan story is found in 1 Samuel 18-20 and 2 Samuel 9:1-7. The David Spares Saul story is found in I Samuel 24:1-20. Tell the children to mark or make a mental note of the locations of these stories as they might need them to help them in our game.

4. Tell the class that we are going to review these stories using a Jeopardy game, where the teams will answer questions about all three stories. Divide the children into two teams. Make sure each team has Bibles. Go over the rules of the game:
The first player of Team A chooses a category and an amount. Remove the post-it note from the spot and reveal the question. The player must confer with his or her teammates and come to a consensus for the answer. The player gives the answer. If the players are stumped, they may use their Bibles to look up the answer. (Be sure to limit the time the players have to search for the answer—probably no more than 30 seconds or so.) If the players get the correct answer, they receive the points for that question. If they answer incorrectly, the other team may “steal” the points by answering the question correctly.
Play passes to Team B and alternates between teams until the board is empty. Within teams, take turns so that every player on each team has a chance to choose a category.
The team with the most points wins. Note: competitive games should be played as a team so that infrequent attendees or visitors are not made to feel pressured or uncomfortable. Make sure that each player has a chance to choose the category and point value, but make sure all players “confer” with their team before answering. This will also promote discussion among the children.

5. Once everyone understands the rules, play the game.

Closing:

When the game is over, declare a winning team, but congratulate everyone on jobs well done. Remind them that David had faults, but because of his love of God he eventually achieved power and greatness as the king of Israel. Ask for any thoughts about what we have learned and about what the life of David teaches us about true friendship. Prompt them, if necessary, on saying some of our main concepts: God looks at our hearts, we should trust in God for help in hard times, we should show God’s grace in our relationships, etc.

Closing prayer:
Close the class with a prayer of your own, or use the following:
Gracious God, thank you for these stories of David that show us how we are to live as your people and be a true friend. Help us to remember to keep you in our hearts, to depend on you for help, and to treat others with the same grace you show us. Amen.

Journal Time:
Help the shepherd pass out the journals. Have them answer the following:
How do each of these stories of David teach us about friendship?

Dismissal:
Have the children help you tidy up the workshop space. Dismiss them with instructions about where they are to go. If you complete the lesson with quite a bit of time left, the students may enjoy a David and Jonathan crossword puzzle or wordfind.

Adjustments for younger children:
If needed, ask the shepherd to be on both teams to help them look up answers they don’t know.


References:


 

Bible Jeopardy Categories, Questions, and Answers

Bible Blessings:

100 Where in the Bible are our stories found?
(In 1 Samuel mainly; small part found in 2 Samuel)

200 What does God look at to judge us?
(the heart)

300 How did Saul lose God’s blessing on his kingship?
(He did not obey God.)

400 What happened to David after he was anointed?
(the spirit of the Lord came upon him)

500 What does anoint mean?
(To pour oil on someone’s head to set them apart for a special job.)

Living It

100 Who did David ask for help in fighting Goliath?
(God)

200 Why did God tell Samuel to send for David, even though he was the youngest son?
(God knew David had a right heart.)

300 What gifts did Jonathan give to David?
(robe, armor, sword, belt, bow)

400 What did Jonathan promise to do for David?
(Test his father to see if he really wanted to kill David.)

500 How did David remember Jonathan after he had died?
(He brought Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, to live in the palace with him.)


People

100 Who was Saul jealous of?
(David)

200 Who was David’s best friend?
(Jonathan)

300 Who was the person David had to from from?
(King Saul)

400 Who was the first king of Israel?
(Saul)

500 Who was Jonathan’s son?
(Mephibosheth)


Places

100 Where was Saul king?
(Israel)

200 Where did David the shepherd boy live?
(Bethlehem)

300 At the end of the story, where did Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth eat and live?
(In the king’s palace.)

400 Where did David play his harp and sing?
(For King Saul in the king’s palace.)

500 Where did David hide from Saul?
(behind a rock in a field/in a cave/in the mountains)


Odds and Ends

100 What was David’s job in his family?
(shepherd)

200 How did David prove he did not want to harm King Saul?
(He cut off a piece of the king’s robe to prove he could have killed Saul, but did not.)

300 Did David want to steal King Saul’s job?
(No, he respected King Saul.)

400 Why did David play the harp and sing for Saul?
(Saul was troubled, and David’s songs comforted him.)

500 What relationship did Saul and Jonathan have?
(Jonathan was Saul’s son and heir.)


A lesson edited by Kirsten Freitag from: Augustana Lutheran Church
St. James, MN


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

Last edited by Luanne Payne

David and Jonathan

Science Workshop

 

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Use the concept of molecules that bond to explain the loyalty and friendship that bound David and Jonathan together. The students will explore the gift of human friendship, and especially the gift of friendship with God.

 

Scripture Reference:

1 Samuel 18:1-12, 20:1-42

Memory Verse:

Proverbs 18:24 (CEV), “Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.” [B]


Science experiments to illustrate the bond of friendship through molecule bonds:

  1. Float a needle.
  2. Drive a marble into a bubble.
  3. Saucer slime.
  4. Optical Illusion Art (What is your perspective?)

Supplies List:

  • Needle Experiment: Water and paper towels; one bowl, needle, 1 ½ sq. Paper per student, liquid dish detergent.
  • Bubble Experiment: Plastic liter soda bottle, small wet toy or marble, a clean jar with a lid containing one recipe of Bubble Base. (This recipe will slow down the drying time. When bubbles dry, they break.)
  • Bubble Base: ¼ c. Bubble mix, ¾ c. Water, 1 Tbsp. sugar or 1 package unflavored gelatin or 1 Tbsp. glycerin.
  • Saucer slime: (One recipe per student) 2 Tbsp. clear gel glue (but not Super glue) 2 Tbsp. purified water 2 tsp. Borax solution
  • One per student: Glass cup, measuring spoons, plastic spoon (for stirring), zip-lock plastic baggy.
  • Borax Solution: Add one Tbsp. Borax to one cup of warm water. Stir until dissolved and store the liquid in a jar. Label it: Borax Solution: Do Not Drink! (Borax is poisonous and harmful if ingested.)

Leader Preparation:

  • Practice the needle and bubble experiments ahead of time. If class time is short, select just one of them to do. It is important for the square of paper under the needle to be small—otherwise it takes awhile for the paper to get wet enough to sink. We used a small square of absorbent paper towel, and it worked well. Don’t give students the liquid dish detergent out until the needle is safely floating—contamination would ruin the bond and the experiment.
  • Read the scripture ahead of time. 
  • Gather the materials.


 

Presentation

 

Opening- Welcome and Lesson Introduction:

Warmly welcome the students. Start with a prayer such as this: “Loving Father, thank you for these friends who are here together this morning. Be with us as we learn more about friendship with each other and with You. In Jesus name, Amen.


Ask a student(s) to read aloud I Samuel 18:1-5: TEV David and Saul become friends.
Ask: What is a good friend like? (Accept all answers: e.g. loyal, honest, fun to be with, similar interests, understanding, etc.)

Say: God’s creation can help us learn more about friendship. All the stuff in the universe is made out of atoms, little building blocks called elements, that are too small too see. Scientists have discovered 115 different kinds of elements. Sometimes atoms stick to each other, and become a molecule. Scientists call this process “bonding.” Let’s do some experiments to demonstrate this fascinating process.

 

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:

Float a Needle:

  1. The teacher can drop a needle into a clear glass bowl of water, to demonstrate that a needle does not normally float on water.
  2. Each student can fill their own small bowl or pan with water.
  3. Next, float a small square of paper (no bigger than 1 ½ inches) on the water.
  4. Place a sewing needle in the middle of the paper.
  5. Carefully push the edges of the paper down into the water. (This takes a little patience.) As the paper gets wet, it will sink and leave the needle floating.


How does this work? Surface tension makes it possible to float the needle on the water. The molecules on the surface of water stick close enough together that, under the right conditions, they can make something float that ordinarily would not do so.

Ask: How was David’s friendship with Jonathan like this floating needle? (The friendship of a shepherd boy and a king’s son was something that was highly unlikely to happen, but it did, just like this needle, which you would not expect to float!)

Say: But then, something happened that could have ended their friendship, just like that. (Place a drop of dishwasher detergent into the water—the needle will sink like a stone.)

Read or ask a student to read I Samuel 18: 6-12 TEV, Saul becomes jealous of David.

Say: In this part of the story, something happened that was a threat to the friendship of David and Jonathan. Jonathan’s father, King Saul, became very jealous of David. He viewed him as an enemy to his throne. Let’s read about it. (or talk about it.)

(If it is the first week of the rotation read aloud: “David’s Best Friend” (p. 235-238) from The Book for Children. (or choose another retelling of the story based on I Samuel 20:1-30. During the 2nd-4th weeks of the rotation, talk about what they remember of the story from the previous weeks. Emphasize that Saul tried to turn David against Jonathan.

Say: Saul tried to talk Jonathan into turning his back on David. Would Jonathan and David’s friendship survive? Let’s do another experiment to illustrate how a bond can hold up, even when someone or something tries to break the bond.

Blow Bubbles With a Bottle and put a wet marble or small wet toy inside:

  1. Cut the bottom off of a plastic quart or liter soda bottle. All around the cut-off bottle, cut parallel slits about ½ inch apart, and ½ inch deep. Bend the edges back so that they fan out like a flower.
  2. Wet an area of the tabletop with the bubble solution.
  3. Dip the fanned-out end of the bottle into the bubble solution. Hold it near the wet tabletop, and blow a large bubble dome onto the table.
  4. Roll a wet marble through the bubble. Or try sliding in a small wet plastic toy.
    Note: This experiment can take a little practice to make it work!


Say: We did something that looks impossible! Molecules bonded to create a bubble. The marble/toy (which represents King Saul’s anger) was not able to destroy the powerful bond of friendship between David and Jonathan. These two friends stuck together with great love and loyalty. Let’s do one more experiment. We will create a product that sticks together, like good friends should.

Prepare Saucer Slime:

  1. Combine glue and water in the glass cup. Stir with a spoon until they are completely mixed.
  2. Add the borax solution to the glue solution and stir. The mixture will immediately start to form a blob. Keep stirring. If some of the glue-water liquid does not clump together with the rest of the blob, add a bit more borax solution and stir some more.
  3. Pour out the excess liquid, put the blob in the plastic baggie, and knead it for a while.
  4. Remove the blob and play with it!


How It Works: This combination of ingredients creates a chemical reaction. The atoms bond together and create an elastic mixture that doesn’t easily break.

David and Jonathan did not physically bond together, like the molecules in our chemistry experiment. But their bond of friendship proved to outlast Jonathan’s life.

Read II Samuel 9:1-7David and Mephibosheth.

Say: David kept his promise to Jonathan by showing kindness to Jonathan’s son.

Journal Time/Apply the Lesson: Pass out the students’ journals.

101 Amazing Optical IllusionsShow the students some of the art on pages 50-55. Let them discover how they can see two different things in the same picture, depending on their perspective.

Ask: Now what does “perspective” have to do with the story of David and Jonathan? (Accept all answers.)

Say:

  1. David and Jonathan chose to see each other as friends. If Jonathan had listened to his father, King Saul, he would have viewed David as a rival for the throne. Likewise, David could have seen Jonathan as the son of his enemy. Instead they remained very close friends. Let’s write in our journals about how to recognize a “true friend.”
  2. Sometimes a person may try to destroy other people’s friendships. David and Jonathan didn’t let that happen. Why? (They trusted each other, and remained loyal through great odds. They did not believe the lies of King Saul.) Let’s write in our journals about ways we can protect our friendships.

Closing:

 

End with a prayer.


Clean-up and Dismissal:
Let’s pray together before we leave today: Our Father in Heaven, thank you for being our friend. We also thank you for the good friends we have here on earth, and especially the ones who are here with us today. In Jesus name, AMEN.


Resources:

  • Mad Professor, Mark Frauenfelder ISBN 0-8118-3554-5, p. 10-13, 17-18
  • 101 Amazing Optical Illusions by Terry Jennings ISBN 0-8069-9463-0
  • Barron’s Science Wizardry for Kids, by Margaret Kenda and Phyllis S. Williams ISBN 0-590-69326-3 pp. 97, 110
  • The Book for Children, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0-8423-2145-4

 

A lesson written by Kirsten from: Augustana Lutheran Church

St. James, MN

 

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

 

Last edited by Rotation.org Lesson Forma-teer

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