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Jesus Feeds the 5000

Lesson Set

Summary of all workshops in this Rotation lesson set:

  • Art: Create a fish print t-shirt using a real fish! Used with 1st-6th grade. (Carol's all-time favorite art workshop!) Scroll down - there are pictures.
  • Cooking: Make fish-shaped pretzels. Used with 4th-6th grade.
  • Games: Learn story details; play a quiz game using the game wheel & the room-sized game board. Used with 4th-6th grade.
  • Drama: Learn story details by enacting the story. Used with 1st-3rd grade.
  • Video: View portions of the animated video, Nest Entertainment’s Bread from Heaven. Used with 1st-3rd grade.

Scripture Reference:

John 6:1-14 (Also in Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, and Luke 9:11-17

Key Verse:

"Seeing this miracle that Jesus had performed, the people there said, “Surely this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!" John 6:14 (TEV

Workshop Objectives -

After completing this Rotation, participants will be able to:

  • Name that the story is found in the New Testament in all four Gospels; identify the four Gospels.
  • For 3rd grade and up: Locate the story in the Gospel of John.
  • Re-tell the story in his/her own words.
  • Define a miracle as an amazing event that tells us something about God.
  • Discuss the miracles in this story and what they have to teach us:
    • God can take what little we have to offer and turn it into something great - leftovers! (John 6:8-13)
    • Age is not a limitation to serve God. (John 6:8,9)
    • Jesus wants us to share what we have with others. (John 6:9)

Story Background: Story Setting

The miracle of the feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle of Jesus (except Jesus’ resurrection) that is recorded in all four Gospels. As with stories that are covered in multiple sources there are slight differences between the various Gospels. However all four agree on important points: the number of loaves and fishes (five and two, respectfully), the number of people present (5,000 men), and the number of leftover baskets (12).

In our story Jesus and his disciples cross the Sea of Galilee to retreat to be by themselves. The story in John’s Gospel doesn’t mention it, but the other Gospels tell us that Jesus had just learned about the death of John the Baptist and had wanted to withdraw to a solitary place.  But seclusion was not to be had; the large crowds that had seen Jesus perform healing miracles followed him. They walked around the lake and were waiting when Jesus and the disciples arrived by boat. (John 6:2, Mark 6:33)  We learn from Mark’s Gospel that when Jesus saw the large crowd, “he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.” (Mark 6:34)  John doesn’t report it but the other Gospels say that Jesus continued healing the sick. He certainly could have sought his quiet shelter but instead he welcomed the crowds. (Luke 9:11)

The crowds are hungry, a test

When it gets to be dinnertime, some of the disciples felt disappointed that Jesus didn’t send the crowd away; people were probably becoming restless and hungry. (Matthew 14:15, Mark 6:36)  In John’s Gospel Jesus appears to test Philip by asking him about where to buy bread for the people to eat. Jesus must have known another miracle was going to occur.

(Jesus) said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.  (John 6:5,6)

Philip was from this area so the question could be taken to mean: what local shops are best to buy from?  However, it really is a test of faith and Philip fails. “He is asked where and can think only in terms of how.” (Whitacre).  Perhaps Jesus would have hoped that Philip would recall how Jesus had changed jars of water into wine and might have responded with something like “Lord, you can provide.”  But instead Philip answers with:

“Eight months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (John 6:7)

Background on miracles

A miracle can be described as a moment when, as a result of an unexpected and surprising event, one becomes aware of the presence and power of God at work. More simply, a miracle is a wonderful event that teaches us something about God. Jesus performed many miracles. He healed the sick, cured the lame, calmed a storm, and brought the dead back to life (to name a few). Jesus’ miracles certainly must have amazed those who witnessed them.

Jesus did not want his miracles to be seen as some sort of “magic.”  He didn’t want people to follow him around, just to see him perform miracles.  Maybe this is why he often told those cured to, “see that no one knows about this.” (Matthew 9:30).  Jesus used his miracles to teach about God – that God was powerful, caring and had sent Jesus his son to earth.  Look at the message that John wrote at the end of his Gospel at John 20:30,31

Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

A meager lunch becomes enough for leftovers!

To stage his miracle Jesus had the people sit down.

…the men sat down, about five thousand of them. (John 6:10c)

Mark 6:39 records that the people sat down in groups. Luke 9:14 reports that they sat in groups of about 50 each.  Recall that when the Bible was written only men were counted. The total number of people present would have been much larger because surely there were also women and children there.

Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.  (John 6:11)

It is important to note how little this lunch was. “Barley loaves were not the bakery-size loaves of our own times, but small flat cakes associated with the diet and eating habits of the poor. The small fishes were used as a relish with the bread.” (Coffman)

When everyone had had enough to eat Jesus instructed the disciples to collect the leftovers. They gather 12 baskets of uneaten food – after everyone has eaten enough!

What this miracle holds for us

What does this miracle teach us about God? Beyond the obvious – which is that God is powerful – are at least three underlying lessons:

  1. Jesus wanted to teach a lesson about sharing. Sharing is significant even when we think that what little we have isn’t worth sharing. Doesn’t it make you wonder: what if the boy had withheld his lunch?  Would Jesus not have been able to feed the multitudes? If we offer nothing to God, maybe he’ll have nothing to use?
  2. God can take what little we have to offer and turn it into something great (i.e., leftovers). A boy offers his lunch of five loaves of bread and two fish, and of course, the disciples think it can’t possibly help.

    Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many? (John 6:8,9)

    Haven’t you heard yourself ask the same question?  Have you said: "How can it be possible Lord?  How can I make a difference?”

    Have you felt the utter lack of gifts and talents to carry out what God asks?  “God is able to multiply our talents, our time, our finances, our love, or anything else we offer to him to be used for his kingdom. As he does this, we gain faith in who God is, in his loving care, and in his provision of our salvation through his Son, Jesus Christ.” (Smith)
  3. (The third underlying lesson in the details of this miracle is appropriate to teach our children.) It was a young boy offering his lunch that ends up feeding over 5000+ people. This shows that age is not a limitation to service for God. Jesus needs what everyone can bring.

What is the real miracle?

Scholars have debated about what is the greater miracle in this story.  Is it that Jesus multiplied the bread and fish, or that the people really did bring along a little lunch and ended up sharing it?  As Doug Norris tells it: “Perhaps the little guy inspired others to share. Wouldn’t it be something if the miracle was a miracle of sharing, as people, one by one, pulled food out of their backpacks and shared with those around them.  Perhaps Jesus walked through the crowd, encouraging, touching, blessing, visiting, and the stingy, the selfish, and the hoarders gradually warmed up, and realized their potential by not only sharing their food, but by experiencing the joy of doing something significant with and for Jesus.”  What would our world look like if we all caught such a sharing attitude?

A miracle happens – then what?

An immediate result of this miracle is that the people realized what had happened.

Seeing this miracle that Jesus had performed, the people there said, “Surely this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!  John 6:14 (TEV

“When they had seen the sign that Jesus did: The way Jesus provided bread in the wilderness reminded those men of Moses in the wilderness, and his promise of a coming Prophet.” (Guzik)

The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own          brothers.  (Deuteronomy 18:15)

Now it is our duty to take this miracle and have it provide teaching for our hearts and minds.       


References:

  • Alexander, Pat ed. The Lion Encyclopedia of the Bible. Batavia, IL: Lion Publishing, 1986.
  • Coffman, James Burton. “Commentary on John 6.” Coffman Commentaries on the Old and New Testament. 1983-1999.
  • Guzik, David. “John 6: The Bread From Heaven.” David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible. 2000. https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/john-6/
  • Mays, James L. ed. Harper’s Bible Commentary. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988.
  • Norris, Douglas I. “When 2 + 2 Aren’t 4.” Tell Them About Jesus: The Sermons of Douglas I. Norris. 1988. http://members.tripod.com/mzla...Sermon88/7-31-88.htm
  • Smith, Gail. “Knowing God by Obedient Faith: Jesus Feeds More Than 5,000 People.” 2005.
  • Whitacre, Rodney A. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series: John. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002. 

Questions to ask:

  • Doesn’t it make you wonder: what if the boy hadn’t come or had withheld his lunch? Would Jesus not have been able to feed the multitudes? If we offer nothing to God, maybe he’ll have nothing to use? (Jesus needs what we can bring.)
  • This leads us to another question: What is the greater miracle in this story -- that Jesus multiplied the bread or that the people really did bring along a little lunch and ended up sharing it?
  • Or is the miracle that on that day people, through his teaching and miracles, came to believe that Jesus Christ was the Messiah?



A lesson set written by Carol Hulbert from: First United Methodist Church
Ann Arbor, MI

Copyright 2008 First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI.  Permission to copy materials granted for non-commercial use provided credit is given and all cited references remain with this material.

Note: Many of these lessons were first used in 2002. Now that we are repeating this Rotation, we are posting additional workshops recently written, as well as changes to those written long ago.

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

Last edited by Luanne Payne
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a fish print

Jesus Feeds 5000+

Art Workshop


Summary of Lesson Activities:

The children will use real fish (dead of course) to make a fish print t-shirt while discussing the miracles in this story.

Reviewers Note:  We know this sounds "gross" to some people, but a number of our members who have used this lesson have reported "the kids loved it!" Don't settle for using fake fish!


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 following materials:
    • Easel with appropriate markers
    • A place or a way to dry the shirts (such as a clothesline with clothespins)
    • A way to mark the student's names on the shirts – masking tape and a Sharpie Pen or dry cleaner hangers with paper inserts, or (if used) instructions on how to care for the shirts with safety pins
    • Table covers
    • Bibles (for 3rd grade and up)
    • Story Bible for younger students. Suggestion: The Praise Bible
    • 2 fresh fish (trout or any fish with interesting fins that stick up); more if you've got a large class
    • Cooler with ice to keep fish cold until needed (or a refrigerator)
    • Newspaper (cut into half sheets, at least one per student)
    • Newsprint (blank newspaper before it’s printed, at least one per student)
    • Paper towels
    • T-Shirts (one per student)
    • Fabric paint (depends on the color of the t-shirt: darker colors such as jewel tones work best, suggest a maximum of 3 colors, use colors that blend well together, also offer black, white, pink, and dark green for embellishing (for older students)
    • Extra pieces of 100% cotton muslin for printing (in case aren’t enough shirts)
    • Cereal boxes (one per student) or use sheets of poster board
    • Foam paint brushes (at least 1 per color of paint used)
    • Clean meat trays
    • In a room without a sink: hand wipes
    • Magnetic fishing poles (at least 2)
    • Construction paper fish
    • A glue stick
    • For younger students: a set of story pictures (refer to resource list for where pictures came from)
    • For all students: pictures of a boot, a tire, and a shoe glued onto construction paper
    • Paper clips
    • Blue tablecloth to use as a “pond”
    • Age-appropriate puzzle sheets or coloring pages, pencils (optional)
    • Optional: photos of fish the workshop leader (or someone they know) has caught
  • Prepare ahead of time
    • For 4th-6th graders: Write the story out on the fish shapes (from John 6:1-14). Have one fish be the Bible reference.
    • For 1st-3rd graders: using the pictures from the story, glue them onto the fish shapes.
    • Put paper clips on the fish so they can be caught with the magnetic fishing poles. Place all the fish in the “pond.” Add a couple of blank fish.
    • Flatten enough cereal boxes to have one per student. 
  • On the day of class:
    • If using, string up the clothesline (could tie it between two chairs?)
    • Place table covers on at least one table.
    • For readers: write on the easel “What does this story teach us about God?” and the word “Gyotaku.”



Lesson Plan: Opening

Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the Art Workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.

Ask:  How many of you have ever been fishing?
Did you catch any fish?
(Optional) Show the photo you’ve brought of a personal fishing expedition.

Say:  When someone catches a big fish they like to take a photograph of it so that they have proof that they really caught a large fish.

Ask:  What do you suppose was done to record the size of a fish before cameras were invented? (allow a few answers)

Say:  Our art activity today will use a process called Gyotaku (pronounced gee-oh-TAH-koo). Long ago Gyotaku was a Japanese way of making a record of the size of a fish. We’ll see how this was done after we read our Bible story, which is about some fish.


Dig

Say:  Our story today is about a miracle that Jesus did. [After the first week, ask what our Bible story is about.]

Ask:  What is a miracle? (accept a few answers)

Say:  Miracles in the Bible are amazing events that were totally unexpected. Today the miracle we’ll look at is that Jesus fed a lot of people with just a little bit of food. Miracles teach us something about God. [Refer to the easel for readers.] Let’s keep this question in mind as we go over our story: What does this miracle teach us about God?

  • Where in the Bible would we read about a miracle that Jesus did? (in the New Testament)
  • What are the names of the first four books of the New Testament?
  • What do we call those first four books? (the Gospels)

Say:  We find the story of Jesus feeding a large group of people in all four Gospels! This is the only miracle that is told in all four of the Gospels. We are going to read the version that is in the Gospel of John.

For 3rd grade and up:
Distribute Bibles. Have everyone find John, chapter 6, verse 1.
[Make sure everyone remembers the quick way to find the New Testament: dividing the Bible in half gets them near Psalms. Dividing the back half in half again gets them near the Gospels in the New Testament.]

If this is the first week in the Rotation, read the story to the students asking them to follow along, (John 6:1-14). Towards the end of the Rotation, ask the students if they can tell you the story. Have them check their Bibles for accuracy.


For 1st and 2nd graders:
Show the pictures as you read pages 320 – 328 in The Praise Bible



For all students: Preliminary Discussion

Ask:  What miracle(s) happened?
[Refer to the easel for readers.] I wonder what this/these miracle(s) teach us about God? (allow discussion)


Start the fish art project

Say:  I had mentioned that our art process was to use Gyotaku (pronounced gee-oh-TAH-koo). Gyotaku is a Japanese word that literally means “fish rubbing” (gyo = fish, taku = rubbing). To remind us of this story about how Jesus fed over 5000 people with just two small fish and five loaves of bread, we are going to make fish rubbings or fish prints on t-shirts. Whenever you wear your shirt, you can think of this miracle!

Do:  Explain the process. Then let them work in groups of two to each make a print. While waiting to make a print, have them play the fishing game.

Fish printing process:

  1. When starting with your very first print, remove the fish from the cooler (or the refrigerator) and use paper towel to gently dry the fish. (Not too vigorous or you’ll rub off the scales.)
  2. Place the fish on a stack of half sheets of newspaper (you’ll be removing a sheet with each print).
  3. If the fish has been gutted, stuff its insides with paper towels so that the belly is firm. (May not be necessary with a firm fish.)
  4. Stuff the shirt to be printed with a flattened cereal box.
  5. Have the student brush a thin coat of fabric paint on the fish. (It really does not take much.) May choose to use all one color or more than one color.Boys paint a fish for printing
  6. Make a light print of the fish using a sheet of *blank* newsprint (the paper before the news is printed). This takes off the excess paint from the fish. Discard this newsprint.
  7. Now slide the top sheet of newspaper out so that the surface beneath the fish is clean (otherwise you’ll get paint on the t-shirt in places where you don’t want it).
  8. Carefully lay the shirt over the fish (with the cereal box inside). Important: Where it lays is where it stays! (Don’t shift the shirt once it’s on the fish).
  9. Have the student gently rub the fabric of the shirt that is over the fish, with their hand. They will put their hand inside the shirt – the “sandwich” will be the fish, then the back of the shirt, then the child’s hand, then the cereal box then the front of the shirt (assuming a print is going on the back of a shirt.) Encourage the student to gently rub all parts of the fish with the shirt so there won't be any blank or faint spots on the shirt. Remember to rub all the fins, too. Take your time! The fabric may wrinkle a little bit, but that is all right just so long as the fabric doesn’t shift.
  10. After you have pressed the entire fish, carefully peel off the shirt with the cardboard inside. There is your fish print! Hang the shirt (may need to leave the cardboard inside until the paint dries). Make sure the child's name is somehow on their shirt.
  11. Optional, for older children: allow them to use other colors of paint to add highlights to their print – for example, speckles by applying paint using the pointed end of a paintbrush or to add white paint for an eye.

For subsequent prints, return to step 4 and repeat. If a different color is desired, wipe the fish gently with paper towel between colors. Some mixing of colors will occur but this enhances the print.

Other discussion points as small groups of students are fish printing: (Repeat these questions with -each group that does a print.)

  • Gyotaku originated in Japan in the early 1800’s. Fishermen practiced it to preserve a record of their catches. (A fish print never lies, but fishermen do!)  There are many Christians in Japan because someone shared the bread of life with them.
  • Why do you suppose Jesus performed miracles? (they offered proof that Jesus was the Messiah; Jesus didn’t want people to think of them as magic but he wanted them to cause people to believe in God)
  • Do miracles happen today? (accept all answers)
  • In the story God needed the boy’s lunch in order for Jesus to work a miracle. Do you suppose that God might use you as part of a miracle?
  • Back in the days when the church was just starting up (around 2000 years ago), people used the symbol of a fish to identify that they believed in Jesus. I wonder what message it will show to others when you wear this shirt?


Instructions for the Fishing Game:

  1. Have the children take turns using the fishing poles with magnets on them to catch a paper fish in the “pond”.
  2. Throwback any fish without a portion of the story on it—i.e., anything that’s not a fish!
  3. Have the kids try to arrange the verses (or story pictures) everyone catches, in the proper order. (One fish will have the Bible reference on it).
  4. Alternate activities are to do the provided puzzle pages.

Extra Activities (For those who finish early)

Mix up a set of story fish. Time the students in their putting the story fish in order. See if they improve their time with subsequent attempts.

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: Jesus, Thank you for this opportunity to be creative today. Help us to remember when we wear our shirts that you turned a boy’s small lunch into enough food for over 5000 people and that there were leftovers! (End with the Lord’s Prayer) Amen.


Resources:
(updated for 2020)

  • Meyer, Nancy Jean. “Gyotaku: The Japanese Art of Fish Printing.” ARTSEDGE.
  • Thomas, Mack. The Praise Bible. Colorado Springs: Waterbrook Press, 1998.
  • Story pictures came from a combination of Bible for Children and Free Bible Images.
  • See examples of gyotaku at Catch of the Day Oregon (scroll through various pictures)


Note: I originally wrote this lesson in 2001. When we did this workshop in 2001 we printed on pieces of 100% cotton muslin fabric, pre-washed without fabric softener; cut into rectangles with pinking shears. (We were just getting started with Rotation so things were bare-bones!) Here are my notes about the workshop from 2001...

Figure on the adults being squeamish about touching dead fish but the kids really got into this! It makes beautiful prints. Our preschool did fish printing on t-shirts in a subsequent repeat of this Rotation (2008) so it can be done by all ages. If you choose to make prints on paper you'll need to use a very thin paper such as rice paper. Regular paper just will not work because it's too stiff.
Ask your fish market to donate the fish. I found myself teaching a Bible story to the sales clerk at the store. (You want it for what?).

And notes from repeating this Rotation in 2008...

In 2008 we printed on t-shirts. The hardest part was the ordering of the T-shirts. (Will we have enough?) And in the correct sizes. (We had a campaign the month before doing this, where we asked the Shepherds to collect sizes.) Be prepared for children who don't want to make a fish print because they don't want to touch a dead fish. Accept their choice. Allow them to paint a fish on their t-shirt.


A lesson written by Carol Hulbert from First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI
Photos copyright Carol Hulbert.

Attachments

Images (3)
  • Fish print 1
  • Fish print 2
  • Boys paint a fish for printing
Last edited by CreativeCarol

Jesus Feeds 5000+

Cooking Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Make fish-shaped pretzels. Talk about the many blessings God provides for us. [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:

  • Items in kitchen:
    Clean-up supplies
    Parchment paper,
    Brush to apply egg yolk
    Small bowl
    A fork
    Serving spatula
  • Items in pantry closet: Napkins, Washable cups (1 per child)
  • Items in refrigerator:
    Bread stick dough (1 package for every 6 kids, creates 2 pretzels per kid)
    Eggs (1 for each week of this Rotation)
  • The cooking “cart” with:

Aprons, attendance
Bibles
Kosher salt
Sandwich-size plastic zip bags

Important Allergy Note:
Pillsbury brand of bread sticks does not contain milk, eggs or nuts.

 

Before Start of Class:

  • Set the cups (at least 1 per student), napkins and sandwich bags out in the Social Hall.
  • Wash one metal table.
  • Cover cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  • Separate one egg into white and yolk; discard yolk. Beat white with a fork.
  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.


Presentation

 

Opening - Welcome and Lesson Introduction:

Gather everyone around the tables in the Social Hall. Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the Cooking Workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.


[Note: The Shepherd will quietly take attendance & do name tags while you are starting your lesson.]

Ask:

  • Have you ever been at a dinner for ten people?
  • What kind of food did they have at your dinner for ten?
  • Have you ever been at a dinner with 100 people?
  • What about 500?
  • 5000 people?

Dig - Main Content and Reflection:
Say: Today we are learning about a miracle that Jesus did. This miracle involved food – bread and fish.


Ask:

  • Do you know what the miracle was?

Say: Jesus was able to feed more than 5000 people with just five loaves of bread and two fish.


Ask:

  • Do you think that five loaves of bread and two fish are enough to feed more than 5000 hungry people?

Say: To help us remember this story we are going to make fish-shaped pretzels. We are going to each be able to make two pretzels; one you may eat and one to share with someone else. We are going to do our baking first then while the pretzels are baking, we’ll talk about our story.

In the Kitchen:
Wash your hands first and then have everyone wash their hands. Offer aprons if kids want to wear one.

The Pretzel “recipe”

  1. Open the packages of bread stick dough; one package for every 6 students which makes 12 pretzels.
  2. Separate the dough into 12 sticks per package.
  3. Roll each individual stick of dough into a rope about 8-12 inches long. This can be done right on the metal tabletop. Shape each rope into a fish-shaped pretzel. Each child may make 2 pretzels. Explain how they may eat one pretzel and share the other one.
  4. Place the pretzels on parchment covered baking sheets.
  5. Brush with beaten egg white. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
  6. Bake at 375 for 10-13 minutes. Ask the Shepherd to watch the pretzels to see that they don’t over brown. (It may take less than 10 minutes with the convection oven.)
  7. Have students wash their hands and return to the Social Hall.

Ask the Shepherd…
To time the pretzels and remove them from oven and allow them to cool on the cookie sheets. When the pretzels have cooled, have the Shepherd use a cart to bring the cookie sheets with a spatula to the Social Hall.

Reading & discussion:
While you wait…
Distribute Bibles.

Ask:

  • Where in the Bible would we read about Jesus and his disciples? (in the NT)
  • What are the first four books of the New Testament?
  • What do we call those first four books? (the Gospels)

Say: The word Gospel means “good news.”


Ask:

  • What is the good news that we learn about from Jesus?

Say: There is lots of good news in the Gospels: Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sins, Jesus has power over death because he rose from the dead to live again, and Jesus loves each one of us and wants us to believe in him.

Say: We find the story of Jesus feeding multitudes of people in all four Gospels! This is the only miracle besides Jesus’ resurrection that is told in all four of the Gospels. We are going to read the version that is in the Gospel of John.

Have everyone find John, chapter 6, verses 1-14.
If this is a week early in the Rotation, you should read the scripture and have the students follow along. Towards the end of the Rotation, ask the students if they can tell you the story. Have them check their Bibles for accuracy.

Say: For the Word of God in scripture, for the Word of God among us, for the Word of God within us,
The class says: Thanks be to God!
Remind the class that those are the words that are spoken in the worship service after the Bible is read. We say those words in class so that we will be used to saying them when we hear a Bible story read in the worship service.

Ask:

  • Why were there so many people there? (they had seen or heard about Jesus healing people; maybe they themselves needed healing; maybe they were curious about Jesus)


Say: It’s not so clear in the gospel of John, but when we read this story in the other Gospels we realize that the people had been listening to Jesus all day. Surely they were getting hungry.

Ask:

  • Why do you suppose the people didn’t bring any food with them? (maybe they didn’t expect to stay so long; maybe they did have food but didn’t want to share)
  • What do you think Jesus’ disciples thought when they saw only 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread to feed all those people?
  • How do you think you would have felt if you had been one of the 5000 fed that day?
  • What is a miracle? (A wonderful event showing us the power of God.)

Say: These stories show Jesus’ miracle-working power. This story we just read also shows that a boy shared his lunch, even though it was just a little, and Jesus was able to have it feed over 5000 people!

Ask:

  • If you had been one of the people there during this story, would you have shared your lunch?
  • What do you think would have happened if the boy hadn’t brought a lunch or hadn’t shared it?

Say: Jesus wants us to share what we have with others. When we ask God to bless what we have, we will be amazed at what can happen. God can take what little we have to share, and turn it into something bigger.

When the pretzels are cool enough:

 

Distribute a napkin, a cup and one pretzel to each child. Ask students to not start eating yet!
Say: We have one pretzel that we are going to be able to eat (but not yet!) and one we will share with someone else. We will also be sharing our pretzel to eat with each other! We will do it in this manner: tear off a piece of pretzel and give it to someone else nearby. As you do, tell that person something God has given you.
You may need to prime the pump with suggestions: a family, good friends, etc. Take up a pretzel yourself and share with a child something that God has given you.

Say: Try to repeat this process with everyone in the class. When others give you a piece of bread, put it in your cup. Let’s all eat after everyone is done sharing.

When sharing is complete, ask:

  • What were some of the responses you got as you shared your pretzels?
  • Why do you suppose God provides so much for us?

Say: Look at your cup. Sharing the pieces of our pretzels has made our cup seem fuller.
As you eat your pretzel pieces think about all that God gives us because he loves us. Enjoy your pretzel pieces!

Extra Activities (If you have extra time):
Involve the kids in helping to clean up. Let wipe counters, put away supplies, put dirty dishes by the dishwasher, etc.

 

Closing:

Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. Use the Lord’s Prayer as the ending. A suggestion: “Thank you God, for giving us Jesus. Help us to learn more about sharing what we have. Thank you for all you provide for us. (End with everyone joining in on the Lord’s Prayer.) Amen.”

Have students bag up an extra pretzel to share with someone. Tell them the must share the Bible story as well as the pretzel.


Resources:

  • Pretzel idea borrowed from a previous post at Rotation.org
  • The Children’s Worker’s Encyclopedia of Bible-Teaching Ideas: New Testament. Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, 1997. (sharing the food idea, page 82)


Notes about this workshop: When we did this Rotation in 2002 we used the following recipe: "Bread Pretzels or Sticks" from the Joy of Cooking. Our cooking person mixed the dough up at home on Sunday morning.

The recipe:
Combine in a mixer bowl --
1 c. warm water (105 -115 degrees F)
1 pkg dry yeast
Add and beat for 3 minutes --
1 and 1/2 c. flour
2 T. soft butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1 T. sugar


Stir in --
1 and 1/4 c. flour
and knead until dough isn't sticky. Let rise in covered greased bowl. Our cooking person counted the drive to church as the "rising time". (So this was approx. 45 minutes of rising). Once the workshop started here's how the rest of the recipe worked out:
Preheat oven to 475 (degrees F)
Punch down dough and divide into 12 pieces. Have kids work the dough with their hands to roll it into 18 inch lengths about as thick as a pencil. Loop it into fish-shapes.

The real recipe calls for the pretzel shapes to rise again. We skipped this without any problem. So what happened next was:
Boil a solution of 4 c. water and 5 tsp baking soda. (Don't use an aluminum pan). With a slotted spoon an adult lowers the pretzels into the water for about 1 minute or until they float. Put them on a greased baking sheet. (Parchment paper makes cleanup a lot easier - it is worth the cost!) Sprinkle with coarse salt (or with cinnamon sugar) and bake for 12 minutes. Made twelve 6-inch pretzels.



Written by Carol Hulbert for First United Methodist Church

Ann Arbor, MI 

Copyright 2008 First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI.
Permission to copy materials granted for non-commercial use provided credit is given and all cited references remain with this material

 

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

Last edited by Rotation.org Lesson Forma-teer

Jesus Feeds 5000+

Games Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Learn story details by playing a quiz game using the game wheel and the room-sized game board. [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:

  • Easel, appropriate marker
  • Purple Adventure Bibles ; one NRSV Bible
  • One purple Adventure Bible with tabs (Law, History, etc.)
  • Bible tab writing kit: tabs, fine-line Sharpie pen
  • Life-sized game board – canvas tarp with painted spaces (4 colors)
  • Game wheel (with corresponding 4 colors)
  • A piece of fabric to cover the game wheel
  • Game questions (see end of lesson)
  • Invitations to the bean soup event


Before Start of Class:

  • Layout the life-size game board on the floor.
  • Distribute Bibles in a circle around the game board.
  • Cover the game wheel so it won’t distract the students during storytelling.
  • Write on the easel: “What this miracle teaches us”

 



Presentation

 

Opening - Welcome and Lesson Introduction:

Invite everyone to take their shoes off and have a seat on the floor around the game board. Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the Games Workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.

[Note: The Shepherd will be taking care of attendance/name tags while you are starting your lesson.]

Ask: What is your favorite food to have for lunch? (allow a few replies)
If you brought a small lunch to an event with lots of other people, would you share your lunch? (accept any answers)

Say: Our Bible story today is about a young boy who was at an event with his lunch. We don’t know if it was his favorite lunch but it was a small lunch and he shared it. Let’s find our story in the Bible.

Dig - Main Content and Reflection:

Adventure Bible with tabs.]


Ask:

  • The Bible is divided into two sections, what are they? (Old & New Testament)
  • Will someone explain why the Bible is divided into two testaments? (the Old Testament is the Bible that Jesus learned when he was a child; New Testament was written after Jesus was on earth)

Ask:

  • Where in the Bible would we read a story about Jesus? (in the NT)

Ask:

  • What are the first four books of the New Testament?

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are a collection of books called what? (the Gospels)

Say: If you have your own Bible today, be sure you receive a tab for the “Gospel” section of your Bible. [Show the classroom Bible with tabs. Have the Shepherd do tabs for students who bring their Bibles. Use the classroom Bible with tabs as an example.]

Say: Our Bible story is one of the many miracles that Jesus did.


Ask:

  • What is a miracle? (accept a few answers)

Say: A miracle is an amazing event that can teach us something about God. Our story is unique in that it is the only miracle, besides the story of Jesus’ resurrection that is told in all four of the Gospels. We are going to find the version of the story told by the John. John was one of Jesus’ disciples. As we hear about our story, keep in mind what this miracle teaches you about God. [Refer to the easel.]

Have them find the story in John, chapter 6, verses 1-14.

[Remind those who are struggling, the quick way to find the New Testament – dividing the Bible in half gets them near Psalms. Dividing the back half in half again gets them near the New Testament.]
On the first week of the Rotation…
Begin to tell them the story…
Say: Jesus had taken a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. He had wanted to find a quiet place to be by himself but, the crowds followed him. They knew that Jesus did great miracles. They wanted to see Jesus. I am going to start reading from the Bible at verse 5. Follow along if you’d like to do so.

Read to them John 6:5-14.

On the 2nd and 3rd weeks…
The students will be more familiar with the story. Have them locate the scripture in their Bibles. Then ask them to tell you the story. Fill in any missing details by using their Bibles. Read any portions that aren’t clear.

If scripture has been read, when you are finished…
Say: For the Word of God in scripture, for the Word of God among us, for the Word of God within us…
The class says: Thanks be to God!

Remind the class that those are the words that are spoken in the worship service after the Bible is read. We say those words in class so that we will be used to saying them when we hear a Bible story read in the worship service.

Discussion:
Ask:

  • Why do you suppose Jesus did this miracle? (accept a few answers)

Say: Jesus wanted people to believe in God. He didn’t do miracles just to wow the crowds or just so that people would follow him to see what he’d do next. Jesus used his miracles to teach about God.
Ask:

  • What does this miracle teach us about God?


Write down their answers on the easel. Try to raise the following points:

  • that God is powerful,
  • that God cares about peoples needs,
  • that God wants us to share even if what we have is little,
  • that age doesn’t matter – everyone can share.

Say: Let’s play our game. [Leave Bibles available. Allow at least 8 minutes for final discussion and closing.]

Play the Game:
Explain that students will work in teams to move across the game board – squeezing onto spaces as needed. The object of the game is not to be first to reach the end, but for all teams to reach the end, or to get as far as time permits, and to have fun doing it.
Please make sure everyone takes off his/her shoes.

Ask the Shepherd to help you divide the class into teams of 2 or 3 players each.[Preferably in 2’s but 3 is ok if needed.] Have the team with the person whose birthday is closest to today’s date go first.

 

One member of the team spins the wheel. While the wheel is spinning, ask the question of the team. All the people on a team should confer/work on an answer. Checking Bibles is OK! Remind the children that only the team in play should be talking. Take time for any discussion that occurs! If the team answers correctly they get to move to the color that was spun.


Note: it is OK to start groups of kids from different ends of the game board.

Stop to allow time for more discussion:
Ask:

  • Have you discovered the features that are in these purple Bibles?

Say: Look at the “Did You Know” note that is on the page where this story is told in the Gospel of Luke. Look up Luke 9, which is where Luke tells this story (page 1137).

Have someone read the first part of the note “Why did Jesus feed 5000 people?”

Say: Sharing and caring about other people is an important theme in this story.
Ask:

  • What do you have to offer to share with Jesus?

[Note: Lead the children to understand that Jesus doesn’t always ask us for material things. He also asks for our faith, our love, our kindness, and our forgiveness of one another…]

Say: One way we can share is to give our time to support a mission. I would like to invite each of you to participate in a mission project. A group of women in this church, called the United Methodist Women or UMW, put together bean soup mix, which they then sell to raise money for missions. These missions help people around the world who are hungry and in need. There will be an event on a Friday night in November to help UMW put together bean soup mix that you can then help to sell. Share this idea of helping out with your family and plan to come if you are able.

Give each student an invitation to come to this event.

Closing:
Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. Use the Lord’s Prayer as the ending. A suggestion: “Dear God, Thank you for teaching us about miracles. Thank you for miracles that still happen today – the miracle of new birth, the miracle of people’s change in their attitude about your love. Thank you for the miracle of your son Jesus who came to earth and taught us to pray... (End with everyone joining in on the Lord’s Prayer.) Amen.”

Extra Activities (in case you have extra time)
If you have time:
Have different groups of kids look up the other versions of this story in the other Gospels. (See scripture references on page 1). Talking about the differences. A few they might see:

  • Mark & John start with Jesus crossing the sea.
  • Matthew mentions why Jesus was going into retreat- he’d just heard about John the Baptist’s death.
  • Luke identifies the town – Bethsaida.
  • Luke talks about a concern for lodging & provisions.
  • Luke has the people sitting in groups before being fed.


Be sure to note where all four gospels agree: on the number fed (5000 men), the use of 5 loaves and 2 fish, and the number of baskets leftover (12).


Resources:
Game idea borrowed from an older game post by Gail Smith at rotation.org.


Attachment: Game Questions


Answers in bold. First ask the questions without giving any of the multiple-choice answers. Give answers if kids seem stumped. You may choose to vary the game rules – they can move forward to the color spun if they answer correctly without hints and they can only move forward one space if the hints are needed.

1. In what book of the Bible can we find this story?
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
Luke and John

2. Where does this story take place?


On the shores of Lake Michigan
On the banks of the Jordan River
On the shores of the Sea of Galilee (John 6:1)

3. Why was there a big crowd of people there that day?

 

Because it was a pleasant day to be outside
Because they had seen Jesus perform miracles on sick people (John 6:2)
Because Jesus paid people to hang around him

4. How many people were there that day?

 

5000 men, so more than 5000 (John 6:10)
exactly 5000
about 500

5. The Gospel of John doesn’t tell us but the other Gospel stories do – what Jesus was doing with the crowds? (If kids struggle with how to find this info suggest they look up John 6:1 in an NRSV of the Bible. This version includes at the top of the story, a reference to where the story is found in the other Gospels.)

 

Teaching & healing (Luke 9:11, or that he was teaching Mark 6:34, or he was healing, Matthew 14:14)
Playing the guitar
Answering questions about the stock market

6. What did Jesus say to Phillip?

 

I’m hungry; let’s order pizza.
Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat? (John 6:5)
Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy food.

7. What was Philip’s answer?

 

They don't need to go away. You give them something to eat.
How many loaves do you have?
Eight months of pay couldn’t buy enough for everyone to have one bite of food. (John 6:7)

8. Why do you suppose that Jesus tested Philip?

 

He liked to play games with his disciples.
Jesus had told them that there would be a quiz.
No one correct answer; probably wanted to see how Philip was doing on his faith (John 6:6)

9. Based on Philip’s response, how would you rate Philip’s faith?

 

No one correct answer; probably pretty poor.
Excellent job.
Sounds like he’s trying hard.

10. Who volunteered to share their lunch?

 

An old woman
A young boy
An old man

11. The Gospel of John doesn’t tell us but the Gospel of Mark does – how did the disciples discover the boy’s lunch?

 

They found it under a rock.
It was in a large, red lunch box – couldn’t miss it.
Mark 6:38 – Jesus asked the disciples how many loaves they had; Go see. Presumably they asked people.

12. Who else besides Philip doesn’t show much faith in this story?

 

No one else.
Andrew, by his response in John 6:9 – how will so little an amount of food help the situation.
Peter.

13. How much lunch did the young boy share?

 

Five loaves of bread and two small fish (John 6:9)
Two loaves of bread and five small fish
A couple dozen pepperoni pizzas

14. What did Jesus do to the boy’s small lunch?

 

He distributed it.
He distributed it and then remembered to say grace.
He gave thanks for the food and distributed it. (John 6:11)


15. What miracle happened?

 

The lame were healed and the blind saw.
The blind saw and the sick were cured.
Accept all of the above (if offered as the correct answer, plus) help the lunch fed over 5000.

16. What happened after everyone had eaten all they wanted?

 

Everyone said thank you.
Jesus asked the disciples to collect the leftovers – 12 baskets worth. (John 6:12,13)
Everyone burped.

17. Have you experienced (or has someone you know experienced) a situation where God stretched your resources beyond what would have normally been possible?

 

Accept all answers.

18. Why do you suppose there were leftovers?

 

Accept all answers. Perhaps Jesus wanted us to see that when we shared a little, God could make a lot come of it.

19. When have you faced a difficult situation and been like Philip and Andrew – didn’t remember about your faith in Jesus?

 

Accept all answers.


Written by Carol Hulbert for First United Methodist Church
Ann Arbor, MI 

Copyright 2008 First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI.
Permission to copy materials granted for non-commercial use provided credit is given and all cited references remain with this material.

 

 

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

 

 

 

Last edited by Rotation.org Lesson Forma-teer

Jesus Feeds 5000+

Drama Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Enact the story of Jesus feeding over 5000 people. [Note: 1st – 3rd 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:

  • For 3rd grade: Bibles; One purple Adventure Bible with tabs (Law, History, etc.); Bible tab writing kit: tabs, fine-line Sharpie pen; Copies of scripts (see end of lesson)
  • For 1st and 2nd grade: Bible story book The Young Reader’s Bible
  • Costumes
  • Props: baskets that fit inside one another, pieces of cloth to cover the baskets
  • The Humongous Book of Bible Skits (with CD of background noise)
  • CD Player

Before Start of Class:

  • Lay out costumes in one area of the room. [To avoid everyone digging through the box]
  • Cue track 30 of the CD from the book The Humongous Book of Bible Skits. Set CD player to REPEAT. Turn sound down. [The player resets itself to track 1 if you turn it off.]
  • For when 3rd graders visit: In the Bible with tabs, bookmark John 6:1 and Luke 9.


Presentation

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

[Note: The Shepherd will be taking care of attendance/name tags while you are starting your lesson.]

Say: We are learning (continuing to learn) about the miracle of Jesus feeding a large crowd of people – it’s a story with lots of potential for drama. There’s a huge crowd of people, there’s the tension of everyone being hungry and only a small amount of fish and bread are available; we’ll get to act out what happens.

Dig - Main Content and Reflection:
Hold a Bible and review its organization:

For the 1st grade:
Say: The Bible is divided into two sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament.

For 2nd and 3rd grade:
Ask: The Bible is divided into two sections, what are they? (the OT and the NT)

For all students:
Say: The Old Testament was the Bible that Jesus learned as a child. The New Testament tells us the story of Jesus’ life.

Ask:

  • So in which part of the Bible would we find a story about Jesus? (NT)

Say: Besides being divided into two testaments, the Bible is further divided into books.

Ask:

  • Can anyone tell me how many books there are in the Bible?

Say: There are 66 books in the Bible.

Ask:

  • What are the first four books of the New Testament? (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)
  • What do we call those first four books? (the Gospels)

Say: The word Gospel means “good news.” These first four books of the New Testament tell the story of the good news about Jesus’ birth, his life, and about the start of the church after Jesus’ death and resurrection.

For 3rd grade:
Say: If you have your own Bible today, be sure you receive a tab for the Gospel section of your Bible. [Show the classroom Bible with tabs. Have the Shepherd do Gospel tabs for students who bring their Bibles. Use the classroom Bible with tabs as an example.]

For all students:
Say: Our Bible story today is one of the many miracles that Jesus did.

Ask:

  • What is a miracle? (accept a few answers)

Say: A miracle is an amazing event that can teach us something about God.
Say: The story about the miracle we are studying today can be found in all four of the Gospels – each gospel telling the story a little differently.

Ask:

  • Why do you suppose that the four Gospels might tell the story with slightly different details? (accept all answers: written by different authors, at different times)

Say: When we are done reading our Bible story we are going to say what is said in church after the scripture is read. Be ready to say “thanks be to God!” when the scripture is finished.

For 1st and 2nd grade:
Say: Our Bible story today is found in the book of John. John is the fourth Gospel; remember the gospels are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Read pages 298 - 302 in The Young Reader’s Bible. Show pictures as you read.
On the third week of this lesson instead of reading the story, ask the students to tell you the story.

For 3rd grade:
Distribute Bibles. Have everyone find John 6:1-13.
Make sure that everyone finds the verses. Enlist the Shepherd to help individuals. Remind them of the quick way to find the New Testament.
Ask the students if they can tell you the story. Have them check their Bibles for accuracy.

For all students:
Say: For the Word of God in scripture, for the Word of God among us, for the Word of God within us,
The class says: Thanks be to God!

Ask:

  • Why do you suppose Jesus did this miracle? (accept a few answers)


For 3rd graders:

Ask:

  • You just received your Bibles in church. Have you discovered the features that are in this Bible? 

Say: Look at the “Did You Know” note that is on the page where this story is told in the Gospel of Luke. Look up Luke 9.
Have someone read the note about “Why did Jesus feed 5000 people?”

For all students:
Say: Jesus wanted people to believe in God. He didn’t do miracles just to wow the crowds or just so that people would follow him to see what he’d do next. Jesus used his miracles to teach about God – that God was powerful, and cared about people.
Say: We said earlier that a miracle is an amazing event that can teach us something about God. Let’s act out our story and as we do, be thinking about what this miracle teaches you.

Enact the story:
Say: If there is time, we can do the show more than once; some can be the audience while others are acting out the story; then we’ll switch. [Allow time for discussion & closing.]

Turn up the sound on the CD player.

For 1st and 2nd grade:
Don’t pass out scripts. The workshop leader serves as the narrator and the reader of all of the parts. As you read, pause where appropriate, to allow the students to “act” and adlib any dialogue. You may have to prompt the students to ad lib. It time allows, repeat with different actors playing different parts.

For 3rd grade:
Pass out copies of the script. Run through it. If time allows, repeat with different actors playing different parts.

Discussion:

Ask:

  • What does this miracle teach you? (allow a few answers)
  • Was there anything leftover after everyone had eaten all they wanted? (yes, 12 baskets full)

Say: A young boy shared his lunch and look what happened! Jesus wants us to share what we have with others. When we share what little we have, we will be amazed at what can happen. God can turn it into something bigger.

Ask:

  • What do you have to offer to share with Jesus? 

[Note: Lead the children to understand that Jesus doesn’t always ask us for material things. He also asks for our faith, our love, our kindness, our forgiveness of one another…]

Closing:
Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. Use the Lord’s Prayer as the ending. A suggestion: “Dear God, Thank you for teaching us about miracles. Thank you for miracles that still happen today – the miracle of new birth, the miracle of people’s change in their attitude about your love. Thank you for the miracle of your son Jesus who came to earth and taught us to pray... (End with everyone joining in on the Lord’s Prayer.) Amen.”

Extra Activities (If you have extra time):
Talk about our responsibility today for feeding the hungry.
Ask: In what ways can we take seriously our discipleship and the fact that we are Jesus’ hands on earth today?


Drama: The Feeding of the 5000+ Script

Parts needed: 

  • Narrator
  • Jesus
  • Disciples (at least 2) – one is Philip, one is Andrew
  • The crowd – which can include people who need healing: someone who is crippled or blind

Props: a large basket covered with a piece of cloth, inside of this basket is hidden smaller baskets also covered with cloths, a big box to use as a boat (optional).

The Skit: Start off in the tent. Jesus is standing and the crowd is sitting around him. The two disciples are standing off to the side.

NARRATOR: Jesus and his disciples had been teaching and healing in a large crowd of people. Finally Jesus signaled for his disciples.

Jesus waved to his disciples to come. The disciples walk over to Jesus.

JESUS: Let’s go to a quiet place on the other side of the lake.

DISCIPLES: Ok Jesus. (signal to the crowd) Everyone, go home now.

Jesus and his disciples climb into the boat.

NARRATOR: Jesus and his disciples crossed the Sea of Galilee.

The disciples make rowing motions and slowly move out of the tent towards the wall with the lake.

NARRATOR: Meanwhile, the crowd figured out where Jesus was going.

THE CROWD: He’s going across the lake. Let’s follow him.

The crowd runs (or hops if their lame) in slow motion, going around the other side of the room, near the windows and approaching the lake wall.

DISCIPLES: More people!

Jesus and the disciples get out of the boat. Everyone stays standing.

NARRATOR: Jesus was not angry to see the crowd. In fact he continued to heal them.

SOMEONE FROM THE CROWD: Jesus, Jesus! Heal me!

JESUS: (puts his hand on the person) Bless you child, be healed!

Person healed acts joyful (for example, if they were lame, then they should dance around.)

NARRATOR: The people stayed for hours. It was getting to be dinnertime. Finally, Jesus asked Philip…

JESUS: Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?

PHILIP: Eight months of my pay would not buy enough bread for everyone to have a bite!

NARRATOR: The disciples went through the crowd looking for food.

Give the covered basket to one of the children in the crowd.
The disciples mingle among the crowd asking if anyone has food. Andrew finds one person who has the covered basket.


ANDREW: This person has five loaves and two fish. But that’s not enough for this big crowd.

NARRATOR: Jesus asked everyone to sit down in groups.

Everyone except Jesus sits down. Jesus takes the basket.

NARRATOR: Taking the five loaves and the two fish, Jesus looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves. Jesus gave the food to the crowd.

Jesus looks upward and blesses the food. Then he opens the basket and gives a smaller basket to each disciple, who then act is if they are distributing food. The crowds pretend to eat.

NARRATOR: Everyone had plenty to eat! And there were leftovers!

JESUS: Gather up the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.

The disciples gather up leftovers from the crowd.

PHILIP: Hey, Andrew, we started with just five loaves of bread and two fish. Did you notice how many baskets we had leftover!?!

ANDREW: Yes! There were twelve baskets leftover!

PHILIP: How many people are here?

ANDREW: Over 5000!

NARRATOR: When the people saw this miracle they exclaimed…

CROWD: Surely this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!

==The End ==


Resources:

  • Bruno, Bonnie and Carol Reinsma. The Young Reader’s Bible. Cincinnati, OH: Standard Publishing, 1998.
  • Cartwright, Teryl et al. The Humongous Book of Bible Skits for Children’s Ministry. Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, 2006.
  • Graham, Wendy J. “The Feeding of the 5000: Drama Workshop.” 2004. https://www.rotation.org/topic...-the-5000-lesson-set (for the skit)
  • Nowak, Jacqueline. “Jesus’ Miracles – Art Workshop: The Feeding of the 5000.” 1998. (extra time idea/wording)
  • Smith, Gail. “Jesus Feeds More Than 5,000 People: Art Workshop.” 2005.

Written by Carol Hulbert for First United Methodist Church
Ann Arbor, MI 


Copyright 2008 First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI. 
Permission to copy materials granted for non-commercial use provided credit is given and all cited references remain with this material

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

Last edited by Luanne Payne

Jesus Feeds 5000+

Video Workshop 

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Watch a portion of the animated video from Nest Entertainment, "Bread From Heaven." [Note: 1st – 3rd graders visited this workshop.]

Scripture Reference & Key Bible Verse & Objectives: 

Refer to first post in this lesson set.


Leader Preparation: 

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

Supplies List:

  • DVD Reference: Bread From Heaven, Nest Family Entertainment, 2005.
  • TV/DVD
  • Snack items: goldfish crackers, cups, napkins, water pitcher
  • Easel with paper; appropriate marker
  • Masking tape
  • Activity Book (from Nest Family Entertainment)
  • For 3rd grade:NIV Adventure Bibles (one with tabs - Law, History, etc.); Bible tab writing kit: tabs, fine-line Sharpie pen
  • For 1st and 2nd grade: Read With Me Bible

Before Start of Class:

  • Using the Activity Book, make copies of pages 9 (the old man) and 23 (Jesus).
  • Prepare snack. Pour cups of water. 
  • Make sure you know how to use the TV/DVD, especially how to move by chapters and scanning forward and backward within a chapter. 
  • Insert the DVD. Choose “Menu.” Choose “English Version.” Choose “Chapter Access.” And choose “Not Enough to Share.” When the words “Bread From Heaven” appear, press PAUSE. This is where this video will be started.
  • Using masking tape, hang up the picture of the old man at the top of the easel. Write next to this picture: “what he says?” Next draw a picture of a loaf of bread. Next to the loaf of bread write: “how many?” Finally, hang the picture of Jesus and write next to it: “what do we learn?” 


Presentation

Opening – Welcome & Lesson Introduction: 

Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the video workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.


[Note: The Shepherd will quietly take attendance & do name tags while you are starting your lesson.]

Ask:

  • Have you ever been at a dinner where there were ten people there?
  • What kind of food did they have at your dinner for ten?
  • Have you ever been at a dinner with 100 people?
  • What about 500?
  • 5000 people?

Say: Today we are learning about a miracle that Jesus did. This miracle involved food – bread and fish.

Ask:

  • Do you know what the miracle was?

Say: Jesus was able to feed more than 5000 people with just five loaves of bread and two fish.

Ask:

  • Do you think that five loaves of bread and two fish are enough to feed more than 5000 hungry people?

Say: Today we are going to watch a video of our Bible story. First let’s read the story in the Bible.

Dig - Main Content & Reflection:

Hold an Adventure Bible with tabs and review its organization.

For the 1st grade:

Say: The Bible is divided into two sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament. The New Testament is stories about Jesus. Besides being divided into two testaments, the Bible is further divided into books.

Ask: Can anyone tell me the names of the first four books of the New Testament?

For 2nd and 3rd grade:

Ask: The Bible is divided into two sections, what are they?

Say: The two sections are the Old Testament and the New Testament. The New Testament is stories about Jesus. Besides being divided into two testaments, the Bible is further divided into books.


Ask: What are the first four books of the New Testament?

For all students:

Say: The first four books of the New Testament are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Ask:

  • We have a name for those first four books, what do we call them?

Say: We call the first four books of the New Testament the Gospels. The word Gospel means “good news.” There is lots of good news in the Gospels. The best news is that Jesus loves each one of us and wants us to love him back.

For 3rd graders:
Say: If you have your own Bible today, be sure you receive a tab for the Gospel section of your Bible. [Show the classroom Bible with tabs. Have the Shepherd do Gospel tabs for students who bring their Bibles. Use the classroom Bible with tabs as an example.]

For all students:

Ask:

  • This is a trick question. In what Gospel do we find the story of our miracle?

Say: We find the story of Jesus feeding multitudes of people in all four Gospels! This is the only miracle, besides Jesus’ resurrection, that is told in all four of the Gospels.

For 1st and 2nd graders:

Read them the story on pages 312 –317 of the Read With Me Bible. Show the pictures as you read the story. Alternately, in later weeks of the Rotation you may consider asking the students to tell you the story. Help them out by showing them the pictures in this story Bible.

For 3rd grade:

Distribute purple Adventure Bibles. Have them find the story in John 6:1-14.
[The students might need more time to find the story. Make sure they understand the difference between chapter numbers and verse numbers.]

Begin to tell them the story…

Say: Jesus had taken a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. He had wanted to find a quiet place to be by himself but, the crowds followed him. They knew that Jesus did great miracles. They wanted to see Jesus. I am going to start reading from the Bible at verse 5. Follow along if you’d like to do so.

Read to them John 6:5-14.

For all students:

Say: Let’s take a look at what we are going to see in our video. This video starts off showing us a poor, hungry boy during Bible times. In the video he speaks with an old man. [Refer to the easel – old man picture.] Listen for what this old man says.

Show the Video:

Have the Shepherd distribute the snack.

PLAY the DVD.
PAUSE after the young boy retreats through the archway leaving the old man. [After viewing 2 minutes, 23 seconds.] (Note: The PAUSE button is one of the most powerful tools in your workshop. Don’t be afraid to use it!)

Ask: What did the old man tell the boy? (when the Messiah came, people who followed him wouldn’t be hungry anymore)
What do you suppose the old man meant? (accept a few answers)

[Note: if the kids don’t catch it, use the controls to SCAN BACKWARD and re-watch this scene.]
Say: In this next scene, watch closely to see how many loaves of bread the young boy gets from the baker. [Refer to the easel.]

Press PLAY.
PAUSE after the woman says “the miracle worker is coming.” [After viewing 1 minute, 40 seconds.]

Ask:

  • How many loaves of bread did the boy get from the bakers when he pretends to be ill? (five)

[Note: it will probably be necessary to re-watch this scene. Use the controls to SCAN BACKWARD and re-watch this scene. Is there a way to watch at a slower speed? Otherwise be ready with the pause button! (One baker puts in 2 loaves, the other puts in 3.)]

Say: Now watch what we learn about Jesus. [Refer to the easel.] And watch what happens to those five loaves of bread.

Press PLAY.
PAUSE after Jesus gives the young boy who shared his lunch, a loaf of bread and Jesus is shown alone on the screen. [After viewing 7 minutes, 35 seconds.]

Note to workshop leader: what to do if kids want to watch more of a video than the lesson calls for?

Please don’t give in to their requests, unless you’ve finished the entire lesson and have extra time! Why? These lessons are specifically planned to get across certain teaching points. If you are spending time watching a part of the video that’s not a part of the lesson, you’re taking away from the intended teaching opportunities!

What can you say to the kids? We’ll watch more of the video if we have time at the end of class. OR We should plan a family night activity here at church to watch the entire video! Thanks for following this lesson!

Discussion:

Ask:

  • What happened to the five loaves of bread?

Say: Jesus did a miracle – he turned the boy’s five loaves of bread and two fish into a lot of food for lots of people.

Ask:

  • What is a miracle? (accept a few answers)

Say: A miracle can be described as a wonderful event that tells us something about God.
Ask:

  • What does this story teach us about God?

Try to raise the following points:

  • that God is powerful,
  • that God cares about peoples needs,
  • that God wants us to share even if what we have is little,
  • that age doesn’t matter – everyone can share.

Ask:

  • Why do you suppose the people didn’t bring any food with them? (maybe they didn’t expect to stay so long; maybe they did have food but didn’t want to share)
  • What do you think would have happened if the boy hadn’t brought a lunch or hadn’t shared it?
  • If you had been one of the people there during this story, would you have shared your lunch?
  • What are things that you have that you can share with others? [Be sure to include non- material things like time, energy, love, & concern.]

Say: Jesus wants us to share what we have with others. When we ask God to bless what we have, we will be amazed at what can happen. God can take what little we have to share, and turn it into something bigger

Closing: 

Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. Use the Lord’s Prayer as the ending. A suggestion: “Dear God, Thank you for the stories in the Bible which teach us something about you. We have learned today that sharing is important. Help us remember to share even when we think we don’t have much to give. (End with the Lord’s Prayer) Amen."

Extra Activities (in case you finish early)

Go back to the DVD and return to the Main Menu. Choose “Additional Features.”
Choose “Adventure Quiz” and then Quiz Level 2, and then “New International Version” on the Scripture Translations page.
Have the kids work together to answer the questions. They can ask for hints from the Bible or to watch a portion of the video again.

When the question appears: “Once Jesus asked his disciples if they would ever leave him…” Choose “Back to Q&A Menu.” [The rest of the questions pertain to parts of the video not watched.]


Resources:

  • Johnson, M. G. Ron. Bread From Heaven: Activity & Resource Book. Irving, TX: Nest Entertainment, 1996.
  • MacQueen, Neil. "A Manual for the Video - A/V Workshop. https://www.rotation.org/topic...-video--a-v-workshop
  • Read With Me Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1993.

A lesson written by Carol Hulbert from: First United Methodist Church
Ann Arbor, MI

Copyright 2008 First United Methodist Church, Ann Arbor, MI. Permission to copy materials granted for non-commercial use provided credit is given and all cited references remain with this material.
 

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

Last edited by Luanne Payne

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