Aim to learn the key events of the story: To understand that Jesus was a very special baby

Aim
* To learn the key events of the story
* To understand that Jesus was a very special baby

Materials
* First Bible Stories – John Dillow
* Bible – Matthew 1, Luke 1-2
* Visual aids – large pictures of the story, nativity pictures
* Worksheets
* Material for Xmas card – picture, coloured pencils, card, glue, glitter, stickers

Lesson Outline
1. Story of Jesus’ birth
2. Questions
3. Activities – worksheets, make a Christmas card, Nativity Scrambler Puzzle
4. Review lesson aims
5. End with a Prayer
1) Story of Jesus’ birth
1. An angel visits Mary
2. Joseph has a dream
3. Joseph and Mary travel to Bethlehem
4. Jesus is born in a stable

2) Questions
– Where did Mary and Joseph live? – Nazareth
– Who visited Mary? – the angel Gabriel
– What did he tell her? – “You will have a baby, God’s own son. You will name him Jesus.”
– What dream did Joseph have? – the angel Gabriel told him to marry Mary
– Where did Mary and Joseph go together? – Bethlehem
– Why did they go there? – to register their names
– What problem did they have there? – there was nowhere to stay
– Where was Jesus born? – in a stable
– What was so special about Jesus? – He was chosen by God to build the kingdom of heaven on earth. He was the person the Jews had been waiting for. He was God’s true son, who was filled with God’s love.
– Can you retell the story in your own words?

3) Activities
* Worksheets
– An Angel visits Mary – find 5 differences
– Mary & Joseph in Bethlehem – complete the picture
– Jesus is Born in a Stable – how many animals can you find?

* Make a Christmas card
– Colour the picture OR cut out coloured nativity picture, stick onto card, decorate with stickers, glitter, etc..

* Nativity Scrambler Puzzle
Find a picture of the nativity scene. Use a ruler or other straight edge to divide the pictures in equal-size squares. Make photocopies so that each child will have his own picture. Have the children cut out the squares and turn them face down onto a table. Tell them to scramble the pictures while they are upside down. Set a timer, (four minutes should be adequate) and tell them to turn their pictures face up and create the picture again in its original form. The first one to do so before the timer goes off wins the game. This is an enjoyable way for the children to learn about the birth of Jesus and to compete with each other.

4) Review lesson aim
* To learn the key events of the story
* To understand that Jesus was a very special baby

5) End with a Prayer