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LESSON 5
A Lot with a Little
Scripture: John 6:1-14
Lesson Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
Memory Verse: Nothing is impossible with God. Luke 1:37
1
Getting Ready for the Bible
To help the children relate to today’s Bible story,
they will listen to a story and talk about their own
experiences of a lot and a little.
Opening Activity: Piece of construction paper,
(optional: piece of bread, cell phone)
• Sharing Time: No materials needed
2
Bible Story Time: John 6:1-14
The children will discover that Jesus used a boy’s
lunch to feed over 5,000 people.
• Bible Story: Teaching Aid 8 (from Preschool Creative
Teaching Aids), flannel board, Bible
• Bible Story Review: Teaching Aid 9 (from Preschool
Creative Teaching Aids), scissors
• Bible Memory Verse: No materials needed
3
The Bible and Me
Children will explore activity centers to help
them understand that Jesus can do a lot with
a little.
• Bible Story Card: Page and add-on figure for Lesson
5 (from Preschool Make-It/Take-It), crayons, tape
• Popcorn Game: No materials needed
• Flannel Storytelling: Teaching Aid 8 (from
Preschool Creative Teaching Aids), flannel board
4
Going Home with the Bible
By remembering that Jesus can do a lot with a
little, the children will see how the Bible story
works in their own lives.
Bible, construction paper, crayons, (optional: small
paper plates), My Sunday Pictures, Lesson 5, Family
Card B
This symbol appears whenever preparation takes more than five minutes or supplies are needed that are not included on the list of standard supplies (on page 6).
Teacher Devotional
The smell of fresh baked
bread can bring smiles to
many people.
In John 6:1-14, Jesus
takes an important staple
of the Jewish people,
bread, and uses it to show
that He can do a lot with
a little. He fed over 5,000
hungry people from five
loaves of barley bread.
Later in John 6, Jesus
talks about a more
important bread, the
bread of life.
Jesus said, “I am the
bread of life. He who
comes to me will never
go hungry, and he who
believes in me will never
be thirsty” (John 6:35).
Jesus does a big thing
by giving us the “bread of
life,” or life through God’s
Son. This bread can satisfy
all your spiritual hunger.
How does the bread of
life nourish you?
_________________________
_________________________
Write a prayer praising
God for the many things
He does in your life
because you have the
bread of life.
_________________________
_________________________
Understanding the Bible
Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000 is the only miracle
that is recorded in all four Gospels (Matt.
14:13-21; Mark 6:32-44; Luke 9:10-17).
Jesus and His disciples had crossed the Sea
of Galilee to seek a quiet place of refuge on the
northern shore, near Bethsaida (Luke 9:10). By
the time John wrote his Gospel account, the
lake was called “the Sea of Tiberias,” after the
Roman emperor (John 6:1). This event probably occurred after Jesus heard about the execution of John the Baptist (Matt. 14:13).
36
Lesson 5
After teaching the large crowd that followed
Him, Jesus set the stage for a miracle by
asking Philip where they could buy bread.
Philip was from Bethsaida and knew the area
(John 1:44). Philip’s reply referred to the
Roman currency. A denarius was a Roman
coin equivalent to one day’s wages. Philip
estimated that it would cost over 200 days’
wages to feed the crowd.
The lunch offered by the boy was a common
lunch which Jesus used in a miraculous way.
It included five barley loaves and two fish.
The round, flat loaves were probably made
by the boy’s mother. Barley bread was the
cheapest bread at the time. The fish may
have been caught close by in the Sea of Galilee
and then cooked over an open fire.
The 12 baskets showed there was an
abundant supply. Bread was important to
the Jews, so scraps would not be wasted.
The baskets may have been lunch baskets
carried by the disciples (Mark 6:43).
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
When Teaching
the Bible to
Preschoolers...
As your preschoolers
hear Bible stories like
the feeding of the 5,000,
they begin to see the
awesome power of
God. Preschoolers
will easily accept the
mighty acts of God
in history. They will
quickly learn what Jesus
did. The children in your
class are also ready to
begin learning what the miracles
of Jesus show us about Him.
Here are a few tips to help your
children come to know who God
is through the miraculous actions
of Jesus:
• Contrast the size of the boy’s
lunch with the size of the crowd.
While the children will not
comprehend how big 5,000 is,
they will understand it is a very
big number. Only Jesus could
feed the crowd with a small
lunch!
• Preschoolers can begin to know
numbers such as two, five, and
twelve. Helping to count the fish,
bread, and baskets of leftovers will
help the children understand that
Jesus did a lot with a little.
• Jesus responded directly to the
crowd’s need. God’s power can
meet our needs too.
Welcome Time Activities
These activities are designed to engage your children in a fun
and purposeful way while freeing you to interact with parents and
children as they arrive. The centers require little or no supervision
and can be set up before class. After greeting each child, direct him
or her to a center and suggest a way to start or join the activity.
Moving
and
Doing
Put a piece of masking tape on the floor. Encourage
the children to walk on this “balance beam” using
different types of steps such as little steps and lots of
steps. As they actively compare a lot and little, they
will begin to have a background understanding for
today’s Lesson Focus.
Have the children cut or tear magazine pictures of
s
Project
Table
Play
lunch items and glue them onto paper plates. While
their lunches will be very different from the boy’s
lunch in the feeding of the 5,000, thinking about
lunches helps them relate to today’s Bible story.
Set out paper clips and containers. Invite children
to count two clips into one container, five clips into
another container, and ten clips into the remaining
containers. Encourage them to put the “ten”
containers together. Have the children compare the
differences in the numbers to begin to understand
that Jesus fed a lot of people in John 6:1-14.
Before moving into the lesson or Worship Time, have the children
put away the activities, and gather into a big group. You could use
this rhyme to attract their attention. Let the children buzz like bees
as they clean up.
Buzz along with me,
You bunch of cleanup bees.
Buzz along with me,
We’re as busy as can be.
Worship Time
Before you begin today’s lesson, you may want to have a short worship time.
• Have the children sit down on a rug or in chairs. Worship time is a time when we tell God how much
we love Him.
• Choose a child to collect the offerings. Dear God, these offerings are one way we can say thank You
for the many things You give us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
• Teach these words to the tune “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean.”
My Jesus has power to help me.
Jesus, Jesus.
Oh, Jesus has shown us what God is like.
There’s nothing that He cannot do.
Praise Him, praise Him!
And He even knows what we’re thinking.
He loves me and I love Him, too.
He knows all about us, it’s true.
• Close with a short prayer. Thank You, God, for sending Your Son, Jesus, to show us what You are like.
Help us learn about You today as we hear about something special Jesus did. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Lesson 5
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
1
STEP
Getting Ready for the Bible
To help the children relate to today’s Bible story, they will listen to a story
and talk about their own experiences of a lot and a little.
Materials: Piece of construction paper, (optional: slice of bread, cell phone)
Attention Grabber
If you have not already gathered the children into
a group or you need to focus their attention back
to you, ask them to copy your actions as you say
this rhyme.
Reach up high.
Bend down low.
Jump in the middle,
And wiggle like so.
Take a step back.
Twirl around.
Fold your hands,
Now sit down.
Opening Activity
Once the children are seated in a circle and ready
to listen, tell the story to begin talking about a lot
and a little. Discussing making a lot and a little
will help the children understand today’s Bible story
from John 6:1-14.
Good morning everyone. Can you help me
with a little problem I have? I have a friend
coming over for lunch today. All I have for lunch
is one piece of bread. Hold up the piece of paper
or optional bread. I don’t have time to go to the
store. What can I do? Lead the children to suggest
tearing the bread in half.
Brring, brring. Excuse me a minute, my
phone is ringing. Make a telephone receiver with
your hand or use a cell phone. Pretend to talk on
your “phone.” Hello. Yes, that’s fine. Put your
“phone” away. That was my friend. She’s bringing two friends to lunch. Now the bread has to
feed four people. What can I do? Tear the paper
into four sections.
Brring brring. I have to answer my phone
38
Lesson 5
again. Again use your hand “phone” or cell phone.
Hello. Yes, that’s fine. Put your phone away. That
was my friend again. Each of her friends is going
to bring a friend to lunch. Now I have to make
the bread feed six! Tear the paper or bread into
six pieces.
At lunch time I can use my one piece of
bread, which is a little, to feed six people. But no
one will be full. It would take a lot more bread
to fill up six people. Let’s talk more about a little
and a lot.
Sharing Time
As you and your class talk, be sure to allow time
for each child to say something. This gives every
child an opportunity to connect to the Bible story
and Lesson Focus, “Jesus can do a lot with a little,”
through his or her own experiences.
䊳
What is a little? (Children may say that they
are little, talk about little objects such as blocks,
or talk about one thing.)
䊳
What is a lot? (This question helps you learn
their understanding of a little compared to a
lot. Accept their answers. These may include
a large number of an object, such as blocks,
or something they consider big.)
䊳
When have you seen a little become a lot?
(This question helps the children understand
the relationship between a little and a lot.
They may talk about popcorn popping, filling
a jar or container with candy, or even yeast
dough growing. Accept all the children’s
answers.)
Some little things can become a lot. Today
we’re going to learn that Jesus can do a lot with
a little. As you hear today’s Bible story, listen to
find out what Jesus does with a boy’s little lunch.
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
2
STEP
Bible Story Time
John 6:1-14
The children will discover that Jesus used a boy’s lunch to feed over 5,000 people.
Materials: Creative Teaching Aids—Teaching Aids 8 and 9, flannel board, Bible, scissors
Bible Story
Punch out the flannel figures from Teaching
Aid 8. Put them in the order you will use them in
the story.
The children should still be gathered in a
group ready for the story. Have your Bible open
to John 6:1-14. Today’s story comes from the
Bible. It is found in the book of the Bible
called John. (Show the children where John is in
the Bible. Keep your Bible open to John 6 as you
tell the Bible story.)
(Place Jesus, Figure 1, on the right side of the
flannel board. Put the disciples, Figure 2, in the
center.) The Bible tells us
that one day Jesus and His
helpers had crossed a big
lake. A lot of people had
followed them. (Put people,
Figure 4, on the left side of the
board.) That’s because they
had seen all the wonderful
things Jesus could do. And
they wanted to be close to
Teaching Aid 8
Him.
Jesus and His helpers walked up the side of
a mountain and sat down. (Replace the standing
Jesus, Figure 1, with Jesus sitting, Figure 3.) When
Jesus looked up, He saw many people there.
There were more than 5,000 people. That’s
a lot of people.
Soon it was time to eat. All the people
were hungry. Jesus said to Philip, one of His
helpers, “Where can we buy bread for these
people to eat?”
Philip said, “We don’t have enough money
to buy food for all these people!”
Then Andrew, another one of Jesus’ helpers,
said, “Here is a boy with five small loaves of
bread. (Hold up five fingers on one hand.) He has
two small fish, too. (Hold up two fingers on your
other hand.) But this little lunch is not enough
to feed so many people!” (Place the boy, Figure 5,
between Jesus and the disciples; place basket, Figure
6, beside the boy.)
Jesus said, “Have all the people sit down.”
(Place basket, Figure 6, near Jesus’ hand.) He took
the five loaves of bread and said a thank-You
prayer to God. Then Jesus started using a little
food to feed a lot of people. There was more
and more bread—enough to feed every one
of the 5,000 people. (Place bread, Figure 7, near
Jesus’ feet.)
Then Jesus took the two fish, and the same
kind of thing happened. Jesus did a lot with a
little again! There was more and more fish—
enough to feed every single person! (Place fish,
Figure 8, near Jesus’ feet.)
The people had plenty of food to eat. Jesus
told His helpers to gather the leftover pieces of
bread and fish after everyone finished eating.
Soon there were 12 baskets filled with the
pieces of food.
Jesus took a boy’s little lunch (Place hand
down low.) and made it a lot to feed many
people. (Spread arms wide.) He made that lunch
big enough to feed 5,000 people! Jesus can do
a lot with a little.
Lesson 5
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
Bible Story Review
Bible Memory Verse
To check for the children’s understanding of
today’s Bible story, have them answer these
questions or do the activity, or both.
As children practice a Bible verse week after week,
they will be able to understand and remember it.
Have the children do either the practice or the
rhyme, or both.
Questions
䊳
What was in the boy’s lunch?
(Five small loaves of bread and two small fish.)
䊳
What did Jesus do with the lunch?
(He fed 5,000 people.)
䊳
Why did Jesus feed all the people with the
boy’s lunch? (This question may be difficult for
children to answer. They may say “to show that
He can do a lot with a little,” or “I don’t know.”)
䊳
Who can do a lot with a little?
(Jesus can do a lot with a little.)
Activity
This activity helps the children review the story
by putting together
a puzzle.
Cut Teaching
Aid 9 on the cut
lines after showing
the poster to the
children.
Teaching Aid 9
We learned that
Jesus can do a lot with a little. Let’s review our
Bible story by putting a puzzle together. I will
give you a question. If your puzzle piece shows
the answer to the question, put your piece in the
puzzle. Give each child one of the puzzle pieces.
Repeat the activity so all children can participate.
Have the children add pieces of the puzzle as
you tell the following clues.
• Who was sitting on the side of a mountain?
(Add the pictures showing Jesus.)
• 5,000 of these followed Jesus and then got
hungry. (Add the pieces showing people.)
• Who had a small lunch of fish and bread?
(Add the pieces of the boy.)
• Show me what the people ate. (Add the pieces
of the food and any remaining pieces.)
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Lesson 5
Nothing is impossible with God.
Luke 1:37
Practice
Say the Bible memory verse to the children and
have them repeat it back to you.
Setting words to music helps preschoolers
remember them longer. Sing the words with the
children to the tune of “Alouette.” Teaching the
actions with the words will help the children learn
the verse. Jesus can do a lot with a little because
nothing is impossible with God.
Nothing is impossible with God.
(Shake head no, then point up.)
Oh, nothing is impossible with God.
(Shake head no, then point up.)
From Luke 1 verse 37, from Luke 1 verse 37.
(Hold hands like a book.)
Nothing is, nothing is, Oh!
Nothing is impossible with God.
(Shake head no, then point up.)
Oh, nothing is impossible with God.
(Shake head no, then point up.)
Bible Rhyme Time
The Bible verse is in the last line of the rhyme.
Teach the words and actions one line at a time.
Have the children repeat each line back to you.
Our new Bible verse tell us that nothing is
impossible with God.
Listening to us when we pray.
(Fold hands.)
Caring for us when we play.
(Run in place.)
Loving us every day.
(Hug self.)
Nothing is impossible with God.
(Open arms wide.)
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
3
STEP
The Bible and Me
Children will explore activity centers to help them understand that Jesus can do
a lot with a little.
In today’s Bible story, your class learned that Jesus used a boy’s lunch to feed over
5,000 people. To help the children understand that Jesus can do a lot with a little,
choose one or more of the following activities. Before you let the children begin
these activities, demonstrate each one you have chosen. This week the “Popcorn
Game” needs the most teacher supervision.
Bible Story Card:
Materials: Make-It/Take-It page and add-on figure for Lesson 5, crayons, tape
Today’s project helps the children review the Bible story, from John 6:1-14, where Jesus fed
5,000 people. Remove the page and add-on figure for Lesson 5 from the Make-It/Take-It books.
Have the children color the pictures. When the coloring is done, let children tape the add-on
figure to the X. After the children have folded the page on the broken line, let them take turns
telling the Bible story to each other. Encourage them to use their projects to help tell the story.
Flannel Storytelling:
Materials: Creative Teaching Aids—Teaching Aid 8,
flannel board
Popcorn Game:
Materials: None needed
This game helps the children explore
today’s Lesson Focus, “Jesus can do a lot
with a little.”
Talk about things Jesus can do with
a little. Some suggestions to help the
children: feeding a lot of people, loving
us, coming as a baby, healing people,
etc. Have the children pretend to be
kernels of popcorn, curled up small.
When each child thinks of something
Jesus can do, he or she can “explode”
into a standing position and tell what
Jesus does.
In today’s Bible story, the
children learned that Jesus used
a boy’s lunch to feed many
people. This activity will help
them tell others what they know
about the story.
Set out the flannel figures
from Teaching Aid 8, found
in your Creative Teaching Aids
packet. Have them put the
figures in order as they tell what
is happening in the story.
Teaching Aid 8
When you are ready to close this step, have
the children put away the activities,
and gather into a big group. You could use
this rhyme to attract their attention. Let the
children buzz like bees as they clean up.
Buzz along with me,
You bunch of cleanup bees.
Buzz along with me,
We’re as busy as can be.
Lesson 5
41
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Lesson 5 Focus: Jesus can do a lot with a little.
S
T
E
P
4
Going Home with the Bible
By remembering that Jesus can do a lot with a little, the children will
see how the Bible story works in their own lives.
Materials: Bible, construction paper, crayons, (optional: small paper plates)
If you have extra time
Before teaching today’s lesson, cut a doorknob
hanger out of paper for each child. To cut each
hanger, cut a 5-inch circle of paper. On one side
of the circle cut a slit to the middle. Cut a small
1 1/2-inch circle out of the middle. You could use
small paper plates instead of construction paper.
Write the Lesson Focus, “Jesus can do a lot with
a little,” on each hanger.
After cleaning up, have the children sit on
chairs around a table. Use this time to help the
children create a reminder that Jesus can do a lot
with a little. Show the children once again where
John 6:1-14 is in the Bible. In today’s story, Jesus
used a small lunch of five loaves of bread and
two fish to feed over 5,000 people. Who knew
how to make a little feed a lot of people? (Jesus.)
Show the children one of the doorknob hangers.
This is a doorknob hanger. It can be put around
a doorknob or hung on a wall. (If you have a door
in your classroom, put the hanger on the doorknob to
show the children how it works.)
Where could you put a doorknob hanger to
help you remember that Jesus can do a lot with
a little? (Some possible answers children may give
are on a bedroom door, on the door going outside,
on the bathroom mirror, or any other place in the
house.)
Give each child a doorknob hanger to color.
As you color your hanger, choose a place to put
it to help you remember that Jesus can do a lot
with a little.
When the children are done coloring, gather
them in a circle on the floor. Let each child share
how he or she is going to use the hanger. You may
want to model the sharing time for the children.
I am going to put my hanger on (Name where
you have chosen.) to help me remember that
Jesus can do a lot with a little. Give each child
a turn to tell where he or she will put the hanger.
Close with a prayer. Dear Jesus, thank You
that You can do a lot with a little. In Your
name. Amen.
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Lesson 5
If you celebrate birthdays each month, do that
today. Another activity is included if you talk about
birthdays once a quarter.
The day you were born is special. Some of
you were born in October. Have each birthday
child stand next to you. _________ has a birthday
this month. He/She will be ____ years old. As a
class, sing “Happy Birthday,” then say a prayer.
Dear God, thank You for (children’s names).
We’re glad they come to Sunday school. In
Jesus, name. Amen.
Here is another option if you aren’t celebrating
birthdays. Gather the children into a circle. Have
them work together to put the puzzle from
Teaching Aid 3 together.
Time to Go
•
Before children leave for the day, be sure to hand
out the My Sunday Pictures card for Lesson 5 and
Family Card B.
•
Let children play the “Popcorn Game,” from
page 41, until their parents pick them up.
•
As you say good-bye to each child, remind him
or her of the Lesson Focus: Jesus can do a lot with
a little.
What to
send home...
My Sunday Pictures for Lesson 5
Family Card B from
My Sunday Pictures
Make-It/Take-It picture