Time to teach

“Next time I will have to show them how to make a paper airplane,” my husband said Sunday as we left our turn leading children’s church. He does enjoy making his style of paper airplane. Recently, he patiently worked with great-grandson Austin showing him to fold a paper plane.
I watched as Austin flopped the paper in half. He did not even try to crease it. “You have to press hard like this,” hubby folded his paper over and smashed the edge as he swept his hand over it.
Austin tried to copy. Together they folded and tucked until they had paper planes to toss around the room. I am sure Hubby will remember to do that the next time he leads the fun part of four and five year-old church time.
He likes games and making things. I like stories.
Using picture cards I started my 10-15 minute story about Esau and Jacob. The lesson plan provided me with a two minute, 300 words version. I wanted the kids to know the drama and the people in the Bible lesson..
They wanted to know, “Who is in that picture? Which one is Jacob?”
I found a quick answer, “In all these pictures Jacob wears white and Esau has red hairy arms.”
Four- and five-year-olds ask a lot of questions before they understand. I repeated the names many times: Esau, Jacob, Isaac, Rebekah. I cannot remember when I did not know those names. I probably heard them about this same age. Someone, somewhere has to introduce a name, story or technique to children or they look puzzled at even a simple task like folding paper.
Sunday I taught them about Jacob and Esau.. As I neared the crucial scene of Jacob pretending to be Esau to steal his blessing, another child arrived. I stopped, he also needed to know Jacob and Esau’s story. I began backtracking and reviewing the story to that point.
“What were the twins’ names?”
“What did Esau want when he came back from his hunting trip and was hungry?”
“He wanted the soup Jacob had made!”
“What did he trade for the soup?”
“Everything he was going to get from his dad.”
”Which son did mother Rebekah like best?
“Jacob.”
“Which son did father Isaac like best?”
“Esau.”
We reviewed until we reached Jacob’s deception. It took longer but the children’s answers showed me how much they had heard. Plus, the newcomer now knew all the characters and their story.
Hubby passed out crayons for the review sheet. I read a modern made-up story emphasizing that everyone looks different but all came from Adam and Eve. With 15 minutes left, hubby organized a game of tag.
The children squealed, laughed and took turns chasing each other. Everyone played except one little girl who doggedly colored her worksheet.
Once they had gotten out their wiggles, it was time for another game.
“Let’s play hide and seek. I will count to 15. You all hide.
I looked around the room. No closets, no bookshelves. No cubby holes, Just a few tables and chairs. Still, by the time he reached 15, they found six hiding places. I’m sure he could see all of them as soon as he turned around.It took him about a minute to tag each child and designate a boy to be the next seeker.
We still had children hiding behind and beside chairs when the parents arrived. Each immediately found their child, gathered their child’s worksheet and left with a smiling child. Next time, I am sure the children will also leave with a paper airplane.