Scripture: Luke 2:1-20 and Matthew 2:1-12
Learning Objectives:
- Students will learn Jesus fulfilled several Old Testament prophecies during the events surrounding his birth.
- Students will learn the shepherds and angels rejoiced and worshipped the ultimate shepherd, Jesus.
- Students will learn the wise men recognized Jesus as the King of Kings and brought him gifts usual given to royalty.
- Students will learn about basic constellations.
Guiding Question: How did the wise men show Jesus honor?
Materials: For constellations: http://www.themomentsathome.com/night-sky-dot-to-dot-printable/
Procedure: Review the story of the birth of Jesus from the scriptures above. Remind students that following the stars is what led to the wise men being able to find Jesus in the manger. Ask to students to share what the gifts where that the wise men brought. Explain how these gifts were so special as these types of gifts were only brought for people of royalty. These gifts showed the Jesus was extremely important to them and they were ready to honor him as soon as he was born.
Introduce the activity. Explain that we don’t know what the special star in the sky was that the wise men saw. It may have been something special God put there just for that special time or something that perhaps is normally rarely seen. Tell the students they are going to learn some basic constellations (often used in ancient times for help getting from place to place). Have students practice making the constellations from the link in the materials.
Additional Questions: How can students develop their own constellations?
Supplemental Activity: Have students create their own constellation, name it, and then create a story about the constellation and the significance behind its name.