Scripture: Ruth 1
Learning Objectives:
- Students will review the story of Ruth’s trip with Naomi and her marriage to Boaz.
- Students will learn how workers and the poor earned food during Ruth’s time.
- Students will learn the importance of Boaz’s kindness to Ruth.
Guiding Question: What can students learn about Boaz’s actions toward Ruth?
Materials: Wheat, barley, any additional crops you find
Procedure: Teach Ruth 1 and Ruth’s close relationship to Naomi, her mother-in-law. Explain that family was especially important in biblical times and in many cultures because when a family member dies, the surviving members take care of each other. Talk about the gleaning rules for feeding the poor were found in Leviticus 19:9, 23:22 and Deut. 24:19-21. The generosity of the owner of the crop determined how much was left for the poor to gather.
Bring in wheat, barley or some other “crop”. (This is also a great lesson to do at a farm or orchard where people can pick their own produce.) Have some students pretend to be servants who are reaping the crop for the master. Tell them to leave some gleanings for the poor. Have the rest of the students glean what is left of the “crop”. What could be some of the issues with this system? What did the instructions Boaz gave his workers tell us about the kind of man Boaz was? At the end of class, tell students that God blesses Boaz and Ruth and they later became King David’s great grandparents.
Additional Questions: How can students learn the impact of acts of kindness?
Supplemental Activities: Have students decide on an act of kindness that can have a large impact on others. Have students create a “ripple effect” poster with the act of kindness in the middle. Then the students will draw “ripples” around the middle with each ripple being one of the impacts of the act of kindness.