Scripture: Matthew 5:1-7:29, Luke 6:20-49
Learning Objectives:
- Students will learn God cares about our heart.
- Students will learn actions that appear good cannot cover a heart that is sinful.
- Students will learn although God forgives us of our sins, He expects a higher standard of behavior from us than the world does.
- Students will learn how to decode difficult words and understand words said in different accents.
Guiding Question: How can students learn to decode difficult words and pronunciations?
Materials: Clips of people speaking in different accents
Procedure: Review the story of the Sermon on the Mount with the students. Tell students that God expects us to try and live our lives the best we can. He knows we will make mistakes and sin because we are not perfect. Even so, He still expects better behavior from us than what the world may expect from us. God wants us not to take revenge on someone but to be the bigger person and handle the situation in a godly manner. The world may tell us to get back at someone but God does not want us to treat others that way.
Introduce the activity. Tell the students they are going to practice decoding difficult words like in the Beatitudes. Have the students use a dictionary to find pronunciation and definitions. Discuss various American accents and how they may impact pronunciation. Play clips of various American accents and see if students can understand what they are saying.
Additional Questions: How can students use vocabulary to assist in understanding other languages?
Supplemental Activity: Teach the students about cognates in English and in other languages. These cognates can be beneficial to people learning a new language. Have the students practice guessing the meaning of cognates in other languages.