Northern Lightscape (Junior)

Materials

• Black cardstock, 1 sheet per child*
• Pine Trees (DVD-ROM or download below)
• Black cardstock, 1 sheet for every 6 children*
• Snack-size zippered baggies, 1 per child
• Psalm 119:105 Verse Cards (included in pine tree download below)
• Blue copy paper, 1 sheet for every 26 children
• Clear (alcohol free) hair gel, 2 oz. per child
• Blue food coloring, 2 drops per child
• Yellow food coloring, 4 drops per child
• Black yarn, 18 in. per child

*Add together for the total amount of black cardstock needed.

Tools and Basic Supplies

• Office paper cutter
• Scissors
• Glue Sticks
• 1/4-in. hole punch
• Transparent tape

Pre-Prep

• Orient black cardstock vertically, then fold in half top to bottom.
• Cut a 6 x 3-in. rectangle out of the center of the folded cardstock to create two windows.
• Punch a hole in the top right and top left corners of the open end of the folded cardstock approximately ½ in. from each corner.
• Cut yarn into 18-in. pieces, 1 per child.
• Pour 2 oz. of clear hair gel into zippered bag, 1 per child.
• Photocopy the Pine Trees onto black cardstock. Then quick cut a set of 3 trees for each child. The kids will do the finish cutting.
• Photocopy the Psalm 119:105 Verse Cards onto blue copy paper. Then cut out one verse for each child.

Teaching Tie-In

Have you ever heard of the Northern Lights? They can be seen up in the Arctic and are bright moving lights that come in many colors. Pale green and pink are the most common colors, but there are also shades of reds, yellows, greens, blues, and violets. In a place that is often very dark, the Northern Lights can really be a light to a person's path.

You know, the Bible calls itself a light to our path, too. What do you think that means when it says the Bible is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path?

The Bible lights our way and helps us to avoid things that would cause us to stumble and sin, and it also helps us do things that bring God's light to others in our world. In places where people don't have access to a Bible to read and study, their lives are often very hopeless. They need to hear the truth from God's Word. Can you think of someone who needs a Bible so they can have the light of God's Word?

Class Time Directions

• Pass out baggies containing hair gel, 1 per child.
• Place 2 drops of blue food coloring into the far left side of the baggie and 4 drops of yellow food coloring into the far right side of the baggie.
• Seal bag tightly with the least amount of air possible.
• Place baggie on table and press gently with your fingers to blend the colors together, but don’t over blend. Be careful not to cut the bag with your fingernails.
• Cut out the 3 pine trees. Then, with the folded black paper frame open and oriented vertically (windows above and below each other), glue stick the trees (bases only) to the bottom of the top window.
• Lay the gel-filled baggie over the top window and the trees. Then tape it to the frame with transparent tape.
• Glue stick the entire inside of the frame, then carefully fold shut and press firmly all around.
• Turn the frame over and then glue stick the blue verse to the front of the frame in the area below the pine trees.
• To hang your Northern Lightscape, tie the ends of the piece of yarn to the holes in the top two corners.

Tip Corner

1. To save ink and cardstock, make a pine tree template out of scrap cardboard (e.g., cereal boxes) for each child. Then have the children trace 2 or 3 pine trees onto the leftover black rectangle cardstock pieces (see Pre-Prep step 2) and cut them out.
2. For the younger children or to save time, precut the pine trees.
3. Large pine tree punches can be found online or at craft stores like Hobby Lobby. If the punch trees are larger, just use 2 instead of 3 for each child. Or consider using a pine tree die cut if you have access to a die cut machine at a school or elsewhere.