Holy Spirit/Dove Project

Our lesson at Sunday School was about the Holy Spirit.  The objective was to help the kids understand that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be with us on Earth.  The Holy Spirit helps us to:  1)  Do what God wants us to do  2)  Do what is Right  3)  Help Others  4) Pray.  The concept of the Holy Spirit can be difficult for little people to grasp because the Holy Spirit can not be seen.  We did a couple of activities during our lesson to help them out.

This is what we did:

Mystery Picture Craft:

1.  Draw a simple dove outline, using a white crayon, onto white paper.  Make the outline fairly thick.  I drew over my outline a couple of times. 
2. Draw an olive branch in the Dove's mouth.  I used a brown crayon for the branch and a green crayon for the leaves.
3. The kids could only see the olive branch when they were given the paper.
4. I instructed the kids to use watercolor paints to cover the entire page.
5. The mystery picture;  THE DOVE shows up.

This project was completed very quickly by 5 yr. olds.  I think it took about 10 minutes.  It is a beautiful project for the kids to take home.  I'm guessing many parents hung it at home.

Dove Paper Plate Craft:

1. I drew an outline of a dove on a paper plate.  Use the really cheap flimsy paper plates.  My plate was a little bit higher quality and it made it more difficult for the kids to cut out the pieces.
2. Let the kids cut along the lines.
3. Tape the wings to the back side of the body.
4. Let the kids draw the details (beak, feet, eyes)  We used crayons.

I think it would be fun to use google eyes and white feathers too! 

This idea came from:  Catholic Icing

 

Additional Activity: 

 

I also used our puppet, Scotty the Lion, to help introduce the kids to the concept that just because you can't see something doesn't mean it doesn't exist.  I put a balloon in Scotty's bag and had the kids try to guess what was in it.  Most guessed it was a ball.   The balloon grabbed their attention right away.  I took out another balloon and tried to "blow it up" without actually blowing.  I just put it to my lips.  The kids told me I needed to blow in order for it to work.  We then talked about air - even though we can't see it, it exists, and is actually very powerful.  An example of powerful air is a storm or a tornado.  This is like the Holy Spirit.  We then tossed the balloon to each other and gave examples of what the Holy Spirit can help us to do.