I adapted this from lesson 8 from the LDS manual "Primary 1: I Am a Child of God"
Purpose:
To help each child understand that God created the day (sun) and the night (moon and stars) and that having the sun shine during the day allows us to work and play and enjoy nature.
Materials:
1. Bible
2. pictures of sun, moon, stars or a coloring page of the sun, moon, and stars. (I used clipart and made my own.)
3. crayons
4. black and white construction paper
5. glue
6. cardstock
7. tape
Learning Activities:
1. start with an opening song (Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam/You are my sunshine) and prayer.
2. Tell the children you are thinking of something that Heavenly Father planned and Jesus Christ created. It makes us feel warm. It is round and yellow. It is in the sky. Sometimes it can hide behind a cloud or a mountain. When they guess "the sun," hold up the picture/coloring page of the sun and ask: Who made the sun?
3. Tell the story of the creation of day and night from Genesis 1:1, 3-5 and the creation of the sun, moon, and stars from Genesis 1: 14-18. Ask questions to check for understanding:
Who created the day and night?
What is in the sky to tell us when it is day?
The sun gives us light so we can see. The sun also warms us and hleps plants grow. We would not be able to live on the earth without the sun.
What do we call it when the sun is up? (Day)
Explain that we can do many things during the day. We can work, play, and help others.
Have the children tell you about things they do with it is daytime/summertime...eating a meal, playing a game, sweeping the floor, swimming, having a picnic, etc. Have the children stand up and act out the things they can do.
What can you do to help someone during the day? (pick up toys, wash dishes, playing together, sharing, etc....act these actions out, too.)
4. Do we see the sun all the time?
Explain that every evening the sun goes down and the sky gets dark. We cannot see the sun at night.
What do we call the time when it is dark? (Night)
What is in the sky to light the night? (Moon and Stars)
Have the children act out things they do at night....saying bedtime prayers, brushing teeth, listening to stories, sleeping.
Enrichment Activities:
1. Obtain a sheet of white paper and a half sheet of black paper. Glue the dark half sheet onto one side of the white paper to represent a day and night scene. Have children color the pages with the sun and moon and stars.
Cut out the pictures and have the children glue them in the correct places on the paper. Optional: add star stickers to the paper.
Write across the top of the paper: "God made the sun, moon, and stars."
2. Take a nature walk, talking about the sun and how grateful we are that the sun is in the sky so that we can enjoy God's creations. Give each child a bag to collect plants (leaves, flowers, grass, etc) as you take your walk. When you return home, have each child empty the plants they've collected and dry them off.
Have the children arrange their plants on a paper and tape them down.
Discuss how the sun helps the plants to grow and make the world a beautiful place.
Songs & Fingerplays:
1. "Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam"
2. "You are My Sunshine"
3. "The World is so Big"
The world is so big and, oh, so round (form a large circle with arms),
And in it God’s creations are found;
Stars shining brightly through all the night (straighten and wiggle fingers),
Sun in the day so warm and so bright (form a large circle with arms).
The world is so big and, oh, so round.
God loves us all; our blessings abound (grasp arms and hug self).
4. "God's Creation"
God made the moon (make a circle with hands)
And winking stars (open and close hands)
And put them in the sky (reach up).
He made the sun (make a circle with arms overhead)
And trees (hold arms straight up)
And flowers (cup hands)
And little birds that fly (wave arms).
(From Fascinating Finger Fun by Eleanor Doan.)
Summary:
Review with the children about how God created the day and the night (sun, moon, and stars) for us. Talk about how thankful you are for being able to enjoy the sunshine during the day, but to also rest at night. Remind the children what they've learned about the sun and how it allows us to work and play and helps plants to grow.
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