- Tell us about your plans for the Christmas holiday. Are you doing any special activities? Family gatherings? (Students can share their upcoming plans; make sure to include your own.)
- Have any of your Christmas plans ever gone wrong? Please share. (Answers may include: Yes, a snowstorm came and our school Christmas party was cancelled; my grandpa passed away last Christmas and everything changed; my mom got sick so we ordered pizza instead of having our big Christmas Eve dinner; etc.)
The holidays can get crazy! Family parties, school activities, church recitals—you name it and we’re all doing it. Christmas time is fun and chaotic and sometimes doesn’t go as planned. Many times when things get crazy, we forget plans or don’t set aside enough time to get everything done. So, today let’s get some help planning ahead for one part of the holidays: gift-giving.
- Does anyone plan to give gifts this season? Do you know what you’re giving yet? (Answers may include: I’d like to give my parents something, but I’m not sure what; my best friend and I always exchange gifts—usually jewelry; no, I don’t have money to get gifts for anyone, etc.)
Hand out notebook paper and writing utensils to your students.
If you were thinking you’d like to make a gift for someone special, but don’t have any idea what to get them or you haven’t planned that far ahead yet, this video clip might guide you. If you’re not planning to give gifts, no problem! Just enjoy the video. Maybe it will give you a few creative ideas to plan to try throughout the year. Let’s watch a DIY clip of a few cute and easy gifts you can plan to make for your friends and family this Christmas season. Take notes on anything you’d like to remember, so you can try it at home.
Give your students some tips to write down as they watch (you might want to start and stop the video and give the hint at appropriate times):
- Be sure to cover your working surfaces with newspaper for easy clean-up.
- Instead of shellac on the wooden spoons, there is a type of Mod Podge you can get that is dishwasher safe and non-toxic.
- Don’t attempt to use a hot glue gun or iron unless you have an adult helping (if you don’t want to give away the surprise and can’t use the iron, include a note with your gift that tells the recipient to iron it before using).
- You can decorate oven mitts or hot pads from the dollar store the same way they decorated kitchen towels.
- Be sure to use permanent markers on the dish towels and mouse pad.
- The elastic they are referring to on the tassels is a rubber band.
Play the following clip [6:05].
5 Easy DIY Christmas Gifts Kids Can Make
- Did anyone see any ideas they liked? Which ones? (Answers will vary.)
- How can following the plans someone else has laid out for you be helpful? (Answers: their ideas can give us a specific direction on how to accomplish something; new ideas make us think differently and try new things; they know what mistakes to avoid when they figured it out and are just sharing things that worked, etc.)
Making and following plans is an important part of life. However, sometimes plans get ruined. Things just don’t always turn out the way we planned.
In today’s lesson we’re going to see how Mary and Joseph had plans for their future. But God had a bigger plan for them. Let’s find out more.