About Sheep, Shepherds & Flocks
Sheep are so cute and lend themselves to lots of fun crafts. Sheep and shepherds are mentioned in many places in the Bible. David was a shepherd and God helped him defend his flocks (1 Sam 17:35). Jesus speaks of Himself as the Good Shepherd (John 10). And of course, the 23rd Psalm: The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want...
We were studying the story of Abram and Lot from Genesis. The Lord had blessed them so much that they had "Lots" (good way to help kids remember his name) of sheep, cattle, goats, etc. So many, in fact, that their herdsmen started fighting among themselves because there wasn't enough grazing land for everybody's livestock.
So Abram (his name before God changed his name to Abraham) was so unselfish and humble, that he took his nephew aside and said, "Look, there's not enough land for the both of us and our guys are fighting -- let's go our separate ways. You choose which land you want, and I'll go the other way."
Lot chose the best-looking land for himself and Abram took the land of Canaan. I believe the Lord was pleased with Abram's humility and unselfishness. He promised to bless him above all others, to make of him a great nation, and told him his descendants would be so many that they'd be impossible to count! (Gen. 15:5)
I wanted to come up with a game or craft that would reward the kids for letting others choose the best, or taking a turn first, but couldn't really think of anything. So I fell back on making sheep!
I was inspired by Pinterest sheep...
Also, we had made cotton-ball sheep in one of our past classes and they were a big hit.
So, inspired by the yarn sheep above and the cotton-ball sheep we had made before with another class, we had two options for the kids.
1. Cotton ball sheep
Supplies
Cotton balls
Card stock sheep bodies- Template A
Card stock sheep heads- Template B
Scissors
Optional: Little paper sticks for feet (or Q-tips)
Elmer's glue
Glue sticks for paper feet (or tape, if using Q-tips)
Markers for drawing sheep face
To prep
Write or copy the verse onto the card stock sheep bodies. In our supply room, the heaviest card stock was black, so I used that for the bodies and heads, and used a silver Sharpie to write the verse onto the bodies. It looked really cool!
Directions
1. Cut out the sheep bodies & sheep head.
2. Dot the Elmer's glue in random spots onto the non-verse side of the sheep body.
3. Stick on the cotton balls. (the fun part!)
4. Draw a face onto the sheep head and glue it on.
5. If adding feet, attach paper ones with glue stick. If using Q-tips, break them in half and tape them onto the back.
All finished! As you're working, be sure to talk about the story and how it pleases God when we are unselfish and give other people first choice - and how when we trust Him, He will take care of us in ways we can't imagine!
2. Yarn sheep
Supplies
White, off-white, light gray or tan yarn
Card stock C shape - Template C
Card stock sheep head - Template B
Bible verse circles - Template D
Scissors
Elmer's glue
Markers, for drawing eyes on the sheep face
To prep
Make some small bundles of yarn for each child to work with. Everyone gets a C-shape and sheep head to cut out.
Directions
1. Cut out the C shape and sheep head.
2. Help them cut a notch in the C where shown.
3. Hook the yarn in the notch as a starting point. Then, wrap the yarn around the C as shown.
4. When finished, cut the yarn and tuck the "tail" back behind some other strands on the back.
5. Cut out a Bible verse circle and glue onto the back.
6. Draw eyes on the sheep head and glue it onto the front.
You're done. Not baa-aad!