The Holy Spirit: The Sound of a Rushing Mighty Wind
The pinwheel is meant to remind us about 1) the tongues of fire that rested over the disciples' heads in Acts 2 when they received the Holy Spirit, and 2) the fact that His arrival was preceded by the sound of a "rushing mighty wind." Jesus again compared the Holy Spirit to the wind in John 3:8.
Acts 2 talks about Jesus' disciples praying in the Upper Room when suddenly they hear a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and tongues of fire appear above each of their heads as they are filled with the Holy Spirit and begin to speak in other tongues! HOW AWESOME!
Our crafts for this lesson helped us remember that the Holy Spirit is associated with WIND (the pinwheel) and with FIRE (the flame design on the pinwheel. See also the other Holy Spirit craft, the flame hat to represent the tongues of fire).
Flame Pinwheel
Little ones will need your help with this one. But that's OK. They'll love it, and love you for helping them!
Materials needed:
Dowels or sticks
Magic markers or crayons
Pipe cleaners (aka chenille craft sticks)
Scissors
Template 1, copied onto regular or color copy paper. Before class, make the center holes with a scissor blade or ice pick.
Plastic beads, big enough to be threaded onto the pipe cleaner
Hole puncher
Directions:
1. Color and cut out the pinwheel square. Cut the slits where indicated.
2. Punch holes in the corners where indicated.
3. Make a "knot" at one end of a pipe cleaner by rolling and bunching the wire together.
4. Thread a bead onto the pipe cleaner.
5. Taking the square in your hand, fold each of the hole-punched four corners and bring them together in the middle, lining them up over the hole in the center.
6. Insert the free end of the pipe cleaner through all the holes to hold the pinwheel in place.
7. Thread the second bead onto the pipe cleaner (under the pinwheel).
8. Wind the extra pipe cleaner around the dowel. Don't make it too tight! It needs to be a little loose to allow the pinwheel to move when you blow on it.
