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  Bible story activities teach biblical principles by drawing children into lessons with fun activities. Role-playing, puppet shows, songs and games speak to children on their own level, bringing the teachings of Scripture to life in ways they can easily understand.
  
   
  
  

Journeys

• Pick one story featuring a journey such as Abraham leaving Ur, the Israelites wandering in the desert, Elijah in the wilderness, Esther and Naomi or Jesus and the Apostles traveling from town to town. Tell the story in detail while leading the children on a pretend journey either around the room or outside. Use as many senses as possible including smell, touch and sight. Have the children act out the characters' reactions to various events and conditions such as Moses parting the Red Sea.
  
  

Demonstrations

• Learning by example can be an effective teaching tool. For instance, have the children start a project such as coloring a picture of Jesus. Let them work for a few minutes. Then simply say, "Follow Me." Lead the children who obey to a story area and have them sit down. Next, gather the whole class in the story area and tell the story of Jesus' calling of the disciples. (See Mark 1:16-20; 2:14; 3:13-19.) Discuss how those who responded without hesitation to your call and those who responded without hesitation to Jesus' call are alike.
  
  

Role Playing

• Have children act out the story of the Good Samaritan, the Sower and the Seed, the Lost Sheep or any of Jesus' other parables. Ask older children to work in small groups to create a skit from their own lives that is similar to one Jesus describes. Alternatively, provide or have the class make puppets and put on a puppet show of a parable. Using props can also help make learning more fun. When teaching about the Sermon on the Mount, take the children outside and sit on the ground or a blanket. While telling the story of Jesus calming the storm, sit in a rubber raft in the center of the room.
  
  

Games

• Anything that gets kids moving and actively involved helps make concepts stick in their minds. Take the class on a nature walk and collect samples of plants talked about in Genesis. Hang a large picture of a man on a wall and blindfold the children in turn. Give them a ping-pong ball with double-faced tape on one side and let them try to "pin the rock on Goliath."
  
  

Songs

• Music is an excellent memory aid. From classics like "Jesus Loves Me" to more modern compositions, songs for almost every theme in the Bible can be found in Christian songbooks. If instruments are available, let the kids grab a drum, cymbal, tambourine or horn and, as it says in Psalm 98, "make a joyful noise unto the Lord." Have children create their own instruments from boxes, bells, pots and pans.
  
  

Edible Lesson

• Resurrection buns are a tasty way to celebrate the belief that Jesus rose from the dead and his tomb was empty. If you can arrange to have a toaster oven or two in class, give each child a section of tube biscuit dough and explain that it represents the burial cloth that covered Jesus' body. Spread the dough with marshmallow crème to represent Jesus' body. Add melted butter and cinnamon sugar and describe how the women who had followed Jesus anointed his body with spices. Roll up the dough and explain how the women then wrapped Jesus' body in the burial cloth. After telling the children that Jesus was buried in the tomb for three days, bury the biscuits in a 350-degree oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or according to directions on the biscuit dough package. When the biscuits are done, continue the story by saying that when the tomb was opened Jesus' body was no longer there. Remove the biscuits from the oven and allow the children to see that the body (the marshmallow crème) has disappeared. (The marshmallow melts.)