PASSPORT TO Latin AmericaLESSON 22

God is creator

© 2015 Passport to the Nations, LLC Lesson 22-�1

Lesson at a Glance

I. Music

II. Share the Word: • Friends with God, page 6• I Peter 3:18

III. God is Creator: Animals - The Sloth

IV. Art: Sloth Project

V. Pray — Argentina

*What You Will Need

Lesson 22

MUSIC: (optional)

Use this time to continue to work on Latin American songs or songs with a missional message. Be mindful of preparation for end-of-year program.

http://passporttothenations.com/sing-it-music-of-latin-america/

SHARE THE WORD: (15 min.)1 Peter 3:18 and Page 6 of the Friends with God booklet are the focus for Lessons 21-23.

Remind students of the memory verse introduced last week. Choose a game from the Scripture Review Games section of the Appendix, A-3 through A-4, to aid students in their memorization of this verse.

Practice the next section of the Friends with God gospel presentation and model the content of page 6 for the students using the script below.

Reinforce the meaning of this page of the script by making sure students understand the message of the verse and how it fits in the presentation as a whole.

Page 6: Because God is holy and just, He requires a punishment for the sin in our lives. That punishment is eternal death. When Jesus died on the cross, He paid our punishment for us.

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God..

I Peter 3:18

Three days after Jesus died, He rose from the grave. Because He did this, He defeated sin and death for us. Even though our bodies may die on earth, we can have eternal life with Him in heaven.

Note: See the complete script, R-2a, in the resources.

A full layout of this presentation can be found through the link below using a password from your curriculum administrator:http://passporttothenations.com/friends-with-god/

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God is Creator: Animals (30 min.)

The Sloth:

Since the sloth lives only in the woodlands and rainforests of South America, our study of the animals of this region would be incomplete without mentioning this amazing animal. The intentionality of God’s creative design is put on display in the details of this animal’s unique features.

Various sloth images that show examples of the content below can be found at the following link:

https://www.pinterest.com/tamarahhorton/live-it-a-slice-of-life-in-latin-america/

ART: Sloth Project (30 min.)

See project photos and step-by-step instructions at the following link:

http://passporttothenations.com/the-sloth/

Students will need:• R-22a and R-22b, Sloth templates printed on colored or white cardstock

as desired• Glue• Small paper plates (for glue)• Paintbrushes• Yarn (grey, tan, green) cut into 1/2” - 2” pieces (two feet of yarn per

student)• R-22c_Sloth Moth page printed on paper; cut out one moth per student• Colored pencils or crayons

The activities for this project will be completed as the following content is explained.

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Note to Teacher: Before class, print Sloth Templates, R-22a and R-22b, on colored or white cardstock, one per student. The only difference in the two templates is that “a” represents the two-toed sloth and “b” represents the three-toed sloth. This will become important in the lesson. If possible, alternate giving students “a” and “b” templates. The sloth drawings will guide the teaching time as students add something to their sloth drawings when each section of the lesson is explained.

An Upside-Down Life:Imagine spending much of your life in the upside-down position! Do you think you would like this? Sloths are mammals that live in the Tropics and spend the majority of their lives hanging upside down from a tree. Sloths move at a deliberately, if not painfully, slow pace, and it is not uncommon for them to spend their entire lives in just one tree. While sloths can be found sitting on the branches of a tree, they prefer doing everything hanging upside down from a favorite tree limb—eating, playing, fighting, and even giving birth! And what’s really amazing…. they also sleep this way! God uniquely designed their muscles to remain rigid while they are asleep, and to relax when they are awake - completely opposite to the way human muscles work!

Color the tree and leaves as a reminder of the sloth’s habits and habitat!

Head on a Swivel:Most mammals have seven vertebrae in their necks. The sloth, however, has 9. This small difference in this mammal’s anatomy reaps big rewards. These extra vertebrae allow the sloth to swivel its head 270 degrees. So while it may spend it’s life hanging upside-down, it doesn’t have to see everything from that angle.

Have students lean back so they are in an upside-down position. Then ask them to attempt turning their necks so their heads are right-side-up. It can’t be done. Instead, students will only be able to rotate their heads so that they are in a sideways position. Display pictures from the website link above that shows sloths with their heads in an upright position. God’s unique creative design is on display in the sloth!

2 Toes or 3?:Play a game called “Find the Difference!” to introduce the next unique feature of the sloth. Place students in pairs so that one has the “a” template and one has the “b” template, and ask them to try to identify the ONE difference between the two pages (students with the “a” template with have a two-toed sloth; students with a “b” template will have a three-toed sloth).

Sloths come in two-toed or three-toed varieties. Little known fact: ALL sloths have THREE TOES. The two-toed and three-toed distinction actually refers to a sloth’s “fingers”, not toes. The confusion is based on a tricky translation. Since sloths are indigenous to Latin America, a Spanish-speaking culture, the word “toes” is translated from the Spanish word dedo, a general term referring to the “digits” of a person or mammal. Therefore, dedos is a general term referring to fingers OR toes. So technically, the sloth should have been named a “two-fingered” or “three- fingered” sloth. But that’s just not as much fun to say, is it?

A Weird Green Hair-Do: Sloth hair-do: Most animals have hair that grows in the “back to belly” direction because they live right-side-up. But the direction of the sloth’s hair is from the “belly to back”. This allows water to drip off the sloth efficiently to keep it from becoming water-logged.

Sloth hair color: A sloth’s natural hair color is usually in the tan or gray spectrum. But did you know the sloth’s hair can actually turn green? It can! Each hair on the sloth’s body is equipped with a groove in the hair shaft to absorb water. Algae that live in this water and multiply during the rainy season turn the sloth a nice shade of

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green. This green “hairdo” works as a camouflage, hiding the sloth from hungry predators.

Students should receive a small pile of mixed yarn: tan, gray and green to give their sloths a hair-do. Instruct them to paint glue liberally on the diagonally-lined areas of the sloth indicating where the hair grows. Yarn should be placed in the “belly to back” fashion mentioned above. Students should complete the hair-do by giving their sloth some “bangs.” See R-22d_Sloth Sample, for direction on placing yarn.

The Sloth Moth:Finally, we will meet the sloth moth - well, that’s just fun to say! The sloth and the sloth moth are tight. One benefit of the sloth’s laid-back lifestyle is that it doesn’t worry too much about personal hygiene and grooming. This means that various “critters” enjoy an easy and protected life in the fur of a sloth. The sloth moth not only feasts off the green algae in the sloth’s fur, but it also lays its eggs in the sloth poop! The moth larvae hatch and fly off to find another sloth host!

Give each student a single sloth moth, cut from resource R-22c. Students should color it, cut it out, and glue it onto the sloth.

God’s glory is seen in the details of His amazing creation!

PRAY (10 min.)

Pray for the people of Argentina.

Use Teacher Country Card R-22e_Argentina to introduce this country. Instruct students to label Argentina in their Blue Student Passport books. Pray for God to bring miraculous Gospel changes to this country:

A sample prayer can be found here: • http://prayercast.com/argentina.html

Once your have prayed, stamp Argentina in each student’s blue passport book.

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What You Will Need Lesson 22

Music:• Music resources needed for planned music activity• http://passporttothenations.com/sing-it-music-of-latin-america/

Share the Word: • Friends with God booklet, teacher version• Friends with God booklet, student copy • R-2a_Friends with God script• Supplies for Scripture review game as needed• http://passporttothenations.com/friends-with-god/

God is Creator:• https://www.pinterest.com/tamarahhorton/live-it-a-slice-of-life-in-latin-america/

Art:• R-22a and R-22b, Sloth Template; one per child printed on white, tan, or green cardstock• R-22c_Sloth Moth page, cut into individual moths to allow one moth per student• R-22d_Completed Sloth Sample• Scissors• Yarn, tan and gray (or variegated), cut into 1/2” to 2” pieces• Yarn, green, cut into 1/2” to 2” pieces• Glue• Small paper plates• Paintbrushes• Crayons or colored pencils• Page protectors• http://passporttothenations.com/the-sloth/

Pray:• Teacher Country Card: R-22e, Argentina• Blue student passport books• Passport stamp• http://prayercast.com/argentina.html

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