Welcome

            Thank kids for coming.

            Just for fun, have kids high-five three of their friends.

            Make announcements.

            Introduce new kids.

            Celebrate birthdays by having preschoolers whisper the “Happy Birthday” song.

            Collect the offering.

Introduce the Lesson

            Say: Today we’re going to learn that God lets us choose between good and evil. Maybe you’ve seen a movie or read a book that had an evil character. When a character is evil, it means he or she is very mean and hurtful and does very bad things on purpose. But the good guys in movies are boys or girls who are nice and helpful to others—they make good decisions.

Share

            Tell kids about the good guys and bad guys in your favorite movie.

            In leader-led small groups, have preschoolers tell about the good guys and bad guys in their favorite movie.

            After preschoolers have discussed, ask adult or teen helpers to share with the whole group what they talked about in their small groups.

Summarize

            Open a Bible, and say: It’s easy to see good and evil choices in a movie. But we make good or bad choices a lot, too! Let’s see what the Bible says about a choice two people made—and what happened because of their choice. One way God talks to us is through the Bible—his special book. God is here right now, ready to talk to you.

            Pray, thanking God for letting us choose between good and evil.

Tip

• Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can choose your own worship songs from our Best Of Dig In Music DVD here.

Sing Songs to God

            Sing the three songs in any order.

Choose a Snack

            Have children wash their hands, and then say: Today we’ll learn that God lets us choose between good and evil. That means God lets us choose to do the right, or good, thing. And since today is all about choices, we’ll start by making a choice right now.

            Point to the table of snacks. We’re going to have a snack. You can choose anything on this table to eat except the cupcakes. Point out the options children can choose from, and remind them that they can’t have the cupcakes.

            Distribute cups, and invite kids to choose snacks and put them in their cups. It’s okay for kids to have a little bit of each snack or a bit more of just one—whatever they choose. If a child does take a cupcake, gently take it back and remind him or her to choose anything on the table except the cupcakes.

            Have children gather around the tree you set up ahead of time. Lead them in a prayer thanking God for the food, and then allow children a few minutes to enjoy their snacks. As they eat, ask: • What snacks did you choose, and why?

            Say: You made a good choice if you didn’t take a cupcake.

            Ask: • What did you think when you saw those yummy cupcakes that you couldn’t take?

            Say: If you wanted to eat a cupcake, that means you were tempted. Sometimes we’re tempted to do something we know we shouldn’t. God wants us to choose to do right things! Even when God made the first two people, Adam and Eve, God let them make choices. Today we’ll hear about something they were tempted to eat.

            After about five minutes, collect and set aside any of the unfinished snacks.

Act It Out

            Show a Bible. Say: The Bible tells us about the first two people to live on Earth. Their names were Adam and Eve, and they lived in a garden. It had big, beautiful trees. Look—we’re in a garden with a tree, too. The garden where Adam and Eve lived had lots of trees with fruit they could eat. God gave them all kinds of different fruits on the trees, so they could choose what they wanted to eat.           Tell about your favorite fruit, and then invite preschoolers to shout out their favorite fruits. Say: They could choose their favorites, and they had plenty of fruit to keep their bellies full. Lead children in rubbing their tummies like they’re full. But there was one tree that God said not to eat from.

            One day, a snake came to Eve. Show children how to place their hands together and move their arms together like a slithering snake. Encourage them to make hissing sounds, like snakes.

            Say: The snake said to Eve, “Ssssss…Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” And Eve said, “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden. It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat.”

            Let’s pretend that this is the middle tree in the garden. The Bible says the tree was beautiful and the fruit looked delicious. Let’s add some fruit to make it look more like the tree in the Bible story. Let each child add a piece of “fruit” to the tree using the tape and the construction paper circles you cut ahead of time.

            Say: Eve knew that she wasn’t supposed to eat from the middle tree in the garden. Point to your tree. God had told her that she and Adam must not eat it, or something very bad would happen. God gave them a choice. It was right there, and they could easily take one and eat it. But he told them not to eat it. Show me if you think they should eat it. Have the children give a thumbs-up if they think Adam and Eve should eat the fruit. Have them give a thumbs-down if they think Adam and Eve should not eat it.

            Say: If God said they shouldn’t do it, they definitely shouldn’t. But it was probably very tempting. The fruit was right there in front of them, kind of like the cupcakes on our snack table. The fruit was beautiful and looked delicious! It must’ve been hard to make the choice not to eat it. And the snake didn’t help. The snake lied to Eve—it told her that nothing bad would happen  

            The sneaky snake tried to get Eve to eat the fruit. Let’s vote again. Do you think Eve should listen to the snake and eat it? Have the children give a thumbs-up if they think Adam and Eve should change their minds because of what the snake said. Have them give a thumbs-down if they think Adam and Eve should not eat it.

            Say: Let’s see what Eve did. Look in the Bible. The Bible says that the snake talked Eve into eating the fruit. She thought the fruit looked delicious and she wanted it. So she took some and ate it. Then she gave some to Adam, and he ate it, too.  

            They made the choice to eat the fruit. But it was not a good choice. God had told them not to eat it. Have children give a thumbs-down for the bad choice. Let’s see what happened after they made a bad choice.

            Right when they ate the fruit, they felt ashamed. They knew they had done something wrong and they felt bad about making that choice. They even went and hid when they heard God coming. Lead children to hide together somewhere near the tree.

            Say: God was walking around in the garden, and a cool breeze was blowing. Have the children make a “whoosh” sound and wave their arms in the air.

            Say: God called to Adam, “Where are you?” Adam answered God and told him, “I was afraid.” Adam might’ve known he was in trouble for making a bad choice. Then Adam blamed his bad choice on Eve. Lead the boys to point to the girls. And Eve blamed her bad choice on the snake. Lead the girls to make a snake motion and hiss.

            Say: Both Adam and Eve made a bad choice. Have children show thumbs-down. God let them choose between good and evil, and they made a bad choice. God wasn’t happy when Adam and Eve chose evil. God told them that some hard things would happen because of those bad choices.

            Share one or two consequences children might have when they make bad choices. For example, children might get hurt and fall if they do something that an adult said was too dangerous. They might also have to sit in timeout, miss out on a fun time, or have a toy taken away from them.

            Ask: • What are some other things that can happen when someone makes a bad choice?

            Say: Bad things happened to Adam and Eve because they chose to do wrong. God said their life would be really hard. He said they would have fights and be angry with each other. He said they would feel sad and have pain. Then God sent them out of the garden, and they were never allowed to go back to that beautiful garden. Lead children away from the area the tree is in.

            Say: Even though Adam and Eve made a bad choice, God still loved them very much. God doesn’t want us to make bad choices, but he never stops loving us—ever. Lead children in a group hug.

            Say: God let Adam and Eve make choices, and God lets us choose between good and evil, too. We have lots of choices to make every day, and it’s not always easy to make the right, or good, choice. God wants us to make good choices because he knows what’s best for us. He doesn’t want us to have bad things happen because of bad choices. But always remember that God loves you, no matter what!

To use this feature, please ask your DIG IN Director to create a One Room classroom. For instructions and tips on creating a classroom for at-home lessons, click here.

Tips:

• Talk-About Videos may work for preschoolers, but they’re geared more toward elementary kids. If you find that the videos aren’t hitting the mark for your preschoolers, try using the Preschool Puppet Skit activity block instead.

• Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can download the videos before class using the “download” button at the link provided, or purchase DVDs here.

Discuss and Watch “Programming Robots”

            Say: We’ve been learning that God lets us choose between good and evil. He lets us make choices; sometimes we make good choices, and sometimes we make wrong choices. Of course, God always wants us to make good choices, but he won’t make our choices for us.

            Ask: • What do you like about getting to make choices?

            Say: Let’s watch a video where kids build robots, and the robots never get to make their own choices.

            Watch “Programming Robots.”

            Ask: • What would you like to make, or program, a robot to do?

            • Can you have a relationship with a robot? Why or why not?

            Say: A robot can’t make choices, so it can’t choose to like us or be a friend to us.

            • How would you feel if you couldn’t make any choices, ever?

            Say: If we were made like robots, we wouldn’t get to make any choices. God could’ve made us to always do good. But God wants us to choose to love him. He doesn’t want to make us love him. When we get choices, it helps us have a real friendship with God. That’s one reason God lets us choose between good and evil.

Tip

• You may find it helpful to highlight your part and set the script on a music stand nearby during the skit.

Leader: It’s time for our puppy friend, Theo, to come for a visit. Let’s call him to our class with a “woof, woof.” Ready? (Leads kids to bark until Theo is brought into view.)

Theo: Hi, friends! I really, really want a good scratch. I was wondering if you’d scratch my back? (Circulates among kids so each child can pet him.)

Leader: Thanks for giving Theo a warm welcome, friends!

Theo: Thank you!

Leader: How are you, Theo?

Theo: I’m feeling confused today. (Looks to kids.) How are all of you doing? (Invites each child to share what kind of day he or she is having: a happy day, a sad day, a worried day, an exciting day, and so on.)

Leader: Why are you feeling confused today?

Theo: Um, because I don’t know what to do. My mom took away my yo-yo.

Leader: Why did she take it away?

Theo: I didn’t do my homework yesterday because I was playing with my yo-yo. But she left it on a table right in the middle of the living room. I just really want to play with it a little bit. (Asks kids if they’ve ever been tempted to play with something that Mom took away. Responds to kids’ answers.)

Leader: Theo, what we’re learning today might help you make a decision.

Theo: What’s that?

Leader: We’re learning about two people in the Bible named Adam and Eve. God told them not to eat an apple.

Theo: (Looks to kids.) Did they eat it?

Leader: They made a bad choice and ate the apple.

Theo: Did they get in trouble?

Leader: You could say that. It really hurt their friendship with God.

Theo: Oh no!

Leader: It’s sad, but God lets us choose between good and evil.

Theo: So God will let me choose if I decide to play with the yo-yo?

Leader: He will.

Theo: (Looks to kids.) Do you think it’s a wrong choice for me to sneak and play with my yo-yo even though my mom took it away? (Listens to kids’ answers.)

Leader: In the Bible story, Adam and Eve’s wrong choice hurt their friendship with God. What do you think will happen if you make the wrong choice about your yo-yo?

Theo: Um…I think it will probably hurt my relationship with my mom.

Leader: It might.

Theo: Okay, then, I think I’ll wait until she gives it back.

Leader: I think that’s a good choice, Theo.

Theo: And I want to go tell her I’m sorry for taking up all my homework time  playing with my yo-yo.

Leader: I bet she’d like to hear that, Theo. We’ll see you later, then. Kids, give Theo a big “woof, woof, goodbye”! (Leads kids to say “woof, woof, goodbye,” and then places Theo out of sight.)

Choose Cup or Plate

            Say: Today we’re learning that God lets us choose between good and evil. We make lots of choices each day. Today, some of them will be fun and fizzy! Let’s see what happens when we play with colors and mixtures. But we’ll have to make some choices along the way. Here’s the first one. Would you like a plate or a cup? Distribute paper plates and clear cups according to kids’ choices.

Experiment With Mixtures

           Put 1 to 2 tablespoons of baking soda on each plate or in each cup. Have kids use their fingers to spread out the baking soda on the plates or gently tap the cups so the baking soda spreads out evenly.

           Give each child a set of the prepared vinegar cups, and show them the spray bottle of vinegar. Remind kids that these mixtures are not for drinking. Lead kids through the following specific choices, each time demonstrating with your own set of mixtures and baking soda and inviting them to share their results with others:

• Choose whether to add blue or red vinegar to the baking soda.
• Choose to dab with a paintbrush or pour from the cup.
• Choose whether to add green dish soap or blue vinegar.
• Choose to dab with a paintbrush or spray with yellow vinegar.
• Choose to add red vinegar or green dish soap.
• Choose to pour from the cup or spray yellow vinegar.

If time allows, lead kids through several more specific choices.

Talk About It

            Say: It’s fun to make choices. Sometimes we chose mixtures that made the baking soda really fizzy. That’s called a reaction. Other choices we made didn’t react or fizz much at all. But we still got to choose! And God lets us choose between good and evil. When we choose to follow God and do what he says, we can look for good reactions!

            Share an example of a choice you’ve made that led to something good. For example, when we choose to play nicely with a friend or brother or sister, then we have a happy time. Or when we choose to say nice things to others, it helps us to be better friends. Or when we choose to obey our parents, they reward us by letting us stay up 15 minutes past bedtime.

            Ask: • When did you make a good choice? What happened?

            Say: I’m glad that God helps us make good choices. Now let’s make a good choice by helping to clean up our mess!

Act Out the Bible Story

            Have children sit around a table. Say: In our Bible story today, we learned about the very first two people that God created: a man named Adam and a woman named Eve. What do you think they looked like? Give each preschooler two craft sticks. Let’s pretend these craft sticks are Adam and Eve. Let’s give them faces! Give kids each two happy face stickers, and have them add a sticker to one end of each craft stick.  

            Say: Even though the whole world was beautiful, God made an even more special place on the earth for Adam and Eve to live—a beautiful garden. Put a piece of green construction paper on the table in front of each child. God filled the garden with beautiful trees that grew the yummiest fruit and a clear, sparkling river—it was an amazing place! Set out the colored construction paper and glue sticks, and have preschoolers tear the paper into small pieces and glue them onto their green papers to represent flowers, plants, or a river. Give preschoolers about four minutes.

            Say: This garden was Adam and Eve’s home. Have kids set their Adam and Eve craft sticks on the green paper. God told Adam and Eve to take care of the garden and all the animals in it. And God told them they could eat any of the delicious fruit in the garden…except the fruit from one special tree in the middle of the garden. He told them if they ate that fruit, something very bad would happen! Give kids each a pompom ball, and have them place it on the center of their green paper.    

            Say: One day, a snake came up to Adam and Eve in the garden. Hmm…we need a snake for our story. Give preschoolers each a green chenille wire, and show them how to wrap it around their finger to create a spiral shape that can represent the snake. Have preschoolers “slither” their snakes toward their Adam and Eve figures.

            Say: The snake came up to Adam and Eve and said, “Why don’t you eat the yummy, juicy fruit from this tree? It won’t make you die. It will make you like God, knowing good and evil.” Adam and Eve had the choice to eat the fruit or the choice to obey God. Even though God had told them not to, Adam and Eve made the bad choice to eat the fruit. Preschoolers can pretend to have their Adam and Eve figures eat the pompom-ball fruit.

            Say: Once they ate the fruit, Adam and Eve knew they had made a mistake and had done the wrong thing. God said there would be consequences if they ate the fruit. One of those consequences was that Adam and Eve would have to leave their special home in the garden. But first God made Adam and Eve clothes out of animal furs. Let’s give our Adam and Eve some clothes, too. Have preschoolers cover their craft sticks with dot stickers for clothes. Adam and Eve had to leave the garden because of the bad choice they made. Have preschoolers “walk” their craft sticks away from the construction-paper garden.

            Say: Even though Adam and Eve made a bad choice, God still loved them so much! And even when we make wrong choices, God still loves us, too! God loves us so much and knows what’s best for us, and that’s why he always wants us to choose what’s right.   

Sing a Song

            Say: Let’s sing a song about making good choices. Lead preschoolers in singing the following to the tune of “Deep and Wide.”

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Our God lets us choose from good or bad. (point up, hold out one hand, hold out the other hand)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Our God lets us choose from good or bad. (point up, hold out one hand, hold out the other hand)

            What to do? (shrug shoulders)

            What to do? (shrug shoulders)

            We all say to always choose the good! (make sweeping motion with arms, hold fist in the air)

            Repeat the song a few times.

            Say: God lets us choose between good and evil. God always wants us to make good choices, but he knows we’re not perfect and that we’ll mess up sometimes. Even when we mess up and do bad things, God will always love us!

Tip

• You can purchase downloadable music and other items to enhance your DIG IN program here.

Play a Silly Game

            Say: Let’s play a silly game. In this game, if you choose the wrong number, you have to come sit in our “silly circle.” Explain that when the music plays, kids should gallop or run in a big circle around the room. Kids must keep moving until the music stops; then they’ll choose a number from those posted around the room and move to it. Once kids have made their choices, roll the die and have kids standing by the number you rolled go to the silly circle and sit for one round. After one round in the silly circle, kids can join their friends and play again.

Talk About It

            Say: It was fun to make choices in this game. But sometimes our choices made us end up in the silly circle.

            Ask: • How did it feel to sit in the silly circle while everyone else ran around and played?

            Say: Our silly circle was just part of our fun game. But it helps me think about what happens when we make good and bad choices in life. When we make good choices to be kind, obey our parents, and tell the truth, God likes it! But when we make bad choices to be mean, disobey, or tell a lie, God and others are sad. God lets us choose between good and evil. But just like you got more chances to play, God gives us more chances to make good choices every day.

Move to Your Choice

            Say: Have you ever had to make a choice? Sometimes one choice is definitely bad, but other times either choice is good. Let’s play a game where you’ll get to choose what you think is best. Have children stand on the line. Place one object or picture from the “Choices” handout on one side of the line and its corresponding object or picture on the other side. On the count of three, have kids choose which object they like best by moving to that side of the line. Repeat, alternating pictures from the handout with objects you’ve collected. Some choices should have a clear “good and bad” while others could both be good. Choices include:

• playing soccer inside or outside
• walking outside during the day or at night
• cup of clean water or dirty water
• a blue car or red car
• playing nicely or getting in fights with friends
• a sneaker or a flip-flop
• riding in a grocery cart nicely or crying when mom or dad won’t buy candy

Talk About It

            Say: We got to choose which things we thought were best. Some of our choices were just based on what we like or don’t like, like football or basketball. Share an example from your life about choosing between two good things.  

            Ask: • Tell about a time you had to choose between two good things. If children can’t think of real examples, invite them to make up some choices.

            Say: Other choices are between good things and bad things, like fighting with your friend or playing nicely. Share an example from your own life about choosing between good and bad things.

            Ask: • Tell about a time you had to choose between a good thing and a bad thing.

            Say: God lets us choose between good and evil. Sometimes both choices are good, but other times we have to choose between good and bad. God always wants us to choose good, and he’ll always help us!

Make a Board Game

            Show preschoolers the sample craft, and explain that it’s a fun board game they’ll be able to play. Say: Our game will help us remember that God lets us make choices.

            Give each preschooler a game board and a bag of 17 construction paper squares. Help preschoolers glue the colored paper squares over each of the square boxes on the board. Tell preschoolers they can glue the colored squares in any order that they want.

            After preschoolers have finished gluing down their paper squares, give each child five craft sticks and a cup. Have preschoolers color one end of each craft stick with one of the five different colors of markers. Make sure preschoolers color one stick in each color, and remind them to color only about an inch of each stick. Have preschoolers place their craft sticks in their cups, with the colored ends of the sticks pointing down.  Then give each preschooler two different colored pompom balls. 

Play the Board Game

            Once everyone has finished creating the elements of their game, form pairs and show them how to play.

            Each preschooler will choose a pompom ball to use as a game piece and place it next to the arrow on the board (the starting place in the game). With their partners, preschoolers will take turns each choosing a craft stick out of their cups. On a player’s turn, he or she will move his or her own game piece to the closest square that matches the color drawn. After a player moves his or her game piece, the craft sticks are returned to the cups so that there are always five sticks to choose from. The first player to land on the final square next to the star wins that round. 

            Once preschoolers understand, let them play several rounds with their partners. Preschoolers can alternate playing on each other’s game boards.

            Say: Today we’re learning all about choices! In our game, you chose a craft stick each turn. Some choices helped you get to the finish line faster than other choices! Just like we had a choice of which craft stick to choose, God gives us choices, too. Sometimes we have a choice between two good things—like if we want to eat vanilla or chocolate ice cream. But sometimes we have to choose between a good choice and a bad choice—like the choice to do what Mommy tells us when we’re told to clean up our room or the choice to not follow directions. God lets us choose between good and evil, and he loves when we make good choices!

            Have preschoolers put their pompom balls and craft sticks in their bags to take home with their game boards and cups.

Say a Rhyme

            Say: Today we learned from our Bible story that God lets us choose between good and evil. Let’s remember our Bible story now. Lead children in singing the following song to the tune of “Deep and Wide.” (If you did the Deeper Bible activity, this rhyme will be a review.)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Our God lets us choose from good or bad. (point up, hold out one hand, hold out the other hand)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Good and bad. (thumbs up, thumbs down)

            Our God lets us choose from good or bad. (point up, hold out one hand, hold out the other hand)

            What to do? (shrug shoulders)

            What to do? (shrug shoulders)

            We all say to always choose the good! (make sweeping motion with arms, hold fist in the air)

            Repeat the song once or twice.

Cheer for Good Choices

            Say: God lets us choose between good and evil, but God will also help us make good choices. Let’s talk to God about some choices right now. As I share some choices, cheer with me when you hear a good choice. Pray the following: Thank you, God, for helping me make good choices.

            • Like when I can choose between keeping a toy only for me or sharing my toy with a friend. Lead children in cheering “I share!” God, help me choose to share.

            • Or when I can choose between saying something mean or saying something nice. Lead children in cheering “I’m nice!” God, help me choose to say nice things to others.

            • Or when I can choose between obeying my parents or not doing what they say. Lead children in cheering “I obey!” God, help me choose to obey my parents.

            • Or when I can choose to tell the truth if I accidentally break something or I can say I didn’t do it. Lead children in cheering “I tell the truth!” God, help me choose to tell the truth.

            • Or when I can choose to hug my friend or hurt my friend. Lead children in cheering “I show love!” God, help me choose to show love.

            Close the prayer, and then say: I’m glad I got to see you today! I hope I can see you next week, too.

           Distribute a copy of the “Dig In @ Home” handout to kids as they leave, or email it to parents during the week.