Thankful for Fish

Today I got to teach my favorite lesson to the Sunbeams (the kids who are three years old). It is entitled "I am Thankful for Fish."  I don't know why I like this one so much.  I used this same manual for Nursery when I was the Nursery leader for a few years. So I have now taught this same lesson at least 4 times over the years. I am almost sure I have taught it more than that however. It is just a fun lesson.

I prepared some fish (I used some Christmas ornament hangers and pushed them into the paper) and a fishing pole (with a magnet on the end of the string)  so the kids in the class could do a little fishing for one of our activities. This was a big hit!

I also had a coloring sheet which they could color, cut out and then glue to another page. I have forgotten how difficult cutting is for these kids. I did most of the cutting but they really loved the gluing and coloring.

The  baby oil and  blue water "ocean in a bottle" that my kids and I made a few years ago was also passed around so the sunbeams in the class could make the plastic fish  slosh around in the waves.

I of course started the lesson talking about the creation of the world and reviewed the things we have been talking about the last few weeks about what Heavenly Father created for us on this earth. So we talked about the Sun, moon, and stars, water, plants and finally we talked about the sea creatures and fish in particular.

I then quickly went through a few of the stories in the scriptures about fish.  I told them the story of the loaves and fishes feeding the thousands so Jesus could continue to teach them. I shared the story of Jesus calling his apostles and how some of them were fishermen.  I then pulled out some flannel board figures and went through the story of Jonah.

I never know how much of any of this goes into these little guys heads but we sure have a lot of fun in class and I am always amazed at how quickly the hour passes.

I do go home tired afterward. It isn't easy being the song leader, lesson teacher, and arts and crafts guide all in one. Luckily I have only had about 5 kids in class each week.  They are a boisterous bunch that have a hard time sitting still. We have a good time each week.

So I don't know exactly why I enjoy this lesson about fish. I think it strikes me as funny to be teaching such a topic at church. The lesson does bring in some gospel related stuff but for me these very simple lessons are such a great reminder for me to be grateful for each part of this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me.

Next week I get to talk about animals.  Not birds or insects.... they are for the week after that.  I better get my thinking cap working on more fun activities to keep these kids busy while still teaching them and sharing scripture stories.

Can you tell I am enjoying my Sunbeam calling!