Tag Archives: corn starch and water

September 28, 2008 · 5:57 pm

Walking on Water


Time

30-45 minutes


Description

This object lesson is used as a highlight to the story of Peter walking on water.

The lesson is big and expensive. It takes lots of time to prepare, and it’s messy. It’s best reserved for large events. That said, there’s a lot of “wow factor.” This will be an activity that they will remember for years.

To see my blog and some video on when I did this object lesson, click here: They Walked on Water

Materials

· Drop cloth for the floor (if you do it indoors)

· Corn starch (8 lbs for every gallon)

· Water (1.5 gallons for every 8 lbs of corn starch)

· Kiddie swimming pool (90 gallons or more)

· Example: – if you use a 90 gallon pool, you will need 288 lbs of corn starch and 54 gallons of water

· Several buckets, water bottles, electric fans, rolls of blue wrapping paper

· Write out the following note cards with script for part of your enactment:

o Jesus: It’s all right. I am here! Don’t be afraid.

o Peter: Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you by walking on the water.

o Jesus: All right…come.

    • Peter: Save me, Lord!
    • Jesus: You don’t have much faith. Why did you doubt me?

Preparation

· It’s best to do this activity outside because of the potential mess, but if you do it inside, lay out a drop cloth.

· Several hours before you run the lesson, mix the corn starch and the water in the pool.

· It’s best to mix it in small quantities and then pour them into the pool. (I recommend mixing 4.5 gallons of water with 24 lbs of corn starch each time.)

· Test the consistency by slapping or punching the surface. It should harden up and resist your blows.

· If this works, you should be able to run across or even on top of the surface. Use very quick steps.

· Have a way for those who get stuck in the pool to wash off.

· Set up a place in the teaching area near the pool to be a “boat.” You can do this with some cardboard boxes or with masking tape, or you could just designate an area of the floor as the “boat.”

· Put the buckets in the “boat.”

· Fill the water bottles with water.

· Set up the electric fans so that they face the boat.

· Roll out the blue wrapping paper on the floor (blue side up) under the boat or across the area of the designated “boat.”

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

  • “After Jesus fed the 5,000, He went to a quiet place and prayed to God, the Father, and the disciples got into a boat to head across the lake.”
  • “The disciples sailed away from the shore and were in the middle of the Sea of Galilee when a huge storm rolled in!” (Ask for 12 volunteers, and have them get into the “boat.” Select one of them to be Peter. As you tell the story, they should act out what you are saying. Then get volunteers to spray the water bottles, turn the fans on and off, turn the lights on and off and create waves with the wrapping paper by holding either end and waving it up and down.)
  • “It was dark. The wind was howling!” (Have your fan volunteers turn on the fans.) “Water sprayed over the sides of the boat and drenched the apostles!” (Have your water bottle volunteers spray the apostles, and have your wave volunteers wave the paper up and down.) “Lightning flashed across the sky.” (Have your lights volunteer flick the lights on and off.)
  • “They were afraid that they might sink, so they used buckets to try and bail water out of the boat.” (Have the apostle-volunteers pretend to bail water.)
  • “Hours went by, and the apostles grew very tired. About 3 o’clock in the morning, things got worse!”
  • ‘A ghost came walking across the water straight at them!” (Have a volunteer play Jesus and run across the pool of “water” toward the others.)
  • “This was one fast-moving ghost!”
  • “They screamed in terror!” (If the disciples don’t scream, say, “A-hem, I said that the apostles screamed in terror!”)
  • “Then, something totally incredible happened!” (Have your helpers say the following lines from their note cards.)
    • Jesus: It’s all right. I am here! Don’t be afraid.
    • Peter: Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you by walking on the water.
    • Jesus: All right…come.
  • “Peter went over the side of the boat and started walking on the water toward Jesus!” (Have Peter character run across the pool of “water.”)
  • “But then, he took his eyes off Jesus and looked around.”
  • “He saw the high waves! He noticed the howling wind!”
  • “He became terrified and began to sink under the water!” (Have character act this out running to the center of the pool, stopping and crying out.)
    • Peter: Save me, Lord!
  • “Jesus reached out His hand and grabbed Peter.” (Have character act this out by reaching in to grab “Peter” from outside the pool.)
    • Jesus: You don’t have much faith. Why did you doubt me?
  • “Jesus and Peter climbed back into the boat, and immediately, the wind stopped.” (Have “Peter” and “Jesus” join the other volunteers beside the pool.)
  • “Then the disciples worshipped Jesus.” (Have volunteers bow down to Jesus.)
  • “And they said, ‘You really are the Son of God!’”
  • “Peter walked on water! Can you believe that?”
  • “But then he began to sink.”
  • “Tell me…why did Peter start to sink into the water?” (He took his eyes off Jesus.)
  • “That’s right. He took his eyes of Jesus. He looked around at all the scary stuff around him, and he began to think, ‘I’m in big trouble. A person can’t walk on water! That’s impossible! I must have been crazy thinking I could have walked on water!’”
  • “Of course, Peter was right, but he forgot one very important thing…all things are possible with God!”
  • “When Peter began to sink under the water, he had a problem, but I’m learning that whenever I have a problem, I should give it to Jesus.”
  • “Anytime that I feel like I’m sinking under all my problems, I need to give them to Jesus.”
  • “As long as I keep my eyes on Him, He helps me with my problems.”
  • “But if I start to focus on the scary things that are happening around me, I’ll start to sink again.”
  • “Now you may think Peter looked pretty silly when he took his eyes off Jesus and began to sink under water, but I don’t.”
  • “I admire Peter for having the courage to get out of the boat.”
  • “Peter was a Water Walker!”
  • “You know what all the other guys were? They were Boat Huggers!”
  • “While Peter walked on the water, they hugged the boat in fear.”
  • “Jesus told Peter that he only had a little faith, but even his little faith was a lot more than the Boat Huggers had.”
  • “A Water Walker trusts in God.”
  • “A Water Walker does the scary things that God wants him to do.”
  • “A Water Walker gets out of the boat to get closer to Jesus.”
  • “If you want to get closer to Jesus, you’re going to have to get out of the boat and walk on water.”
  • “Any of you want to be Water Walkers for Jesus?” (Allow all that are interested to take a run across the pool of “water.”)

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Filed under Christianity, faith, Hands-on, Object Lesson, Peter, Simon-Peter, test, Trust

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September 6, 2008 · 11:29 am

In God’s Hands



Time

20 minutes


Description

This object lesson can be a fun way to drive home some lessons about Peter. It’s very messy, so you will want to have a place for the kids to clean up afterward (a garden hose is recommended, because you won’t want to wash large amounts of the baking soda down the drain).

Materials

· Drop cloth for the floor

· Corn starch (1 cup per child)

· Water (1.5 cups per child)

· Plastic cups (2 for each child)

· Bowls (1 for each child)

· Plastic place mat or disposable table cloth

Preparation

Lay down your drop cloth, and set a table with bowls for each child. Measure out the corn starch and water in plastic cups. Have some extra water and cornstarch on hand in case you need to adjust the consistency of the mixture.

Procedure

Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):

· “Who’s ready to get messy?”

  • “Me, too! Everyone, put yourself in front of one of the bowls on the table.”
  • “In the Bible, the New Testament tells the story about Simon, Andrew’s brother.”
  • “When Simon met Jesus, Jesus changed his name to Peter, which means “rock.”
  • “Simon means “listening and obeying,” but Simon spent too much time talking to listen.”
  • “Jesus gave Simon the name Peter, because He wanted Simon to act like a rock. That means that Jesus wanted Peter to be a leader, who was firm in his convictions and stood strong for the Lord.”
  • “Peter wanted to be a rock for the Lord, but he wasn’t very consistent at that, either.”
  • “But God knows what He is doing. He changed Simon’s name, because He saw who Jesus would help him to be one day.”
  • “It was a reminder of God’s call on Peter’s life. Every time Peter heard his new name, it reminded him that he needed to act like a rock.”
  • “So, that brings us to our experiment. We’re going to make Peter!”
  • “Here’s what we need to do. Take the cup with the powder in it (this is called corn starch) and pour it into your bowl.”
  • “Now, take the cup that has water in it, and pour it into your bowl.”
  • “Mix these together with your fingers – and, yes, it is going to be messy!” (As they mix, the corn starch should turn into a thick liquid. But, it’s not just a liquid. It’s also a solid when you put pressure on it. Check to make sure that all the kids’ mixtures are turning out right. If not, add water to thin or cornstarch to thicken.)
  • “That’s some gooey stuff, isn’t it?”
  • “Let’s try a few things with it. Pick some up in your hand, and quickly roll it into a ball between your hands.” (You may need to demonstrate.)
  • “Now, stop rolling and watch what happens.” (The ball will melt in their hands.)
  • “Weird, huh? Okay, now try tapping on the liquid in the bowl with your finger.’ (Demonstrate if needed. The liquid should harden when you tap it.)
  • “Now, let’s pick it up, and squeeze it in our hands. Then let it go.” (It should go from solid to liquid.)
  • “I told you we were going to make Peter. Peter is like the liquid, and we are playing the part of God.”
  • “You see, Peter was also talking about how he was the best and how he would defend Jesus with his life. But when Jesus was taken by the religious rulers, Peter ran away. Then, he denied that he even knew Jesus three times.”
  • “Whenever Peter acted the way Jesus wanted him to, he was right in the middle of God’s hands. During those times he was solid like a rock.” (Demonstrate by putting some of the liquid in your hand and rolling it into a ball.)
  • “But when things got scary, Peter ran away.” (Allow ball to melt.)
  • “Now, I don’t want to make Peter into a bad guy. He was trying, but he just couldn’t be as strong as he wanted to be.”
  • “And neither can we. None of us are strong enough without God. The best place to be is in the middle of His hand.”

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Filed under Christianity, God's Will, Hands-on, Obedience, Object Lesson, Peter, Simon-Peter, Trust

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