Hearts on a Cross
A sweet craft to help the kids remember that Jesus loved them so much, He gave up His life on a cross.
TOPICS:Cross, Easter, Love, Sacrifice, Valentine's Day MATERIALS:Candy hearts DURATION:Approximately 15 minutes |
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PREPARATION:
Before class, print out the cross template and gather all the materials needed for this craft. Cut out the crosses before hand for the younger children. Older kids can do this during class time. If making a hanging ornament, poke a hole in the top of the cross and attach the ribbon first. Then you will scatter a generous amount of candy hearts on the table.
Note: You can find boxes of small candy hearts for a very reasonable price right after Valentine's Day. The hearts should have nice sayings printed on them, like "Be Mine, True Love, Only You," etc. You will want to have enough hearts so that each child can choose seven hearts for their craft.
WHAT YOU WILL DO:
Children will select hearts and glue them to the front of their foam cross. Tell the children to read the hearts carefully and select only the ones they believe say how much Jesus loves them or that say how much His death on the cross means to them. Let them know they should only select 7 to be glued to their cross as shown in the sample above.
If you are going to make a refrigerator magnet, wait until the glue dries before attaching the magnetic tape to the back. If using a water based glue, it may take a while, up to an hour. When finished with their craft, let the kids share and eat the left-over candies, while you discuss the following questions:
1. How does a cross remind us about God's love?
2. How is our love for Jesus different from our love for pizza or candy?
3. How can we show our love for Jesus?
4. Why is a heart a symbol for love?
*Fun Foam can be purchased at most Arts & Craft stores, or you can use heavy brown construction paper.