JELL-O Teaches Patience

Show the difference of waiting. Prepare the JELL-O mixture & pour it onto a cookie sheet. The sloshy, unset JELL-O cookie sheet represents an impatient person.  Try to cut it with a cookie cutter.  You can't do anything with it.  Impatience is ugly & easily broken.

Place the tray into the fridge or freezer to allow it to harden.

The well hardened JELL-O represents a patient person. Start making JELL-O jigglers. When we are patient, God can use us, mold us & form us more into His image. 

http://brands.kraftfoods.com/jello/recipe.aspx?s=recipe&m=recipe/knet_recipe_display&wf=9&recipe_id=53920

If you are dong an object lesson in front of a group:
Prepare 2 cookie sheets of JELL-O.  One cookie sheet will be sloshy & not set.  The other should be fully set. Use the same discussion as above.

SORRY!

Nothing tested my patience as much as some of my childhood favorite board games like SORRY! or Popomatic Trouble!  Many different board games would suffce for this lesson, but I find these games require you to set aside the feeling of unfairness & show love & patience.

It is easy to get to get impatient & even lose your temper when frustration arises.  Talk about the verses before you start playing.  Encourage them to be patient & loving towards their friends/siblings.

Here are some suggested verses:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”

I Corinthians 13:1 (NIV)

“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.”

Ephesians 4:2 (NIV)

“A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man displays folly.”

Proverbs 14:29 (NIV)

“A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel.”

Proverbs 15:18 (NIV)

Saving Jar Patience

Saving money is another lesson of patience & responsibility. 

Find an empty can or jar to save change in. Cut a piece of 2" construction paper. Pre-measure around your can.  Write a verse about patience on it & attach it around the can/jar.  If you have a smooth jar, you can also paint the words onto it with acrylic paint & then seal it.  I chose Ecclesiastes 7:8 because it is hard to begin savings, but in the end it is worth it.

Plan with your child what they want to save $$ for.  Make a plan with them on how long they plan to save & how much they will need weekly to add to their jar to succeed with their plan.  This is also a good time to talk about tithing to the Lord & the importance of giving a portion to the church.

I saw this jar on a website & thought this was a great idea for a family project too. 

http://www.takethemonorail.com/2009/08/vacation-saving-jars.html

Cooking Patience with Bread & Resurrection Cookies

Cooking is another everyday part of our homes that teaches great patience.  Really you can use any cooking scenerio that you want.  I suggest baking some bread.  During the process you have to allow it to rise several times & then let it bake.  Try some of the dough each time it rises.  Then, try a piece of warm bread & reinforce how important it is to wait.  It is a long process, but worth it!  Here is a recipe that was given to me by a friend.  They are the most delicious rolls I have ever tasted!

You could also read The Little Red Hen to get the point across about waiting & the reward of hard work. 

There are several websites with ideas in using The Little Red Hen:
Lessons for Preschoolers & Kindergartners
The Little Red Hen picture & word story
Literacy ideas

I also suggest making Resurrection Cookies during Easter time.  This recipe not only teaches on the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but also teaches the idea of patience as you wait to open the "tomb".

Pottery Patience

Craft & sewing projects are a great way to teach patience.  I suggest painting a family project at a local pottery place like Pottery Schmottery.  One year all of my students painted pieces of the Nativity Scene. 

When you are doing a painting project, you have to be patient with planning your piece's colors, waiting for each color to dry, cleaning your brush, carefully painting each part & then allowing it to go through the kilning process.

There are some great object lessons associated with the kiln too!  Sometimes we encounter tough situations that test our patience, but they are like a kiln.  The more times we practice patience, the better we get at exhibiting it. The situations make us tougher & refine us into Christ's image! 

kids collage picture from The Pottery House in Matawan, NJ
kids pottery class picture from The Sawmill Pottery in Putnam, CT
plate picture/logo for Pottery Schmottery in Elkhart, IN

Chiquita Banana Patience

Buy some unripe fruit, like bananas.  Take a permanent marker & write a verse on the peel.  Watch & be patient while you wait for the banana to ripen.  Discuss how it would taste if you didn't wait for it to ripen.  It is always better to wait!

Bible verse suggestions:

• Galatians 5:22-23
• Proverbs 14:29
• Romans 8:25

Minute to Win It Patience

A lot of the Minute to Win It games require a lot of patience & perseverance.  Check out NBC's website for all of the game directions & ideas. You can use YouTube.com videos of the game instructions if you want. 

Here are some game suggestions (YouTube.com directions):

• Caddy Stack (stacking golf balls---V)
• High Strung (transferring a raw egg with a rubber band---H)
• Separation Anxiety (separate M&M's---E)
• Stack Attack (stacking cups---E)
• Breakfast Scramble (cereal box puzzle---E)
• By A Thread (threading needles---M)
• The Nutstacker (stacking hardware nuts---V)
• Beach Tennis (playing tennis with scuba flippers & a ping pong ball---M)
• Candelier (stacking paper plates & empty soda cans---H)

V---Very Hard

H---Hard

M---Medium

E---as Easy as it gets