YEA Lesson Library
A Rescue Boat
About This Lesson
This lesson teaches that because Noah obeyed God, God told him to build an ark to save himself, his family, and all of the land creatures.
Scriptures
Genesis 6:13-22
Genesis 7:1-24
Deuteronomy 11:26-28
Jeremiah 7:23
Matthew 24:38
Hebrews 11:7
1 Peter 3:20
Words to Know
RESCUE - to save from danger
COASTGUARD- government boats used to rescue boats in trouble
DROWNING - to die by breathing in water
DESTROY - to do away with, to ruin
The Lesson
The fire department has a special Rescue Unit--a truck with all kinds of things to help people in trouble. The Rescue Unit comes to a car crash. They help anyone who might be hurt. The Coast Guard helps people in trouble in the water. A rescue boat comes to search when people fall overboard. They help people who are drowning. Even God had a special Rescue Boat—the ark. It saved Noah, his family, and the animals from a terrible flood.
God made the earth and everything in it. Then He made one man and one woman. Adam and Eve had children. Their children had children. Soon there were more people than anyone could count. But these people forgot about God. They disobeyed God. They lied to each other and even hurt one another.
There was one man who did love God. Noah was a good man who obeyed God. He taught his children about God. He worshiped God and did what was right.
God looked down and saw how bad things were. He saw people fighting and killing each other. This made God very sad. He had to put a stop to what was going on.
God said, "Noah, I am going to send rain to the earth." The rain would make puddles. The puddles would make streams and rivers. Soon there would be a great flood. Everything would be covered with water. And everything would be destroyed! But, God told Noah not to worry. He had special plans for Noah and his family. God was going to save them from the flood. He would rescue them.
God said, "I want you to build a big boat." God called it an ark. It wasn't just a fishing boat. This boat was huge! But, Noah didn't know how to build things. And he wasn't a sailor. So, God told Noah just how to make the boat. It was bigger than a football field. It had many rooms in it. God said, "Use special wood so the boat won't leak." This was a really big job!
Noah and his sons chopped down trees and cut logs into boards. They fit the boards together. Soon the boat started to take shape. His neighbors came by and laughed at Noah. "Why do you need such a big boat?" they asked. Why would anyone build a boat where there was no water? They thought Noah was crazy.
Noah kept on working. He also told his neighbors about the flood. He said God was sending it because of the bad things people were doing. But everyone just laughed at Noah. They wouldn't stop doing bad things and obey God.
Finally the boat was finished. It would save people and animals. Everyone would need food. So Noah loaded all kinds of food onto the ark. There was people food and animal food.
Then God said, "Take two of every kind of animal onto the ark. If the animal is good to eat, take seven girl and seven boy animals." Noah didn’t have look for the animals. They came to him, two by two! Elephants and giraffes had big rooms. Cats and dogs had little rooms. Birds had shelves for their nests. Everyone had a place on the ark. And everyone was safe inside. Then God shut the door!
God had Noah build the ark because Noah loved and obeyed God. What if Noah had not obeyed God? Everyone would have drowned! See how important it is to always do what God tells you to do?
Student Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for loving me enough to correct me when I am wrong. Help me learn from the story of Noah to love and obey you so I will not have to be punished for my sin.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
Daily Devotions
Sunday - Matthew 24:38
Monday - 1 Peter 3:20
Tuesday - Genesis 6:13-14
Wednesday - Genesis 7:1
Thursday - Genesis 7:6-7
Friday- Jeremiah 7:23
Saturday - Deuteronomy 11:26-28
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, children will be able to:
1. Tell which was the only family that loved God and obeyed Him.
2. Give the name of the big boat Noah built and why he built it.
3. Describe the ark.
4. State why it is important to always obey God.
Topics & Themes
Animals
Ark (Noah’s)
Blessings/Cursings
Consequences of Sin
Flood
Noah
Obedience
Preaching
Materials Needed
Bible, YEA Students' andTeacher's books, attendance and memory verse charts, stickers, songbook, CD, music player, construction paper, crayons, scissors, glue, yarn, hammer
Preparation
Kids love heroes, and Noah can be portrayed as such. The entire populated world had turned their backs on God, wickedly serving self and selfish desires. Noah did not fit into the crowd. His faith led him to go against sinfulness. He was obedient to God's command, and his obedience led to his salvation and that of his family.
Sometimes the actions of kid's parents influence their perception of God. It is easy for kids to think of God as a fierce judge ready to severely punish every act of disobedience. But God is much more than just a judge. The story of Noah shows God's desire and provision for man's salvation. Seek to help your students see God in His many roles. Help them choose to obey Him out of love rather than out of fear.
Before class, enlarge the pattern of the ark and animals to 200 percent and copy it onto construction paper, brown for the ark and white for the animals (see pattern page.) Cut yellow, brown, and gray yarn into one inch pieces for tails and manes. Cut toothpicks in half for the elephant’s tusks.
Background - Many scientists believe that, until the flood, the earth was covered by a canopy of moisture, the greenhouse effect. Halley's Bible Handbook calculates 1656 years between the creation of man and the flood. Even though Genesis 2:5-6 shows that God had not sent rain up until that time, we don't know if it rained in the intervening years. Archaeologists in every culture have found evidence of a catastrophic worldwide flood. Fossil formations found in layers of rock and strata give indications of a great upheaval of earth--presumably caused by the breaking up of"the fountains of the great deep" (Genesis 7:11).
How to Teach This Lesson
In need of rescue - God looked down from heaven at the world He had made. And what He saw made Him very sad. People were doing all kinds of bad things. Ask: What do you think they were doing? (Have them think of things that would make God sad.) He looked and looked, but found only one family obeying Him: Noah's family. God loved all the people, but they didn't love Him.
God told Noah that He was going to bring an end to all the evil on earth by destroying everything with a great flood. But, because Noah was a good man who loved God, God was going to save him and his family from the flood. He was sending them A Rescue Boat—the ark.
The Ark - God told Noah that the ark was to be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet tall. This is the size of one and a half football fields. What would you need to build a boat this size? (Allow children to name as many things as they can.) God told Noah what kind of wood to use and how to treat it so it wouldn’t leak. He gave instructions so the people and animals could have air and light. There were to be separate rooms for the people and animals and storage for their food. God took care of all the details!
To build a boat that size, trees had to be cut down and split into boards along with much hammering and sawing. Ask: Where do you think Noah found the wood to build the ark? He probably built the ark near a forest so he wouldn't have to carry wood a long way. He needed a large, flat place for the ark to sit on while they were building it.
Noah preached - It took Noah and his three sons 100 years to build the ark. That's a long time! While they were working, Noah was busy preaching. Every time someone asked Noah what he was building, he told them it was A Rescue Boat. (Choose an older child to be Noah. You may want to give him a hammer to pretend he is building. Have other children ask Noah what he is building and why he is building it, such as: “Why would anyone build a boat where there is no water?" "Why do you need such a big boat?" Let Noah answer in his /her own words.) Explain that Noah was preaching, or giving them God's message (2 Peter 2:5).
Al aboard - After 100 years of hard work the ark was finished. God told Noah to get the animals on board. Noah didn't have to go looking for them- they came to him! (Use the following riddles to have the children guess what animals are going on to the ark.) 1) I live in a rain forest. I have bright-colored feathers. Sometimes I talk. What am I? (Parrot.) 2) I was big when I was born. Now l am very big. I am gray. I have something called a trunk. What am I? (Elephant.) 3) I like to hop. I have a big, long tail that is very strong. My mother carried me in a pouch. What am I? (Kangaroo.) 4) I have fuzzy fur all over me. It keeps me warm because where I live it is very cold. I sleep al winter long. When I wake up l am very hungry. What am ? (Bear.) 5) When I was born I was cute and cuddly. Grown up, I am fierce and strong. I have big claws and sharp teeth. My fur is yellow and I roar. What am I?(Lion.)
After all the animals entered the ark, Noah and his family got on. Then, God shut the door! Noah, his family, and all the animals were safe inside the Rescue Boat. God saved Noah and his family because they loved God and obeyed Him.
Review Questions
1. Why was God sad when He looked over the world He had made?
2. Who was the one man to love God and serve Him?
3. How did God plan to rescue Noah and his family?
4. How did Noah know how to build the ark?
5. Why did the people make fun of Noah for building the ark?
6. Who shut the door to the ark?
7. Why did God rescue Noah and his family?
Teacher-Directed Activity
Help Noah build the ark and load the animals. Draw boards, windows, and a door on the ark. Fold along dotted lines to form the base. Staple the ends of the ark together. Glue the bottom of the ark onto a sheet of green construction paper. Color the animals, drawing in faces. Glue a gray yarn tail and toothpick tusks on the elephant. Use yellow for the lion’s mane. Give the giraffe a yellow yarn tail and the donkey a brown yarn tail. Fold tabs along the dotted line and glue the animals in pairs on the green construction paper. Add the ramp to the side of the ark by gluing one side of the tab to the ark and one to the construction paper. See the pattern page.
REACH Activity
Special Materials Needed:
Cardboard, magazine pictures of animals, magnetic tape
Note: There are two arks mentioned in the Bible. The first is the ark that Noah built in Genesis, which saved his life and his families’ lives from the flood. The second Ark is one God required the Israelites to build in the Book of Exodus. It held the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s rod that budded, and some manna. The Ark was put in the Tabernacle that the Israelites carried out of Egypt, and then in the Temple—the first of which Solomon built. The ark in this lesson is the one Noah built.
Activities:
1. Draw a large ark on an 11x17 piece of construction paper. Try to use the whole paper. Cut out the ark. Trace around the ark on another 11 x 17 piece of paper. Cut out the second ark. On the second sheet, draw as many animals as you can think of. Glue the top edges of the arks together. Write the memory verse on the outside (top) page. Now you have a way to show the ark and what was inside.
2. Using a large piece of cardboard, draw an ark. Cut out the ark. On one side paint the big and small rooms and shelves. Find magazine pictures of animals, or draw two of each animal. Glue pictures on the ark. Let everything dry, and then display it.
3. Sing: “Rise and Shine” on page 28 of Kids Classics Collection.
4. Journal: Write a diary entry in your Bible notebook as if you were Noah or his wife on the day the animals started coming to the ark.
5. Pretend you are a newscaster. Do a “Live! Breaking News!” newscast of Noah building the ark and the arrival of the animals.
6. Write three things your parents want you to do. Why do they want you to do those things?
7. Write three things you know God wants you to do. Why does God want you to do them?
8. Do a sword drill. Use the Daily Devotional Scriptures in the YEA book, Color My World. Read out the Scripture reference. Then start the timer. When the child has found the verse, stop the timer. Read the verse and talk about how it relates to the lesson. Challenge the child to see how quickly he/she can find each of the verses in the Bible. The sword drill works well as a competition game if you have more than one child.
9. Write an acrostic poem for O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E. Use the facts from this week’s YEA lesson to tell why it’s so important to obey God.
10. God shut the door of the ark to save Noah and his family from the flood and certain death. God has also shut the door against death for you. How has He shut the door? Read 2 Timothy 1:10.
11. Role play Noah obeying God, building the ark, and warning the people.
12. How big was the ark? What kind of special wood was used? Tell your family these special ark facts.
13. From your name make an animal acrostic. Below is an example:
D - og
I - mpala
A - ntler
N - ew
E -agle
14. Name your favorite land, sea, and air animals. Find information on each animal in books or magazines. Try to find out where they live, what they eat, and an interesting fact about each. Draw and cut out the outline of each animal, and then write the information on the cutouts. Share your animal facts with family and friends.
15. Draw an ark on an index card. Write your memory verse on it. Hang it on the refrigerator. Practice your memory verse every day until you have it memorized.
16. Research boat or ship building. How is it done? How long does it take to build a sailboat? Or a canoe? A cruise ship? Share your information with others.
17. Noah wasn’t a boat builder or a ship builder. He wasn’t a sailor either. Would you want a job on or near the water? Why or why not?
18. How do you think all the animals were cared for on the ark? Whose job do you think it was to be sure they were fed? Would that person be called a zookeeper or an ark keeper? Do you care for a pet? How much time during the day or week does it take to care for it? If you don’t have a pet, what do you need to know about the animal before you bring it home? Share your information with family and friends.
Song
“Who Built The Ark?” is on page 107 of the Kids Classics Collection.
Closing Prayer
Ask a student to lead the class in prayer.
Printable Pages
