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<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< Volume 1 - Number 19 <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
February 17, 2000
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>ideas on the theme of 'Wonder'. Needs to have a strong visual element!!
> All ideas gratefully received!

We have always looked at "wonder" as being "In awe of God"- at WHO He is
and at WHAT He has done. Just recently we had come up with an OBJECT
lesson for this "oooing and aweing of God". It is a Kaleidoscope:

Both the beauty of the Lord
and the brilliance of His Word
are like a kaleidoscope…
with each turn and twist
of the pages of Scripture,
perfection upon perfection
of God’s Person is revealed…
and with a single eye
we stand in awe,
readied to worship, walk, work,
war, witness, and watch
for Him!!

“Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name;
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”
Psalm 27:4; 29:2
“…true worshippers will worship the Father
in spirit and truth;
for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.”
John 4:23
“For we…worship God in the Spirit,
rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence
in the flesh…”
Philippians 3:3

CRAFT-
A Kaleidoscope from an
M&M Minis Container

From: S. Ziel
Materials: (per kaleidoscope)

1 M&M Minis container, empty & washed.
3 strips of thin mirror material, each cut to 2.2 cm x 8.5 cm. I found
that "locker mirrors" purchased at the Dollar Tree provided ideal
material for these. You can get 2 kaleidoscopes from each mirror, once
you peel off the magnet from the back (save that for another project!)
and cut it into the strips.
2 circles cut from clear plastic – I use the packaging from the mirrors.
(or use that clear plastic supermarket salad bars sometimes use for their
take-out containers). Each circle is 2.7 cm in diameter.
Tissue paper or wax paper - a piece about 9 cm. square
1 thin cardboard (like from pantyhose packaging) strip cut to 1 cm x 8.5
cm (you may have to trim it just a bit shorter to fit)
Rubber band (med. size) or tape
Assorted clear colored beads - pony bead size or thinner (an assortment
of shapes is nicest to use - experiment a little!) Go for the darker
colors - pastels don’t work as well. Bright red, blue, green, purple, and
hot pink are beautiful colors to try! Experiment with other items too,
like colored cellophane (I didn’t have any on hand to try) cut into
different shapes.
Awl or sharp pointed scissors
Directions:

Gently poke a hole in bottom of Minis container, using scissors or awl.
Widen it to about ¼ inch or so in diameter. Smooth off any rough edges.
(Make sure you aren’t leaving a big lip of material inside too.) Note: I
would do this ahead of time at home, instead of having the girls tackle
it. It was a little tricky for me to do! Do not try to punch a hole with
a hammer & nail - it cracks the tube (yes, I tried it!)
Note: I later found that using an electric drill with a ¼ inch bit works
great!

Drop the first clear plastic circle inside Mini container to cover the
hole (this protects your eye from anything that might fall down tube as
you are looking through it)
Insert the 3 mirror strips inside the tube so that the mirrors are facing
in toward each other. Try to have them form an equilateral triangle in
cross-section view, so your kaleidoscope will produce a nice symmetrical
look. Push them in all the way - they should not be flush with the top of
the container. (Tip, you can tape the 3 mirrors together before sliding
them in. Let the girls see what the world looks like looking through the
form created by these mirrors - it’s pretty interesting even without all
the colored beads you’ll be adding later.)
Place the other clear plastic circle on top of the mirrors.
Curl the cardboard strip by pulling it quickly back & forth over the edge
of a table. Put this curved strip of cardboard around the inside of the
tube, right on top of the plastic circle. (This just helps to keep that
plastic circle in place. You can glue this in, but I didn’t bother)
Now put about 4-7 (depending on size) beads in the space you’ve just
created with the clear plastic and cardboard. Be sure they have room to
shift around! (Don’t worry, you can experiment and change the beads at
any time)
Put the waxed paper on the top of the tube, and secure with tape or a
rubber band.
Hold your kaleidoscope toward a light, and look into the eyehole. Turn
the tube to see new beautiful patterns!
Try new combinations of beads & shapes, if desired, until you find a set
that pleases you most. I haven’t made a permanent top for my
kaleidoscope, because I like to change it from time to time, but you
could try hot gluing a piece of "cloudy" plastic (like from a Pringles
can lid) on the top instead of covering it with waxed paper if you want
to make the lid more permanent. I would glue it on, trim the edges flush
with the tube, and glue again around the edge to make it really secure.
If you wanted to get fancy, you could decorate the outside of your
kaleidoscope too! Wrap it in fabric or paper, or paint it, put stickers
on, cover it with pretty paper & Modge Podge….the sky’s the limit!

I’ve been asked what you do with the lid of the Minis container. Well, I
just snipped it off of the first one I made, but later tried leaving it
on for a protective cap that you can close when not using your
kaleidoscope (if you are doing the waxed paper/taped lid). Works okay
both ways.

This design was inspired by The Kids' Book of Kaleidoscopes by Carolyn
Bennett with Jack Romig. (ISBN 1-56305-638-0) (The book came in a kit
with a kaleidoscope to build.) The book explains how a kaleidoscope
works, and has lots of fun experiments with light, mirrors, and
kaleidoscopes. It also tells how to build many different scopes,
including one made using a Pringles can, which led me to figure out how
to do one in a Minis tube. (Couldn't find suitable mirrors at a cheap
price for the larger design!)
**AbbaGail Hills,MN

(From ChristianCrafters.Com: You can also use the white opaque 35 mm film containers. I'll be putting a freebie craft in the showcase section in a few weeks...so stay tuned!)

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> I teach a Sunday School class of age 15-18. My biggest problem is getting
> them to be excited about being in Sunday School and participate.
> Carla Laster

I have taught an Outreach program to reach teenage kids in the community.
Many of these kids did not attend church regularly. I found the best way to
keep them excited and coming back was to use the element of the unexpected.
For example, one week we acted out our bible lesson with different members
of the class portraying different characters in the bible story. Another
time we were studying the last supper and it's relation to the feast of
passover. I used bread for the passover feast and let them each take a
bite. Then, we added warm honey butter to the bread to represent the last
supper. The bread alone (passover) was good but the honey butter (last
supper) made it better. At other times we might have our class outdoors.
When the kids never know what to expect, they want to come to church to find
out what will happen next.

Kim Campbell
Demorest, Georgia
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FYI-
We've been using the 'Amazing Friends' game the past two Sundays (from Bible Games page), in conjunction with our 56'-Gospel Light curriculum, which is focusing on being Salt & Light to the world this month-the boys absolutely LOVE it and beg for more!

Sarah Keith <><
Your Moderator
5/6 Boys-S.S.
Kingdom Kids K-4th

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Regarding the Easter jellybeans poem craft: I really like the idea of putting the jelly beans in a babyfood jar with Easter grass. Any ideas out there on how to cover the lid of the jar and make it look pretty? I tried gluing fabric on it, but that seems too difficult for my 5,6, and 7 year olds. I was thinking about putting the jar in pretty colored, clear celophane with a twist on top, like gift baskets are wrapped.

Shirley, N. Georgia
5-9 year olds
(From ChristianCrafters.Com-the first thought that comes to my mind is glue more grass onto the lid, and place those tiny chicks, or bunnies into it. (Bunnies/chicks for a Christian Easter? -- They represent new life, as does Spring! "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!") Can anyone else help Shirley?

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Enjoy your sunday School stuff greatly and have received many good ideas.
this morning as I was checking e-mail , the weekly letter from Brigada has a
resource for teaching Missions to children. Go to www.brigada.org or subscribe to their weekly newsletter (all about missions) at Brigada-today-subscribe@egroups.com

My daughter and i also wrote a 5 session, intergenerational, Sunday school
lesson series entitled "Mission, Making it Happen" which is available from
Augsburg Fortress Publishing in Calgary. It has been well received and
includes 5 original mission-related songs suitable for all ages.

enjoy, god bless, Dorothy Leuze

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