During the lesson, the information for you to know is written in regular type, and what we suggest speaking or reading aloud to children is in bold. All resources for this lesson, including the Teacher Guide, Student Page, Family Connection Card, and other resources can be downloaded in a ZIP file by clicking on the following link:
In some lessons you will find "resource articles." These are articles written by experts from around the world to help equip you for your work with children and adolescents. Share them with parents or guardians if you consider it appropriate.
Each of us has one body with many parts. And the parts do not all have the same purpose. So also we are many persons.
But in Christ we are one body.
And each part of the body belongs to all the other parts.
Romans 12:4–5
When we work with other people, we can do things that we cannot do on our own. Cooperation helps people to construct large buildings. It helps nations work together to solve problems. Cooperation also helps churches to send missionaries to spread the Word of God. Cooperation can be very helpful in any community.
When you shop at the market, when you work or raise children, and when you teach your class, you cooperate with others. Do you ever feel as if what you are doing is not important? Well, think about what happens when you fulfill your roles in the community. Do you help it to function smoothly? The Romans 12 verses are a good reminder that you are an important part of the body of Christ. He is using your gifts and talents in amazing ways. Share these with the children you teach and explain to them how much the body needs their gifts and talents.
Encourage families to play a cooperation game. Ask them to look for objects they can use to build a temporary tower, house, or honeycomb. They can talk about how God created us to work together.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
As they come to class, greet the children with a silly voice as if you were a bee buzzing. Ask half of the children to sit on 1 side of the space and the other half to sit on the other side of the space.
Today we will learn about honeybees. Let’s start by pretending we are honeybees! Let me hear you buzz until I raise my hand.
Pause for a few seconds to allow the children to buzz. Then raise your hand.
Great! Now think for a moment about what a honeybee does during the day.
What kinds of things have you seen bees doing?
Allow 2–3 children to respond.
We know that bees are often seen near flowers and they are always moving! We also know that honeybees make honey. Their sweet honey comes from the nectar and pollen gathered from the flowers they buzz around.
The male bees stay in the hive and serve the queen. These bees are called drones, and they do not usually go outside of the hive until winter, when they are forced to leave.
Did you know that the female bees are the ones who gather the nectar and pollen from flowers to make the honey? It is true! These bees are called worker bees because they are in charge of gathering and making food, creating the hive, and moving air through the hive with the movement of their wings.
In a moment, I want the group in this area of the space (point to one of the groups) to pretend to build the hive. The other group will buzz around the space and pretend to gather nectar and pollen from flowers. Ready? Let’s pretend to be honeybees.
Give the children 2 minutes to pretend to be honeybees. Remind them what their roles are if they forget. Allow the group gathering nectar and pollen to move around the teaching space. It is also okay if they just buzz around the space or buzz around the “hive” during this time.
Wow! You were very busy bees! In our activity you did the job you were asked to do. When bees all do their jobs and work together, they keep each other alive and healthy. Bees are really good at cooperation.
When you cooperate, you work together with 1 or more people to do something. When you cooperate with 1 or more people, you must:
Think for a moment about something you might cooperate with others to do.
What would be easier to do with someone else?
Allow 2–3 children to respond.
Lifting heavy objects, staying safe, and building large structures are examples of things that are easier to do with at least 1 other person. When we cooperate, we also build community.
In the Bible, we learn that the people of the early church worked together. They ate together, worshipped together, and helped people together. These people made life better for everyone in their community. The members of the early church were able to live well together because they were able to cooperate.
People who love and worship God are called members of the body of Christ. Listen to what the Bible tells us about the body of Christ:
Read these verses directly from your Bible.
Each of us has one body with many parts. And the parts do not all have the same purpose. So also we are many persons. But in Christ we are one body. And each part of the body belongs to all the other parts.
Romans 12:4–5
We talked a little bit about these verses when you learned about your body. These verses talk about the community of believers called the body of Christ. Think for a moment about your body. Your body has many parts.
Raise your hand if you can name a part of your body.
Answers may include: head, arms, hands, legs, feet, neck, back, etc.
Can you imagine what it would be like if you had a body of just arms? You would not be able to live with a body full of arms. When you are part of a community, you are like a part of a body. I might be an arm and you might be a head, but our roles are all needed by the community. The Bible tells us that people who are good at different jobs should do those jobs. That is because God created us to work together. He created us to cooperate. Let’s listen to what the Bible says about what happens when we work together.
One person could be overpowered. But two people can stand up for themselves. And a rope made out of three cords isn’t easily broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:12
God made us stronger and safer when we do things together than we are when we do them alone. When we work together for a purpose, we are able to do more than we could working alone. This is also true of bees.
All of the worker bees and all of the drones serve a queen bee. When a new queen hatches out of her egg, other bees cooperate to keep her fed. The worker bees feed her a special food called royal jelly. Royal jelly is a really healthy food filled with a lot of nutrients. This allows the queen to grow into a healthy adult bee. Without the other bees feeding her, she would not be able to grow healthy and strong. She would not be able to be a mother to many new bees.
The same thing happens with babies and young children. Other people help to care for them until they are big and strong enough to begin to care for themselves.
Answers may include: feeding them, giving them water to drink, keeping them safe from danger, bathing them, and giving them a place to sleep.
When you came to class, we played a game. You all pretended to be worker bees and to collect nectar and pollen from flowers. Did you know that worker bees communicate with each other to tell the other bees from their hives where the flowers are? Communication is an important part of cooperation.
For example, if we are working together to clean the house, we each need to communicate what we are doing so that we make sure we clean each part of the house and that we only do this once. When we work together, we will have a clean house!
Let’s play! For this game you will work in teams. I will give each of you a job to pretend to do. To do each of these jobs, you will need to communicate with your team. For example, 1 team may be responsible for cleaning the ground. One part of the team will pick up objects off the ground and then communicate with the rest of the team when this is done. The other part of the team will then sweep the ground. When you have finished your job, you will sit in a circle to communicate that you are done.
Have the children make teams of 3–4 children. Give each team a responsibility and ask that they figure out how to work together to perform the task. Responsibilities may include: Pick up rocks or trash and then sweep the ground. Wash the dishes and put the dishes away. Wash the clothes and hang the clothes up to dry. Make sure the children understand that they are pretending to do these jobs. Allow 3–5 minutes for the children to complete their tasks. Then ask them to sit in a circle.
I saw some wonderful cooperation as you worked together to complete your jobs! To do this, you had to communicate, do your part of the job, and help others. When we work together, we can do things more quickly than we otherwise could. Cooperation also helps us to do things we would not otherwise be able to do.
When you cooperate, you:
Optional: If you are using Student Pages, have children play the hexagon game with a partner.
God created us to work together. The Bible reminds us of this fact. It says:
One person could be overpowered. But two people can stand up for themselves. And a rope made out of three cords isn’t easily broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:12
Structures that require many parts to work together are much stronger than structures that are by themselves. A honeycomb is a structure that is very strong.
Show the children the picture of the honeycomb.
This is the honeycomb structure found inside a beehive. It is made up of many hexagons—6-sided shapes—that fit together to make the layers of the hive. Within each hexagon, honey is made and stored for food. The bees cooperate to make the honeycomb and the honey inside of it.
Just as bees work together to make honeycombs, I would like you to work together to make a honeycomb. I will group you by 3 and by 6. You will have 5 minutes to use your bodies, a piece of string, or both to make 1 or more hexagons.
Create groups of 3 or 6 children. It is okay to have a group of more than 3 and less than 6, but it is easiest to make a hexagon with 3 or 6 children. Give each group a string or piece of twine. Encourage the groups to look at the picture of the honeycomb found at the end of this lesson to help them think of ways to create hexagons using their bodies and the string. Allow 5 minutes for the children to create their hexagons.
Here are some possible solutions:
You all used cooperation to create your hexagons just like bees cooperate to build their hives! Cooperation helps us to do things that we might not otherwise be able to do. God created us to cooperate with others! Today’s memory verse tells us that we can see a lot of what God does for us by looking at animals.
But ask the animals what God does. They will teach you.
Or ask the birds in the sky. They will tell you.
Job 12:7
If you are using the Memory Verse Poster, show it to the students.
Read the Bible verse again. This time, do the motions that go with each part. Then repeat the verse and the motions 3 times with the children.
End class by saying this blessing, based on Ephesians 4:12, over the children.
Blessing: May you know that your strength comes from God, the Creator. May you understand the importance of working together with others.
Lead the children in singing this quarter’s song, if possible.
Life on Life ©2020 David C Cook. Reproducible for home or classroom use only. All other uses require written permission from David C Cook [email protected]. All rights reserved.
