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.
Then [Elisha] went out to the spring and threw the salt into it, saying, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.’”
2 Kings 2:21
When the prophet Elisha arrived in the city of Jericho, the people informed him that the water was bad. It made the people sick and the fields unproductive. Everything else about the city was good, but it did not seem to matter. Without clean water, there was no hope. So Elisha did what God showed him to do, and through God’s power, the water was made clean.
Clean water is often the difference between life and death. It is amazing that God cares so much for the details of our lives that He used Elisha to heal the water so the people could live healthy lives. God cares for the details of your life too. In what ways do you see He has provided for your health? How can you share His great care with others this week?
Tell families that this week you are teaching about diarrhoea. If possible, gather the families to tell them about the disease. If possible, make copies of the Resource Article just before this lesson and share it with the families.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Greet your children warmly as they arrive. Explain that you will play a game called “Hand Washing Tag.”
Divide the children into 3 groups and tell the children in each group to do the follow motions:
Have everyone scatter around your teaching space. The groups should not stay together but spread out. Explain that those who are “water” must find someone who is “soap” and hold hands. The person who is a “water” will still make swimming motions with the free hand. Together they must tag someone who is a “germ.” When they tag that person, he or she is out of the game and must sit down. The “water” and “soap” keep trying to tag another “germ.” Play the game for about 10 minutes. After the game is over, have everyone sit down.
This is a fun game, but it reminds us of what we have learned—water and soap can get rid of bad germs. Today we will talk about a common illness called diarrhoea. Diarrhoea can be very serious. The good news is that diarrhoea is preventable!
What do you think is the best thing to do to prevent diarrhoea? (Hint: it relates to the game we just played.)
Allow children to guess. Then reveal the answer: wash your hands with soap and water.
God loves you and gave you a wonderful body. He wants you to be healthy. Today and in our next lesson, we will talk about health risks that can make us sick. The first thing we will learn about is diarrhoea, and you can get it from unclean water. Let’s read a story about unclean water in the Bible.
Did you know that the Bible talks a lot about water? This story is about a prophet named Elisha. Prophets are people who hear from God and tell His message to others. Elisha was in a city called Jericho when this story takes place. Listen to what God did for the water in this city.
Optional: If possible, share the image from The Action Bible.
Read 2 Kings 2:19–22 directly from your Bible.
The men of the city said to Elisha, “Look, our lord, this town is well situated, as you can see, but the water is bad and the land is unproductive.” “Bring me a new bowl,” [Elisha] said, “and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. Then [Elisha] went out to the spring and threw the salt into it, saying, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.’” And the water has remained pure to this day, according to the word Elisha had spoken.
2 Kings 2:19–22
Describe the water in this city at the beginning of the story.
What were the results of the bad water in the city?
Land did not produce crops. The water was not good to drink.
What did Elisha do to the water?
He threw salt in it. Only God could use salt to make water good to drink. Be sure children understand this was a miracle, not something that is helpful to make water clean.
What did God say to the people through Elisha?
God said He had healed this water. It would never cause death again!
What do you think this story shows us about God?
Allow the children to share their ideas. They may say that God is powerful and can even heal water. They may say God cares about people being healthy. He wants people to have clean water to drink.
Now let’s talk about the health risk of diarrhoea, which can be caused by dirty water. You can save lives by learning how to help others who have diarrhoea and by practicing behaviours that help prevent diarrhoea. So, this is really important information. If you remember what you learn, someday if you are a parent, you will be able to keep your own baby healthy.
What is diarrhoea?
A person has diarrhoea when he or she frequently passes watery faeces. This person may also vomit and have a swollen belly and cramps.
Germs that live in dust, stale food, dirty water, and human faeces cause diarrhoea. The germs are so small that they are invisible. They are spread through food and drinking water that have been contaminated, often by dirty hands and flies.
The body tries to wash the bad germs out of the body through diarrhoea. A person with diarrhoea loses water and vital salts from the body. This loss of water and salts is called dehydration. Dehydration is dangerous. A person can die of dehydration from diarrhoea if the water and vital salts are not replaced quickly.
Here’s how you can help a person with diarrhoea. Act immediately. Do not wait for signs of dehydration. You can prevent dehydration by doing the following:
As soon as diarrhoea starts, give the person plenty to drink to replace the water that is lost. Give the person herbal teas, coconut water, lime or lemon water, diluted fruit juice, soups, or the water that you boiled rice in. Someone with diarrhoea needs 1 cup of liquid each time he passes loose faeces. Do not give drinks that are very sweet, such as fizzy drinks and sweet tea. These can make the diarrhoea worse.
Give the person enough food to keep him strong. Food that contains salt is
especially important.
Here is how to tell if someone is dehydrated: She is thirsty. Her mouth and tongue are dry. Her skin is pale, and when you pinch it, the skin returns to normal slowly. The person is irritable, restless, or half-asleep. She may feel dizzy or loses consciousness. Take the person to a health worker if any of these danger signs of dehydration begin or if the diarrhoea continues more than 3 days.
If you are able to purchase Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) at the local pharmacy, follow the directions on the packet and have the person drink it. If you cannot purchase an ORS from the pharmacy, you can also make ORS for the person to drink. Dissolve 6 teaspoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in 1 litre of boiled water, which can be cooled. Be very careful to mix the correct amounts of sugar and salt. Too much sugar can make the diarrhoea worse and too much salt can be very harmful to the person.
Now we will create with a song or chant to help us remember how to make ORS.
Lead the children in creating a song or chant for the following directions for creating an ORS. Include motions to help the children remember the ingredients and steps. Take about 5 minutes to create the song or chant. Encourage them to share this song with their families.
We have learned that diarrhoea is dangerous and can even lead to death, if a person
becomes very dehydrated. The good news is that we can prevent diarrhoea by learning
good hygiene behaviours.
First I want to talk about faeces and hygiene. Faeces are not only dirty, but they are also very dangerous. Faeces contain germs that can cause diarrhoea. These germs can be passed from
faeces to food and drinking water by flies and dirty hands. When you put contaminated
food or drinking water into your body, you get diarrhoea. By using toilets and keeping your hands and bodies clean after a bowel movement, you can help prevent the diarrhoea germs from spreading.
Toilets should be kept clean and the holes should be covered. People who do not have toilets should pass faeces far from the house, play area, and any water source. Faeces passed close to the house should be taken away and buried in deep holes to prevent germs from spreading and causing diarrhoea.
We played a game earlier in the lesson about hand washing. We have also talked about hand washing in previous lessons. Remember that we should wash hands before we eat, before and after preparing food, after using the toilet, after playing outside, and after touching animals. Remember, hands may look clean but can still have germs.
Now, let’s learn about clean and safe water. Germs that cause diarrhoea can get into water at its source, when you collect it, as you carry it home, and as you store it, and even when you use it at home. Sometimes water looks clear and clean, but it is not good to drink because it has germs in it.
Set out 2 jugs of clean water, 1 dirty cup, 1 clean cup, and a large spoon or ladle. Fill the first cup with water from the first jug.
Do you think this cup of water is clean? How would you know?
Water is clean if it came from a clean source, has been treated with chemicals, or it has
been boiled.
What makes water from a water source such as a stream, old well, lake, or pond dirty
and unsafe?
People washing or cleaning nearby, people passing faeces nearby, animals nearby.
Drop the ladle or spoon on the ground, step on it, and then use it to put water from the jug into the dirty cup. Stick your finger in the cup as you pour in the water.
Is this cup of water clean? Why or why not?
There are many reasons, be sure the children mention all of them. The cup was dirty. The ladle fell on the ground and was stepped on. The dirty ladle was put into the jug of clean water. You touched the water with your hands, and they may have been dirty.
You should never touch drinking water with your hands. The diarrhoea germs could have contaminated the water through the ladle, hands, or the dirty cup. All dishes and utensils need to be washed with soap and water before being used.
Place the second jug of water on the ground.
Is this a safe way to store the water? Why or why not?
It is on the ground and it is not covered.
To store a jug of water safely, it should be placed above ground level and covered. Clean water is a wonderful gift from God. Someday you may not have clean drinking water available. Let’s talk about how you can clean water to make it safe for drinking.
The best way to clean water is to boil the water. Water must be boiled for at least 10 minutes to kill all the germs. This is the best way to clean water. It is especially important to use boiled water for babies, very young children, and sick people. Remember to put it in a clean container and to keep it covered.
What was 1 new thing you learned today that you can share with someone else?
Pretend you see a friend drinking unsafe water. What would you say to her?
Optional: If you are using Student Pages, there is important information about how to treat dehydration and space for children to write or draw what they can do to prevent diarrhoea.
God created the world, and He created you! He cares about clean water because He knows it is important to being healthy.
Have your children form a line. Tell them they will take turns pouring a small amount of clean water from a clean jug into a large, clean basin. Each time the basin becomes full, pour the water back into the jug. As they pour, they can do one of the following:
If you are using the Memory Verse Poster, show it to the students.
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits — who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases
Psalm 103:2-3
When all the children have had a turn pouring water, speak this blessing from Psalm 103:2–3
over them.
Blessing: God loves you and wants you to be healthy! May you never forget His kindness to you. He will forgive your sins and heal your sicknesses.
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.
