Let’s review what we have learned about perseverance. 

Perseverance can help you in difficult times. It can help you to continue doing good things even when you feel as though it would be easier to stop. It can help you to continue working hard when you feel like quitting. You can ask others for help to persevere through something when it is too much for you to do on your own.

Listen as I read some Bible verses about perseverance. We read these verses when we first started learning about perseverance.

If possible, read these verses directly from your Bible.

Let us keep on running the race marked out for us. Let us keep looking to Jesus. He is the one who started this journey of faith. And he is the one who completes the journey of faith.
Hebrews 12:1b–2a

What do these verses teach us about perseverance?

We should persevere and trust Jesus to help us.

What are some of the ideas we have learned to help us to practice perseverance?

Allow the children to respond until all of the answers listed here have been mentioned: trust in God, try new things, work hard, do not stop when you make a mistake, have hope, take a small step, keep trying, do the most difficult things first, ask for help, watch how others practice perseverance, and help others.

Teacher Tip: Giving the children opportunities to ask for help in small tasks will encourage them to ask for help when they face larger challenges.

When Jesus lived on earth, He showed us how to live. He suffered on a cross so that our sins could be forgiven. The Bible tells us that Jesus suffered at the hands of people and persevered through many trials without losing hope. Jesus knew He was helping people and that He would return to His Father in heaven. When you struggle to persevere, you can think about Jesus and everything He went through to give you hope. 

Let’s use what we have learned to practice perseverance! We learned that to persevere, we sometimes need to ask for help. In this game, you will need to persevere as you search for information and ask for help from others.

Teacher Tip: The game that follows will require children to persevere because it will take time for them to figure out what animal they have. They will also have to observe others around them carefully to solve their problem. This activity will take both time and effort, both qualities of perseverance.

For this game, you will hold a picture of an animal on your forehead. You will walk around the space searching for others who have the same animal you do. To find out what animal is on your piece of paper, you will ask other children. But the other children cannot say the name of the animal. Instead, they can describe the animal without using its name, tell you something about the animal, make the sound of the animal, or act like the animal.

If you find another child who has the same animal you do, stay together as you ask questions and answer them. The first animal group to gather all of the children who have that animal will be the winners!

Are there any questions?

Clarify any questions children may have about the game.

I will give each of you a small piece of paper with a picture of an animal on it. When I give it to you, hold it without unfolding it until I tell you to begin. When I tell you to begin, you will unfold the paper and hold it open on your forehead so others can see the animal picture but you cannot. Be sure that you do not look at the animal on your piece of paper! If you peek, the game will not be as much fun! 

Give each child an animal picture from the tear-out page at the end of this lesson. If you do not have 1 paper for each child, pair up the children and have them stand back to back. One child from each pair will hold the paper. Wait until everyone has his paper on his forehead. Then tell the children to begin.

Teacher Tip: Some children may struggle with this game because it requires a lot of patience. If they seem frustrated or confused, encourage them to ask a different person for help and to continue to give helpful responses to others. Once they are able to find 1 or 2 children with the same animal, they should be able to easily gather with the others who have the same animal.

When all the children with the same animal have gathered together to form a group, congratulate them for their perseverance. Have the children sit down, and ask the following questions. Allow 2–3 children to share their responses to each question:

• What was your favourite part of the game?
• What was the most difficult part of the game?
• How did you practice perseverance in this game?

Optional: Choose 2 of the following activities to complete with your class. If time allows, you can do all of the activities.

• Activity 1:
  • For this activity, you will need enough small pebbles for each pair of students to have 1 pebble.
  • Have the children stand in 2 lines facing each other, about an arm’s length apart. The child from the first line will be partners with the child from the second line standing directly across from him. Give each student in 1 of the lines a small pebble. Then share the following instructions:
  • We learned that perseverance often requires that we do something difficult for a long time. In this game, we will do something that may be difficult, and we will try to do it for a long time. When I tell you to begin, you will toss the pebble to your partner and your partner will toss the pebble back to you. Then you will each take 1 large step backwards, and you will toss the pebble back and forth again. If you drop your pebble, you will move back to the places where you started and begin again.

Teacher Tip: Activities like this one help the children to develop their hand-eye coordination and their small muscle skills. They also teach them not to stop when they make a mistake. This shows perseverance in doing something that is difficult.

• • Give the students about 5 minutes to play. Congratulate the pairs for their perseverance rather than declaring a winner. Then have the children sit down. As you ask the following questions, allow 2–3 children to share their responses to each question:
    • What was your favourite part of the game?
    • What was the most difficult part of the game?
    • How did you practice perseverance in this game?
• Activity 2:

Teacher Tip: Sometimes it is necessary to work with others to persevere through a task or situation. This game will challenge children to try again and again to finish the race together.

• • For this activity, you will need a large, cleared area where the children can run or walk quickly. Mark a finish line using tape or by drawing a line with chalk or with a stick in the dirt.
  • Have children find partners. The children in each pair will stand back to back and link their elbows together.
  • We learned that sometimes we need help to practice perseverance. To finish this race, you will need help from your partner. With your elbows linked, you will run or walk quickly to the finish line.
  • Point to the finish line.
  • If you fall down or unlink elbows, you must go back to the beginning and start the race again. Remember to work together. It will be much more difficult if you do not talk to your partner and help each other.
  • Give the children a few minutes to do the race. Congratulate all of the children who finish the race, and encourage the children who have finished the activity to cheer for those who are still racing. The purpose of the game is to practice perseverance, not to win.
  • After the game is finished, have the children sit down. Ask the following questions, and allow 2–3 children to share their responses to each question:
    • What was your favourite part of the game?
    • What was the most difficult part of the game?
    • How did you practice perseverance in this game?
• Activity 3:

Teacher Tip: It can be difficult to remember a pattern, but doing so helps children learn to see patterns that can help them solve problems. Problem-solving and trying something that may require starting over are both skills that require perseverance.

• • Create a pattern by doing motions or arranging items in a predictable order, and ask the children to finish the pattern. Some ideas are:
  • Clap out a rhythm and have the children figure out what comes next. For example: clap, pause, clap clap, pause, clap clap clap, pause. The children should then follow with clap clap clap clap, pause.
  • Do motions in a predictable order and have the children figure out what comes next. For example: jump, step step, jump, step step, jump, step step. The children should then follow with jump, step step.
  • Say words in a specific order and have the children figure out what comes next. For example: “Hello, hi,” “Hello, hello, hi.” The children should follow with “Hello, hello, hello, hi.”

Teacher Tip: Activities that teach children to predict patterns improve their math skills. They also help them to develop perseverance.