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 and Student Page, 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.
Two people are better than one. They can help each other in everything they do.
Ecclesiastes 4:9
Since the beginning of the world, it has been evident that God created us to be in relationships with others. Friendship is one of the relationships that we have the opportunity to be part of. We were created to help each other.
Think about the friendships you have now. Who among your friends listens to you? Who wants what is best for you? Who encourages you? Good friends do all of these things, but people are not perfect. When a friend does something to upset you, you can choose to stay angry at that person, or you can choose to forgive that person. Forgiveness helps relationships to grow. It is important to be honest about the good as well as the challenging aspects of friendship. Just like people, friendships are not perfect. However, 2 people are still better than 1!
Encourage families to talk about friendship. Ask them to find out about their children’s friends and what makes a good friend.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Greet the children with a big smile as they come into class. Notice where friendships are forming between children and encourage those.
Today we will begin learning about friendship. But first I will describe an animal and you will guess what it is. This animal has a sharp mouth to eat tough seeds. It eats bugs and worms. It lives in the trees. It has feathers and can fly.
It is a bird.
You knew it was a bird because you know what qualities describe a bird. Qualities are the things that show us what something is. Birds have qualities, trees have qualities, and people have qualities.
The same is true for friends. They have special qualities. Today, we will talk about the qualities of a good friendship. Would you all like to show 1 quality of a good friend? Very good! Let’s show how good friends help each other.
I have a large object. I need to move it so that it is not in the way of today’s lesson.
Place the large object at the front of your teaching space. Choose a child to move the object to the other side of the teaching space.
That was great! But now I need the object back to the other side of the teaching space. It was a little bit difficult to move this large object, right?
Allow 2–3 children to respond.
Allow the children to respond.
It would be nice to have someone help you. It would be easier to move this object with someone because he could help you guide the object and control its movements.
Select another child to help the first child move the object. Then, ask the first child if it was easier to move the object with someone else.
Many things are easier to do with someone else than they are to do alone. For example, it is more fun to play football with other children than it is to play by yourself. A difficult task is better when done with a friend.
Allow 2–3 children to respond to each of the following questions.
In our activity, it was easier to carry the large object when 2 people worked together than it was to do it by yourself. There are other things that are best when done with a friend.
Raise your hand if you would rather play with a friend instead of alone. You can play by yourself, but it is more fun to play with a friend. Shake your foot if you would rather do chores with someone instead of doing them alone. It is easier, faster, and more fun to work with a friend. Touch your elbow to your knee if you would like someone to tell you the truth about something. It feels good when a friend tells the truth. Let’s hear what the Bible says about friends helping one another.
Read the verse directly from your Bible.
Two people are better than one. They can help each other in everything they do.
Ecclesiastes 4:9
Allow 2 children to share their thoughts.
When it says, “Two people are better than one,” that tells me that God wants us to have friends and community around us. The next part of the verse tells us why God wants us to have friends. It says, “They can help each other in everything they do.”
Allow 2 different children to respond.
Now we will talk about the qualities of good friends. For each of the following qualities of good friends, we will use a call and response. I will ask, “What do friends do?” Then, you will answer, “Friends (name what they do).” For example, our Bible verse tells us that friends help each other. I will ask, “What do friends do?” You will respond, “Friends help each other.” Repeat it with me.
Repeat the call and response 2 times with the children to help them remember how to respond.
Tell the children to stand up.
Let’s see what you remember and understand about what friends do. I will read a statement about friendship. If you think a statement is true, you will take 1 step forward. If you think a statement is false—not true—you will take 1 step back.
After you read each statement below, give the children a moment to take 1 step forward or backward.
Very good! You all understand a lot about what a friend does and does not do.
Optional: If you are using Student Pages, give the children 3 minutes to draw and color their pictures.
Create groups of 4–5 children.
Now, let’s focus on 1 of the qualities of friendship we discussed today. As I read the qualities, raise your hand if you think it is the most important quality for a friend to have.
As you read the qualities, take note of how many students vote for each.
Tell the children to talk about why the quality that got the most votes is the most important one for a friend to have. Give the groups 3 minutes to talk.
A friend does many things, but among them, friends encourage, listen, forgive, want what is best for one another, and tell the truth to one another. As you go through this week, think about how to be a good friend to others. You can also think about which of your friends show these qualities to you. Friends support and care for you no matter what happens.
Let’s learn our memory verse about friendship now. Our memory verse says:
A friend loves at all times. They are there to help when trouble comes.
Proverbs 17:17
Chant or sing the words to the verse. You can create your own tune or rhythm or use an existing one that the children know. You will use this same tune or rhythm for the next 4 lessons. Have the children sing or chant with you to the rhythm. Repeat the words to the memory verse 3 times.
Close class by saying this blessing, based on Ecclesiastes 4:9, over the children.
Blessing: May God give you the gift of friendship. May you remember that 2 are better than 1. May your friends help you in everything you do.
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.
