Sandcastles
SEE LESSON Plan below. Designed for children ages 3-5. Can be adjusted to use with children both younger and older. Enjoy making the lesson your own! And make sure to check out the Pinterest Board specifically designed for this lesson.
“Sandcastles” Unit: Splash Into Summer
LESSON PURPOSE: God gave us the beach with sand for us to enjoy! Extension: The wise man built his house upon a rock, not sand.
MATERIALS: Sand play toys, sand, rocks, craft materials, learning props
SONG IDEAS: The Wise Man Built His House Upon A Rock, I’ve Got the Joy, Joy, Joy
BOOKS: Children’s Beach Books or a Bible story book about “The Wise Man”
AS CHILDREN ARRIVE: (Choose 1)
Play-dough: Children play creatively with play-dough, rocks & seashells. Try building a tower with rocks & play-dough!
Sand Play: Fill a sensory bin with sand. Add in seashells, a pail and shovel & castle molds
Building: Fill 1 bin with sand and 1 with large rock and blocks to build a house with.
Construction Zone: Fill bin with rocks, sand & trucks.
SCRIPTURE:
“Why do we go to the beach to get lots of sunshine? This is land, this is ocean and this is the seashore. Why do we have to go to the sea? The man who lives on land wants to go to the seashore to get in contact with the water and have lots of good air to inhale. That's what they want to do; get water, sunshine and air.” -Rev. Moon
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” -Matthew 7:24
WELCOME: SONG, PRAYER, TP Greeting
REVIEW & TRANSITION:
Last week we learned all about water! Water is essential to our life. Can anyone think of a really large body of water? The Ocean! That’s right. And what divides the water from the land? Sand! The beach connects land to the ocean. Today we are going to go to the beach!
ATTENTION GRABBER: (Choose 1)
Beach Bag: What do you think is in my beach bag? Let’s see: towel, sunscreen, hat, water bottle, swimsuit, floaties, sand toys, beach ball etc. Are you ready to go to the beach with me today?
Seashells: Show children various seashells. Let them “listen to the ocean”. Ask them where you can find seashells. On the beach! Describe the seashells- how do they look and what do they feel like? Where do they come from?
Sand & Rocks: Show children 2 buckets: 1 filled with sand and 1 with rocks. Ask children to feel them. What do they feel like? How are they different? How are they alike? What can you do with sand? What can you do with rocks?
INTRO:
(Have children sit on beach towels together.) “We’re going to the beach! We’re going to the beach! Hi-ho, the derry-o. We’re going to the beach!” (Farmer in the Dell) Welcome to the beach boys and girls! Do you feel the hot sun warming your body? The sand squishing between your toes? Do you hear the ocean waves?
READ ALOUD: Beach story: Children’s Beach Books
SONG OR POEM:
- I LOVE SAND (Three Blind Mice) "Sand, sand, sand. Sand, sand, sand. I love sand. I love sand. It’s fun to squish it between my toes. Or build a castle as high as my nose. Or dig a tunnel that grows and grows. ‘Cause I love sand! ‘Cause I love sand!"
- SAND CASTLE- "Sand castle on the beach, I built you big and strong. A wave washed in upon the sand, Whoops! You were gone."
- THE WISE MAN BUILT HIS HOUSE UPON A ROCK- "The wise man built his house upon the rock. The wise man built his house upon the rock. The wise man built his house upon the rock. And the rain came tumbling down. Oh, the rain came down. And the floods came up. The rain came down. And the floods came up. The rain came down. And the floods came up. And the wise man's house stood firm." Full Lyrics Here
SONG VIDEOS: click on the link:
*TEACHING POINT: God Gave us the Beach
DISCUSS: What are your favorite things to do at the beach?
Build Sandcastles, Dig holes, collect seashells, relax on a beach towel, splash in the water, swim, catch waves!
DISCUSS: Why did God make the beach?
“Why do we go to the beach to get lots of sunshine? This is land, this is ocean and this is the seashore. Why do we have to go to the sea? The man who lives on land wants to go to the seashore to get in contact with the water and have lots of good air to inhale. That's what they want to do; get water, sunshine and air.” -Rev. Moon
God Gave us the beach to experience his beautiful creation! To get sunlight, water and air- essential elements to live. To enjoy all that the sand and ocean has to offer. God gave us the beach to experience joy and relaxation.
- GROUP ACTIVITIES: (choose 1 or 2)
Relaxation: Lay on beach towels and listen to relaxing Ocean Waves Music.
Play Beach: Lay out beach towels and a sand sensory bin with sand toys & sea shells. Dress up in floaties, goggles, play with beach balls.
*Optional Extension: The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock
- DISCUSS: Jesus’ story from his Sermon on the Mount: The Wise and Foolish Builders: Read Bible Verse with enthusiasm, expression & hand motions or through use of props.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” -Matthew 7:24-27
God wants us to build our life (house) on a solid & strong foundation. The “rock” is God’s Word, Jesus and True Parents. When we live a life filled with God’s love & teachings we can stand strong like a rock through any storm!
VISUAL Anchor Charts: (choose 1)
2 Houses- Draw 2 houses- 1 on a rock and 1 on a sand with some space in between. Spray the house on the sand with a water spray bottle & see how the storm melts it away. (don’t spray the rock one in this activity).
My Foundation- Draw a child. Draw rocks under the child. Fill words in to the rocks that can give the child a strong foundation such as: God, Jesus, TP, Bible, DP, Church, Prayer...
GROUP ACTIVITY: (choose 1)
Build Towers- Have a tower building competition. See who can build the tallest tower using legos, wooden blocks, rocks etc.
Sandcastle- Build sandcastles together in a sand bin. Pour water on and see how it washes away. Place a rock in the bin & see how it stands still.
Sand vs. Rock base- pre build a tower. Place it on a high pile of sand and see what happens when you pour water on it with a watering can. Place the tower on a strong large rock and see what happens when you pour water on it. Which is stronger?
Human Pyramid- build a human pyramid together! It will need a strong foundation- bigger children at the bottom.
CONCLUSION:
In the Summer, we are grateful for sand & water play! It’s so fun to build sandcastles and collect seashells at the beach. We want to remember Jesus’ teaching of building our house on a rock (not sand) so that it can stand strong.
TITHING & PRAYER:
Dear Heavenly Parent, thank you for giving us your warm sunshine, sand between our toes and water to cool down in in the summertime! We love playing in your creation and relaxing to the beautiful sounds of the ocean. Please help us to build a strong foundation of faith so that we can stand strong through any storm. Amen. Aju!
CRAFTS: choose 1
Sandpaper Sandcastle- precut out shapes from sand paper- rectangles, squares, triangles- have children glue them together on paper to create a sand castle.
Sand Art- Create shapes and designs with glue on a piece of card stock. Have children sift sand on top to create sand art. Gently blow off the extra.
Rock Painting- With a sharpie write "God is My Rock" and let children paint their special rock.
Cup House- Help children glue an upside down small paper cup onto a smooth rock. Draw a door and windows. Add a roof with a piece of paper folded in half.
Milk Cartoon Houses- Have children paint and decorate their milk carton house. Can glue it on a rock.
Printable- Have children color in the house printable. Help them cut it out and glue it together to make a house!
SNACK IDEAS:
House Upon a Rock- rock= rice cracker. house=marshmallow. roof=Hershey kiss
Enjoy the lesson! Feel free to submit photos to lgavin@unification.org Love seeing lessons come to life and each community making it their own!