Lesson Objective:
Learn and understand the story of Joshua
Consider the features of a good leader
Lesson Outcome:
By the end of the lesson, the children will have learnt about how Joshua led the Israelites across the River Jordan and thought about the qualities of a good leader.
Resources:
The Story of Joshua
Monument Border
Twelve Stones
Introduction
- Brainstorm: What Makes a Good Leader? – Children to give thoughts and opinions on what a leader is, does and how they would be perceived by others. Children to suggest characteristics and attributes that would make up a good leader. Prompt with appropriate questions.
Main Teaching
- The Story of Joshua– Read through the story of Joshua taking over the leadership of the Israelites from Moses and how he led them to the Jordan River. Discuss the story and what happened at the river and how the monument was built from the twelve stones. Ask children to think about whether Joshua showed qualities of a good leader during this story.
Activity
- Option 1: Create a Monument – Children to create a monument showing the characteristics of a good leader/Joshua (you may wish to do parts of both). The children may wish to create a twelve stone monument, thinking about how the stones would fit together (could be 3D / fun and creative for display) and display one quality on each stone. The children should use their imagination and plan their monument carefully, explaining each attribute on their monument.
Example: Courage – Joshua was courageous when he led the Israelites across the river
Example: Bold – Joshua told the twelve men and the Priests to enter the flowing river. - Option 2: Qualities of a Leader – Using the Monument Border, children to list and draw the different qualities of a leader, showing how Joshua was able to use all of these qualities when listening to God and crossing the River Jordan.
- Option 3: Qualities of a Leader – Using the Twelve Stones, children to list and draw the different qualities of a leader, showing how Joshua was able to use all of these qualities when listening to God and crossing the River Jordan. This is more suitable for younger children.
Plenary
- Compare You and Joshua – Looking at the list of qualities from the monument and the introductory brainstorm, children to list any of the qualities that they feel they have a think of examples when they have used these qualities to help others.
Example: Good Listener – I was a good listener when I listened to the advice of my football/gymnastics coach, and now I am in the main team.