Lesson Objective:
Know and Understand the Story of Cain and Abel
Lesson Outcome:
By the end of the lesson, the children will have learnt about the story of Cain and Abel and thoughts about the impact jealousy can have on our lives
Resources:
The story of Cain and Abel
Jealousy poster
Comic Strip
Storyboard Template
Cain and Abel Colouring Pages
Lego Story
Introduction
- Brainstorm: Adam and Eve – Children to think about what they know about Adam and Eve.
- Brainstorm: Jealousy – Children to discuss what they think jealousy is, what it means and how it can appear and be solved.
Main Teaching
- The Story of Cain and Abel – Read the story of Cain and Abel and discuss the meaning of the story. Think about how jealousy got the better of Cain and that he murdered his brother.
- Sibling Rivalry – Ask the children to tell each other when was the last time they had an argument with their sibling(s) (or cousins/best friends if they have no siblings). What did they do to make up? Did they apologise or did they hope it would resolve itself? After this discussion, ask the children to act out the last argument they had with someone they know. Then ask them to act out what they would do differently in order to stop themselves getting angry at the person they were fighting with and also what they could have done differently in order to apologise.
Activity
- Option 1: Jealousy Poster – Children to use the Jealousy poster template to draw/write things that show how it is easy to become jealous. Children also to think about how to resolve conflicts and how to try not to get into the situation in the first place.
Example of being jealous: Someone has a toy that they really want
Example of dealing with jealousy: Playing with the person who is jealous of the toy.
- Option 2: Comic Strip – Children to use the template to make a comic strip with an argument that involved being jealous or envious. The first two boxes should be leading up to the argument, the second two should be where they became jealous, the next two should be the argument and the final two be how they resolved the argument. After they have done this give them another piece of paper and ask them to redraw the comic strip with what they would like to happen if they went back to the situation. Write from the 3rd box and cut out the two empty boxes and stick one on top of the other. This way they can learn from their mistakes.
- Option 3: Drama – Children to act out the story of Cain and Abel, thinking about the feelings of jealousy that they felt for each other. Children may wish to script the play before performing. Consider asking children to come up with different endings to the story of Cain and Abel.
- Option 4: Retell the Story of Cain and Abel – Using the Storyboard Template, children to retell the story of Cain and Abel.
- Option 5: Colouring Pages – Children to colour in a picture of the Cain and Abel story.
- Option 6: Each child or in pairs choose a scene from the story and make it in LEGO, making sure that each child/pair has a minimum two figures each. Take photos of each scene (can later be used when making a Torah scroll or Bible book).
Plenary
- Show work produced – Children to present their work to the rest of the class/parents
- Discussion – Discuss the importance of doing the right thing, even if we wish we didn’t have to, link this to jealousy and how Cain and Abel struggled with each other. How do children cope with their siblings?