In life we can get frustrated if we are trying to make choices in a hurry and we didn’t really think it through before we made that decision. Today we are going to discover that being in a hurry when making choices is not the best thing to do with this fun object lesson(part 3) using keys and locks!
I don’t know about you, but I realized that the more I’m in a hurry to get things done the slower it goes. If I’m in a hurry the car keys will be missing, or the dogs will be a problem, or someone will phone or I will drop things and make a mess. There is always a problem when I’m in a hurry. Use this object lesson to teach children to slow down and make good choices. (Also see Choices Part 1 and Part 2.)
You will need:
- Different keys
- Different sized locks (or use locked doors that must be unlocked)
Activity
Place three locks on the table with a few different keys around it including the one correct key that will open the lock. Then divide the children into teams if you can or have each child know what lock they will need to open. Have the children stand a distance away from the table. On your go the first child of each team must run up to the table and unlock their lock. As soon as it is unlocked they lock it again run back to their team and touch their team mate to go do the same. The team who all get to unlock the lock first is the winning team. Or the child that unlocks his lock first will be the winner. Allow all the children to get an opportunity to unlock the lock. Or lock different doors is the house. Place the keys on the table and have the children run to unlock the most doors within a 5 minutes.
Discussion
Well done on opening your locks there was some intense stressful moments with some of you. So tell me who unlocked the lock with the very first key they tried? Yes, some of you succeeded in doing that and do you know why? Because you didn’t just hurry in and crabbed the keys and started trying the first one. You planned, you observed and then made an informed decision. So you looked at the lock first maybe you examined the color of the lock, the size and also if it had a name or symbol on it. Then you looked at the keys and matched the color, size and name on the key to the lock.
In this activity we learned something important: don’t hurry to make a decision, think it through. Sometimes we must stop and think first if I make this decision what will my parents say or how will it influence my best friend or can I get into trouble because of this. Don’t just hurry into making a decision.
Examples
There was a boy who was very angry with his mom one day and because of his anger he decided in a hurry to run away from home. He didn’t think it through he didn’t think about the dangers that there is sleeping on the streets, what he will eat or how much he will miss his family. As he was walking away further and further from his home he became scared and then when he started thinking about all the things that he will miss and not have anymore he made a good choice. He decided to turn around and go home. We must first think before we act.
Christian view
Our Heavenly Father loves us so much and He wants us to make the right decisions in life. He says in the bible in Deuteronomy 30:15 “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster” (NLT). The Holy Spirit helps us every day when we have to make decisions we will feel in our heart if we have peace about it or if we feel uncomfortable. Then we must do what we feel is right. We must ask the Holy Spirit every day to guide us to make the right choice in our day. And He is there to helped us.
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