Good Samaritan Sunday School Lesson Plan For Kids
Good Samaritan Sunday School Lesson Plan For Kids
The parable of the Good Samaritan that Jesus taught is not just a great Sunday School lesson. It has all of the elements of a captivating story:
- A little action.
- A hero.
- Some (guess you can call them) villains.
- A rescue.
- An excellent moral takeaway.
What else do you need for a great story?
If you are looking for a little help to teach this lesson, we've put together a plan so you can get organized and have a great Sunday School lesson on the Good Samaritan.
MAIN POINT
LUKE 10:25-37
Love your neighbor
The whole reason the parable of The Good Samaritan even exists is that someone asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus wants us all to understand who our neighbor is and that no matter who they are, we are to love them just us as much as we love ourselves.
Be generous
The Samaritan was generous. He was generous not only with his time but his money, kindness, and belongings. This story is an excellent example of generosity. When we think of generous people, we usually think of those who are giving with their money, but there are so many other ways that we can be generous to our neighbors. Ask your students to give examples of ways they can be generous with their time, friendship, talents, etc.
GAMES
Bandaged Wounds – Toilet paper and tape needed
The good Samaritan helped the injured man by bandaging his wounds. Make this a visual lesson by letting your class "bandage" each other up. Divide the kids up into groups of four or five depending on how many kids you have. Pick a limb (an arm or a leg), then give one of the kids toilet paper and tape and instruct them to bandage each person on the team (insert chosen limb). The first one to bandage their entire team's limb wins. The entire limb must be covered/bandaged.
Memory Verse Game – Index cards, pen, and tape needed
Write out the memory verse (Luke 10:27) onto index cards, one word per card. Hand one (or multiple) card to each kid, depending on how many you have. Let the group work together to put the memory verse's words in order by taping each card to the wall.
SNACK
Heart-Shaped Cookies
Using the love theme, provide heart-shaped cookies to eat. Or, you can turn snack time into an activity. Many grocery stores sell plain, premade heart-shaped cookies. Also, find pink, white, and red frosting plus sprinkles and let your class decorate their cookies. The kids will love this!
DRESS UP PROPS
Bandages
Have bandages and discuss how comforting it is to have a bandage when we are hurt and how the injured man must have felt without any help.
Donkey Costume or Paste a Picture of a Donkey onto a Paper Plate with a Stick for Holding
When talking about the donkey in the parable, ask one person to make donkey noises and then make circles around the room.
Money
Show your class some coins. Ask them to tell you some things they bought with their own money. Ask them to think about how hard it might have been if instead of buying that item, they gave all that money to someone in need. Explain to them how the Samaritan made that choice for someone he didn’t even know.
MEMORY VERSE
LUKE 10:27
"He answered – Hold hands up as if to make talking puppet fingers
"Love the Lord your God – Pointing one finger on each hand up to the sky one at a time
with all your heart – Raise arms above head as if to make a curved heart shape above your head
and with all your soul – Brings arms and hands into your body as if to hug yourself
and with all your strength – Make muscle arms
and with all your mind – Point to head
and Love your neighbor – Point both arms out to sides
as yourself." – Point fingers into you
TAKE-HOME ACTIVITY
Who is my neighbor? Sheet
On your take-home sheet, write at the top "WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?". Next, provide these details for parents:
Parents, today we learned about the parable Jesus told of The Good Samaritan. This week, work with your kiddos on a list of people to whom they can show kindness, just like the man in The Good Samaritan parable.
What is written in the law? Reading Assignment
Have a sheet ready with "WHAT IS WRITTEN IN THE LAW?" on it. Include a little write up for parents explaining something like the following:
Parents, today we learned about the parable Jesus told of the Good Samaritan. One of the things that Jesus asked the "expert in the law" was Luke 10:26 "What is written in the law and how do you read it?". We want to encourage you to read this reference together as well in Leviticus 19:18, Mark 12:30-31, Matthew 19:19, James 2:8, Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14, etc.
OBJECT LESSON
Oil and Wine
Use these objects mentioned in the parable to discuss the extent of the Samaritan's care for the injured man.
Oil – A bottle of olive oil
The oil that the Samaritan was carrying could have helped him with all kinds of things like cooking, cleaning something off, or even to help the Samaritan if he got injured. Now, remember, they couldn't just stop at a Walmart if they ran out of something. They just ran out of it. So, the Samaritan using his oil to help the injured man was very generous.
Wine – A bottle of grape juice
In the Bible times, people would often carry something like grape juice to drink as their only liquid to drink on journeys. So, this wine was probably for him to drink to keep him hydrated. Today we would just pull over and stop at a gas station or a McDonald's and get something to drink, but back then, they could only drink what they brought with them. So, the Samaritan giving this man his wine for his injury was very generous. The wine would have helped the injured man to clean his wounds out, almost like we would use a sanitizer or like when you are hurt, and someone puts alcohol on your wound to clean it. Say: “You know when you are hurt, and they put something on it, and it burns? Kind of like that! That is like you cleaning off someone's injury with the only water you have with you for a long trip. Has anyone here ever been thirsty? Yeah, I have, and when I am thirsty, giving out my water is not usually the first thing on my mind, but kindness and being generous are always the right and the first things we should choose to do!”
