Leader Guide
Game
- Friends and Others Signs Pattern
- One long table or two short ones pushed together
- Four cake or pie pans, metal or plastic bowls, or box lids; all equal size
- Container to hold the coins
- Pennies or small coins; two per child, plus extras
- Optional: painters tapeor masking tape
- Two fifth or sixth grade helpers
Make two copies of the Friends and Others Sign and cut them apart.
Place the two containers and signs for both teams on the table as shown.
For Grades 1–3, mark a line about 4 feet from the table.
For Grades 4–6, mark a line about 8 feet from the table.
Place the coins in the remaining container and put it near the line.
Optional: if you think your class will have difficulty keeping the number of coins in their team’s containers equal, simply have each player toss one coin toward each container.
What did the Samaritan give the innkeeper? Two coins.
Why? To pay the innkeeper to care for the Jewish man.
Hold up the coins and point to the signs. In today’s game, you will toss two coins toward your team’s two containers. One container represents your friends, and the second container represents others—people who may be very different from you. Regardless, they are both your neighbors! The goal is for your team’s containers to hold an equal number of coins. This represents treating others equally—as if they are all your neighbors. Your team’s helper will keep track of how many coins go into each container so your players can try to keep the number equal as the game goes along!
Divide the children into equal teams. Try to place a mixture of girls and boys, younger and older students, on each team.
Have the teams line up in single file behind the line, with the container of coins between them.
Have a fifth or sixth grade helper stand behind each team’s containers. They have an important job of keeping their teams updated with the coin counts for each container.
If your class will have difficulty keeping track of the number of coins in their teams’ containers, simply have each player toss one coin toward each container.
This is not a race; accuracy and purpose are more important!
Both teams play at the same time.
The first player on each team takes two coins and steps up to the line—4 feet from the table for Grades 1–3, or 8 feet from the table for Grades 4–6.
Each player tosses the coins, one at a time, toward the containers.
Play until all players have taken a turn.
Scoring:
1. Each coin in a container scores one point for the team.
2. An equal amount of coins in both containers scores 20 bonus points!
Play a second round if time allows.
Conclusion: Why do you think you received a point for each coin in a container? Because we are to show God’s love to all people. .
Why did you get even more points if the containers were equal? Because we are to consider everyone equally as our neighbors.
God created us all and doesn’t have favorites. He wants us to be loving, giving, and to treat everyone equally!