Leader Guide
Coin Game
- Bibles or the Superbook Bible App
- Two helpers, 5th or 6th Graders, if possible
- Six paper grocery bags, medium size boxes or containers
- Tarp, bed sheet, or drop cloth
- Six coins—see note
- Paper—newspaper, scrap paper—enough to fill bags at least half full after shredding
- Marker
- Optional: blindfolds
- Note: Coins can be all the same size or different sizes for more of a challenge—if different sizes are used, it is important that both teams get the identical mix of coin sizes
Shred the paper by hand or in a shredder.
Fill the paper grocery bags about half full of paper.
Place the tarp/sheet/drop cloth on the floor in the middle of the room.
Mark a large “1” on both sides of three bags.
Mark a large “2” on both sides of the other three bags.
Place the bags on the tarp—“1” bags together in a row, “2” bags together in a row. See illustration.
In Genesis 42, Joseph sent the brothers on their way with sacks of grain they had purchased. However, Joseph ordered his servant to secretly put each of the brother’s money back in their sacks of grain. Joseph wanted to see if they would keep the money or return it—to test their honesty and integrity. Joseph needed to see if his brothers had changed. When the brothers returned home, they found the money in their grain sacks and were terrified. They thought Joseph would believe they stole the money. When the brothers returned to Egypt to buy more grain, they brought double the money with them to give to Joseph.
Today, we are going to play a game with two teams to see who can find the coins in their grain sacks first. The player who finds the three coins first receives one point for their team.
Divide the children into two equal teams—Team 1 and Team 2. Have teams stand on opposite sides of the tarp and bags, about 6–10 feet away. Hand three coins each to the helpers. One helper will always hide coins in the “1” bags. The other helper will always hide coins in the “2” bags. Each team will always have three coins in their bags but it is up to the helper to distribute the coins differently in each round so children don’t know where they are located—all coins in one bag, one coin in three bags, etc. Have the teams turn their backs to the bags and not look as the helpers hide the coins before each round. A player from each team will walk quickly to the three bags labeled for their team. They will search and dig through the bags to find all three coins. The bag contents cannot be dumped out! Once a player finds all three coins, they must shout the SuperTruth, and their team gets a point. The round ends, and the children turn their backs to the bags while the helpers secretly hide the coins again. After everyone has played, the team with the most points wins.
Optional: to add more difficulty, you may blindfold players before they search through the bags.
