Leader Guide
Optional Opening Game
- Sheep Pattern
- One sheet of card stock
- Scissors
Cut the page in half and then cut out the two sheep.
Have children sit in a large circle on the floor or in chairs.
Does anyone know what a shepherd does? A shepherd takes care of sheep.
In this game, two sheep are missing from the flock and the shepherd must find them!
Choose a child volunteer to be the shepherd. Have the shepherd stand a few feet away from the circle of children and turn his/her back to them. Have the children be as quiet as possible. Silently give the two sheep to two children in the circle, then have them sit on the sheep so it can’t be seen.
Have the shepherd turn around and then tap the shoulder of one child who he/she thinks is hiding a sheep. The chosen child then stands up to reveal if the lost sheep has been found. The shepherd gets a second turn to find a sheep.
Continue to play with different shepherds until it is time to move to the next activity.
To make the game easier and to involve more children, add two more sheep to the game and play the same way, or have two shepherds instead of one.