Joseph & the Coat of Many Colors
YEAH BOO Melodrama Workshop (Younger Children)
Summary of Workshop Activities:
A melodrama presentation were students respond during the story as either Yeah or Boo cards are held up.
Scripture Reference:
Genesis 37:2-11, 16-36, 45: 14 & 15
Memory Verse:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 1 Corinthians 13:4
Concepts/Objectives:
- Locate Genesis and identify it as the first book of the Bible
- To learn these key words: jealousy, envy, relationship, favoritism
- Showing favoritism can cause hurt relationships. Jacob’s favoritism of his son Joseph made Joseph’s brothers hate him. When we are jealous, we can hurt people’s feelings. God loves everyone and is with us no matter what we do. God’s plans helped Joseph and his brothers to be family again later.
Preparation and Supplies:
- Read the scriptures and study lesson.
- Print a copy of the attached PDF of the Yeah Boo Melodrama Script.
- Create “Yeah” & “Boo” signs, large enough children can easily read them.
- Large Blocks or cardboard boxes
- Balls & buckets
- Chalk (Optional Filler Fun)
- Optional: Cutout puppets of story characters
Lesson Plan
Opening:
Greet the children and introduce yourself. Wear nametag. Have the children introduce themselves and say something interesting about themselves.
Explain the purpose of today’s scripture in one sentence: Families should love one another and forgive one another.
Warm-up Fun:
- Ball in a Bucket:
Set out buckets. Have the children take turns throwing a ball into the buckets. Tell the children they will be learning about a boy name Joseph who was thrown into a deep, deep hole. - Pit Fun:
Again explain to the kids that they will hear about a boy who was thrown into a deep pit. Have the kids take turns using the building blocks provided to build up and around one child. Remind the children that God helps us to get along.
Scripture/Bible Story:
Joseph Story in a nutshell:
Genesis 37 begins Joseph’s story and ends in chapter 50.
He was Jacob’s (Israel’s) favorite son from a family of 12 sons and 1 daughter. Jacob gave Joseph a special robe as a sign of favoritism. Joseph’s brothers were envious of him and plotted a story to tell Jacob that Joseph had died. They returned the coat, bloodied to ‘prove it’. His brothers sold Joseph meanwhile, into slavery to Potiphar.
Despite all of these tragic events, God blessed Joseph. Joseph eventually found favor by Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh made Joseph a ruler.
After a terrible famine in Egypt, Joseph brothers came to Joseph for help. He forgave them and through God’s plan, Joseph’s family reconciled.
Scripture/Bible Story:
Read the lessons from the Bible. Have the 1st & 2nd graders take turns reading if they are able. After the first week of Rotation, you may choose to use one of the many Bible story picture books we have to re-tell the lesson.
- Youngest kids use THE BEGINNERS BIBLE, pp73-77; please paraphrase that later Joseph became a powerful leader of Egypt and he forgave his brothers (pg. 90). He brought his family together again by God’s love.
- 1st & 2nd grade use THE READ WITH ME BIBLE, pp74-86; Joseph’s Beautiful Coat- Joseph’s Dream. Please paraphrase that later Joseph became a powerful leader of Egypt and he forgave his brothers (pg. 92). He brought his family together again by God’s love.
Presentation:
YEAH BOO Melodrama Script:
Printable PDF Script attached.
Adapted from "Joseph, the Dreamer" by Steve and Brenda Klusmeyer. Permission granted to use for non-commercial purposes. (Note: the original version of this melodrama is no longer at this site.)
Read the story, pausing between sections to allow the children to respond appropriately with YEAH-H-H or BOO-O-O; while holding up the right sign. Allow children to take turns holding the “YEAH” & “BOO” signs.
Option: You may use cutout figure puppets to enhance the story.Script:
Joseph and his older brothers took care of the sheep for their father, Jacob.
(YEAH-H-H)
One time when Joseph got home, he told his father that his brothers hadn’t been taking very good care of the sheep. This made his brothers very unhappy with him.
(BOO-O-O)
His father, Jacob gave Joseph a very beautiful coat of many colors
(YEAH-H-H)
because he loved Joseph more than the other children.
(BOO-O-O)
One morning, Joseph told his brothers about a dream that he had the night before.
(YEAH-H-H)
They were all out in the field, gathering and bundling wheat. Joseph’s bundle stood up tall while the brother’s bundles gathered around Joseph’s and bowed down. This dream made the brothers mad again.
(BOO-O-O)
Joseph had a second dream that he told to them.
(YEAH-H-H)
He said, “ I dreamed that the sun and the moon and eleven stars all bowed down to me.” This time Jacob said, “ Do you think your mother and father and brothers will all bow down to you?” The brothers hated him even more and were very jealous of him.
(BOO-O-O)
Jacob sent the 10 older boys to pasture the sheep in a place called Shechem. After they had been gone from home for quite a while, he sent Joseph out to check on them. Joseph was to find them and see if everything was all right. Then he would come back with a report for his father.
(YEAH-H-H)
Joseph traveled towards Dothan to find his brothers and the sheep.
Joseph’s brothers could see him coming towards them from quite a distance. They were angry when they saw him coming, and started planning what they could do to get rid of him.
(BOO-O-O)
One of them said, “Let’s kill him and throw his body in a pit and tell Father a wild animal got him!” But Ruben heard them planning and said, “No, let’s not kill him!
(YEAH-H-H)
Let’s just throw him down in a pit and leave him.”
(BOO-O-O)
Ruben planned to come back to get Joseph out of the pit when the others were away.
(YEAH-H-H)
When Joseph got close to his brothers, they jumped on him, took off his coat of many colors, and threw him in an old dried up well.
(BOO-O-O)
The brothers sat down to eat supper, leaving Joseph in the well. While they were eating, a caravan of merchants from Gilead came by. Judah said to the other brothers, “Let’s not kill Joseph,
(YEAH-H-H)
let’s just sell him as a slave to these merchants.
(BOO-O-O)
The brothers were worried about feeling guilty if they killed Joseph.
(YEAH-H-H)
The brothers pulled Joseph out of the well and sold him for twenty pieces of silver, ten pieces less than the current value of a slave, because they didn’t cared what they got for him, they just wanted to get rid of him!
(BOO-O-O)
The brothers thought they would never see him again. But God was in control of Joseph’s life.
(YEAH-H-H)
The brothers took Joseph’s coat of many colors, dipped in goat’s blood, and returned it to their father. When their father saw the coat, he was sure that a wild animal had killed Joseph. He cried and put on sackcloth and ashes
(BOO-O-O)
Years and years went by, and Jacob thought Joseph was dead. But all the time he was alive in Egypt. God would guide his life and he would become a great leader to save his people.
(YEAH-H-H)
Pulling it all together (closing discussion):
- Who was Jacob?
- Who was Joseph? What troubles did he run into?
- Did you like the “Boos” & “Yeahs”?
- Review objectives and discuss.
Filler Fun:
If it is nice outside, have the children use colorful chalk on the blacktop or sidewalk outside. Keep them away from parked cars or traffic. They could illustrate Joseph and his Coat of many colors. Have the Shepherd chalk out the memory verse.
Reflection:
Closing Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for all that you have given us with, our families, our homes and our friends here at church. Thank you for our brothers and sisters, Moms & Dads who love us and forgive us as we forgive them. Through your Son’s name we pray, and all God’s children say AMEN!
References:
- A Melodrama Presentation: Adapted from "Joseph, the Dreamer" by Steve and Brenda Klusmeyer.
- The Idea and Lesson Exchange: http://www.Rotation.Org
- “Color Coated” Joseph The Dreamer, Building disciples for the 21st century, Petersburg Presbyterian Church, Petersburg, Ohio
A lesson set written by Cathy Weygandt for "The Disciple Builders" of Trinity Lutheran Church, Findlay, OH.
July 2003
