Creation Sundae Cooking/Storytelling Workshop
As the storyteller/teacher recounts the Story of Creation, they invite the kids to add ingredients to their "Creation Sundae." The storyteller asks questions and makes points in between each ingredient.
Scripture Reference:
Genesis 1:1 - 2:3
Memory Verse:
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
Lesson Objectives:
- Children will recognize that Genesis means beginning and that it is the first book in the Bible.
- Children will recognize that God created the world and everything in it.
- Children will explain that God declared his creations “good.” and that includes each of them, as they were created unique and special by God,
- Children should be able to retell the story afterwards to their families.
Materials List:
- Vanilla Ice Cream
- Ice Cream Scoop
- Bowls Ceramic (Black Bowls optional) 1 per child
- Plastic bowls and/or Paper Plates
- Sandwich Bags – 1 per child
- Whip Cream
- Chocolate Flavoured Wafer Cookies (pkg of 20) – 1 cookie per child
- Wilson Sprinkles – “Flowerful Medley” (contains: Colorful Leaves, Pastel Hearts, Wild Flowers, Confetti, Daisies, Butterflies)
- Wilson Sprinkles – “Animals & Stars” (contains: Bears, Cows, Dinosaurs, Dolphins, Stars&Moons, Stars)
- Jelly Belly Sours Candy
- Gold Fish Crackers (multi-coloured)
- Animal Crackers
- So Sweet Neon Worms Candy
- Chocolate Circle Wafers from Bulk Barn – need 2 per child
- Mini boy & girl cookie cutters (2 ea.)
- Small Board Books (Something flat that kids can use to put on top of cookie cutters)
- Mini Marshmellows White
- Pre-made “Church” Sugar Cookies (1 per child)
- Church Cookie Cutter
Advance Preparation Requirements:
- Pre-make church sugar cookies using “Church” Cookie Cutters. Will need 1 per child.
- Bowls - put in freezer so they are nice and chilled. This helps keep the ice cream from melting too quickly.
- Sprinkles have several compartments, so I drew a simple picture on each section lid so the kids could find the right compartment easier. They will open lids needed for that day and it will take several good shakes to get a few sprinkles out, then pass it on to the next kid.
- Chocolate Circle Wafers from the Bulk Barn – keep in cupboard (do not refrigerate)
- Place Whip Cream in fridge.
- Pre-set your table with ice cream scoop, sprinkle shakers, books, sandwich bags. As well as, other ingredients removed from packaging and place in separate bowls or paper plates: fish crackers, chocolate wafer cookies, jelly belly sour candies, animal crackers, worms, and mini marshmellows, chocolate circles with cookie cutters, and “Church” Sugar Cookies.
- Have a large piece of paper taped up where all can see and a marker (or whiteboard). Write Days 1 through 7 down the left side.
Lesson Plan
Opening
Greet the children and explain what they'll be doing and learning about today. Ask them to tell you what they already know about the Story of Creation.
Getting Ready for Sundae Making
- Send children to wash their hands.
- While kids are washing their hands get ingredients from the refridgerator:
Bowls, Whip Cream, and Ice Cream. - Have children gather around the table.
- SAY: Today we are going to hear the story of creation and you need to listen carefully so you can answer questions I will be asking at the end of each day of creation.....
And now we begin our Creation Sundaes! I will require your help in a couple of ways. First whenever you hear me say “And God saw that it was good.” I want you to say
“And God saw that it was very, very good!”
As each day unfolds I will be asking you to add God’s creations for that day to your Creation Sundae.
God’s creations are set out in the center of the table. We will be passing around the plates and bowls each time I tell you to add a new creation.
I just want to show you these sprinkle shakers. I’ve drawn pictures on the lids of what is inside each compartment. Sometimes we may have more than one open at a time. They require you to give them a few hard shakes in order to get some sprinkles out. Then pass it along to the next person.
- READ script below as you assemble the sundaes.
The Story of Creation – Genesis 1:1 - 2:3
(adapted from the NLT) by Luanne
The story of creation is found in the first book of the bible called “Genesis”. There are several other stories in Genesis, but the Creation story is first. So it’s rather fitting that “Genesis” means “beginning”. And that is why “Genesis” starts with the words ......
In the beginning, on the FIRST day, God created the heavens and the earth.
- So who was here first? (God)
- So if nothing existed before God, who made everything? (God)
The earth was empty, a formless mass cloaked in darkness.
BLACK CERAMIC BOWL
And the Spirit of God was hovering over its surface. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
VANILLA ICE CREAM
And God saw that it was good.
Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day and the darkness night. And that was the end of the FIRST day.
- So before God started creating what was out there? (nothing but God)
- What did God create on the first day? (Heaven & Earth) – write/draw on paper
And on the SECOND day God said, “Let there be space between the water, to separate water from water”. And so it was.
WHIPPED CREAM
God made this space to separate the waters above from the waters below. And God called the space sky. And that was the end of the SECOND day.
- What did God create on the second day? (Sky) – write/draw on paper
And on the THIRD day God said, “Let the waters beneath the sky be gathered into one place so dry ground may appear.” And so it was.
SANDWICH BAG – CHOCOLATE WAFER
(have kids put wafer in bag and crumble)
God named the dry ground “land” and the water “seas”.
And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let the land burst forth with every sort of grass and seed-bearing plant. And let there be trees that grow seed-bearing plant.
SPRINKLES
(Leaves, Wild Flowers, Daisies)
The seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came.” And so it was. The land was filled with seed-bearing plants and trees, and their seeds produced plants and trees of like kind.
And God saw that it was good.
And that was the end of the THIRD day.
- What four things did God create on the third day? (land, seas, plants, and trees)
- Name five different trees and/or flowers God created. (write/draw on paper)
- And what would the plants give that would make them multiply? (seeds) – write/draw on paper
And on the FOURTH day God said, “Let bright lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. They will be signs to mark off the seasons, the days, and the years. Let their light shine down upon the earth.”
And it was so.
For God made two great lights, the sun and the moon, to shine down upon the earth. The great one, the sun, presides during the day;
SPRINKLES
(Confetti)
the lesser one, the moon, presides through the night.
SPRINKLES
(Moon/Stars)
He also made the stars.
SPRINKLESAnd that was the end of the FOURTH day.
- What three things did God make on the fourth day? (stars, moon, and sun)
- (Older kids) Name five stars or planets or constellations God created. (write on paper)
And on the FIFTH day God said, “Let the waters swarm with fish and other life.
FISH CRACKERS
SPRINKLES
(Dolphin)
Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind.”
BIRD EGGS
(Jelly Belly Sours Candy)
So God created great sea creatures and every sort of fish and every kind of bird.
And God saw that it was good.
The God blessed them, saying, “Let the fish multiply and fill the oceans. Let the birds increase and fill the earth.” And that was the end of the FIFTH day.
- What did God created on the fifth day? (fish and birds)
- Give me the names of five different birds created by God. – write/draw on paper
- Give me the names of five different fish created by God. – write/draw on paper
And on the SIXTH day God said, “Let the earth bring forth every kind of animal – livestock, small animals, and wildlife.”
ANIMAL CRACKERS
SPRINKLES
(Bears, Cows, Dinosaurs, Butterflies)
Candy WORMS
And it was so.
God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to reproduce more of its own kind.
And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let us make people in our image, to be like ourselves.
PEOPLE
Chocolate Circles – 2 per child
(Pass around male & female Cookie Cutters,
so kids can each cut-out/create a man and a woman)
Follow-up note - Younger Children: Younger children were unable to cut through Chocolate Circles with the cookie cutters. So we quickly came up with the idea to use the (extra) chocolate cookie wafers instead, which they cut through easily.
They will be masters over all life – the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the livestock, wild animals, and small animals.”
So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them. God blessed them and told them, “Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. Be masters over the fish and birds and all the animals.”
And God said, “Look! I have given you the seed-bearing plants throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. And I have given all the grasses and other green plants to the animals and birds for their food,” and so it was.
Then God looked over he had made, and he saw that it was excellent in every way.
This all happened on the SIXTH day.
- Well God was really busy on the sixth day, what did he create? (wild animals, livestock, insects, and people)
- What are livestock? (found on farms: cows, horses, pigs, etc.)
- Name me five livestock (animals) created by God. – write/draw on paper
- Name me five wild animals created by God. – write/draw on paper
- Name me five bugs that can fly created by God. – write/draw on paper
- Name me five things that are crawly/slimy created by God. – write/draw on paper
- We are Canadians. Give me the name of people from five other countries that God created. – write on paper
So the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was completed.
On the SEVENTH day, having finished his task, God rested from all his work.
MINI WHITE MARSHMELLOWS
(pillow)
And God blessed the SEVENTH day
SPRINKLES
(Hearts)
and declared it holy,
CHURCH SUGAR COOKIE
because it was the day when he rested from his work of creation.
THE END
Eat Their Creations
Reflect – Closure (can be asked while they are eating)
- Can anyone tell me what God’s fourth commandment from the Ten Commandments is? (remember the Sabbath Day and keep it Holy)
- What day is the Sabbath day for Christians? (Sunday) What day is "Sabbath" for Jews? Why are we different?
- What all can we do to "rest and restore" on the Sabbath?
End with prayer.
ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS
Adaptions – Younger Children
- Could have a small easel with the numbers 1 to 7 (preprinted on cardstock). Stacked in order so as each day is over you remove it. Would be a good visual for younger kids.
- For younger children, when you ask them for things created on each day instead of writing it you could draw it (or have a magnet board and magnets of the different most common things they might mention)
Sources
- Above lesson created from the “Creation Sundae” idea by Neil McQueen link.
- New Living Translation text used with permission.
- Cookie Cutters – Boy (approx. 1 ½” x 1 ¾") & Girl (approx. 1 ¼” x 1 ⅝").
Boy: Metal Boy Gingerbread Cookie Cutter
Girl: Metal Girl Gingerbread Cookie Cutter
(Note: If you have larger cookie cutters than I used you will need something larger than the wafers I used for cutting out Adam & Eve.)
Toppings Reference
Day | God Created | Creation Sundae Topping | Notes |
1 | Earth, formless void | black ceramic bowl | best cold – refrigerate |
| Light | Vanilla ice cream | |
2 | Sky Firmament | Whipped Cream | air/sky/clouds |
3 | Land | Chocolate-flavoured Wafer Cookies | kids will crush in a sandwich bag |
| Plants | Sprinkles - Colorful leaves, wild flowers, daisies | or use fruit-shaped JuJubes |
4 | Stars, Sun, Moon | Sprinkles - Stars/Moons, Stars, Confetti | sun |
5 | Birds | Jelly Belly Sours Candy | birds eggs |
| FIsh | Goldfish Crackers | multi-coloured |
| | Sprinkles- Dolphins | Around Easter you could use Marshmellow Chicks |
6 | Animals/crawly things | Animal Crackers | |
| " | Sprinkles - Bears, Cows, Dinosaurs, Butterflies | |
| " | Neon Worms Candy | |
| Male & Female | People-shaped cookies | Cut out of Chocolate Circles or Chocolate Cookie Wafers by kids |
7 | God Rested...and enjoyed. | Mini white marshmellows | pillow |
| God blessed all he had created | Sprinkles – Hearts | xx |
| Holy Day (a day set aside for Sabbath) | “Church” Shaped Sugar Cookies | pre-made |
A lesson written by Luanne Payne from: Hampton United Church
Hampton, ON, Canada
A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.