Joseph

Drama/Puppet Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Children will play various parts to learn the story of Joseph.
(Stories covered are: Joseph's Dreams, Sold Into Slavery, Potiphar's Wife, Baker & The Cupbearer's Dreams and Pharaoh's Dreams.)

Scripture:   Genesis 37; 39-41:43

Memory Verses (NIRV):
Psalm 46:1 "God is our place of safety. He gives us strength. He is always there to help us in times of trouble."
Psalm 9:10 "Lord, those who know you will trust in you. You have never deserted those who look to you."

Preparation and Supplies:

• Gather the materials.
  • costumes if doing drama or puppets
    • Characters: Joseph, Jacob, brothers, stranger, Potiphar, Potiphar’s wife, baker, cupbearer, Pharaoh, servants
• Read through the script.
• • Copies of the script.

Lesson

Opening:

Greet the children and introduce yourself. Tell them what they will be learning today.

Post the two Bible memory verses (Psalm 46:1 and Psalm 9:10); the children should already have their own copies. Repeat these two verses with the class, then open with a prayer.

Scripture - Where in the Bible?

The Drama: Joseph Goes to Egypt

Characters:

Joseph, Jacob, brothers, stranger, Reuben, Judah, Potiphar, Potiphar’s wife, jail inmates, baker, cupbearer, Pharaoh, servants

SCENE I: Joseph's Dreams

(Joseph, wearing his “highly decorated robe”, is telling his brothers about his two dreams. Jacob is also listening.)
JOSEPH: “I had this dream last night. We were binding grain in the fields, and suddenly my sheaf of grain stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”
BROTHERS: “Do you really think we’d bow down to you? Will you actually rule us?”
(The brothers grumble among themselves about Joseph being the favorite, “Daddy’s boy”.)
JOSEPH: “I also had another dream in which the sun, moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
JACOB: “Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to you? Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.”

SCENE II: Joseph Sold Into Slavery

JACOB: “Joseph, please go look for your brothers at Shechem. See how they’re doing, and bring word back to me.” (Jacob goes inside their home, offstage.)
JOSEPH: “I’ll leave right away father.”
(Have Joseph appear to walk off stage, then back on, shading his eyes from the sun with his hand and looking around intently as he returns.)
STRANGER: “If you are looking for the ten sons of Jacob, I heard them say they were going on to Dothan; perhaps you’ll find them there.”
(Have Joseph walk off stage and back on again, again looking intently and shading his eyes with his hand.)
JOSEPH: “There they are!”
BROTHERS: “Here comes that dreamer.” “Let’s kill him and throw him in one of these pits and say that a wild animal killed him.” “We’ll see what comes of his dreams!”
REUBEN: “Let’s not kill him. Just throw him into this pit in the desert.”
(As Joseph approaches, the brothers grab him, take his colorful robe off of him, and throw him into the pit. JOSEPH protests, “Let my out! You can’t do this to me!” Then they sit down nearby to eat a picnic lunch.)
JUDAH (looking up and noticing something far off) “I was thinking…wouldn’t it be better to not to kill our own brother. Let’s sell him as a slave instead to that approaching caravan. They’re going to Egypt, so we’ll be rid of him!”
BROTHERS: “Yeah, let’s do that!”
(Brothers pull Joseph from the pit, hand him off stage to the caravan, and return counting out twenty pieces of silver.)
BROTHERS: “We can tell our father that a wild animal killed him when we show him Joseph’s bloody robe.”

Discussion:

What would it feel like to be Joseph and be thrown into the pit?
(ANS: You’d be afraid for your life, pleading for mercy, maybe praying. Students may mention other things. The Bible does not mention Joseph wanting to get even with his brothers or being angry and verbally abusing his brothers.)

SCENE III: Potiphar's Wife

POTIPHAR: “Hello, Joseph! My name’s Potiphar. I’m the captain of the guard, Pharaoh’s bodyguard. You will work in my house and be responsible for my household.”
JOSEPH: “I will be pleased to serve you.”
(Potiphar’s wife peeks around the corner to look at the handsome new slave, Joseph. She grins at him and winks.)
(After Potiphar leaves, have Joseph go off stage, then return as if it’s another day. Potiphar’s wife comes in seeking to attract his interest, but Joseph walks off stage. Potiphar’s wife looks mopey, disappointed that he’s not interested in her. When he returns to the stage with a broom to do the cleaning, she walks up close to him, again trying to get his attention. This time Joseph runs off stage, and Potiphar’s wife is left holding his cloak as she screams that he tried to grab her.)
POTIPHAR’S WIFE: (to Potiphar) “That Hebrew slave you bought, he tried to grab me, and then he ran out. See, here is his cloak!”
POTIPHAR: “Joseph will have to go to the Pharaoh’s prison. Too bad; he was an excellent servant.”

Discussion:

What is it like to be unfairly accused of something you did not do, as Joseph was accused by Potiphar’s wife, and then to be punished?
(ANS: Children will have various answers. Point out that Jesus was also unjustly accused of sin, and was punished for OUR sins by death on the cross.)

SCENE IV: Baker & The Cupbearer's Dreams

(Pharaoh’s prison, with Joseph and other prisoners)
(Joseph comes on stage, smiling, carrying a scroll and checking off a list. He’s friendly and peaceful.)
JOSEPH: (speaking to the baker and to Pharaoh’s cupbearer) “Why are your faces so sad today?”
BAKER AND CUPBEARER: “We both had dreams, but there’s no one to interpret them.”
JOSEPH: “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”
CUPBEARER: “I saw a three-branched vine in my dream. It budded, blossomed, and produced clusters of grapes. Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup and put the cup in his hand.”
JOSEPH: “The three branches are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you used to do. When all goes well with you, please mention me to Pharaoh so that I may get out of this prison.”
BAKER: “In my dream I had three baskets of bread on my head. In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”
JOSEPH: “The three baskets are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat away your flesh.”
(Servants come in and take the baker and the cupbearer away. The cupbearer is greeted heartily with “Welcome back to Pharaoh’s palace”, but the baker is told, “You will come with us to the gallows!”)

Discussion:

What is it like to have a mysterious dream? What are some ways God speaks to us?
(ANS: Children will have various answers about dreams. Yes, God speaks to us today through the Bible, through prayer, through our friends and circumstances when not in disagreement with the Bible, and through the “still, small voice” inside.)

SCENE V: Pharaoh's Dreams

(Inside Pharaoh’s palace)
PHARAOH: (rubbing sleep from his eyes, speaking to servants) “I had the most troubling dreams last night! I need my wise men.”
(Do silently: Pharaoh appears to be telling his dream to some men. They make signs of incomprehension, and servants escort them away.)
CUPBEARER: “Excuse me, Pharaoh, but I seem to remember a promise I made long ago. It concerned a man named Joseph, a Hebrew, who could interpret dreams. Everything he told me about my dream came true. Surely he could interpret your dream.”
PHARAOH: “Bring this man to me immediately!”
(Have Joseph appear clean-shaven and well-dressed before Pharaoh.)
PHARAOH: “I’ve heard that you can interpret dreams.”
JOSEPH: “I cannot do it, but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”
PHARAOH: “I dreamed I was standing on the bank of the Nile. Out of the river came seven fat, sleek cows who grazed on the reeds. After them came seven scrawny, ugly, lean cows, and they ate up the seven fat cows. Even so, the lean cows were as scrawny as before. Then I woke up. I had another dream. In this dream there were seven good heads of grain growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted, but they were thin, withered and scorched by the wind. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads. No one else has been able to explain these dreams to me.”
JOSEPH: “God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; they mean the same, seven years of plentiful harvests. The seven lean cows and the seven shriveled heads of grain mean the same; there will be seven years of famine following the seven years of good harvests. Now here is what Pharaoh should do…” (Have Joseph appear to go on talking to Pharaoh about what to do, but just mouth the words, and make it brief, as if you were fading from the scene in a video. Alternatively, if there’s time, have Joseph read Genesis 41:33 – 36)
PHARAOH: “Can we find anyone like this man Joseph in whom is the spirit of God? Joseph, you will be in charge of my palace, and all of my people are to submit to your orders. Only with regarding the throne will I be greater than you.”
(Servants come in and place a fine robe on Joseph, maybe even one like the one he had when he was with his brothers. They put a ring on his finger and a gold chain on his neck, and lead him off stage.)

Journal: Write about ways God speaks to you and how God has helped you. We can always praise God for who He is, and thank Him. Write a praise and a thanks to God also.

Closing:

End with a circle of prayer. Allow each person who wishes to pray to do so as you go around the circle. Remind children to return next week for their next workshop and to try to bring their Bible and a friend.

A lesson written by rotation.org member "Learner" from: Silverdale UMC
Silverdale, WA

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Posted by member "Bornagain57"

Joseph Skit Scripts

JOSEPH AND HIS BROTHERS (GEN. 37:1-11)

NARRATOR: When Jacob’s son Joseph was 17 years old, he took care of the sheep with his brothers. But he was always telling his father all sorts of bad things about his brothers.
JOSEPH: Dad, wait until I tell you what my brothers did today. They were not obeying you.
NARRATOR: Jacob loved Joseph more than he did any of his other sons, because Joseph was born after Jacob was very old. Jacob had given Joseph a fancy coat of many colors to show that he was his favorite son
BROTHER 1: I just hate Joseph, don’t you? Father gave him that beautiful coat. That type of coat is only worn by a rich man’s son. A person wearing that type of coat would not be expected to do any hard work.
JOSEPH: My brothers, let me tell you about my dream. We were out in the field, tying up bundles of wheat. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles gathered around and bowed down to it.
BROTHER 2: Do you really think you are going to be king and rule over us?
BROTHER 3: Now I hate Joseph more than ever because of what he had said about his stupid dream.
ALL BROTHERS: Me, too!
JOSEPH: My father and my brothers, listen to what else I dreamed. The sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowed down to me.
JACOB: What’s this supposed to mean? Are your mother and I and your brothers all going to come and bow down in front of you?

JOSEPH IS SOLD AND TAKEN TO EGYPT (GEN. 37:12-36)

NARRATOR: One day Joseph’s brothers had taken the sheep to a pasture.
JACOB: Joseph, I want you to go to your brothers and find out how they and the sheep are doing. Then come back and let me know.
BROTHERS: Look, here comes that dreamer! Let’s kill him and throw him into a pit and say that some wild animal ate him. Then we’ll see what happens to his dreams.
REUBEN: “Let’s not kill him or even harm him. Just throw him into a dry well.
NARRATOR: Reuben planned to rescue Joseph later and take him back to his father.
JOSEPH: Hello, my brothers! How are you doing today?
NARRATOR: They pulled off his fancy coat and threw him into a dry well.
JOSEPH: Let me out! Please let me out!
NARRATOR: Then they sat down to eat their lunch. As they sat down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead.
JUDAH: What good will it do us if we kill our brother and hide his body? Let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites as a slave and not harm him. After all, he is our brother.
BROTHERS: Sounds good to us.
BROTHERS (TO ISHMAELITES) We have a strong young man we will sell you for 20 pieces of silver. You can make a slave of him.
NARRATOR: So the Ishmaelites bought Joseph and brought him to Egypt.
REUBEN: The boy is gone! What am I going to do?
NARRATOR: Joseph’s brothers killed a goat and dipped Joseph’s fancy coat in its blood.
BROTHERS: Father, we found this! Look at it carefully and see if it belongs to Joseph.
JACOB: It’s my son’s coat! Joseph has been torn to pieces and eaten by some wild animal. I will go to my grave, mourning for my son.

JOSEPH GOES TO PRISON (GEN. 39:1-23)

NARRATOR: After Joseph was sold to the Ishmaelites, they took Joseph to Egypt and sold him as a slave to Potiphar, the king’s official in charge of the palace guard. Joseph lived in Potiphar’s home.
POTIPHAR: The Lord is helping you to be successful in whatever you do. You will be my personal assistant. You will be in charge of my house and all of my property.
POTIPHAR’S WIFE: You are very handsome. I would like you to come much closer to me.
JOSEPH: My master has placed me in charge of every-thing he owns. No one in my master’s house is more important than I am. The only thing he hasn’t given me is you, and that’s because you are his wife. I won’t sin against God with you.
POTIPHAR’S WIFE: Please, Joseph! I have been asking you every day, and you keep saying no.
JOSEPH: I will not sin against God or against my master with you.
NARRATOR: One day, Joseph went to Potiphar’s house to do his work, and none of the other servants were there. Potiphar’s wife grabbed hold of his coat. Joseph ran out of the house, leaving her hanging onto his coat. Potiphar’s wife kept Joseph’s coat until her husband came home.
POTIPHAR’S WIFE: That Hebrew slave of yours tried to attack me! But when I screamed for help, he left his coat and ran out of the house.
POTIPHAR: Joseph, I trusted you! Now you will go to prison for what you did.
NARRATOR: While Joseph was in prison, the Lord helped him and was good to him. He even made the jailer like Joseph so much that he put him in charge of the other prisoners and of everything that was done in the jail. The jailer did not worry about anything, because the Lord was with Joseph and made him successful in all he did.

JOSEPH TELLS THE MEANING OF THE PRISONERS’ DREAMS (GEN. 40:1-23)

NARRATOR: While Joseph was in prison, both the king’s personal servant and his chief cook made the king angry. So he had them thrown into the same prison with Joseph.
JOSEPH: Why are you so worried today?
SERVANT AND COOK: We each had a dream last night, and there is no one to tell us what they mean.
JOSEPH: God knows the meaning of dreams. Now tell me what you dreamed.
SERVANT: In my dream I saw a vine with three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its grapes became ripe. I held the king’s cup and squeezed the grapes into it, then I gave the cup to the king.
JOSEPH: This is the meaning of your dream. The three branches stand for three days, and in three days the king will pardon you. He will make you his personal servant again, and you will serve him his wine, just as you used to do. But when these good things happen, please don’t forget to tell the king about me, so I can get out of this place. I was kidnapped from the land of tbrews, and here in Egypt I haven’t done anything to deserve being thrown in jail.
COOK: I also had a dream. In it I was carrying three bread-baskets stacked on top of my head. The top basket was full of all kinds of baked things for the king, but birds were eating them.
JOSEPH: This is the meaning of your dream. The three baskets are three days, and in three days the king will have you killed.
NARRATOR: Three days later, while the king was celebrating his birthday with a dinner, he sent for his personal servant and the chief cook. He put the personal servant back in his old job and had the cook put to death. Everything happened just as Joseph had said it would, but the king’s personal servant completely forgot about Joseph.

JOSEPH INTERPRETS THE KING’S DREAMS (GEN. 41:1-36)

NARRATOR: Two years later the king of Egypt had two dreams. The next morning he was upset. So he called in his magicians and wise men and told them what he had dreamed. None of them could tell him what the dreams meant.
KING’S PERSONAL SERVANT: When you were angry with me and your chief cook, you threw us both in jail. One night we both had dreams, and each dream had a different meaning. A young Hebrew servant was there with us at the time. When we told him our dreams, he explained what each of them meant, and everything happened just as he said it would. I got my job back, and the cook was put to death.
NARRATOR: The king sent for Joseph, who was quickly brought out of jail. He shaved, changed his clothes, and went to the king.
THE KING: I had a dream, yet no one can explain what it means. I am told that you can interpret dreams.
JOSEPH: Your Majesty, I can’t do it myself, but God can give a good meaning to your dreams.
THE KING: I dreamed I was standing on the bank of the Nile River. I saw seven fat, healthy cows come up out of the river, and they began eating the grass. Next, seven skinny, bony cows came up out of the river. The skinny cows ate the fat ones. I also dreamed that I saw seven full, ripe heads of grain growing on one stalk. Then seven thin, scorched heads of grain came up. These heads of grain swallowed the full ones. I told my dreams to the magicians, but none of them could tell me their meaning.
JOSEPH: Your Majesty, both of your dreams mean the same thing. The seven good cows stand for seven years, and so do the seven good heads of grain. The seven skinny, ugly cows also stand for seven years, as do the seven bad heads of grain. For seven years Egypt will have more than enough grain, but that will be followed by seven years when there won’t be enough. Everywhere in Egypt people will be starv-ing. God has given you two dreams to let you know that he has definitely decided to do this and that he will do it soon. Your Majesty, you should find someone wise and put him in charge of all Egypt. Then appoint some other officials to collect one-fifth of every crop harvested in Egypt during the seven years when there is plenty. Give them the power to collect the grain during those good years and to store it in your cities until it is needed during the seven years when there won’t be enough grain in Egypt. This will keep the country from being destroyed because of the lack of food.

JOSEPH IS MADE GOVERNOR OVER EGYPT (GEN. 41:37-56)

NARRATOR: The king and his officials liked the plan Joseph gave them for storing the grain during the good years.
KING: God is the one who has shown you these things. No one else is as wise as you are or knows as much as you do. I’m putting you in charge of my palace, and everybody will have to obey you. No one will be over you except me. You are now governor of all Egypt! Here is my royal ring for you to wear and keep. Here are some fine clothes for you to wear and a gold chain for you to wear around your neck. You may ride in a chariot, next to mine.
PEOPLE: Make way for Joseph!
KING: Although I’m king, no one in Egypt is to do anything without your permission.
NARRATOR: Joseph was thirty when the king made him governor, and he went everywhere for the king. For seven years there were big harvests of grain. Joseph collected and stored up the extra grain in the cities of Egypt near the fields where it was harvested. In fact, there was so much grain that they stopped keeping record, because it was like counting the grains of sand along the beach. Egypt’s seven years of plenty came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was not enough food in other countries, but all over Egypt there was plenty. When the famine finally struck Egypt, the people asked the king for food, but he said, “Go to Joseph and do what he tells you to do.” The famine became bad everywhere in Egypt, so Joseph opened the storehouses and sold the grain to the Egyptians. People from all over the world came to Egypt, because the famine was severe in their countries.

JOSEPH’S BROTHERS GO TO EGYPT TO BUY GRAIN (GEN. 42:1-3)

JACOB: My sons, I have heard there is grain in Egypt. Now go down and buy some, so we won’t starve to death.
NARRATOR: Ten of Joseph’s brothers went to Egypt to buy grain. But Jacob did not send Joseph’s younger brother Benjamin with them; he was afraid that something might happen to him. Since Joseph was governor of Egypt and in charge of selling grain, his brothers came to him and bowed with their faces to the ground. They did not recognize Joseph, but right away he knew who they were, though he pretended not to know.
JOSEPH: Where do you come from?
BROTHERS: From the land of Canaan. We’ve come here to buy grain.
JOSEPH: You’re spies! You’ve come here to find out where our country is weak.
BROTHERS: No sir, we’re your servants, and we have only come to buy grain. We’re honest men, and we come from the same family—we’re not spies.
JOSEPH: That’s a lie!
BROTHERS: Sir, we come from a family of twelve brothers. The youngest is still with our father in Canaan, and one of our brothers is dead.
JOSEPH: It’s just like I said. You’re spies, and I’m going to find out who you really are. Since I respect God, I’ll give you a chance to save your lives. If you are honest men, one of you must stay here in jail, and the rest of you can take the grain back to your starving families. But you must bring your youngest brother to me. Then I’ll know that you are telling the truth, and you won’t be put to death.
BROTHERS: We’re being punished because of Joseph.
REUBEN: Didn’t I tell you not to harm the boy? But you wouldn’t listen, and now we have to pay the price for killing him.
NARRATOR: They did not know that Joseph could understand them, since he was speaking through an interpreter. Joseph turned away from them and cried, but soon he turned back and spoke to them again. Then he had Simeon tied and taken away while they watched.

JOSEPH’S BROTHERS RETURN TO CANAAN AND BRING BENJAMIN BACK TO EGYPT (GEN. 42:25-38; 43:1-34)

NARRATOR: Joseph gave orders for his brothers’ sacks to be filled with grain, for their money to be put in their sacks, and for them to be given food for their trip home. After all this was done, they loaded the grain on their donkeys and left.
BROTHERS [back in Canaan, speaking to Jacob]: The governor of Egypt was rude and treated us like spies. But we told him, “We’re honest men, not spies. We come from a family of twelve brothers. The youngest is still with our father in Canaan, and the other is dead.” Then he told us, “Leave one of your brothers here with me, while you take the grain to your starving families. But bring your youngest brother to me, so I can be certain that you are honest men and not spies. After that, I’ll let your other brother go free, and you can stay here and trade.”
BROTHERS [while opening their sacks of grain]: Here’s our moneybags!
JACOB: I won’t let Benjamin go down to Egypt with the rest of you. Joseph is already dead, and he is the only son I have left. I am an old man, and if anything happens to him on the way, I’ll die from sorrow, and all of you will be to blame.
NARRATOR: The famine got worse and Jacob’s family had eaten all the grain the brothers brought from Egypt.
JACOB: Go back to Egypt and buy some more grain.
JUDAH: We will only go and buy grain if you let us take Benjamin along! Let Benjamin go with me, and I will promise to bring him back safely.
JACOB: If Benjamin must go with you, take gifts for the governor. Also take along twice the amount of money for the grain, because there must have been some mistake when the money was put back in your sacks.
JOSEPH [TO HIS SERVANTS]: Take these men to my house so they can eat with me at noon. Give them water to wash their feet and take care of their donkeys.
NARRATOR: When Joseph came home, his brothers gave him the gifts they had brought and bowed down to him.
JOSEPH: How are you? What about your elderly father? Is he still alive?
BROTHERS: Your servant our father is still alive and well.
JOSEPH: This must be your youngest brother. God bless you, my son.
NARRATOR: Joseph rushed off to his room and cried because of his love for Benjamin. When he came back, he was served at a table by himself and his brothers were served at another. They were surprised when they were seated in front of him according to their ages, from the oldest to the youngest. They were served food from Joseph’s table, and Benjamin was given five times as much as each of the others.

JOSEPH TELLS HIS BROTHERS WHO HE IS (GEN. 44:1-17, 45:1-28)

JOSEPH: [TO HIS SERVANT]: Fill the men’s grain sacks with as much as they can hold and put their money in the sacks. Also put my silver cup in the sack of the youngest brother. Then go after them.
SERVANT:[TO THE BROTHERS]: My master has been good to you. Why have you stolen his silver cup? You have done a terrible thing!
BROTHERS: We would never do anything like that! If you find that one of us has the cup, then kill him, and the rest of us will become your slaves.
SERVANT: Here it is in Benjamin’s sack! You must come back with me!
JOSEPH: [TO HIS BROTHERS] What have you done? Didn’t you know I could find out?
JUDAH: How can we prove we are innocent? Now all of us are your slaves.
JOSEPH: Only the one who was caught with the cup will become my slave. The rest of you are free to go home.
JUDAH: Our father is a very old man. Benjamin’s brother is dead. I promised my father that I would bring Benjamin safely home. Please let me stay here as your slave and let Benjamin return home with his brothers.
JOSEPH: Everyone except these men leave the room now! [SPEAKING TO HIS BROTHERS] I am Joseph! Is my father still alive? Yes, I am your brother, Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. Don’t worry or blame yourselves for what you did. God is the one who sent me ahead of you to save lives. There has already been a famine for two years, and it will last for five more years. But God sent me on ahead of you to save you in this wonderful way. Now hurry back and tell my father that I am ruler of Egypt. Tell him to come here as quickly as he can. You will all live near me with your families, as well as with your animals and everything else you own. I will take care of you there during the next five years of famine.
KING [TO JOSEPH]: Have your brothers load their donkeys and return to Canaan and bring your father and their families back to Egypt. I will give them the best land in Egypt, and they will eat and enjoy everything that grows on it.
JOSEPH [TO HIS BROTHERS]: Here are new clothes for each of you. Benjamin, I am giving you five new outfits and 300 pieces of silver.
BROTHERS [TO JACOB, THEIR FATHER]: Joseph is still alive and he is the ruler of Egypt! He wants us all to go live with him!
JACOB: I will see my son Joseph before I die!

Joseph

Shadow Drama Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:
In this workshop, the learners will act out different parts of the story, using their own shadows to communicate the story. Stories covered are: Slave in Charge, Thrown into Prison, The Meaning of Dreams, Pharaoh & Joseph, Ruler, Brothers, Benjamin, Silver Cup, Family Reunion.

Scripture:

Genesis 37, 39-46

Preparation and Supplies:

• Read the bible story and background materials.
• Gather the supplies.
• Read over the lesson and know how to use the camera.
• If unfamiliar with Shadow Drama check out Rotation.org's SHADOW DRAMA, SHADOW PLAYS - HOW TO & RESOURCES
• White sheet and a way to hang it
• Bright light
• video camera or iphone (charged up)
• Bibles and Bible Story Book (we used The Children's Bible in 365 Stories, by Mary Batchelor)
• chair
• bags (can use garbage bags)
• bucket (to pour grain)
• Joseph’s cup (can make one by using large plastic butter tub for top, large plastic soft drink cup for bottom, bolt or glue bottom to bottom-paint silver if using for a regular drama)
• Optional: CD player & CD of background music.

Lesson

Opening:

Greet the children and introduce yourself. Tell them what they will be learning today.
Say a prayer for today's lesson.

Scripture - Where in the Bible?

Tell them the story of Joseph can be found in the bible in the first book, called Genesis. It's a long story and covers several chapters. Read the story from the Bible or from The Children’s Bible (stories 35-43). Tell the children that they will be acting out these stories with their shadows.

Discuss the stories using the following questions:

• Have you ever wished you could change something you had done, and perhaps do it all over another way? Do you think Joseph’s brothers ever thought about having sold Joseph as a slave?
• What feelings do you believe Joseph had for his brothers when he first saw them?
• How would you feel if you were Joseph?
• Why do you think Joseph didn’t reveal himself immediately?
• How do you think Benjamin felt when he was held in Egypt? Do you think this was fair of Joseph to do? Why do you think Joseph did what he did? (Why do you think he framed Benjamin?)
• How was Joseph able to forgive his brothers? Do you think Jacob was able to forgive Joseph’s brothers?
• Has there been a time in your life you have had to forgive someone in your family? Share with the group. Was it difficult to do? Why did you do it/ did you not do it?

Act it out!

Review the breakdown of stories from The Children's Bible in 365 Stories (Slave in Charge, Thrown into Prison, The Meaning of Dreams, Pharaoh & Joseph, Ruler, Brothers, Benjamin, Silver Cup, and Family Reunion.)

Ask the children which story they would like to perform.

Have the children act between the overhead projector (the light source) and the sheet (the screen).

For the younger children you, or another adult, may wish to read the story as they act.

For the older children you may wish to play some background music as they act. Encourage them to be silent as they act.

Videotape (or allow another adult to video) the shadow play.

If there is time, watch the video on the camera playback.

If there is still time, have the children act out a different story from today’s reading.

Closing:

Assemble the children in a circle holding hands. Together say a prayer of confession. Have each child ask God to forgive something related to their family in the following format:

“Dear God forgive my family for _______________.” At the end offer the following prayer: “Thank you God for the forgiveness you have given to each of us when we ask. We are blessed to receive such a wonderful gift. Through Christ Jesus. Amen.”

Since you are in a circle holding hands, you might want to end with a group hug--put your arms around each other and on the count of three take one giant step into the middle of the circle.

Adjustments for youth:

For youth, extend the discussion in the closing session to talk about who our family really is. Youth are at a time in their lives when they are preparing to leave their immediate family and enter the larger family of God. How does that magnify the question of forgiveness? How can we embrace family we do not know? As Christians, how does this story inform how we are to be in the world? What can this story teach us as we prepare to enter the unknown?

A lesson written by Jan Marshall from: Brenthaven Cumberland Pres.
Brentwood, TN

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Joseph's Reunion

Drama/Puppet Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Children will act as characters in the story covering Joseph's reunion with his brothers.

Scripture:

Genesis 41:57; 42:1-4; 42:6–25; 42:27, 28; 43:16–44:2; 43:16–44:2; 44:3–13; 45:16–46:4.

Memory Verses: (NIV)

Ephesians 4:32 "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

Preparations and Supplies:

• Read over the lesson and script.
• Print copies of the scripts.
• Props/Costumes

Lesson

Opening:

Welcome the children and their guide(s) to the workshop, introduce yourself, and open in prayer.

Post the two Bible memory verses, (Ephesians 4:32 and Romans 8:28); the children should already have their own copies. Repeat these two verses with the class before beginning to teach the lesson.

Open with a prayer.

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:

If this is the first Sunday of the rotation, most children will either not be at all familiar with the story of Joseph, or will remember parts of it. Children in grades 3 – 6 should be encouraged to open their Bibles to Genesis 41 as you start the lesson. You will need to be prepared, however, to summarize key parts of this long lesson you have prepared before this class session, and to use them appropriately for the grade level of the children. Some children will be able to read along in the Bible. If it is past the first Sunday of the rotation, you should first ask the children to tell what they already know of the story, so you will know where they need more teaching or clarification. Since you will use the story in the drama, you may need to decide how much of it you really need to teach before the drama.

Let's Act it Out!

Due to the number of characters in this story, it is necessary to choose only a few of the key characters for the story. We can also choose to only narrate some scenes, and to have the children act the key scenes, scenes that will seem dramatic and memorable to them.

CHARACTERS & PROPS
The following characters are essential: a narrator who can read well (possibly one of the teachers), Joseph, Judah, Simeon, Benjamin, “other brothers”, and Joseph’s servant. You will probably want to provide the following props: Joseph’s silver cup, grain sacks for the brothers, a table (possibly with legs folded up, set flat on the floor), a jail, dishes, pillows or chairs, and costumes. For the change of scenes, have an actor hold up a sign that defines the scene, such as, “Joseph’s Palace”, “Joseph’s House” or “On the Road”. The scenes in Jacob’s House will be done by narration only.

JOSEPH’S REUNION SCRIPT

Scene I: Jacob’s House
Do this by narration only (Genesis 41:57; 42:1 - 4).

“All the countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the world. When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, ‘Why do you just keep looking at each other? Go down to Egypt and buy grain for us, so that we may live and not die.’”
“Then ten of Joseph’s brothers went to buy grain from Egypt, but Jacob did not send Benjamin, because he might be harmed.”

Scene II: Joseph’s Palace (Genesis 42:6 – 25)
(The ten brothers arrive at Joseph’s Palace. They walk in and bow down before Joseph, who is seated on a throne. The expression on Joseph’s face shows that he knows these are his ten brothers, but he says nothing at first.)

JOSEPH: (speaking harshly) “Where are you from?”
BROTHERS: “From the land of Canaan…we’ve come to buy grain.”
JOSEPH: (harshly) “You are spies!”
BROTHERS: “No, we’ve come to buy food. We were twelve brothers, the sons of one man. We are honest men, not spies. We have one other brother who remains with our father in Canaan, and one brother is no more.”
JOSEPH: “You are spies! You will be tested. As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. Send one of you back to get him, and the rest of you I will keep in prison! (speaking to his servant) “Put these men in prison for three days!”
SERVANT: (The servant escorts the ten brothers to the prison. Have someone hold up a sign that reads, “3 days later”.
JOSEPH: (Speaking to the brothers who are again in his palace) “Do this, and you will live, for I fear God. I will keep one brother here in prison while the rest of you take grain back to your starving households. If you’re honest and if you value your lives, you will bring your youngest brother to me soon!”
BROTHERS: (Speaking among themselves, unaware that Joseph can understand) “We are being punished because of our brother, Joseph. Remember how he cried for help when he was in the pit?”
JOSEPH: (He turns away from them, covering his face with his hands, as if in tears, then gives orders to his servant.) “Fill their bags with grain, and put each man’s money back into his sack. Put the one named Simeon back in prison.”
SERVANT: (He does as Joseph has ordered, first putting SIMEON in jail, and then filling the sacks.)

Scene III: On the road (Genesis 42:27, 28)
BROTHER 1: “Look, my money is here in my sack!”
BROTHER 2: “What is this God has done to us!”

Scene IV: Jacob’s House
(Do by narration only) (Genesis 42:29 – 43:14)

NARRATOR: “The brothers returned to Jacob’s house in the land of Canaan while Simeon remained imprisoned in Egypt. They told Jacob about the harsh man who treated them as spies in Egypt, and told how they were required to return to him with their brother, Benjamin, so that they could obtain grain again and so that Simeon could be freed. For a long time, Jacob refused to send them back to Egypt. Finally, when everyone was very needy of more grain, their brother Judah promised his father Jacob that his life would guarantee Benjamin’s safety. Jacob agreed to let them return to Egypt with twice the money for payment and gifts of balm, spices, nuts and honey. Jacob trusted God for their safe return.

Scene V: Joseph’s House (Genesis 43:16 – 44:2)
(The brothers arrive at Joseph’s house with their gifts and empty grain bags.)

JOSEPH: (Speaking to his servant) “Get lunch ready, and I will return at noon to eat with these men at my house.”
BROTHERS: (Speaking to the servant) “Please, sir, on our trip home we each found our money returned in our sacks. We have returned it, and also brought more to buy grain again.”
SERVANT: “It’s all right; I received your money. Your God has provided the treasure in your sacks.”
(The servant takes the brothers to Joseph’s House and seats them around the table from youngest to eldest, as Joseph had instructed him. He also brings Simeon out of prison and to the table. The brothers get ready to present gifts to Joseph. When Joseph arrives, they all bow before him and present their gifts.)
JOSEPH: “How are you? How is your aged father? Is he still alive?”
BROTHERS: “Our father is alive and well.” (The brothers bow again.)
JOSEPH: “Is this your youngest brother?” (Speaking to Benjamin) “God be gracious to you, my son.”
(Joseph hurries out of the room, covering his face, weeping at the sight of Benjamin, his own younger brother.)
JOSEPH: (Returning to the room, speaking to the servant) “Serve the food now.” (Joseph sits by himself at another table because the Egyptians would not sit with foreigners, and he was not ready to reveal his identity to his brothers yet. The servant brings Benjamin five times as much food as the others.)
(Speaking to the servant again, where the brothers can’t hear him) “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the top of his sack. Put my special silver cup in the top of the youngest one’s sack.”
SERVANT: (Outside where the brothers can’t see him, he fills their sacks and puts their money in the top, and puts Joseph’s silver cup in the top of Benjamin’s sack.)

Scene VI: On the road again (Genesis 44:3 – 13)

(The brothers are traveling with their donkeys and their sacks full of grain. Joseph’s servant approaches them.)
SERVANT: “Why have you repaid good with evil? You have taking my master’s special silver cup!”
BROTHERS: “No way! We even brought back the silver we found in our sacks the last time. Why would we steal his cup? If you find it on any of us, that one shall die, and the rest of us will be your master’s slaves!”
SERVANT: “O.K. Whoever has the cup will be my master’s slave; the rest of you will go free.”
(The servant inspects each man’s sack, from the eldest to the youngest. The cup is found Benjamin’s sack. The brothers turn around and start back to the city.)

Scene VII: Joseph’s House (Genesis 44:14 – 45:10)
(The brothers come to Joseph’s house looking very upset. They throw themselves at Joseph’s feet.)

JOSEPH: “What is this thing you have done?
JUDAH: “How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered our guilt. We are all now your slaves.”
JOSEPH: “No, only the man in whose sack the cup was found shall be my slave. The rest of you may return to your father in peace.”
JUDAH: “If he isn’t with us when we return to our father, our father will go in sorrow to the grave! I guaranteed the boy’s safety to our father; let me be your slave, and let the boy and others return to our father.”
JOSEPH: (He motions for his servants to leave, and comes closer to the brothers. Then he begins to weep very loudly. The servants hear him, but do not come in. Then Joseph speaks to his brothers.) “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?”
BROTHERS: (The brothers now look terrified.)
JOSEPH: “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. Don’t be distressed or angry with yourselves; it was to save lives that God sent me on ahead of you. It was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me a ruler of Egypt. Now hurry back to your father and tell him I am alive, and that God has made me a ruler in Egypt. Return with your father, your wives and families, and you will live in the land of Goshen and be near me where I will provide for you.”

Scene VIII: Jacob’s House
Do this by narration only (Genesis 45:16 – 46:4).

NARRATOR: Joseph’s brothers, including Benjamin, the youngest, returned to their father Jacob’s house with many gifts and plenty of food for their families. They loaded up the carts Pharaoh had provided for their move back to the land of Goshen in Egypt with their families. Before they went, Jacob called upon the LORD. He wanted to be certain that the move to Egypt was truly in God’s will. God answered Jacob, saying, “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph’s own hand shall close your eyes.” In fact, Jacob lived seventeen more years in Egypt; he lived to be 147 years old. All Jacob’s sons stayed in Egypt and raised their families there. The descendants of Jacob would not return to the land of Canaan for four hundred years, when Moses would lead them out. It was all part of God’s plan.

Discussion/journal questions:

1. Have you ever had to move from your home to a new place?
2. What good or bad things did God bring into your life because of your move? If you haven’t moved, is there some other event or events in your life that have brought about change?
3. Has anyone ever stood up in your defense when you were accused of wrong? Tell about it.
4. Jesus took the punishment for all your sins when He was crucified on the cross. Have you asked Him to forgive your sins and to take control of in your life?

Closing:

End with a circle of prayer. Be sure all who wish to pray get a turn. Remind children to return next week for their next workshop, and to bring their Bibles and a friend.

A lesson written by Gail Smith from: Silverdale UMC
Silverdale, WA

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Joseph and His Brothers

Object Theater Puppet Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:
The children will dig deeper into the story to understand better Joseph and his father and his brothers’ feelings and motivations by using an object theater puppet show to re-enact the story.

Scripture:
Genesis 37, 39

Memory Verse:
Deuteronomy 7:9

Additional objectives for the Puppet Workshop
At the end of the session, the students will

• have considered the feelings which may have motivated actions in the story of Joseph and his brothers.
• have considered how jealousy can separate us from family and friends.

Bible Background is found here.

Preparation and Supplies:

• Read the scripture passages and lesson plan.
• Print the Object Theater PDF Script and practice reading the script with feeling.
• Optional: Print and learn the attached PDF Memory verse and sign language to go with it.
• Prepare a closing prayer.
• For how to do "Object Theater" check it out here over in our Puppet Forum.

• Picturebook or children’s Bible version of the story. (Use your favorite children’s picture Bible.)
• Household objects for Object Theatre: raid the junk drawer and use your imagination. Some ideas to get you started: spoons (wooden, plastic, stainless), plastic knives, cups, pencils, stapler, eraser, tools (hammers, screwdrivers, pliers), keys, batteries, salt and pepper shakers, a piece of colorful fabric, flashlight, bucket, shovel, blocks, cardboard or plastic stars, sticks, cottonballs, small baskets, plastic bottles, spools, dolls’ baby bottle, piece of burlap, ... (Make sure there are several things that you have at least 10 of that can be the brothers.)
• Flipchart or whiteboard and appropriate markers.
• Strong rope for tug-of-war warm-up activity.
• Memento: smile face or emotion stickers.
• Shepherd Time: blank plain and lined paper for older children; copies of attached form for younger.
• Room set-up:
  You will need a table for the objects and a table for the “puppet stage.”

Lesson:

Opening:

Greet the children and introduce yourself. Wear your name-tag. (Remember, you are interacting with a different group of students each week who may not know you.) Make sure the children are wearing name-tags.

We had an opening prayer during the gathering time, but open with prayer if you feel led to do so.

Explain the purpose of this workshop: Today we are going to look at the story of Joseph and his brothers and then re-create it in a new and unusual way.

Scripture/Bible Story:

Ask the children what they know about Joseph. If it is one of the earlier weeks in the rotation or many of the children are not familiar with the story, read the story of Joseph and his coat first from a picture book or picture Bible such as The Lion Storyteller Bible.

Read the scripture: Genesis 37: 2-11. [Help the children to use their Bibles in looking up verses. Remind them that ‘Genesis’ means ‘beginning’ and it is the first book in the Bible and includes the story of Creation, Noah’s Ark, Abraham, his son Isaac, his grandson Jacob and his great-grandson Joseph, about whom we are studying this rotation. It is in the Old Testament.]

After reading the scripture, ask:

• What do you think is important in this story?
• Who are the main characters we will want to include in a puppet show? [List them on a flipchart as the children name them. If they miss some people, don’t worry -- you’ll be adding them later.

Warm-up exercises - Theater Simulation Games:

(if time permits)
(adapted from 26 Ways to Use Drama in Teaching the Bible)

Conflict Tug-of-War:
This game will help the students literally feel the tension between Joseph and his brothers.
Choose two children who are about the same size — one represents Joseph and the other represents a brother. Have the two children play a game of tug-of-war and try to pull the other over a center line.
Let several pairs try this (as time permits) and then discuss:
∙ Did this help you relate to the feelings of tension between Joseph and his brothers?
∙ What caused that tension in the Bible story?

Silent Scream:
This game helps the students identify with the fear and horror Joseph felt.
Ask, “How do you think Joseph reacted to being thrown in the pit? Do you think he called his brothers to help him?” [Accept possible answers.]
“When his brothers did not help, maybe he screamed.”
Have the children scream without making a sound. Encourage them to use their entire bodies, not just their faces.
While they are doing this, say, “Scream out loud!” The sound should be deafening and they should dramatically feel the reality of Joseph’s fear. [This scream should be brief. Please be considerate of the other classes. Blink the lights if necessary to bring the class back under control.]

Preparing Students for Object Theater:

Ask, “What is a puppet?”
Accept all answers and then explain, “You have a lot of good ideas. Technically, a puppet is any inanimate (not alive) object that you, the puppeteer, animate — that is, you bring it to life by how you move and manipulate it.”
Pick up a spoon and show how you can make it walk along the tabletop, stop and talk to a screwdriver, and then get angry.

Show the children the collection of objects. Give them a few moments to pick up some and experiment with making them move, talk, hug, be happy, be sad, etc. These puppets have no moving parts, so actions and feelings are conveyed by how fast the objects are moving; how they move (glide, hop, jerk, ...); if they are upright, leaning or lying down; and so on.

Have the children sit down. Leave the objects spread out on the table so they can look at them. Tell the children to listen carefully as you read the script. Say:

• Check the flipchart as I read to see if there are any missing characters.
• You will need to decide what characteristics each person in the story has and how those can be symbolized by the objects we have.
• For example, think about the 12 brothers — do we have enough information in this story to have them be different objects, or should they all be the same?
• [older children only] Also, consider how the dreams can be made to look dreamy. [Perhaps turn off the overhead light and use the flashlight? or maybe everyone can hum ‘dream music’ in the background.]

After you have read the script, add any missing characters to the flipchart list. [You may need to prompt the children, or just add them for the youngest children.]

Tell the children, “You will be doing the casting for our puppet production. That is, you will be deciding how to use the objects on the table to tell the story. You have to agree on which objects to use for each of the characters in the story. You may also use some objects as props and pieces of scenery, but since the puppets do not have hands, we won’t worry about small props like the money the traders used to pay for Joseph. If you work together well, we will have time to do this more than once and you can try different objects in different parts.”

Go through the list on the flipchart and have the children decide which object will be each character and who will be manipulating it. Children can and may need to manipulate more than one character, especially the ten older brothers who will act mostly as a group. Remind the children to put the objects back on the table when they are not being used in a scene and that those not acting in the current scene should sit down and be the audience.

Act out the story!

Read the attached script. The narrator needs to watch the action and pause when appropriate to allow for acting out and improvising the story. The children may add dialog.

If time permits, discuss what can be improved or which objects/characters should be switched, and then do it again. (Trade parts if the children wish to do so.)

Pulling it all together (closing discussion):

• I wonder why the brothers were angry with Joseph?
• Have you ever felt angry at someone because they seemed to be the favorite (of either a parent or teacher)? Can you tell us about it?

• How did the brothers feel when Joseph told them about his dream? Do you think Joseph cared about his brothers’ feelings? Do you think he knew how they felt?

• Have you ever felt that someone else was your mom or dad’s favorite? How did that make you feel?

• What are some things we should never do, no matter how angry we are? [Talk about aggression as an inappropriate way to express anger or jealousy.]

• What are some appropriate ways to deal with anger? What good methods have you discovered?
• How can God help?

Closing:

End with a prayer:
Help the children pray for God to help them with family and friend problems.

Additional Suggestions:

All:

• Review the memory verse. Teach the children the memory verse using American Sign language (see attached instructions).

Big Classes:

• Divide the class into three groups: one group will act out the beginning, the second will act out the dreams and Joseph’s telling about the dreams, and the third can do the final portion. Those not “on stage” should sit down and be the audience. Remind them that the audience is important for feedback and encouragement and they should use the same quiet courtesy that they expect when it is their turn to be “on stage.”

Older Children:

• If someone is a VERY good reader and does not want to do the puppets, let him or her read the narrator’s part.

• Journaling: Think of a time you were jealous of your brother or sister. (If there are children with no brothers and sisters, suggest they think about a time they were jealous of a friend at school, in scouts, on the soccer team, etc. or maybe even a parent who went to Disney World for a conference while he/she stayed home.)  Write about or illustrate one of the following:
  What should I do if I feel hurt and jealous of my brother or sister or friend?
  What should I do if I think my brother or sister or friend is jealous or angry at me?
  Be as specific as possible. Rather than just write “pray,” maybe you would write “ask God to help me be kind, even if my brother can go to the game and I cannot.

Younger Children:

• Leave out the dream part of the script, at least for the first run-through. If interest and time permits, go back and do object theatre for the dreams and Joseph telling his family about the dreams.
• Consider having a smaller collection of objects for them to use for casting the puppet show.
• For classes composed primarily of pre-readers, show the children how to find the passage in the Bible and then have them do it. After everyone has found the passage, have them close their Bibles and set them aside to listen while you read.
• Journaling: [adapted from Bible Quest, Fall 2000]
  Work with the group to make a list of feelings and different actions to go with the feelings. Write them on the flipchart. (For example, happy: clap hands, angry: cross arms, excited: jump.) Make sure bad feelings such as angry and jealous are included. Then have the children stand and say, “When we are (feeling) , we (action), and God loves us still.” Go through the list a few times and have the group do the action for each. After a few rounds, give them the handout and help them copy one feeling/action from the flipchart. In addition to the suggested activity, children may draw pictures relating to today’s scripture or memory verse, list highlights of the day’s activities, or rephrase the memory verse.

Resources

• Hartman, Bob. The Lion Storyteller Bible. Colorado Springs: Lion Publishing, 1995.
• Hunter, Kurt. Puppets, Kids, and Christian Education. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2001. (Sample plans and info at http://www.huntermarionettes.com/rotation-model/ .)
• Huntly, Alyson, editor. Bible Quest: Fall 2000, Multi-Age (K-8) Leader’s Guide. Session 4: “The Favorite Son Becomes a Slave.” Cleveland: Bible Quest Publishers, 2000.
• Richards, Larry. Talkable Bible Stories. Grand Rapids: Fleming H. Revell, 1995. (Source for some of the discussion questions and Shepherd Time for older children.)
• Smith, Judy Gattis. 26 Ways to Use Drama in Teaching the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon, 1988.
• Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
• Riekehof, Lottie L. Talk to the Deaf. Springfield, Missouri: Gospel Publishing House, 1963.
• American Sign Language Browser: http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm
• Costello, Elaine. Religious Signing. New York: Bantam Books, 1986.

A lesson written by Amy Crane from: River Community Church
Prairieville, LA

Copyright 2003 Amy Crane. Permission granted to freely distribute and use, provided the copyright message is included.

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Joseph in Egypt

Drama Stations Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

The children will experience the story of Joseph while traveling from station to station. They will become part of the story in this active, personalized drama. (Adapted from Crazy Clothesline Characters.)

Scripture Reference:

Genesis 40:1 - 47:12

Memory Verse:

Romans 8:28 " We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him. He appointed them to be saved in keeping with his purpose. "

Additional objectives for the Drama Workshop
At the end of the session, the students will

• encounter one of the many reversal stories of the Bible.

Bible Background is found here.

Teacher preparation in advance:

• Read the scripture passages and lesson plan and attend the Bible Study, ....
• Print the attached "Teacher's Script" and the attached "Student Dialog Cards".
• Become comfortable enough with the script to refer to it minimally as you travel through the stations.
• Learn the memory verse.
• Check out the room before your first Sunday workshop so that you know how and where to set up the “scenes.”

Room set-up: (check out Luanne's photos in the next post for ideas)
Take a look at your space and the script that follows and then set up stations. Some suggestions:

• Station 1: Pasture — spread a green blanket or sheet. This should be in the center of the room so people sitting there can be the audience for things happening at other places. Grass and stars should be handy.
• Station 2: Tent — a large piece of fabric draped over something or hung from the ceiling or a curtain rod will do. (It does not have to be big enough for everyone to get inside.) Streamers, tape and robe should be ready in this area.
• Station 3: Pit — large paper circle on the floor. Should be next to the pasture (station 1).
• Station 4: Egypt — hang a picture of a pyramid, a camel and a palm tree on the wall.
• Station 5: Jail — have several chairs or a piece of fencing blocking off a corner of the room.
• Station 6: Pharaoh’s palace — cover a chair with a fancy piece of cloth next to “Egypt” (station 4).

Supply List

• Bible times costumes
• green blanket or sheet
• robe or large shirt
• several colors of crepe paper streamers
• masking tape
• stole for Jacob
• some sort of tent (a large piece of fabric hung from the ceiling or a curtain rod)
• stalk of grass or wheat for each child (fresh or made from posterboard); cardboard stars for each child
• large paper circle (big enough for adult to stand in this pit)
• bag of “coins” (something that clinks)
• several large Egyptian scenery pictures on butcher paper (such as a pyramid, a palm tree, a camel)
• broom
• fluffy pink boa or fake looking woman’s wig
• piece of fencing or lattice or several chairs
• chef’s hat
• tray with plastic wine glass
• small coins or play money
• small cups for each child
• unpopped popcorn in a large bowl
• box with empty lunch bags standing open in it
• large colorful piece of cloth or other decorations to make a chair look more like a throne
• Egyptian sort of headdresses for Potiphar and Joseph (see Paper Hat Tricks) and a crown and cape for Pharaoh
• some sort of hats for magicians
• cows: clipart: https://www.coloring.ws/cow.htm
• costume jewelry — ring or necklace for Joseph when put in charge of Egypt
• fancy cup (plastic)
• Scripture/dialog cards (at end of lesson) with parts highlighted
• road map
• Memento: star stickers
• Shepherd Time: paper with memory verse

Lesson

Opening:

Greet the children and introduce yourself.

We had an opening prayer during the gathering time, but open with prayer if you feel led to do so.

Explain the purpose of this workshop: Today, we are going on a journey from Canaan to Egypt with Joseph and also with his brothers. We will review the story from the last rotation and then you will find out what finally happened to Joseph and his family.

Dig into Scripture:

This is a long story, so let’s review the first part from the last rotation. What do you remember about Joseph and his brothers? [Briefly review with the children Joseph’s dreams, the coat from his father, and his brother’s jealousy. Talk about how he was sold into slavery and ended up in Egypt. Prompt them as necessary. If they give details of the second half of the story, that’s okay, but don’t spend too much time on this review.]

Very good! It’s a long and involved story, and we’ll be reviewing the whole thing in more detail in just a moment. But for those of you who have been waiting patiently, I want you to hear how the story ends. Let’s open our Bibles to the book of Genesis. [Help the children to use their Bibles in looking up verses. Remind them that ‘Genesis’ means ‘beginning’ and it is the first book in the Bible and includes the story of Creation, Noah’s Ark, Abraham, his son Isaac, his grandson Jacob and his great-grandson Joseph, about whom we are studying this rotation. It is in the Old Testament.

Read the scripture: Genesis 45: 1-18. [Younger: Genesis 45: 1-11.]

Does it sound like this story ends happily ever after?
Yes, it does. At least for now. Stay tuned, and we’ll talk about that in the next rotation. But on to this rotation’s story!
[NOTE: the next rotation I was referring to was the Israelite's escape from slavery in Egypt.]

Act it out!

[FIELD TEST NOTE: Okay, I admit it. This lesson plan/script is way too long -- even when I talked fast!  I suggest you VERY briefly summarize the beginning scenes that are a review of the first Joseph rotation (up through his being sold into Egypt). Then, if you talk fast you should be able to get through the rest of the script. I am leaving the entire script here in case someone wants to use the first half for the Joe Part I drama workshop.]

We are going to travel back in time, so first we need to put on our Bible times clothes. [Help everyone choose and put on a costume.]

Also, you need to remember our important drama workshop rule: use your imagination and pretend! Ready to have fun with the story?

Now we are going to see and relive Joseph’s story. Sometimes you will be the actors and sometimes you will just sit and watch and listen. I will pick you for different parts and we will be trading parts as we go along so that more than one person can be Joseph (but maybe not everyone). You will have more chance of being chosen if you are sitting quietly and attentively.

[Read and act through the following attached script. Movement suggestions are in [brackets]. The class should travel as a group and stay close together. Most often those not actively participating in a scene can sit in the “pasture” and watch.

Reflection:

[Hold up a road map.] Who knows what this is? What is it used for? [Allow brief responses.]
When you go on a trip with your parents, do they study the map, especially if it is somewhere none of you have ever been before? What would happen if your family just got in the car for vacation and said, “Let’s start driving. I know Aunt Suzie lives somewhere in Arizona”? It probably wouldn’t work, would it?

We just went on a journey with Joseph. There were some good things on that journey and some bad things. Joseph didn’t know where he was going, but he trusted God to get him safely through it all. God knows all the wonderful things He has planned for our lives. He can see the way he has planned for us to get to where He wants us. He sees all the bumps in the roads — the ones we see after we have bumped over them!

But even though we don’t know exactly where we are going or know how we are going to get there, God has given us a “map” to help us find the way. [Hold up a Bible.]

I pray that this “map” becomes part of your gear as you travel through life, on smooth and bumpy roads. Knowing what the Bible says, including stories such as Joseph’s and verses such as our memory verse, and keeping that knowledge in your heart will help you choose the right “roads” as you journey though life.

Closing:

Prayer:
Gracious Father, Thank you for watching over us and taking everything that happens in our lives, both the good things and the bad things, and working them into something good. Help us to have faith in you as Joseph did, even in the hard times. Amen.

Additional Suggestions:

You will need to decide how best to adjust the lesson for older and younger students. Keep the children active and involved in activity. Do what works for you and the children. Some ideas, in addition to those included in the lesson plan:

Older children:

• one of the children can be Joseph, or they can take turns. Prompt them when needed and let them read the dialog cards. Teacher would be the narrator.

Younger Children:

• For classes composed primarily of pre-readers, show the children how to find the passage in the Bible and then have them do it. After everyone has found the passage, have them close their Bibles and listen while you read.
• The Shepherd should help those chosen for parts read their dialog cards. Plus, the scenes with longer and more complex dialog should be narrated.

If you have Extra Time:

• Review the memory verse. The memory verse review was included in the script. If time permits, ask for volunteers to say it by themselves.
• Journaling: Lots of things happened to Joseph, didn’t they? Some of them were good, and some were bad. What does our memory verse tell us?
  That’s right, that ALL things work together for good. If we made a simple map or timeline of Joseph’s life, it might look like this. [Hold up one of the handouts with a simple timeline for Joseph drawn (born, mother died, present from Jacob, ....]
  See how I put smileys next to some of the things on the timeline and frownies next to the others?Why would that be?
  Take one of these forms (page with memory verse) and make a map of your own life so far. Include things like when or where you were born, starting school, getting a pet hamster, your dog dying, moving to a new house, winning a ball game, and passing the LEAP test. Put smileys next to the good things and frownies next to the hard things. If you wish you may draw little pictures to illustrate it.

Resources:

• Diebel, Anne. Hat Patterns to Help Teach Bible Stories. Paper Hat Tricks, 1994. Print.
• Mader, Carol. Crazy Clothesline Characters. Littleton, Colorado: Group Publishing, 2000. Print. (This lesson is adapted from “Joseph: Imagination Stations,” pages 23-27.)
• "Live the Adventure: Discovering God Is Everything I Need: Promiseland Summer Event." Willow Creek Association, 1999. Lesson 8: “God Is My Planner.” (Inspiration for reflection and Shepherd time.)
• Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Note: individual Printable PDF's for both the full script and dialog cards are attached to this lesson.

Joseph in Egypt Drama Workshop Script - Sample
(adapted from Crazy Clothesline Characters and Genesis, New Living Translation)

Scene 1: (at Station 1, the pasture):

To start with, I’m Joseph and you are his brothers.
Joseph, his 11 brothers and his father Jacob lived a long time ago — after Abraham but before Moses and well before Jesus. Joseph’s brothers were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher — who were all older than him — and Benjamin, who was younger.
Our father Jacob likes me the best, and everyone knows it. You often grumble about it. [Encourage everyone to grumble.]
One day, when I was seventeen years old, one or more of my brothers did something he should not have done. The Bible doesn’t say what it was. Maybe he killed one of the sheep he was supposed to be watching and roasted it for dinner. Maybe several brothers got in a big fight. Any other suggestions? [Accept all ideas, briefly.] Maybe. The Bible doesn’t say. All it says is that I reported some of the bad things my brothers were doing. So I left my brothers to go to Jacob’s tent.

Scene 2: (at Station 2, Jacob’s tent):

[Ask for a volunteer to be Jacob and another to be Joseph and give them copies of Dialog Card #1 with their parts highlighted. Have ‘Jacob’ stand in the tent. The tent should be nearby, so just Joseph and Jacob go to tent while the “brothers” stay in the pasture and watch this scene.]

Dialog Card #1:

Joseph: Father, Father, I have something to tell you!!
Jacob: Yes Joseph, my dear son, what is it?
Joseph: Guess what my brothers have done, they have done a bad thing! [Whisper in Jacob’s ear.]
Jacob: WHAT! Have those boys come here right this instant!
Joseph: [Turn and wave the “brothers” to come over.] Oh, brothers, come here.
Jacob: [Shake finger at brothers.] You bad boys! Just for that, you will go to bed without dinner.
[Encourage the brothers to whine and grumble again.]

This lesson was written by Amy Crane for
River Community Church, Prairieville, Louisiana.
Copyright 2003 Amy Crane.

Photo courtesy Luanne Payne, Hampton United Church, Hampton, ON, Canada

Permission granted to freely distribute and use, provided the copyright message is included.
Printed from https://www.rotation.org

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

Joseph's Journey Stations (Drama) Workshop

Photo's Below include Summary of Lesson Activities:

We adapted Amy's lesson above by doing the following:

In our case, I told Joseph's story and as we traveled through the stations I would pick children to be the characters in each story and to act out the actions as I told the stories (character props were simple head pieces and/or dream props).  I did not have the children read any scripts.  And there is a lot to get through so the teacher needs to know the story well, so they can run with it, so you can get it all done in time.

Note: I would normally have done this in our large open room, but that morning it was set-up for a congregational meeting and a potluck - so found myself setting up in our hallway area outside our classrooms.  As we only had a small group, it worked out fine, but for a large group you would need more space to move around.

I had taken my camera, but as usually once you get into the lesson your too busy and forget about trying to take pictures of the kids in action - so the kids posed afterwards for a couple of pictures before I had to dash off for the congregational meeting.  So later in the day I took some photos of the station set-ups before I took everything down.

6 Stations of Joseph's Journey were set-up and traveled through by the children.

1. Jacob's Tent & Colored Coat
2. The Pasture & Joseph's Dreams
3. The Pit (Well) & Slave Traders
4. Egypt - Potiphars' House
5. Pharaoh's Prison / Baker & Cup Bearer Dreams
6. Egypt - Pharaoh's Palace, Dreams, and Grainery

Stations Full View
both directions

Station 1: Jacob's Tent & Joseph's Coloured Coat

Making Joseph's Coat Activity:
On the floor I laid a white bathrobe (from our costumes cupboard) and gave each child several *colored strips and they transformed Joseph's plain coat into Joseph's amazing coloured coat—simply by laying their coloured pieces randomly on the coat. It looked pretty cool when they were done as pictured and we can redo this activity year after year.

*The coloured strips I used were from the doorway curtain to our movie theater seen in the photo under Station 6 below. The curtain is no longer available from "Ikea", called a "Vitaminer Drape Room Curtain Divider Rainbow". It was too long for our doorway so theses are the pieces I'd cut off.

To adapt this idea you could simply cut out narrow 1" x 10" strips of paper in several different bright colors.  If you don't have a white bathrobe, simply cut out a coat shape from white or brown paper.

Station 2: The Pasture & Joseph's Dreams

Pasture: green blanket and large stuffed sheep.

Jacob dream props:   Glow in the dark stars, sun & moon (cut from cardstock). Plastic wheat.
(All from a dollar store).

Station 3: The Pit (Well) & Slave Traders

Joseph's Pit (Well)

I racked my brains on how to make an interactive well  (one the kids could get inside) and had a God inspired moment and came up with the design pictured below.  It also stores FLAT!

Attached to this lesson:  DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING PIT (Well) see pdf file at end of this lesson.

Below, Joseph being led away by Slave Traders

Our Cardboard Camel:

I didn't make him, and do not know who did, so here's the best description I can give of how he looks to be put together.

1) The base is an old skateboard - so the camel can be pulled.
2) The camel's body was cut out of two pieces of cardboard.  Along the bottom of the camel the cardboard continues--folds under, on both sides.
3) There is a 2x4, the length of the skateboard, that has been laid on top of those extended pieces of folded, which are on top of the skateboard, it has been screwed through the 2x4, through the cardboard, into the top of the skateboard.
4) To hold the camel upright, there are also two pieces of 2x4, one between each leg - vertical, these are attached to the 2x4 on top of the skateboard. Nails driven through sideways.
5) Along the camel back, starting at his tail, up and around his head, and part way down his neck he has been glued (assuming they used a glue gun).
6) On both sides he's been spray painted brown and then, his features were highlighted with blank paint or permanent marker: hoofs, eyes, ears, mouth, nostrils.  He's missing his tail.  A red cord around neck.
7) Hanging over camel's hump we hung a money pouch (bag with drawstring--my mother-in-law made for me) inside were nickels (20 pieces of silver), for the slave traders to buy Joseph from his brothers.

Station 4: Egypt-Potiphar's Home

Egyptian Background: Plastic sand/sky backdrop and some Egyptian scenery pieces added to that (pyramids, palm trees).

Props:  Egyptian mask for Pharaoh/Poptiphar, headpiece for Poptiphar's wife, and arm bands and broom (kids) for Joseph the servant.

Station 5: Pharaoh's Prison / Baker & Cup Bearer Dreams

Prison: We made our prison from a used "Wardrobe Moving Box" I had on hand (a fridge box would work as well). I cut open one corner, so I could lay it flat, then on the outside I glued on corrugated rock wall paper from Group Publishing.  I cut the "rock wall" paper into four sections so there would be a gap along each corner edge, to allow the box to still fold easily for storing, when not in use (folds flat to an approx. 5"-6" thickness).  The white window was cut from a sheet of Polystyrene I had and I cut up dowel rods and inserted for bars. Glued the whole thing on, but it didn't hold, so my plan is to bolt it on at the four corners with bolts and nuts, to the box.

DREAM PROPS:
Baker: kid's play chef hat, basket filled with toy bread, and a raven finger puppet.
Cupbearer: gold plastic tray, plastic grapes and a plastic wine glass.
Other: Toy plastic cuffs and metal keys on a ring, for added fun.

Station 6: Pharaoh's Palace, Dreams, and Granary

Throne: is a chair covered in a used twin bed gold comforter (check used stores)

Joseph: white shepherd's hat. He receives a gold vest (I made) and this cool looking headpiece when he became ruler, there is also a fake gold necklace.

Dreams: large full body cow puppet (fat) and a smaller hand cow puppet (skinny) and a hat we used for the magicians who couldn't figure out the dream.

Granary: bottle of corn kernels, lunch bags opened (sacks), cups for pouring, and plastic coins to hide in sacks. Not pictured but a special cup to hide in Benjamin's sack.

Resources:

• River Community Church, Joseph in Egypt Drama Lesson by Amy Crane (above)
• Crazy Clothesline Characters, by Carol Mader, Group, 2001, 9780764421402.  (Out of Print - copies new and used can still be found on-line).  Page 23-27 Imagination Stations (Joseph)
• For Egyptian related props etc. check your local party store (or online), especially in October when their costume stock is highest.

A lesson by Luanne Payne, Hampton U.C.
Hampton, ON

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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:

1. 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.
2. 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

Joseph & the Coat of Many Colors

Newsroom Drama Workshop (Older Children)

Summary of Lesson Activities:
Children will perform a newsroom drama.

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
• The children will hear that Jacob was Joseph’s father who loved Joseph the most. Showing favoritism can cause hurt relationships. Jacob’s favoritism of his son Joseph made Joseph’s brothers hates him. When we are jealous, we can cause pain to others. God loves everyone and is with us no matter what we do to separate from God. God’s plans helped Joseph and his brothers to be family again later.
• In this workshop, we will learn that even though we can hurt others with jealousy & envy, God’s grace and His plans for us can help us to forgive and love one another. Joseph’s lesson can show us that even unhappy times in our relationships (in families & friendships) can be resolved when we forgive and love one another.

Preparation and Supplies:

• Read the scripture and lesson ahead of time.
• Print the attached easy to read PDF script and make copies for your students.
• Set up for two on-site locations for broadcast of a special News Report:
  1. At Jacob’s tent.
  2. On the road from Dothan to Egypt.
• Costumes: robes, beards...for the brothers, News Reporter suites, toy microphone

Lesson Plan

Opening:

• Greet the children and introduce yourself. Wear name tag. Have the kids introduce themselves to each other, “What school do you go to?”...
• Explain the purpose of today’s scripture in one sentence: God’s grace and His plans for us can help us to forgive and love one another even when we have bad feelings for someone.

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.

• Read the lessons from the age appropriate Bibles brought in by the kids. Have the older children take turns reading the verses.
• Have the students sit where you would like them to during the reading of the story from the Bible. Usually a circle on the floor works well.

Act It Out!

Perform a skit depicting a Bible time News Report about the strange disappearance of Joseph: (see News Report script below).

• Talk about the different characters needed for a play.
• Assign parts or have students choose which part they want to play.
• Do a run through of the news report and practice until you feel comfortable with the presentation.

Closing Prayer:

Provide a closing prayer. Encourage the children to come back next week for the next workshop, and to invite their friends.

Resources:

• Copyright © Kid's CREW, (News Report play) Steve and Brenda Klusmeyer, All rights reserved. Permission granted for non-commercial use.
• Biblical Chart of measurements https://www.webtruth.org/chart...eights-and-measures/.
  
  

Fillers:

Worksheet/activities: Look online for filler worksheets.

Discuss how much Joseph was sold for (shekels) and look at a money chart. Ask the children how much they would sell a sibling for today!

A lesson written by Cathy Weygandt for "The Disciple Builders" of Trinity Lutheran Church, Findlay, OH.
July 2003

News Report Script

( an easy to read PDF copy is attached)

Copyright © Kid's CREW, (News Report play) Steve and Brenda Klusmeyer, All rights reserved. Permission granted for non-commercial use.

Set detail:

Set up for two on-site locations for broadcast of a special News Report:
1. At Jacob’s tent.
2. On the road from Dothan to Egypt.

Supplies:

Costumes: robes, beards...for the brothers, News Reporter suits

News Report Script

(The number of Joseph's brothers will depend on the number of kids available for the skit.)

Announcer: This is Omar Adamson. I am on the site of a mysterious disappearance. Here at Jacob’s Tent, Jacob’s "favorite" son, Joseph, is missing, and has been presumed killed by viscous animals. Here with us today are Joseph’s older brothers, (put in names). Guys, can you tell us what has happened?

Brother # 1: Well, we were walking home from Dothan, where we had been tending Father’s sheep, when we found a bloody, torn coat alongside the road.

Brother # 2: We brought the coat home to Father and asked him if it looked like the one he had given to our brother Joseph. Father had sent Joseph out to check on us, but I guess he didn’t make it.

Brother #3: Father started crying and said that wild animals must have killed our brother. He put on sackcloth and ashes and went into mourning.

Omar: Tell me, how did you guys get along with Joseph?

Brother #__: I guess you could say he wasn’t our favorite as he was Father’s. He had a dream about all of us gathering stalks of wheat in the fields. He said that his stalk stood up while ours bowed down to his. And then he dreamed that the sun, moon and 11 stars bowed down to him! What a guy. Did he think we would all bow down to him? It made us plenty mad!

Brother #__: And then there was that fancy coat of many colors that Father gave him! A beautiful coat like that should have gone to the oldest brother as a sign that he was the father’s heir – not to the next to the youngest!

Brother #__: We won’t be missing him too much.

Omar: Thank you boys. Wait, I’m getting word that we there may be more to this story than we have heard. Now for and on the spot report, we go to Deborah Isaacs. Tell me, Deborah, do you have something to add to this story?

Reporter: Yes, Omar, I am speaking to Nathan Mizzah, here on the road from Dothan to Egypt. Nathan, can you tell us what you saw?

Nathan: I was traveling back home from a business trip when I came upon a caravan of merchants traveling to Egypt. In the distance, I saw 9 men lift one young man out of a pit and take what appeared to be silver coins in exchange for him. Later, one man came back to the pit, looked around, and ran away looking disturbed. When the caravan got closer to me, I saw a young man I am sure was Joseph Jacobson chained up and being led along with others I assumed to be slaves. I was unable to get close enough to the caravan to secure his release.

Reporter: What an interesting development! And now back to Omar at Jacob’s Tent.

Announcer: Brothers, you have heard what Mr. Mizzah had to say. Do you have anything to add to your stories?

Brother #__: (Backing away and looking guilty) No…. No….. I don’t think so……

Brother #__: No.. No.. I have no comment at this time!!! (The brothers leave hurriedly)

Announcer: Hmmmm. I wonder why they were in such a hurry? This has been Omar Isaacs, coming to you from Jacob’s Tent. We will continue to follow this story and will report again, as more details become available.

------

At this point, reiterate to the children that the story of Joseph does not end here- but that he became a great leader and eventually reconciled with his brothers.

Joseph DRAMA/PUPPETS lessons/ideas found in Complete Lesson Sets here in the Joseph forum.

COMPLETE LESSON SET: Joseph's Coat of Many Colors, from FUMC, Ann Arbor, MI

• Use handle-bag puppets to retell the story of Joseph and his brothers. --for 1st- 3rd grade - link.
  
  
  
  
• Focus on learning the story sequence by hearing about the story characters and their feelings and by enacting the story. --for 1st- 3rd grade - link.
  
  
  

PRESCHOOL Drama Fun by Amy Crane found under different days here.

Reenact Play Fun! (Day 2)

Remember the cup bearer and baker – use special cups, pretend to bake, and then serve one another.