First Pres Kids started a new theme of MAKING WAVES ~ changing the world around you with the help of God's spirit. We opened Sunday School class with a game of 4 corners - each corner representing a fun, wave-making Summer activity. Next, we studied wave properties with an interesting science experiment. We built a wave model out of skewers, gummy bears, and duct tape. We watched as energy flowed smoothly and effortlessly with a single tap to the skewer. We talked about how all waves change and impact the environment around them. Next, we listened to our Bible story and learned that we can make really important waves that change the world in a positive way - waves of God's love! Finally, we did one more science experiment with skittles. The skittles represented all the little things we can do to show love. As the children placed the skittles on the dish, they gave examples. When water was poured over the skittles, the colors began to move from the edge of the plate toward the middle, creating a beautiful whirl of colors. This was a great reminder that the love we choose to show others can cause love to spread, making the world around us a better and more beautiful place!

In Sunday School, we started class with a "Guess the emotion through song" quiz and discovered that music actually has the power to affect how we feel.  We all agreed that we liked the happiness feeling most. We were reminded that in life we face many different situations that have the power to affect how we feel. We learned that joy is much more than a feeling, It's more of a knowing deep inside that God loves us and all will be well in the end.  We watched an object lesson with 2 balloons. One, filled with just air, represented a happy person without joy. When faced with a difficult situation (a flame), the balloon popped. The other, filled with air and water, represented a person filled with joy. When faced with a difficult situation (a flame), the balloon did not pop. Joy remains even if our feelings change. We were also reminded that joy is a choice. Some of us saw a glass as half empty while others saw it as half full. The truth is...it's both! It's all a matter of how you choose to look at it. Instead of focusing on situations that give us bad feelings, we could focus on truth, choose joy, and think about all we have to be thankful for!

In Sunday School, we opened class with a relaxing beach vibe. We listened to calming beach music and observed some fascinating sea shells. We talked about how the beach is often a place that people associate with peace and we had a discussion of what peace is. Next, we learned how to make origami boats and followed that with an activity where we had to try to knock them down. We understood that it was fun to knock over the boats but it was just a game. We then heard that in real life, King David was doing things to knock people down until God used the peacemaking skills of his wife to calm things down! We discovered that despite the negative waves of life that happen around us, we can choose to make positive waves of a different kind - peacemaking waves. We finished our beach mural (complete with the different ways we can make positive waves in the world). We ended class with a fun, timeless summer activity - Sand Art!                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

In Sunday School, we talked about the need for patience in a fast-paced world. We talked about how certain things in life require time or just simply work better at a slower pace...education, reading a big book. Having patience with other people can be one of the most difficult things to do. We looked at patience in nature....an apple tree taking years to grow and produce fruit, a mother bird faithfully taking care of her unhatched eggs. We even had a quick look at a real nest with newly hatched baby birds practicing patience while waiting for their mama! We experimented with a bubble wand and noticed that perfect bubbles are formed when using a slow breath, not a quick whoosh through the wand. We listened to "A Little Spot of Patience" by Diane Alber, a great story with practical suggestions on growing our patience. Finally, we reviewed all of the positive ways to make waves in the world with an object lesson. A pebble representing each of the ways (love, joy, peace, patience) caused a ripple when dropped in a bucket of water. First Pres Kids were reminded that EVERY pebble causes a ripple that affects it's environment, even those that are negative such as anger.