Monday, March 29, 2010

Holy Week Calendar

This is a special week in our family. It's a week of reflecting on the greatest gift we've been given - salvation through Jesus Christ. In order to rightly focus on the week and the significance of the upcoming holiday, we're using a Holy Week calendar. Each day, beginning yesterday with Palm Sunday, we read and remember the events that led to Christ's death and resurrection. I didn't do this last year. Instead, we just read about the events from Boo's bible. I wanted to do something more hands on this year and my friend, Shannon, told me about doing a calendar. She gave me this handout with specific ideas that she got from church. I love it! I've modified it a little and you can too.

The idea is that you read through the scriptures that tell the accounts of Holy Week. Then, assign different events {in sequence} to each day of the week leading up to Resurrection Sunday. For each day, we're reading the accounts in scripture, singing relevant songs, doing a corresponding craft, and going over a related memory verse.
If you're curious, here's the breakdown for our week {mostly based on the handout my friend gave me}...

Sunday
TOPIC: Palm Sunday
READING: Mark 11:1-11 and Luke 19:28-44
CRAFT: construction paper palm leaves
MEMORY VERSE: "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" Mark 11:9
SONGS: "Hosanna!" by Hillsong, "Hosanna! {Blessed is He Who Comes in the Name of the Lord}" by Michael W. Smith

Monday
TOPIC: Jesus Clears the Temple
READING: Mark 11:12-17
CRAFT: construction paper table cutout with pennies taped on top
MEMORY VERSE: "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations." Mark 11:17/Isaiah 56:7

Tuesday
TOPIC: Teaching at the Temple
READING: Luke 19:47-48
CRAFT: scrolls made out of paper and two sticks
MEMORY VERSE: "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." Psalm 119:105
SONG: "Thy Word" by Amy Grant

Wednesday
TOPIC: Praying for Anything and Remaining Watchful
READING: Mark 11: 20-26, 13:32-37 and Luke 21:34-36
CRAFT: trace child's hands to represent praying hands; watchtower or eye to represent remaining watchful
MEMORY VERSE: "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be ours." Mark 11:24

Thursday
TOPIC: Communion, Garden of Gethsemane, Judas' Betrayal
READING: Mark 14:17-26, 32-35, 43-50 and Luke 22:14-23, 39-53
CRAFT: saltine cracker and construction paper cutout of goblet; sack of coins
MEMORY VERSE: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done." Luke 22:42

Friday
TOPIC: The Cross
READING: Mark 15:16-39 and Luke 23:26-49
CRAFT: 3 popsicle stick crosses
MEMORY VERSE: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34
SONG: "When I Survey The Wondrous Cross" by

Saturday
TOPIC: Laid in the Tomb
READING: Mark 15:42-47 and Luke 23:50-56
CRAFT: construction paper tomb and stone
MEMORY VERSE: "[Joseph] came from...Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God." Luke 23:51

Resurrection Sunday
TOPIC: Resurrection
READING: Luke 24:1-12
CRAFT: folded linen cloth and a picture of an angel
MEMORY VERSE: "He is not here; he has risen!" Luke 24:6
SONG: "He Lives!" {lyrics by Alfred Ackley}; "Christ is Risen" by Matt Maher

I love this concept of a Holy Week calendar. It would be great done on felt too. Maybe I'll try that for next year. And the great thing about this calendar is that it's depth can grow as your child grows. It would be wonderful to incorporate other events from Holy Week as the kids grow: the woman anointing Jesus with perfume, a Seder meal and its significance, Jesus washing the disciples' feet, Jesus talking about his return, etc. Also, you could read a greater amount of text and compare the different gospel accounts. We plan on just reading from one book each day, though I listed both Mark and Luke for many of the days.

Do you have any other suggestions for songs or crafts? The crafts were primarily based on the Family Time Training handout I linked above. I'm terrible about thinking of songs, so these were just the first ones that came to my head. No doubt there are dozens of others that would be great. Also, I don't have all of these songs, but I searched on YouTube and was able to find most of them so we could sing along with the music.

I'll post a picture of our completed calendar next week.

12 comments:

  1. I love the Holy Week calendar activity idea! I hope to do something similar with Lydia next year. What a wonderful time of year...I'll send you a picture of what Dan made for our Easter reminder.

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  2. Hi, this is my first time to comment on your blog but I read it regularly. You are an inspiration to me with all your neat ideas. Keep em coming! I just made a set of resurrection eggs at my MOPS group last week. It's a set of 12 eggs with a little item inside each one that takes you through the days leading up to the crucifixion and the resurrection. You can purchase these but making them was much cheaper.

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  3. What a wonderful idea! I think we'll be doing this activity this week. Thank you!!

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  4. Thanks for sharing. This is just the resource I was looking for.

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  5. I've used your Holy Week calendar idea 2 years in a row now. Last year we stuck to your pictures, and this year our girls had a lot of fun creating their own. We will definitely continue to do this every year!! Thanks for the inspiration!!

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  6. Love ❤! Doing this with my family this year. Hope to make it an annual tradition.

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  7. Thank you, love this and my children will love this ❤️

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  8. Do you have a copy of this all done? Thanks!

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  9. Hello,
    Do you have a copy of this project completely done? Also, when I click on the "this handout" link it brings me to a error page. Can you share the handout page with me. Love this idea.

    Loren

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  10. A fun song for Monday, Jesus Cleanses the temple is Phil Wickham‘s House of the Lord. No, it’s not about cleansing the temple, but it is about praising Jesus in his house. It is a fun and upbeat song the kids could dance to.

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