Lesson 4 - The Tower of Babel
Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves" (Genesis 11:4)
Building the Tall Tower
Parent Explanation:
The people started building the tower, and they worked very hard.
But God had asked them to spread out and live in different places, and they didn’t listen.
Questions:
What did the people build? (Answer: A tall tower)
Did the people listen to God? (Answer: No)
Hand Motions:
Building Gesture: Pretend to stack blocks or build, saying, "The people built a tall, tall tower."
Spread-Out Gesture: Move hands out to the sides, saying, "God wanted the people to spread out and fill the earth."
Activities:
Building Role-Play: Pretend to build a tower with your child, using hand motions to stack blocks or bricks.
Simple Reflection: When someone tells us to do something, should we listen, like God asked the people to listen?
The People Wanted to Be Like God
Parent Explanation:
The people wanted to make a name for themselves and thought they could be like God by building the tower so high.
But God wants us to listen to Him and follow His plan.
Questions:
Why did the people want to build the tower? (Answer: To make themselves important)
Should we try to be like God, or should we listen to God? (Answer: Listen to God)
Hand Motions:
Reaching Gesture: Stretch arms up like reaching for the sky, saying, "The people wanted to reach heaven with their tower."
Listening Gesture: Cup your hand around your ear, saying, "But God wants us to listen to Him."
Activities:
Tower Imitation: Pretend to build an extra-tall tower by stacking imaginary blocks higher and higher with your child.
Question: What does it mean to listen to God? Can we listen when we are quiet?
God Confuses Their Language
Parent Explanation:
God saw that the people weren’t listening to Him, so He decided to confuse their language.
Suddenly, the people couldn’t understand each other. They couldn’t finish building the tower.
Questions:
What did God do to the people’s language? (Answer: He confused it)
Could the people keep building the tower after that? (Answer: No)
Hand Motions:
Language Gesture: Pretend to talk in different ways, saying, "The people couldn’t understand each other anymore."
Stop Gesture: Hold out your hand as if signaling to stop, saying, "They couldn’t keep building the tower."
Activities:
Language Role-Play: Pretend to speak in gibberish with your child to mimic the confusion of the languages, and laugh together when you can’t understand each other.
Reflection Question: Do you think it would be hard to build something if you couldn’t understand what others were saying?
God's Plan: Listening to God
Parent Explanation:
After God confused their language, the people stopped building the tower and spread out all over the earth.
God wants us to listen to Him, and when we do, His plans for us are good.
Questions:
What did the people do after God confused their language? (Answer: They spread out)
What does God want us to do? (Answer: Listen and obey Him)
Hand Motions:
Spreading Gesture: Move hands out wide to show people spreading out across the earth.
Listening Gesture: Cup hand around your ear, saying, "God wants us to listen to Him."
Activities:
Listening Role-Play: Play a game of Simon Says where your child has to listen carefully to follow instructions. Talk about how listening to God is important, too.
Question: When do we listen to Mommy or Daddy? Can we listen when we are playing or when we are quiet?