Christmas Object Lesson: The Christmas Star Ornament

Purchase an inexpensive Christmas star ornament and test it to make sure it works properly. It should light up and be seen easily by the class. With this decoration, you have a Christmas object lesson that will help tell the story of the Christmas story from Matthew 2:1-2. “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
Place the ornament on a table and plug it in so it is lit up. Turn off the lights so the kids can see the star shine! Read the entire passage in Matthew 2:1-11 and point to the star as you tell the story. After you have read the story, talk about it with the children. Talk about how the Wise Men knew that the star was a sign from God and they gladly followed it to find him. Give kids an opportunity to ask questions and prompt them along. Encourage them to look at the stars and remember the special star of Christmas.
Say, “Let’s pretend that we are the Wise Men following the Christmas star. Everyone go to the back of the room. When the star goes out to stop; when the star lights up you walk towards it. Everyone got it? When you get here to the table, say, ‘Merry Christmas! No running guys! I want everyone to tip toe!” You could do this a couple of times and ask them to walk slowly, skip or hop.
Of course you should remove all obstacles between you and the children to make sure that no one trips over a chair or anything else. It is a good idea to play some Christmas music in the background. Songs like “We Three Kings” and “O Holy Night” are perfect.
Read more from Mimi by following her blog at Tools for Kids Church. Don’t miss all our teaching ideas for Christmas.