Introduction:
Finding interactive and appropriate ways to teach young children about Peter’s denial of Jesus can be difficult to find. Here are a few rooster activity ideas that will get children involved in a lesson about when Peter denies Jesus (Matthew 26:30-35, 69-75; Mark 14:26-31, 66-72; Luke 22:31-34, 54-62; John 18:15-18, 25-27).
If you are looking for more activities for teaching the story of Peter, check out our Peter Black Light Story!
Activities:
1. First, explain to the children that when Jesus said Peter would deny Him three times, that Jesus was saying Peter would say he did not know Jesus. Give an example of this. For example, show the children a toy and say, “I don’t know that toy ________.” and turn your head away. That is denying something.
2. Have the children help you count to three. Count three of the things in your room. Take a toy rooster that makes sound and let the children push the sound button on it two times. The Bible story says that the rooster had crowed two times and Peter had denied Jesus three times. I could not find a toy rooster that made sound so I purchased a stuffed toy rooster and a sound button. Using a farm sound book I already had, we made a recording of the crowing rooster and then sewed it into the stuffed rooster.
3. Another activity is to play Which Rooster Crowed? Hang up clip art pictures of roosters. Behind one, two, or three of them put a sound button with a crowing sound. While the teacher is explaining something, the aide will quietly push the button of one of the roosters. The teacher will ask, which rooster crowed? The children will try to guess which one did until the aide states which one did. The teacher will ask “How many times did the rooster crow in our Bible story?” (Two) “And how many times did Peter deny Christ?” (Three) The aide will press another crow button and the game is played again with the same questions at the end. The teacher will then remind the children that Peter was very sad about what he had done and said he was sorry. He loved Jesus and wanted to do right. He knew Jesus loved him, too. Then sing “Jesus Loves Me” together.
4. Finally, get the children up to crow and sing. Use clip art and wide craft sticks to make rooster stick puppets. Give each child a stick puppet of a rooster. Let them move around the room crowing. Then sing the song below as the children strut around the room.
The Rooster
Tune: “The Farmer in the Dell”
The rooster crowed 2 times.
The rooster crowed 2 times.
When Peter denied he knew Jesus.
The rooster crowed 2 times.
