Rotation.org Writing Team

JESUS’ ASCENSION
MUSIC WORKSHOP

PASSAGE

Story: Luke 24:36-53; Acts 1:2-11

Key/Memory Verse: Acts 1:9b “As they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.” NRSV

PURPOSE

Goals/Objectives for Rotation

Students will be able to:

• locate the story of Jesus' Ascension in the New Testament books of Luke and Acts;
  (Older students will learn that Luke and Acts were written by the same author.)
  
  
• realize that Jesus' Ascension into heaven took place after forty days of appearances by the risen Christ to his disciples and followers;
  
  
• learn that Jesus gave a promise to His followers that the Holy Spirit would come to empower them;
  
  
• understand that Jesus' Ascension is a departure of the physically resurrected Jesus, but it prepares us for Christ's presence in a new way, in and through us;
  
  
• know that God's mission to tell everyone about Jesus' life, death, and resurrection was entrusted to Christ's followers -- the disciples then and to us now;
  
  
• realize that we are still waiting for Jesus' return, known as the Second Coming.
  

Objective for Music Workshop

Students will be able to locate story in Acts and learn that although Jesus ascended into Heaven, we are still waiting for his return, known as the Second Coming.

PREPARATION

Read Bible Background.

Materials List

• CDs of easy children’s songs such as “If You’re Happy and You Know It,” "Jesus
• Loves Me," “Jingle Bells,” “London Bridges,” and "Mary Had a Little Lamb."
  
• CD Player
  
• Microphone and recording device (Optional)
  
• Paper
  
• Pencils and pens
  

Advance Preparation

Listen to the CDs of easy and familiar children’s music ahead of time and make your own little song as a sample for the students.

Organize areas of a room to use as you separate into groups.

PRESENTATION

Open – Introduction

Greet the students and open with prayer.

Ask thought-starter questions like "Who knows how Jesus came to earth?" "Does anyone know how Jesus went back to heaven?" "Today our story is about when Jesus went back to Heaven."

Read Acts 1:1-11 from a kid-friendly Bible.

Dig - Main Content

Ask:

"How do you think the disciples felt when Jesus went away?"

"How do you think they felt when they learned he was coming back?"

"Who were those men in white, anyway?" (Angels)

"How did they know they could trust what the angels told them?" (Angels are messengers from God, so the message was from God, and he never lies.)

Say "We're going to have fun today making up songs to tell people about this story." "I'm going to play a song and I want you to listen." (Play the original song that you used in your sample). "Now, listen to what I did with this same song." (Sing the new song that you made as a sample.) Say "So what we are going to do now is have everyone separate into groups and each group is going to make a new song telling about the story we just learned. I'm going to play some familiar songs and we can sing along, just to give us some ideas. Then, we'll break into groups, choose a song to re-do, and write some new words to it."

Play some songs from the CDs, then choose groups, give everyone pens, pencils, and paper, and have each group go to an area to work. It doesn't matter if some of them choose the same song, the words should come out differently for each group. Go around to each group to make sure that they understand what they're supposed to be doing. Help them with rhyming words; otherwise let them work it out together.

Reflect – Closure

A few minutes before ending, have each group come up and present its song. If there is time, have everyone join together to sing one or more of the songs as reinforcement. A nice touch would be to record these and play them for another class or an adult group.

CONTRIBUTOR: Joy Feemster