Day 4 Virtue Demonstration: HELPFULNESS
You’ll need:
- Pre-planned volunteer #1 (ages 12-16)
- 2 Boxes of Straws (approx. 200 straws in a box) (each box of straws is a different color)
Ask:
I am going to show you a demonstration of helpfulness but first, I have a question for you.
What does it mean to be helpful? (helping someone do a job, doing things without being asked, being kind, cleaning up messes, etc.)
Demonstrate:
Volunteer #1 walks on stage with a huge handful of straws (approx. 200, all one color) and pretends to trip. As he/she falls, the straws should go flying into the air.
Wow! What a mess! These straws show us how messy some accidents can be. When we stop and take the time to help someone, we make them feel better. When no one offers to help, cleaning up can be a very long and lonely job. (Volunteer #1’s name) will show us what it looks like when no one offers to help him/her. Volunteer #1 begins picking up the straws slowly.
Hold up another box of straws of a different color. These straws represent huge jobs (pull out a straw from the box) like cleaning the whole house or (pull out another straw) taking in the groceries from the car. I need one volunteer (#2). Give the volunteer 200 straws of a different color and ask him/her to throw them into the air.
Who wants to help pick these (color) straws up? (Pick numerous or all volunteers from the crowd to help.)
Once done, have all kids return to their spot. Motion to volunteer #1 still picking up the first straws and show the difference between the two jobs. See how (volunteer #1’s name) is still working at picking up straws.
Explain:
Even though he/she had more time to clean up, we are all done and he/she is not even close.
Whether it’s cleaning up spilled food, broken things or helping with really big jobs, we can lend a hand and help the people around us. It’s easy to laugh and have fun when we all work together.
Who wants to help pick up the rest of the straws? (Pick numerous or all volunteers)
Can you think of some ways, during your day, that you can be helpful? (answers may vary)
- If someone drops their books in school, help them pick them up.
- If your baby sister spills a glass of juice, you could run to clean up the spill.
- If your mom is swamped with laundry or the dishes, you could help her with them without being asked.
- You could help your grandma and grandpa carry things inside the house.
- You could visit with people who may be lonely in retirement homes or hospitals.
There are millions of ways to be helpful. No matter how the straws got onto the ground, they all need to be picked up. We can choose to let one person tackle the huge job or we can step in, have fun and be helpful.
It’s very good to always be ready to ask, “Is there something I can do to help you?”
The Bible says: (show Bible)
“God is my helper” (Ps 54:4). If God helps us in everything, we should always be ready to help the people around us.
Let’s bow our heads and pray together. Lord Jesus, please show us how to think of others and help them whenever we can. Help us to always be thoughtful and kind. Amen.
