Aim

To become aware of the Biblical accounts of Jesus' birth.

Lesson

Revise what was taught in the previous lesson. Remind children that, for Christians, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus, whereas for other people in Britain and elsewhere, it is a public holiday.

What do the children know about the birth of Jesus?

Select a group of children to recount the story of Christmas in sequence. On the board, make a note of the principle elements in this retelling. Invite the rest of the class to suggest any elements which the group may have omitted. Yet how faithful is this retelling to the original account of the Christmas story, which is found in two places in the Bible?

Share with the children the two versions of the Christmas story.

Activity

Following discussion, on the differences between the two Biblical accounts and the popular retelling, groups of children could:

• use the worksheet to record their findings
• read other non-Biblical accounts
• find out the stories of their own births.