Fruit of the Spirit: Exploring Gentleness by Playing with Oobleck!

I've used cornflour and water mixtures with children in creche before and know how much they love playing with it! Having spent some time on Pinterest, I now realise that the mixture is called 'oobleck'- always good to have a name for what you are playing with!

It struck me that oobleck is a really simple but effective way of helping to teach children about gentleness. The best part is that anyone can join in because oobleck appeals to everone from toddlers to adults (plus it can get a bit messy, which only adds to the appeal!)

You will need: cornflour, water (roughly half as much water as cornflour)

Mix the water and cornflour together and then pour the mixture out onto a tray.

As the children play with the oobleck, they will notice that the slower and more gentle their actions, the more liquid the mixture is and the easier it is to move fingers through it.  

Hard, sharp actions, such as slapping down on top of it will meet with solid resistance!

 Talk about: 
How can we be gentle towards others in words and actions?
Why might it be more helpful to be gentle with others than sharp and aggressive?
What might happen to us if we try to be more gentle towards others?

Pray:
Encourage children to move their fingers slowly and gently through the oobleck and pray that God will help them to be more gentle towards others in words and actions in the coming week.