My Guarded Mouth
Memory Verse:
"LORD, guard my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips." Psalm 141:3
Teaching Concepts:
Children learn that our mouths are created for good things not bad. God can help us control our tongues and to say only what is
good and true.
Opening Activity
1. Make Talking Mr. Mouth Puppets
Your children will enjoy making these cute puppets. The mouths open and close when you move
the paper towel tube up and down.
What you will need: 12 oz. foam bowls (two for each child), glue, feathers, googly eyes, pompoms
for the noses, fun foam for tongues, and paper towel tubes.
What to do:
1. Before class glue two-12 oz. foam bowls together using 1" square pieces of fun foam. Place the bowls together one on top of the
other. Glue the 1" square piece of fun foam to the edge of the top bowl and to the bottom bowl forming a hinge as shown in the
picture at the right.
2. To make the handle cut 1"-slits about 1/2" apart all the way around one end of a paper towel tube as shown in the picture at the
right. Fold out the cut tabs and place glue on each of the tabs. Press them down to the bottom of one of the bowls. If you don't have
paper towel tubes, you can just roll up pieces of card stock or construction paper to make tubes
3. Hair - You can use tissue paper or feathers for the hair. If you are going to use tissue paper, cut or rip it into 2" x 2" pieces. Pour
tacky glue in cups. Show your children how to crinkle up the tissue paper, dip it in the glue, and then press it onto the top of a bowl
to make hair.
4. Poke tiny holes in the top of one of the bowls with a toothpick. In class have your children push feathers into the holes to make
hair. (I used eleven feathers on the pink Mr. Mouth craft.)
5. Glue on googly eyes and pompoms for nose and ears. You can cut tongue shapes fun foam to glue inside the bowls. Your
children may also want to add ears.
The Lesson
Preparation: Use puppet for puppet skit
Teacher: Good morning class I have a special guest for you today. I would like you to meet Mr. Mouth.
Mr. Mouth: Hi everyone.
Teacher: Hi, Mr. Mouth. How are you today?
Mr. Mouth: Well, I don't know. I'm kind of tired and I have a headache. I had to stay up all night long because my whiny little brother
was crying all night. He is so loud. You wouldn't believe it. He can cry louder than a fire truck siren. He has the biggest mouth I've
ever seen. It is bigger than mine and he is only 5 years old. I can't stand it. He cries all the time.
Teacher: Mr. Mouth I'm sorry that you aren't feeling very well this morning. Why was your brother crying?
Mr. Mouth: Oh, I think he was sick. He got into the candy and ate the whole bag. He is very bad. He is always getting into trouble.
Last week he got into big trouble. He got a tube of toothpaste and squirted it out all over the floor in the bathroom. Boy did he get in
to trouble. My mom was so mad.
I never get in trouble. I always listen to my mom. My mom says that she is very proud of me.
Teacher: Well, Mr. Mouth, It sure sounds like you had a hard night. I hope you have a better night tonight. We'll let you go back to
bed and get some rest.
Mr. Mouth: Thank you. Good-bye.
Put Mr. Mouth away.
Say: Wow, it sounded like Mr. Mouth didn't have a very good night last night. He sure had a lot to tell us. Sometimes it is hard not to
complain and exaggerate the truth especially when we have a hard time. Sometimes we want people to feel sorry for us.
Say: The Bible talks a lot about the amazing mouth God gave us.
Ask: Did you know that your mouth is very powerful? It can change things with just a few words. Let's think of some very powerful
words: I love you, I forgive you, and you're wonderful. How do you feel when you hear those words? You feel good. Here are some
other powerful words: I hate you, you're dumb, why can't you do anything right. How do those words make you feel? Those words
make you feel bad. It's amazing how just three little words can change how you feel, isn't it?
Say: The Bible tells us that your tongue can be a weapon. It can be used to hurt people and do bad things. Can you think of some
things that would make God very sad that we do with our mouths?
1. Saying Bad Words - God does not want us to swear or say bad words. Did Mr. Mouth say any bad words?
2. Saying Mean Things - God doesn't want us to say mean things. Did Mr. Mouth say mean things this morning? Yes, He said
mean things about his little brother. He said he had a big mouth, he was whiny, and was bad.
3. Lying - We must always say what is true. We must not make up stories that aren't true. We should not exaggerate or stretch the
truth. Did Mr. Mouth stretch the truth this morning? Mr. Mouth said, "I had to stay up all night long because my whiny little brother
was crying all night." Mr. Mouth was exaggerating or stretching the truth.
4. Gossip - Gossip is talking about someone in a bad way. Telling something about someone that you would not say to that person.
Did Mr. Mouth gossip this morning? Yes, Mr. Mouth told about how bad his little brother was. He was saying bad thing about him.
5. Complaining and Whining - Everyone knows what whining is. God doesn't like to hear us whine and complain. He wants us to
be happy with what we have. Did Mr. Mouth whine?
6. Bragging - Bragging is letting everyone know that you are better than them in some way or another. Did Mr. Mouth brag today?
Yes, he did. He said he never got in trouble and he always listens. (That is also exaggerating.)
Our mouths can be used for good or for bad. God wants us to use them for good.
Say: Open your Bible and follow along as I read Ephesians 2:
Our mouths were created to do good things, not bad. Let's think about some good things our mouths were created to do.
1. Speak the Truth - Words that are true. Do not exaggerate.
2. Words Spoken in Love - Some words that are true may hurt. You may be near someone who doesn't smell so good or has bad
breath. Should go up to them and tell them that they smell bad? That may be the truth, but those words could hurt someone and
make them feel bad. We shouldn't say words that hurt even if they are true.
We can use our mouths to do good things when we praise God, sing about God's love, and tell others about Jesus.
Prayer
Father, We pray the same prayer David did so long ago, ""May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing
in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer."
Crafts and Activities
1.
Guarded Mouth
Ask your children if they know what a guard does. Tell them that a guard watches over something. A guard in a prison watches over
his prisoners. He makes sure they don't escape. We have to guard our mouths so that bad words don't escape. David prayed for
God to help him guard his mouth. He asked God to help him to know when he should speak and what he should say. Today we are
going to practice guarding our mouths.
Let your children take turns picking out a piece of paper with a saying on it. Read what the paper says and ask the child who picked
the paper if he should let those words come out of his mouth. If the paper says something good, let your child keep it. If it says
something that should stay in the mouth, fold it up and put it back in. Keep playing until all your children have had a chance to pick a
piece of paper.