Manna and Quail from Heaven Preschool Lesson
Preschool lesson (ages 3–6, 20 minutes)
1. Welcome (3 min)
Sit in a circle, greet every child by name and show one thing from the story to touch.
2. The little story (5 min)
Teach the refrain first: “Bread from heaven, every morning!”
God’s people had left Egypt. Now they were walking through the wilderness. The wilderness is a dry land with no fields. There was no food there. Soon the people were hungry. They grumbled at Moses and Aaron. Grumbling is when you complain in a cross voice. “In Egypt we had lots of bread to eat!” they said.
Then the LORD spoke to Moses. “Behold, I will rain bread from the sky for you. The people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day.” A day’s portion means just enough for one day.
Moses and Aaron said, “In the morning, you shall see the LORD’s glory.” The people looked out toward the wilderness. And there was the LORD’s glory, shining in the cloud!
God said, “At evening you shall eat meat. And in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.”
That evening, birds called quail came flying. Flap, flap, flap! They covered the whole camp. Now the people had meat to eat.
In the morning there was dew on the ground. Dew is tiny drops of water on the ground in the morning. When the dew was gone, there was something small and round. It was as small as frost on the ground.
The people said to one another, “What is it?” They did not know what it was. Moses said, “It is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat.” Bread from heaven, every morning!
They called it manna. It was white, like tiny seeds. And it tasted like wafers with honey – like thin, sweet crackers. Yum! Can you rub your tummy?
Everyone gathered what they needed. Some gathered more, and some gathered less. But no one had too much, and no one had too little. Bread from heaven, every morning!
Moses said, “Let no one leave of it until the morning.” But some people kept some anyway. The next morning it was full of worms, and it smelled bad! Pee-yew! When the sun got hot, the manna on the ground melted.
So they gathered it morning by morning. Every morning there was new manna on the ground. Bread from heaven, every morning!
On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much. Moses said, “Tomorrow is a solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD.” The Sabbath is a day to rest.
On the seventh day there was no manna on the ground. But the extra manna stayed good! There were no worms in it. Let’s count the six days on our fingers. One, two, three, four, five, six. And on day seven, rest! So the people rested on the seventh day.
God told Moses to keep some manna. Aaron put it in a pot, to keep for a very long time. Then children who came later could see the bread God gave.
God’s people ate manna for forty years in the wilderness. They ate it until they came to the land of Canaan. God fed them, day after day. Bread from heaven, every morning!
God gave his people what they needed, every single day. Bread from heaven, every morning!
3. Talk together (3 min)
- What do you think manna tasted like?
- How do you think the people felt the first morning they saw the manna?
4. Move (3 min)
Refrain Freeze: move around the room; when you say the refrain, everyone freezes and says it together.
5. Make (4 min)
Color the 6 baskets for the 6 days of gathering manna, and the 1 bed for the day of rest.
6. Verse and prayer (2 min)
“I will rain bread from the sky for you” — Exodus 16:4 (rain → wiggle your fingers down like rain; bread → cup your hands; for you → point to a friend)
Dear God, thank you for my food every day. Thank you that you take care of us. Amen.
Lesson for older kids (ages 6–10)
Big idea: God gives us what we need
Memory verse: “Behold, I will rain bread from the sky for you.” — Exodus 16:4 · WEB
The Bible story
When God's people were hungry in the desert, something amazing floated down from the sky — soft white bread called manna, sent fresh every single morning!
Talk about it
- Where were God's people traveling when this story happened? — Through a dusty desert
- Why were the people unhappy at the start of the story? — They were hungry
- Who did the people talk to about their problem? — Moses and Aaron
- What did God promise to send to His hungry people? — Food from heaven
- What flew into the camp in the evening? — A flock of quail birds
- What covered the ground in the early morning? — Sparkling dew
Where is Jesus in this story?
The manna in the desert points us to Jesus. Long after this story, Jesus said, "I am the bread of life." Just as God sent bread from heaven to keep His people alive each day, God sent Jesus from heaven to fill our hearts and give us life for ever. Jesus is the greatest gift of all — food for our souls that never runs out.
What God wants to tell us
God saw that His people were hungry and worried, and He did not leave them alone. Every morning He sent fresh food, just enough for that day. God shows us that we can bring Him all our worries, big and small. We do not have to be afraid about tomorrow, because the same loving God who cared for His people in the desert cares for you and me today.
Prayer
Dear Lord, thank You for always giving me what I need, just like You fed Your people with bread from heaven. Please help me to trust You today and not to worry about tomorrow. Thank You for loving me so much. Amen.
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