Year 1 Jesus: why is he so important to Christians? worksheet

“The Story of Christmas” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 1 religious education unit “Jesus: why is he so important to Christians?”, for children aged 5 to 6, and takes about 20 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 7 to 12 of the year, 6 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

The Story of Christmas

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 1 · Religious education · about 20 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can tell the main parts of the Nativity story and what they mean to Christians.

A Look back3 min

1.
Christians remember the night Jesus was born. What is this day called? Circle one.
ChristmasEasterDiwali
2.
Who did the angel visit before Jesus was born? Circle one.
Marya kinga fisherman
3.
In which town was baby Jesus born? Circle one.
BethlehemLondonRome

B Watch me, then you4 min

Christians tell a story about the night Jesus was born. It is called the Nativity.

A wooden manger filled with straw in a plain stable

Watch me

Baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

He was laid in a manger.

A manger is a feeding box for animals.

Now you

1.
Where was baby Jesus laid? Circle one.
a mangera boata tent

C Your turn6 min

Each row shows the Nativity story in steps. Some boxes are empty. Circle the step for the box the question names.

1.
Which step goes in the first empty box? Circle one.
Angel visits MaryShepherds visitClever people
2.
Which step goes in the second empty box? Circle one.
Jesus is bornClever peopleAngel visits Mary
3.
Which step goes in the third empty box? Circle one.
Shepherds visitAngel visits MaryJesus is born
4.
Which step goes in the last empty box? Circle one.
Clever peopleShepherds visitJesus is born

Say it out loud: What changed from one row to the next? Which step came first in the story?

D Spot the mistake3 min

Clever people followed a star to find baby Jesus. They brought him gifts.

Kit says: “The shepherds brought gold, frankincense and myrrh to the baby.”

1.
Who really brought the three gifts? Write it in your own words.

E Think deeper4 min

The Nativity story has a star, a manger and three gifts. Christians say the manger shows Jesus came for everyone, rich or poor.

1.
Pick one part: the star, the manger or a gift. What does it tell Christians about Jesus? Write it down.

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

The Story of Christmas · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. Christmas If your child circles Easter, say: Easter is a different Christian festival. Ask which day is about baby Jesus.

2. Mary If your child circles a king or a fisherman, say: the angel told of a baby coming. Ask who the baby's mother was.

3. Bethlehem If your child circles London or Rome, read the first Watch me line together. Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

B

1. a manger If your child circles a boat or a tent, they are guessing. Point to the manger in the picture and read the second line together.

C

1. Angel visits Mary If your child circles shepherds, ask what happened first in the story. The angel came to Mary before Jesus was born.

2. Jesus is born If your child circles the angel, ask what the angel told Mary. A baby was coming, so what came next?

3. Shepherds visit If your child circles Jesus is born, remind them that the shepherds heard the good news that same night, after the birth.

4. Clever people If your child circles shepherds, say: the shepherds came that same night. Ask which group came later.

D

1. Look for: Says the clever people (who followed the star) brought the gold, frankincense and myrrh, not the shepherds. Kit has mixed up two groups. The shepherds came on the night Jesus was born. The clever people came later with the three gifts.

E

1. Look for: Names one part of the story (star, manger or a gift) and says what it shows about Jesus, in the child's own words.

Words to use

Say“Which part of the story came first? What do you think that part tells us about Jesus?”

Instead of“Tell them the whole story and ask them to repeat it word for word.”

After the sheet

Use three objects from around the house to stand for parts of the story: a box for the manger, a torch for the star and a coin for the gold. Tell the story in order, then ask your child to pick one object and say what it means.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

5 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

Christmas and what it means(with a plan)
Pictures That Carry Meaning(with a plan)
Parts of a Christingle(with a plan)
Celebrating Christmas in different ways(with a plan)
Christmas around the world(with a plan)

Every Year 1 religious education worksheet

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