Holy Week Sunday School Lesson for Kids
Ages 6-10 · 45 minutes · free lesson plan · Mark 11-16
An interactive 45-minute lesson that walks 6-10 year olds through Holy Week in Mark with a daily table, an order game and an empty tomb craft. It centers on Sunday, Thursday, Friday and the resurrection, and on memorizing Mark 16:6 (KJV).
Memory verse
And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him. (Mark 16:6, KJV)
Lesson objectives
- Retell in order the main events of Palm Sunday, Thursday, Friday and Easter morning from Mark.
- Explain that Jesus gave His life for many and that God raised Him from the dead.
- Say Mark 16:6 from memory and tell someone the good news that Jesus is risen.
The full lesson plan
Welcome: Hosanna! (4 min)
Setup: none.
Say: Welcome! Today we walk through Holy Week, day by day, in the book of Mark.
Say: Let's start with the welcome Jesus got when He came into Jerusalem.
Warm-up: Everyone stand. When you say 'Hosanna!', wave your arms like branches. Practice it shouted, then whispered, then shouted again.
Say: Hosanna is a joyful shout. Background: it is a Hebrew word that means 'save us'.
Ask: What is the happiest welcome you have ever given someone? Take two quick answers.
Say: Now let's see how the week began.
Sunday and the Week Table (7 min)
Say: On Sunday, Jesus sent two disciples to bring a colt that no man had ever sat on (Mark 11:1-7).
Read or retell Mark 11:7-11: They put their garments on the colt and Jesus sat on it. Many spread their garments and branches in the road. They cried, 'Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord' (11:9). Jesus entered Jerusalem and the temple, then went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Say: Mark tells the whole week in order, so let's read the table together. Point to each row and read it aloud.
DAY | WHAT HAPPENED | MARK
Sun | Jesus rides into Jerusalem; crowds shout 'Hosanna' | 11:1-11
Mon | A fig tree with only leaves; Jesus clears the temple | 11:12-19
Tue | Jesus teaches at the temple and speaks of what is ahead | 11:20-13:37
Wed* | Leaders plot; a woman pours costly ointment on Jesus; Judas agrees to betray Him | 14:1-11
Thu | Passover supper; prayer in Gethsemane; arrest | 14:12-52
Fri | Trial before Pilate; crucifixion; burial | 15:1-47
Sat | The Sabbath; Jesus' body lies in the tomb | 15:42-47
Sun | The empty tomb: He is risen! | 16:1-8
*Background: Mark does not name this day. Tradition says Wednesday.
Say: Today we will stop at Sunday, Thursday, Friday and Easter morning.
Thursday Night and Friday (8 min)
Say: On Thursday, Jesus ate the Passover supper with His twelve disciples.
Say: Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it and said, 'Take, eat: this is my body' (14:22).
Then He took the cup and said it was His blood, 'shed for many' (14:24).
Say: Next they went to a garden called Gethsemane. Jesus prayed, 'not what I will, but what thou wilt' (14:36). His friends fell asleep. Judas came with a crowd and Jesus was arrested. His disciples forsook Him and fled (14:50).
Action: Every time you hear 'Thursday', pretend to break bread. Every time you hear 'Friday', kneel quietly.
Say: On Friday, Jesus was taken to Pilate. The crowd chose Barabbas to go free, and Jesus was crucified (15:15, 15:24).
From the sixth hour there was darkness over the land until the ninth hour. Jesus cried with a loud voice and gave up the ghost (15:33-37). The veil of the temple was torn in two (15:38).
The centurion said, 'Truly this man was the Son of God' (15:39). Joseph of Arimathaea laid Jesus in a tomb and rolled a stone to the door (15:46).
Say: Jesus gave His life for many people, and that includes us.
Teacher tip: Keep your voice calm and gentle on Friday. Do not add graphic details.
Say: Now let's find out what happened on Sunday morning.
Easter Morning: He Is Risen! (5 min)
Setup: write the memory verse on the board in four parts.
Say: Very early on Sunday, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome came to the tomb with sweet spices (16:1-2).
Say: They asked each other, 'Who shall roll us away the stone?' But the stone was already rolled away (16:3-4).
Say: Inside, a young man in a long white garment said, 'Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him' (16:5-6).
He told them to go and tell the disciples and Peter that Jesus goes before them into Galilee (16:7). The women fled, trembling and amazed, and were afraid (16:8).
Say: The cross was not the end. Jesus is alive!
Memory verse (2 min): Say each part and add a motion. 'Be not affrighted' (hands up). 'Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified' (cross arms). 'He is risen; he is not here' (jump or reach up high). 'Behold the place where they laid him' (point down). Repeat, then whisper, then shout.
Game: Holy Week Road Order (6 min)
Setup: Before class, write one event on each of 6 cards, and make two sets: Hosanna (Sun), Temple (Mon), Supper (Thu), Garden (Thu), Cross (Fri), Empty Tomb (Sun). Shuffle each set.
Time: 6 minutes.
1. Make two teams. Give each team a shuffled set, face down, at one end of the room.
2. At 'Go!', the team turns the cards over and lays them in order on the floor. Walk, no running.
3. When a team says 'Done!', everyone checks the order with the table.
4. Hold up each card. Ask the team to say one thing that happened that day.
5. Shuffle and play again, and let teams swap sets.
Say: Great job walking the whole road! Now let's make something to remember Easter morning.
Craft: Empty Tomb Card (7 min)
Setup: Pre-cut one gray paper circle (about 8 cm) per child for the stone. Fold white paper in half to make a card for each child.
Safety: Use child-safe scissors with adult supervision. Use glue sticks only.
Time: 7 minutes.
1. On the front of the card, draw a hill and a dark tomb opening.
2. Put a thin line of glue on the left edge of the gray circle only. Stick it beside the opening so it covers the door.
3. Swing the stone open to show the empty tomb.
4. Inside, write 'He is risen!' (Mark 16:6) and draw a sunrise.
5. On the back, list Sun, Thu, Fri, Sun in order.
Say: Show your card to someone at home and tell them what happened.
Talk It Over (4 min)
Ask each question and take one or two answers.
1. Why was the crowd so happy on Sunday? (They welcomed Jesus as the one who comes in the name of the Lord.)
2. What did Jesus pray in the garden? (That God's will be done, not His own.) What does that show about Jesus? (He trusted and obeyed His Father.)
3. Why did Jesus die? (He gave His life 'for many', including us.)
4. How do you think the women felt at the empty tomb? (Amazed and afraid.) What good news can we tell others? (Jesus is risen and alive!)
Closing Prayer (4 min)
Say: Let's thank Jesus for each part of Holy Week. Repeat each line after me.
- Thank You, Jesus, for coming to us as our King.
- Thank You for giving Your life for us.
- Thank You that You are alive!
- Help us tell others that You are risen. Amen.
Say: Remember our verse: 'he is risen; he is not here.' Say it together one more time.
Say: Take your card and your take-home page, and tell someone this week, 'Jesus is risen!'
Hand out the take-home page and dismiss children one at a time to their parents.
Materials
- KJV Bible
- Index cards (12) for the order game
- Markers
- Masking tape
- Construction paper (white and gray)
- Child-safe scissors
- Glue sticks and crayons
- Holy Week table on poster or board
Teacher notes
- Safety: the craft uses scissors and glue. Supervise closely, use child-safe scissors, and check for allergies or sensitivities to craft supplies.
- Adaptation: for children with special needs or a mixed-age group, use picture cards, pair younger children with older buddies, and offer a quieter option of coloring the card instead of the relay.
- Mark does not give a day name for every event. Label Wednesday and Saturday details as tradition or background, and keep to the text.
- Friday can be upsetting for some children. Stay calm, keep it brief, and move on to the good news of the resurrection.
Send it home with parents
Today your child walked through Holy Week in Mark: Sunday's welcome, Thursday's supper and prayer, Friday's cross, and the empty tomb on Easter morning. Jesus gave His life for many and God raised Him from the dead.
- Which day of Holy Week do you remember best, and why?
- What did Jesus pray in the garden, and what does that teach us?
- How can we tell someone this week that Jesus is risen?
Each evening this week, read one row of the Holy Week table together and look up the verses in Mark. Let your child draw the scene, then open the Empty Tomb card on Easter morning.
Say Mark 16:6 each day, and tell one person, 'Jesus is risen!'
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