The story of “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones” is one of the most fascinating stories in the Bible. It is truly a testimony to God’s power over life and death. Here is a very creative way to share this story with your young children using a “Bible Story Tapper.”
Have you ever shared the story of “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones” with your children? If not, I highly encourage you to do so because it is a story that will delight and inspire them. This story is about a man named Ezekiel who was a prophet of God and is told in Ezekiel 37. You can tell it at any time of the year, but the “Halloween” season fits it perfectly. There are skeletons hanging all around during October 31st, so why not share a biblical truth about bones and God’s amazing power over them?
The presentation of the story of “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones” uses the Bible storytelling idea that is called a “Bible Story Tapper” activity. Using the “Bible Story Tapper” is a great way to tell any story in the Bible to young children. It combines great graphics with a simple hands-on activity that is easy for young children to enjoy.
Take a look at this sample presentation of the first part of “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones” :
Here are the directions for making your own “Bible Story Tapper” activity for “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones” :
First, you will need to separate the story into parts and find simple pictures that represent each part of the story.
Here are the parts of the story and the pictures I chose for each:
Part One: An introduction of who Ezekiel is – Picture: Ezekiel
Part Two: God takes Ezekiel to the valley of dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-2) – Picture: a pile of bones
Part Three: God asks Ezekiel a question (Ezekiel 37:3) – Picture: a question mark
Part Four: God tells Ezekiel to speak to the bones (Ezekiel 37:4) – Picture: Ezekiel speaking to the bones
Part Five: The bones come together – Picture: a full skeleton
Part Six: The skeletons become live bodies (Ezekiel 37:5-9) – Picture: a live body
Part Seven: God is the Creator of all things (Genesis 1) – Picture: a picture of creation
Part Eight: God loved us so much that He raised Jesus from the dead – Picture: a heart
Take all 8 of these picture and create a banner of bulletin board that your children can actually hit with a large fly swatter. The fly swatter will become your “Bible Story Tapper.” You can purchase the large swatters online or look around in your local stores.
You will also need to print another set of the pictures that you will show the children after each portion of the story. You could create a Power Point presentation with these pictures or you could just hold each picture up for all your class to see.
Laminate your pictures for long-term use.
How to play the “Bible Story Tapper” activity for “Ezekiel and the Dry Bones”:
Tell each part of the story directly from the Bible or with an appropriate retelling. Show the picture that matches the part of the story you just read and let a child come up and take the “Bible Story Tapper” and hit the matching picture on your banner or bulletin board that you created.
That’s it! Pretty simple, but very effective.
Interested in the old spiritual song of “Dem Bones”? This is the classic song that talks about how the “foot bone’s connected to the ankle bone” and so on. Click HERE for The Scripture Lady version of “Dem Bones.”
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