David C Cook COVID-19 Response

Who Are You Following?

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Materials Needed:

  • Interesting-looking, medium-sized stuffed animal
  • Whiteboard and marker

As students join your class, direct the large group to a table or chair where an interesting-looking, medium-sized stuffed animal sits.

Ask students to think to themselves about a name that would be fitting for this stuffed animal. Call on volunteers and write the suggested name on the board. Go around the group and ask about one-third of the students to provide name ideas, then wrap things up by saying, “There are some great names on the board—which one do you like best?” Invite all students to call out their favorite name and place a checkmark next to each name that is suggested. Leave the top three (most requested) names up and erase all of the other suggestions. Tell the class they need to pick one name for this animal. Be prepared for some noisy calling out! When one name is verbalized more emphatically than the others, say, “_______________________ seems to be the most popular” (fill in the blank). Choose the name that students agree is the one everyone likes best and then erase the other two.

Regroup in a classroom setting. Ask:

  • How did you feel if your choice for the name was erased? (Invite students to share. Answers will vary, but may include bummed, didn’t care, happy, it was a dumb name, etc. There are no wrong answers.)
  • Did you ever feel pressured to go along with a name even though you didn’t like it? (Ask student volunteers to share when and how they felt pressured.)
  • Do you think there was any peer pressure that happened here in coming up with the final name choice?
  • If not peer pressure, what do you think made the group come to an agreement on the name? (Answers will vary.)

There are many names for what we just experienced: groupthink, peer pressure, consensus, following the crowd, conforming, herd mentality, etc. Let’s watch an example of this.

Share the following clip with your students [3:10]:
Question the Herd | Brain Games

Ask:

  • What surprised you about this clip? (Invite students to share.) 
  • Do you think you would have chosen the correct answer or gone with the crowd? (Answers will vary.)

It’s easy to follow the crowd. Jesus often had crowds around Him, but were they all true followers? That is something to think about. Loving Jesus and not following the crowd is what we’re going to talk about today.

Looking for Steps 2 & 3?

You can find Steps 2 and 3 in your teacher’s guide. To purchase a teacher’s guide, please visit: Bible-in-Life or Echoes.

Materials Needed:

  • Paper
  • Pencils or pens

Spread the word

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