SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

RE LESSON PLAN
Primary

LESSON ORGANISATION

Unit of work: Loved and Forgiven Salvation topic: Penance Human person Topic: Power of
Love
Year Level: 4 Students’ Prior Knowledge: (include faith situations/
Key Understanding: previous lessons/Units)
C1 Catholic’s celebrate God’s joy when forgiving sins.
In year two, students have explored:
Learning Point(s): • The Sacrament of Penance
C1.2 Interprets from Gospel parables God’s reaction to • The concept of conscience ⟶ God talks

people when they turn back to God after sinning. to us and guides us through our conscience

Spiritual and Religious Capabilities (that may potentially be covered in the lesson)
Prudence Justice Fortitude Temperance Faith Hope Charity
eg Right choices eg Right eg Inner strength eg Moderation eg Prayer eg Reconciliation eg Service
relationships

General Capabilities (that may potentially be covered in the lesson)

Literacy Numeracy ICT Critical and Ethical Personal and Intercultural
competence creative behaviour Social understanding
thinking competence

Cross-curriculum priorities (may be addressed in the lesson)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia Sustainability
histories and cultures

Lesson Objectives (i.e. anticipated outcomes of this lesson, in point form beginning with an action verb)
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to:

• Reflect upon the parable of “The Prodigal Son” and wonder about forgiveness.
• Create a storyboard illustrating the parable of “The Prodigal Son”.
• Share an experience of forgiveness in their lives with their peers.

Teacher’s Prior Preparation/Organisation:
 Provision for students at educational risk:

• Class set of iPads • Learning difficulty: pair student with a more
• Website: https://www.storyboardthat.com capable student to work with when creating
• Small ball the storyboard.
• A4 page showing basic steps of the story of “The
Prodigal Son”. • Physical disability: allow student to complete
• Godly Play Kit “The Prodigal Son”: their storyboard on the computer to make
navigation of storyboard program simpler.
o Fabric underlay
o Pig Pen • If any student struggles with remembering

o Father’s house the steps of the parable when it comes time

o Road to create the storyboard, supply an A4 page
o Father character with the basic story elements for them to
o Two sons characters follow.
o Money bag
o Pigs
o Extra characters
LESSON DELIVERY attach worksheets, examples, marking keys, etc. as relevant
Time Motivation and Introduction: Resources/References

1. Invite the students down to sit on the mat in a semi circle formation.
When he children are seated, go to the shelf and carry the “The
Prodigal Son” Godly Play kit as you would the Bible. Place these
beside you.
Godly Play Kit

2. Roll out the road, place the father’s house at one end and the pig-pen “The Prodigal Son”
past the other end of the road but off to the one side as you say:
Fabric underlay
• “Jesus once told a story about a boy who was away from home Pig Pen
for a long time. Jesus told this story to help us understand what Father’s house
God’s love is like.” Road
Father
3. Bring the father out and place on one side of the house. Bring the two Two sons
sons out and place on the other side of the house as you say: Money bag
• “The story is about a father who had two sons.” Pigs
Extra characters
4. Move the younger son over next to the father.

• “One day, the younger son asked his father to give him a lot of
the family’s money so he could leave home and go far away.

The father gave him the money.”

5. Move the younger son a little way along the road. Move the father in
front of the house as if looking cup the road. Move the older brother off
to the side (almost out of the scene):
• “So the younger son packed his things and went away.”

6. Continue to move the younger son towards the end of the road.

Bring out one of the extra characters and put him with the younger son.
• “He spent his money on wild parties and having a good time.”

7. Remove the extra character and move the son into a space by himself.

• “Soon he had spent all the money the father had given him and
he had nothing left. Now, he was hungry and poor.”

8. Move the son next to the pig-pen and bring out the pigs.

• “He got a job feeding pigs. He was so hungry he could have

eaten the pigs’ food.”

9. Move the son to the end of the road facing the direction of his father’s
house.

• “He thought for a long time and made up his mind to go back 

to his father, He was going to ask his father to take him back,

not as a son but as a servant.”

10. Move the son down the road. Stop on the road just over half way.

• “He started the long journey home.”

7 11. Move the son on a little further and stop a short distance from the
minutes house. Move the father along the road towards the son. Have the

father and son face each other.

• “One day his father saw him in the distance and ran to meet

him. He hugged him and kissed him.”
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Time
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12. Walk the father and son back down the road together and stand
 Resources/References
next to the house. Bring in the other extra characters and place

around them.

• “The boy was trying to say sorry, but the father quickly called

his servants to get a party ready. All the father wanted to do

was celebrate and welcome his son home.”

13. Bring the father to the front as if addressing the crowd and hold your
hand over him to indicate he is speaking.

• “'My son was lost,’ he said, ‘and now he is found. He was dead
and has come back to life!’ And they began to celebrate.”

Lesson Steps (Lesson content, structure, strategies & Key Questions):

14. After the story of “The Prodigal Son” has been demonstrated, engage
the students with the following wonder questions:

• I wonder:
• How the father might have felt when his son went away?
• If you would like to work all day feeding pigs?
2 • What it would be like to eat pig’s food?
minutes • How the son felt after going back to his father after

having spent all his money?
• How the father felt when he saw his son coming home?
• If it is easy to forgive someone who has upset you?
• If you know someone who is like the father in this story?
• If you have ever had a welcome home party?

15. Explain to students that Jesus forgave many people their sins.

• Jesus taught that God rejoices when people seek forgiveness


for their sins (like the son in the story).
• This is God's reaction every time people celebrate the
Sacrament of Penance.
• Emphasise that not only are we encouraged to seek

forgiveness ourselves, but also to forgive others around us

for their indiscretions (like the father in the story).

16. Using the iPads, students must log on to the online ‘Storyboard

That’ program and create a storyboard illustrating the story of “The
Class set of iPads
Prodigal Son”.
Website:
• Students must include speech bubbles to highlight important
https://
dialogue in the story.
www.storyboardthat.com
• Students are welcome to choose their own layout and

style of the storyboard, however the final product must fit on

If needed:
one page.
A4 page with basic steps

15
of the story (for students

minutes 17. When completed, students will email their teacher a copy of their
who struggle to remember

storyboard so that it can be printed and used as a classroom display.
or need visual cues)
Lesson Closure:(Review lesson objectives with students)

18. Invite all students back down to sit on the mat in a circle formation.

19. While passing a ball between each other in the circle, students are
5 welcome to share either:
minutes
• A time when they have forgiven someone for a wrong choice
Small ball
• A time when they have been forgiven for their mistakes
• A point they have learnt about forgiveness or God’s love in
today’s session
 Resources/References
Time Transition (What needs to happen prior to the next lesson?)
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20. Before the commencement of the next lesson, ensure that all iPads
have been packed away appropriately, and the Godly Play kit returned
to its storage location.

Assessment (Were the lesson objectives met? How will they be

assessed?)
• Did the students engage well with the demonstration of the
parable story?
• Did the students find the storyboard creator program easy

to use?
• Were the students able to correct illustrate the story of

“The Prodigal Son” in a storyboard format?

• Strategies:

- Observation of student engagement during the

demonstration of the parable story.
- Checklist to record students capabilities to illustrate the
story of “The Prodigal Son” using the ‘Storyboard That’
program.

RESOURCES

Assessment Checklist

Able to use the iPads

Creativity of storyboard and the Correctly sequences
and ‘Storyboard That’
effectiveness of speech bubbles the story of “The program appropriately
and narration text. Prodigal Son.” and effectively.

Godly Play Kit “The Prodigal Son”

Includes:

Fabric underlay
Pig Pen
Father’s house
Road
Father
Two sons
Money bag
Pigs
Extra characters