Loveland, Colorado

Preteen Grapple Guide

Volume 3 Spring
Copyright 2014 Group Publishing, Inc.

Permission to photocopy these lessons from Grapple granted for local church use.
Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Avenue, Loveland, CO 80538. For
information, visit group.com/permissions.
Visit our website: group.com
Thanks to our talented Grapple curriculum team!
Jeff Brunacci, Jean Bruns, Sharon Carey, Pam Clifford, Kate Elvin, Erica L. Feucht, Nancy
Friscia, Deborah Helmers, Becky Helzer, Stephanie Martin, Peggy Naylor, Pamela Poll
Design, Jessica Sausto, Joani Schultz, Rodney Stewart, Rebecca Swain, Ali Thompson,
Joey Vining, Amy Weaver, Roxanne Wieman, Christine Yount Jones, Andrea Zimmerman
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Item # 124040
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 16 15 14
Printed in the United States of America.

Introduction to Grapple......................................................................................... 4

Whos the Boss of Me

Key Verse: Romans 13:1

Lesson 1: Why Do So Many People Boss Me Around?

Romans 13:1-5; 1 Peter 2:13-17...................................................................................... 7

Lesson 2: When Do I Get to Be the Boss?

1 Samuel 17:32-37; 18:5-9; Luke 22:24-27; John 13:1-17; 1 Timothy 4:12 ................. 15

Lesson 3: What About When My Parents Are Unfair?

John 12:49; 1 Corinthians 13:11-12; 1 Peter 2:18-25 ................................................... 23

Lesson 4: What if My Parent Asks Me to Do Something Wrong?

Daniel 3:8-30; Acts 5:25-29; Philippians 4:13................................................................ 31

Salvationthe Great Escape

Key Verse: Romans 6:23

Lesson 5: Why Doesnt Everyone Go to Heaven?

Isaiah 59:1-2; Matthew 7:13-14; Romans 5:20-21; 6:23............................................... 39

Lesson 6: Why Isnt Being Good Good Enough?

Psalm 14:2-3; Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:21-28; Ephesians 2:8-9; Hebrews 11:6............. 47

Lesson 7: Why Did Jesus Have to Die?

Leviticus 1:1-4; Romans 3:23; 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-5; Hebrews 9:22; 10:1-10;
1 Peter 2:22-24............................................................................................................... 55

Lesson 8: Why Doesnt Everyone Just Believe in Jesus?

John 1:6-13; Romans 10:9-13....................................................................................... 63

Hide n Seek

Key Verse: Proverbs 16:2

Lesson 9: Is It OK if I Dont Get Caught?

Acts 5:1-11; 1 Timothy 1:18-19; 1 John 2:3-6............................................................... 71

Lesson 10: Is It OK if Nobody Gets Hurt?

Psalm 32:1-5; Romans 5:12; Galatians 6:7-10; Ephesians 4:30................................... 79

Lesson 11: Is It OK if I Was Trying to Help?

1 Chronicles 29:17; Proverbs 16:2; 20:27; Jeremiah 17:10; Philippians 1:12-18......... 87

Lesson 12: Is It OK if My Friends Parents Say Its OK?

Deuteronomy 5:16; Proverbs 13:1; Mark 7:10-13; Romans 13:1; Colossians 3:20..... 95

Grapple Games .................................................................................................. 103

our preteens need more than the same old Bible lessons; they need Bible
depth. Grapple is specifically designed to get preteens grappling with tough
questions in meaningful ways so they understand and own their faith. Grapple
gets kids into the Biblelike no other curriculum can!

Introduction

Each week, kids follow the same schedule.

grapple schedule
5 minutes
10 -15 minutes
10 minutes
15 minutes
10 minutes
5 minutes

grapple community
grapple games
grapple time
grapple team time
grapple team reports
grapple prayer and dare

Please note that times are approximate and should be flexible to fit your small
groups needs.

Grapple Community: Kids enjoy snacks and friendship as they spend time getting to know each other. Have your kids choose the music to play during this
time. Then play a three-minute countdown, included on your Grapple DVD,
to let kids know how much time they have until Grapple Community is over.
You can also use the countdowns to wrap up an activity in the lesson.
Grapple Games: Kids vote for the games theyll play. Youve got a great selection of fun games to engage your preteens.
4

Grapple Time: Grapple Time is the leader-led experience for your entire
group. Grapple Time involves everyone in making discoveries; the experience gives kids the desire to dig into the Bible for answers.
Grapple Team Time: Kids get into their Grapple Teams of six or fewer to dig
into the Bible with the reproducible Grapple Team Guide.

Grapple Team Reports: Teams vote on how they want to report what they
discovered during Grapple Team Time. Once teams are ready to report,
they get with other teams that chose the other style of reporting. They
then take turns reporting what they learned.
Grapple Prayer and Dare: Kids choose which prayer option theyd like to do.
After the session closes in prayer, give preteens the weekly Grapple Dare
to live out their faith during the coming week.

Introduction

Who leads a Grapple Team? If you have six or fewer kids, stay together
with you as the leader. If you have several Grapple Teams, try these ideas:
Facilitate all the teams by moving around from team to team, assign a
preteen to be the team leader, or recruit adults or teenagers to be team
leaders.

ALLERGY ALERT
This guide may contain activities that include
food. Be aware that some kids have food allergies that can be dangerous. Know the kids in
your group, and consult with parents about
allergies their kids may have. Also be sure to
carefully read food labels, as hidden ingredients
can cause allergy-related problems.
5

Have kids form groups of four to six.

Explain that the groups goal is to
come up with one personal possession that begins with each letter of the
alphabet. Kids can use possessions in
their pockets, wallets, bags, and purses.

balloon pop
Give everyone a small,
easy-to-break balloon and
(see page 5)
a 2-foot length of string
or yarn. Have kids each blow up their
balloon and tie it to one ankle so that
the balloon is about 10 inches from the
ankle. Then announce that kids are to
try to stomp out other peoples balloons
while keeping their own safe.
BALLOON
WARNING

blackout
Play this game in a darkened room, with
only a small flashlight for light. Set up
a circle of chairsall facing out. Place
one less chair in the circle than you
have kids playing the game. Tell kids
that theyll play Musical Chairs with a
twist. Unlike regular Musical Chairs, this
version is played in the dark.

Ask kids to form a circle around the

circle of chairs and stand with their
arms folded across their chests. When
the music starts, have kids march
slowly around the circle in a clockwise
direction while maintaining the crossedarm position. When the music stops,
kids have five seconds to find a chair.
Anyone standing or sitting on someone
else when the lights come on after five
seconds is eliminated from the game.
After each round, have each eliminated
player take one chair from the circle.
(Let kids who are eliminated take turns
choosing when to stop and start the
music.) Play until only two people
remain.

Grapple Games

alphabet pockets

circle soccer
Have kids form a circle and lock arms.
Drop a soccer ball in the middle of the
circle, and inform kids they need to
move the soccer ball to the other end
of the room without letting go of one
another and without allowing the ball to
leave the circle. When kids have moved
the ball to the other end of the room,
theyve reached their goal. Continue
playing as time allows.

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Grapple Games

copycat

elbow tag

Have kids stand in a circle. Explain that

each person will need to secretly choose
one other person in the circle to be his or
her leader. Tell kids not to tell anyone
who their leaders are. Once the game
starts, they are to try to mirror exactly
every movement their leaders make. For
example, if a persons leader crosses
his or her arms, that person should
immediately cross his or her arms as
well. Explain that kids should try not
to look at their leaders directly so that
leaders wont know who is mimicking
them. Make sure kids understand the
activity, and then have them close their
eyes and open them on the count of
three. As soon as they open their eyes,
they should begin to follow their leaders.
The goal is for people to guess who they
think is following whom.

Have players form pairs, link elbows,

and scatter around a large room or area.
Choose one pair to start (unlinked), and
explain that one player is It and should
chase the other. They will run close to
the others, weaving in and out among
the pairs. At any time, the player being
chased may hook onto the free elbow
of any other player. When the chased
player links elbows with someone, that
persons partner must unlink elbows and
run. It should then chase that person. If
a player is tagged before linking elbows
with someone, the tables are turned.
The one who was being chased now
becomes the chaser.

earthquake
Have everyone lie on the floor. Explain
that an earthquake has just occurred
and it knocked everyone to the floor.
Tell kids that the earthquakes intensity
caused part of the building to cave in,
injuring every person in the room. Assign
everyone an injury. For example, all boys
wearing red cant use their legs, all girls
wearing blue cant use their arms, and
everyone with tennis shoes cant see.
The building will collapse in five minutes,
and they need to get everyone out of the
room. Encourage kids to work together
to accomplish this.

104

get lost
Have kids get into groups of three and
get in order according to a characteristic:
birth date, alphabetically by first letter
of middle name, shoe size, hair length,
and so on. The one with the shortest
hair, biggest shoe, or other characteristic
you choose, has to get lost and form
a trio with two different people. Then
start again. Encourage kids to go as fast
as possible to add to the fun. Caution:
Avoid height or weight classifications as
these can be sensitive subjects for kids.

Have kids form two teams. (If you have

more than 24 kids in your group, you
may want to have kids form four teams
of 12 or fewer and play two games at
the same time.) Have two adult leaders
(or one preteen from each team) hold
up a bedsheet to form a barrier. Direct
teams to line up on opposite sides of
the bedsheet, making sure teams cant
see each other. Explain that each team
is to silently choose one person to stand
about 6 inches from the sheet, facing it.
When both kids are in position, the adult
leaders will drop the sheet and kids will
attempt to say the opposing players
name firstwithout the help of teammates. Have teams choose another
person and continue playing by asking
kids to call out other things such as color
of shirt or type of shoe.

pass the paper clips

Have kids form groups of five. Ask
group members to sit in a circle. Give
each person five paper clips. Explain
that group members are to try to collect
paper clips by describing their unique
experiences and abilities. For example, a
person might tell about winning a coloring contest at the age of 4, being able to
wiggle his or her ears, or being able to
recite the books of the Bible backward.
Remind kids that every activity they
describe must be absolutely true. After
someone shares a unique activity or ability, each group member who hasnt done
that activity or doesnt have that ability
must give that person one paper clip.
Play until everyone has had a chance to
name a few things.

protect me!
Have kids form three groups: the Workers, the Bodyguards, and the Throwers.
Assign one Bodyguard to each Worker;
the group of Throwers can have one
person more or one less than the other
groups.
Explain a task that you need the Workers to accomplishsetting up chairs or
putting away supplies, for example. Then
explain that the Throwers will be wadding
up scraps of paper and tossing them at
the Workers and that the Bodyguards
will be trying to bat away the paper wads
so the Workers can work. Encourage
the Workers to trust their Bodyguards
instead of paying attention to the Throwers and the paper wads. When everyone
understands how to play, have Throwers
begin making and throwing paper wads,
and have the Workers begin working.
After about a minute, stop the play.
Have groups switch roles; Throwers can
gather the used paper wads instead of
making new ones. Have groups play
again for a minute, and then switch roles
again. After everyone has played each
role, ask all kids to assume the role of
the Workers, complete the work, and
gather the paper balls.

Grapple Games

name game

team keep away

Have kids form two teams. Explain that
teammates will try to throw a ball back
and forth to one another while the other
team tries to intercept the throw. A team
scores one point every time members
complete three consecutive passesto
three different teammateswithout an
interception. After a team scores five
points, pass the ball to the other team.
105