Craft

Ark of the Covenant Craft for Kids

An easy ark of the covenant craft for kids in three levels, a gold paper box with a lid, four rings and two craft stick staves to carry it. Free printable.

Preschool–Grade 5

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⬇ Craft template + instructions (PDF) · 5 pages

Free to print and copy for your church, classroom, VBS and home. Please don't resell or re-post our files; link to the page instead.

Ages: Preschool (3–5), Early Elementary (K–2), Upper Elementary (3–5)
Time: 15 to 30 minutes
Scripture: Exodus 25:10–22
Bible story: The Ark of the Covenant

What you need

The printed template (page 2), one per child (cardstock is sturdiest)
Two craft sticks per child (the staves)
Yellow crayons or markers
Scissors and a glue stick
The printed cherubims and testimony page (page 3), one per child, and a light gray crayon (harder level)

Steps

Color every piece on the page yellow, for gold: the ark, the four ring strips and the mercy seat. Color the two craft sticks yellow too. They are the staves.
Cut out the ark, the four ring strips, the mercy seat and the verse strip on the dashed lines.
Turn the ark over, colored side down, and glue the verse strip in the middle of the bottom. It will be inside the ark.
Fold up the two sides and the two ends on the dotted lines, with the colored side outside. Glue each tab inside a side, so the ark is an open box.
Roll each ring strip into a ring and glue the end over the line. Glue the rings on the four ring circles, two on each side, near the corners (Exodus 25:12).
Fold the mercy seat's glue tab down and glue it inside the top of one side, so the mercy seat lies on top like a lid that lifts (25:21).
Slide one craft stick through the two rings on each side (25:14). Now carry the ark by the staves, one friend in front and one behind.
Lift the mercy seat and read the verse inside the ark together.

This ark of the covenant craft turns one printed page and two craft sticks into the ark God told Moses to make. Kids fold a little box and color it gold, because God said, "within and without shalt thou overlay it" (Exodus 25:11). They add four gold rings and slide the staves through, "that the ark may be borne with them" (25:14), then set the mercy seat on top. The memory verse, Exodus 25:22, is glued inside the ark, under the mercy seat. It costs under 50 cents a child.

The finished craft, easy and medium level

The finished craft, harder level

What it looks like finished: easy and medium (first photo) and harder (second photo).

Why this craft works

Cheap and simple: one printed page, two craft sticks, a yellow crayon, scissors and a glue stick.
Kids carry it: the staves go through the rings, just as God said (Exodus 25:12–15), so two kids can carry the ark together.
It follows the pattern: the box keeps the ark's shape, 2½ cubits long and 1½ wide and high (25:10), with the mercy seat the same size on top (25:17).
No people drawn, and never God: the craft shows only the ark, its rings and staves, the mercy seat, and, for older kids, the two gold cherubims and the tables of stone.
It carries the verse home: Exodus 25:22 (KJV), the memory verse for the whole set, is glued inside the ark, under the mercy seat.

Three ways to make it

Easy (preschool, ages 3–5): you cut out the pieces, and a helper folds and glues the box. Kids color, slide in the staves and carry the ark. No scissors.
Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, cut, fold and glue the ark, add the rings and slide in the staves.
Harder (grades 3–5): the craft in the second photo. Kids also add the two gold cherubims on the ends of the mercy seat, facing each other, and put the two tables of the testimony inside, from page 3 (Exodus 25:16–21).

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask who God told how to make the ark (Exodus 25:1, 25:10), what it was made of (25:10), where the gold went (25:11), how many rings it had (25:12), what the staves were for (25:14), what went inside (25:16), what the gold lid was called (25:17) and what God said He would do above the mercy seat (25:22). Then read Exodus 25:22 together.

Tips for the classroom

For preschoolers, cut out the pieces and fold the boxes ahead of time, so all they do is color, slide in the staves and carry. Have kids carry their arks across the room two by two, one in front and one behind, holding only the staves.

Teaching the story first? Use the free ark of the covenant lesson and the word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple ark of the covenant craft for preschoolers?

Cut out each child's pieces ahead of time. Preschoolers color the flat pieces and two craft sticks yellow, for gold. Then a helper folds and glues the box, the rings and the lid, and the kids slide in the craft stick staves and carry it. About 15 minutes, no cutting by the kids.

How much does this ark of the covenant craft cost?

Under 50 cents a child: one printed page, two craft sticks, a little glue and crayons you already have. The template is free to print. The harder level adds a second page.

What Bible verse goes with this craft?

Exodus 25:22 (KJV), "And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat ..." It is the memory verse for the whole set, and it is printed on the verse strip that kids glue inside the ark, under the mercy seat.

How can older kids make this craft harder?

Use the harder level for grades 3–5. Kids also make the two gold cherubims from page 3 and glue one on each end of the mercy seat, facing each other, so their wings "stretch forth" on high, covering the mercy seat, and their faces look toward it (Exodus 25:18–20). Then they put the testimony, two little tables of stone, inside the ark (25:16, 25:21; 31:18).