Craft

Elijah and the Ravens Craft for Kids

An easy Elijah and the ravens craft for kids in three levels, a raven puppet on a craft stick that brings bread and flesh to the brook. Free printable template.

Preschool–Grade 5

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⬇ Craft template + instructions (PDF) · 6 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: 1 Kings 17:1–16; Philippians 4:19
Bible story: Elijah and the Ravens

What you need

The printed brook card, raven, bread and flesh piece and verse strip (page 2), one per child (cardstock is sturdiest)
1 craft stick per child
Crayons or markers in blue, green, gray, yellow, black, tan and brown, plus any colors for the drawing in the window
Scissors, a glue stick and clear tape
The printed widow's house card (page 3), one per child, plus orange and light brown crayons (harder level)
1 sheet of light blue construction paper per child, 9 by 12 inches (harder level)

Steps

Color the brook blue, the tree and the grass green, the tree trunk brown, the stones gray and the sun yellow. Color the raven black and leave its eye white. Color the bread tan and the meat brown.
In the oval window on the brook card, draw Elijah sitting by the brook.
Cut out the brook card, the raven, the bread and flesh piece and the verse strip on the dashed lines. Help younger children with the cutting.
Glue the bread and flesh piece under the raven's beak, so the raven is carrying it.
Turn the raven over and tape a craft stick on its back, with most of the stick hanging below the raven, so it is a puppet.
Glue the verse strip on the back of the brook card. Read it together, "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19).
Tell the story. Point to the sun and fly the raven down to Elijah with the bread and flesh in the morning. Point to the moon and fly it down again in the evening (1 Kings 17:6).

This Elijah and the ravens craft turns one printed page into the brook Cherith, where God told Elijah, "I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there" (1 Kings 17:4). Kids draw Elijah by the brook, then make a black raven puppet on a craft stick with bread and flesh under its beak. They fly it down to Elijah in the morning and again in the evening, just as 1 Kings 17:6 says, with the memory verse, Philippians 4:19, on the back. It costs under 50 cents a child, takes about 20 minutes and comes in three levels, from preschool to 5th grade.

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, a craft stick, crayons, scissors, tape and a glue stick.
Kids tell the story with it: the raven puppet flies to Elijah in the morning and in the evening, so kids act out 1 Kings 17:6 and retell it at home.
It keeps the Bible's details: the brook Cherith (1 Kings 17:3), bread and flesh (17:6), and in the harder level the widow's barrel of meal and cruse of oil that did not run out (17:16). The memory verse, Philippians 4:19 (KJV), is on the back.

Three ways to make it

Easy (preschool, ages 3–5): you cut the pieces and make the raven puppet ahead of time. Kids color, draw Elijah and fly the raven. No scissors.
Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, draw Elijah, cut out the pieces, glue the bread and flesh under the beak and tape on the craft stick.
Harder (grades 3–5): kids add the widow's house at Zarephath from page 3, with the barrel of meal and the cruse of oil (1 Kings 17:12–16), and glue both cards on light blue paper. Then they say the memory verse from memory.

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask what the brook was called (1 Kings 17:3) and who sent the ravens (17:4). Fly the raven and ask what it brought and when (17:6), then why Elijah had to leave the brook (17:7). Turn the card over and read Philippians 4:19 together.

Tips for the classroom

Print page 2 on cardstock if you can, so the raven puppet stays stiff. Tape the craft stick high up on the raven's back so it doesn't flop. For preschoolers, do all the cutting and make the puppets ahead of time, so all they do is color, draw and fly.

Teaching the story first? Use the free Elijah and the ravens Sunday school lesson and the Elijah and the ravens word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple Elijah and the ravens craft for preschoolers?

Before class, cut out each child's pieces, glue the bread and flesh under the raven's beak and tape a craft stick on the back. Preschoolers color the brook card and the raven and draw Elijah in the window. Then they fly the raven to Elijah in the morning and in the evening. It takes about 15 minutes with no cutting by the kids.

What did the ravens bring Elijah?

"The ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook" (1 Kings 17:6, KJV). Flesh means meat. The bread and flesh piece glued under the raven's beak shows a loaf of bread and a piece of meat.

What Bible verse goes with an Elijah and the ravens craft?

Philippians 4:19 (KJV), "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." It is printed on a verse strip that kids glue on the back of the brook card.

How can older kids make this Elijah and the ravens craft harder?

Use the harder level for grades 3–5. Kids also color the widow's house card from page 3, with the barrel of meal and the cruse of oil (1 Kings 17:12–16), draw the widow and her son in its window, and glue both cards on light blue paper. Then they retell the whole chapter. Each child costs under 50 cents for the easy and medium levels.