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Jesus Heals the Leper Craft for Kids

An easy Jesus heals the leper craft for kids in three levels. Touch the paper flap, lift it, and the man is clean (Mark 1:41–42). Free printable template.

Preschool–Grade 5

Jesus Heals the Leper Craft for Kids
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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
Mark 1:40–45
Bible story
Jesus Heals the Leper

What you need

  • The printed template (page 2), one per child (cardstock is sturdiest)
  • Crayons or markers in light blue, yellow, green, brown and gray, plus any colors for drawing the man
  • Scissors and a glue stick
  • The printed rays page (page 3), one per child (harder level)

Steps

  1. Color the card: the sky light blue, the sun yellow and the hills green. Leave the big window and the dotted spot white.Color the card: the sky light blue, the sun yellow and the hills green. Leave the big window and the dotted spot white.
  2. In the big window on the card, draw the man made clean: standing, with no spots (Mark 1:42).
  3. Color the flap: the edge brown and the spots gray. In the flap's window, draw the man kneeling down (Mark 1:40). Draw him big, so the spots are on him.
  4. Cut out the card, the flap and the verse strip on the dashed lines.
  5. Put glue on the dotted tab of the flap only. Press it on the dotted spot above the big window, so the flap hangs down and covers the window.
  6. Glue the verse strip on the back of the card. Read it together.
  7. Tell it: the leper kneels and says, "If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean" (Mark 1:40). Jesus "put forth his hand, and touched him" (1:41): touch the flap with your hand. "I will; be thou clean": lift the flap. Immediately the leprosy departed from him (1:42)!Tell it: the leper kneels and says, "If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean" (Mark 1:40). Jesus "put forth his hand, and touched him" (1:41): touch the flap with your hand. "I will; be thou clean": lift the flap. Immediately the leprosy departed from him (1:42)!

This Jesus heals the leper craft turns one printed page into a before-and-after card. A leper came to Jesus "beseeching him, and kneeling down to him" (Mark 1:40). Kids draw him kneeling on a paper flap with gray spots, and draw him again, made clean, in the window underneath. Then they touch the flap, the way Jesus "put forth his hand, and touched him," and lift it as they say, "I will; be thou clean" (1:41). The memory verse, Mark 1:41, goes on the back.

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 glue stick, crayons and scissors.
  • Kids act out the moment: the man kneels (Mark 1:40), they touch the flap as Jesus touched him (1:41), and lift it: "immediately the leprosy departed from him" (1:42).
  • It shows the whole story: the harder level adds four rays on every side, because the news spread and "they came to him from every quarter" (1:45).
  • It stays gentle: leprosy is shown only as simple gray spots, and Jesus is not drawn.
  • It carries the verse home: Mark 1:41 (KJV), the memory verse for the whole set, is glued on the back of the card.

Three ways to make it

  • Easy (preschool, ages 3–5): you cut out the pieces. Kids color, draw the man in the two windows and glue the flap's tab with your help. No scissors.
  • Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, draw, cut out the pieces and glue the flap.
  • Harder (grades 3–5): the craft in the second photo. Kids also add four paper rays from page 3, each with a person drawn in its window, pointing out on every side (Mark 1:45).

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask who came to Jesus and what he was doing (Mark 1:40), why a leper lived alone (Leviticus 13:46), what Jesus did with His hand (Mark 1:41), how fast the man was made clean (1:42), who Jesus told him to show himself to (1:44) and what the man did instead (1:45). Then read Mark 1:41 together.

Tips for the classroom

For preschoolers, cut out the pieces ahead of time, so all they do is color, draw and glue the flap's tab. Cardstock keeps the flap sturdy for lots of lifting. Call leprosy "a sickness of the skin," and spend the most time on Jesus' touch and His words, "I will."

Teaching the story first? Use the free Jesus heals the leper lesson and the word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple Jesus heals the leper craft for preschoolers?

Cut out each child's card and flap ahead of time. Preschoolers color, draw the man in the two windows, and glue the flap's tab on the dotted spot with your help. Then they touch the flap and lift it to show the man made clean. It takes about 15 minutes with no cutting by the kids.

How much does this Jesus heals the leper craft cost?

Under 50 cents a child: one printed page, a glue stick 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?

Mark 1:41 (KJV), "And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean." It is the memory verse for the whole Jesus heals the leper set, and it is printed on the verse strip that kids glue on the back of the card.

How can older kids make this craft harder?

Use the harder level for grades 3–5. Kids add four paper rays from page 3, each with a window where they draw a person, and glue them on the back of the card so they point out on every side, because "they came to him from every quarter" (Mark 1:45).

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