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Mustard Seed Craft for Kids

An easy mustard seed craft for kids in three levels, a fold-open card where a real seed in the field becomes a tree with birds. Free printable template.

Preschool–Grade 5

Mustard Seed 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
Matthew 13:31–32; 17:20
Bible story
The Mustard Seed

What you need

  • The printed template (page 2), one per child (cardstock is sturdiest)
  • Crayons or markers in yellow, green, brown and blue
  • Scissors, a glue stick and clear tape
  • One real mustard seed per child (a small jar from the spice aisle is plenty for a whole class)
  • The printed pop-up page (page 3), one per child (harder level)

Steps

  1. Color the card: the sun yellow, the grass green and the soil brown. Leave the sky white. Color the tree: the leaves green, the trunk and branches brown and the 3 birds blue.
  2. Cut out the card, the tree and the verse strip on the dashed lines. Help younger children with the cutting.
  3. Fold the card in half on the dotted line, with the picture on the inside. Open it again.
  4. Put one real mustard seed in the little circle on the soil on the left side, and cover it with a small piece of clear tape.
  5. Glue the tree on the right side, with the bottom of the trunk on the soil where the dotted box is.
  6. Close the card and turn it over. Glue the verse strip on the back, and read it together.
  7. Tell it: open the card. Point to the seed: it "is the least of all seeds" (Matthew 13:32). Point to the tree: "when it is grown... becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof."

This mustard seed craft turns one printed page into a fold-open card for the parable of the mustard seed. Jesus said the kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which "is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown... becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof" (Matthew 13:31–32). Kids tape a real mustard seed in the field on one side, and open the card to find the tree it becomes on the other. Matthew 17:20, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed," 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, crayons, scissors, glue, tape and one mustard seed from a spice jar.
  • Kids hold the real thing: a real mustard seed shows how small "the least of all seeds" is (Matthew 13:32).
  • It tells the story: a tiny seed on one side, a big tree with birds in the branches on the other.
  • No person is drawn: the card shows the seed, the field and the tree. Jesus is not drawn.
  • It carries the verse home: Matthew 17:20 (KJV) is glued on the back of the card.

Three ways to make it

  • Easy (preschool, ages 3–5): you cut out and fold the pieces, glue in the tree and tape in the seed. Kids color and open the card. No scissors.
  • Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, cut out the pieces, fold the card, tape in the seed and glue the tree.
  • Harder (grades 3–5): the craft in the second photo. Kids glue the tree on two fan-folded strips from page 3 so it pops out when the card opens, and add two flying birds with folded-up wings.

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask what the man sowed in his field (Matthew 13:31), how big a mustard seed is (13:32), what it becomes (13:32), what the birds of the air do (13:32) and what Jesus said about faith as a grain of mustard seed (17:20). Then read Matthew 17:20 together.

Tips for the classroom

Keep the mustard seeds in a small cup on each table and tape each one in right away; they are tiny and roll. For preschoolers, cut out and fold the card ahead of time, so all they do is color and open it.

Teaching the story first? Use the free mustard seed Bible lesson and the Mustard Seed word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple mustard seed craft for preschoolers?

Cut out each child's card, tree and verse strip ahead of time and fold the card. Preschoolers color the pieces. You glue the tree inside, tape the mustard seed in its circle and glue the verse on the back. Then they open the card to see the tiny seed and the big tree. It takes about 15 minutes with no cutting by the kids.

How much does this mustard seed craft cost?

Under 50 cents a child: one printed page, a little glue and tape, one mustard seed from a spice jar and crayons you already have. The template is free to print. The harder level adds a second page.

What Bible verse goes with this mustard seed craft?

Matthew 17:20 (KJV), "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." The whole verse 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 fold two paper strips back and forth like a fan and glue the tree on them, so it pops out when the card opens. They also add two birds with wings that fold up, flying in to "lodge in the branches thereof" (Matthew 13:32).

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