Craft

Parable of the Talents Craft for Kids

A free parable of the talents craft for kids in three levels. Count the talents, double them and hide one in the earth (Matthew 25:14–30). Free template.

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: Matthew 25:14–30
Bible story: The Parable of the Talents

What you need

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

Steps

Color the card: the sky light blue and the ground green. Leave the three windows and the dotted spots white.
In each window, draw one servant: three men in long robes.
Color all the bags yellow and the earth pocket brown.
Cut out the card, the 2 strips of five bags, the 2 strips of two bags, the single bag, the earth pocket and the verse strip on the dashed lines.
Put glue on the back of the earth pocket along its left, right and bottom edges only. Press it on the dotted hill under the third window. Leave the top open.
Glue the verse strip on the back of the card. Read it together.
Tell it and glue: the lord gave five talents, two talents and one talent (Matthew 25:15). Glue one strip of five on the top dotted spot under the first window and one strip of two on the top dotted spot under the second window. Hide the single bag in the earth pocket: the third servant "digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money" (25:18).
The first two servants traded and gained as much again (25:16–17): glue the other strip of five and the other strip of two on the dotted spots under the first ones. After a long time the lord came back (25:19) and said, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant" (25:21). Then take the single bag out of the earth and glue it on the last dotted spot, under the ten: "Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents" (25:28).

This parable of the talents craft turns one printed page into a counting card for Jesus' story. A man travelling into a far country gave his servants "five talents, to another two, and to another one" (Matthew 25:15). Kids draw the three servants, glue on the bags of money as the story goes, and hide one bag in the earth pocket, the way the third servant "digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money" (25:18). When the lord comes back, the hidden talent goes to the servant with ten (25:28). The memory verse, Matthew 25:21, 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 tell the story by counting: five and two and one (Matthew 25:15), five more and two more (25:16–17), one hidden in the earth (25:18) and given to the servant with ten (25:28).
It sticks to the Bible: the talents are plain bags of money, the way talents of silver were carried in bags (2 Kings 5:23), and verse 30 is left for older kids.
It stays gentle: kids draw the servants themselves, and Jesus is not drawn.
It carries the verse home: Matthew 25:21 (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 and glue on the pocket and the verse strip. Kids color, draw the servants and glue the bags while you count together. No scissors.
Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, draw, cut out the pieces and glue the bags as the story goes.
Harder (grades 3–5): the craft in the second photo. Kids also make the master and a far country pocket on the back from page 3, so he can leave on his journey and come back to reckon with his servants (Matthew 25:15, 25:19).

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask where the man went (Matthew 25:14), how many talents each servant got (25:15), what the first two did with theirs (25:16–17), where the third servant put his (25:18), what the lord said to the faithful servants (25:21) and who got the hidden talent (25:28). Then read Matthew 25:21 together.

Tips for the classroom

For preschoolers, cut out the pieces and glue on the pocket and the verse strip ahead of time, so all they do is color, draw and glue bags as you count. Cardstock keeps the earth pocket sturdy. Spend the most time on "Well done, thou good and faithful servant," and remind kids that the servant with two heard the same words as the servant with five.

Teaching the story first? Use the free parable of the talents lesson and the word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple parable of the talents craft for preschoolers?

Cut out each child's pieces ahead of time and glue the earth pocket and the verse strip on the card. Preschoolers color, draw the three servants and glue the bags on the dotted spots while you tell the story, counting five, two and one, then hiding one bag in the earth. It takes about 15 minutes with no cutting by the kids.

How much does this parable of the talents 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?

Matthew 25:21 (KJV), "His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord." It is the memory verse for the whole parable of the talents 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 also make the master, drawn in a window piece, and a far country pocket on the back of the card from page 3. The master goes into the far country when he takes his journey (Matthew 25:15) and comes back "after a long time" to reckon with his servants (25:19).