Craft

Paul Shipwreck Craft for Kids

An easy Paul shipwreck craft for kids in three levels. The ship breaks, but all the boards reach the shore safe (Acts 27:44). Free printable 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: Acts 27–28
Bible story: Paul Is Shipwrecked

What you need

The printed template (page 2), one per child (cardstock is sturdiest)
Crayons or markers in light blue, blue, yellow, light brown, green and brown, plus a crayon for drawing faces
Scissors and a glue stick
The printed fire and rain page (page 3), one per child, plus red, orange and gray crayons (harder level)

Steps

Color the sea card: the sky light blue, the sun yellow, the sea blue, the sand light brown and the grass green.
Color the wood of both ship parts brown and leave the sail white. Color the four boards brown, and in each window draw the face of one of the people on the ship.
Cut out the sea card, the two ship parts, the four boards and the verse strip on the dashed lines.
Turn the sea card over and glue the verse strip on the back.
Tell it: put the two ship parts together on the sea, zigzag edges touching. Cover the sun with your hand: "neither sun nor stars in many days appeared" (Acts 27:20). Paul said, "I believe God" (27:25). When it was day, sail the ship to the shore (27:39). It ran aground: the front stuck fast, so glue it on the dotted ship spot. The back was broken by the waves: slide it away and leave it loose on the sea (27:41).
Slide the four boards across the sea to the sand and glue them down: "some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship… they escaped all safe to land" (27:44).
Read the verse strip together.

This Paul shipwreck craft for kids turns one printed page into the end of the story in Acts 27: a sea card where the ship runs aground and breaks, and every board reaches the island shore. Kids draw a face on each board, glue down the front of the ship that "stuck fast," leave the broken back on the waves, and push the boards to the sand, because "they escaped all safe to land" (Acts 27:41–44). The memory verse is 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, crayons, scissors and a glue stick.
Kids act out the story: they cover the sun for the long storm (Acts 27:20), break the ship, and bring every board safe to land (27:41–44).
True to the King James Bible: the front of the ship stuck fast and the back was broken by the waves, just as Acts 27:41 says.
It shows God keeps His word: the ship was lost, but not one life (27:22). No one is drawn on the template, and never the angel.
It carries the verse home: Acts 27:25 (KJV), "I believe God," is glued on the back.

Three ways to make it

Easy (preschool, ages 3–5): you cut out the pieces and glue on the verse. Kids color, draw faces on the boards, glue the ship and push the boards to the shore. No scissors.
Medium (grades K–2): the craft in the first photo. Kids color, draw, cut out the pieces and tell the story as they glue.
Harder (grades 3–5): the craft in the second photo. Kids also make page 3: a fire that stands up on the island called Melita, the bundle of sticks Paul gathered, and a rain cloud (Acts 28:1–3).

Questions to ask

While kids work, ask why Paul was on the ship (Acts 27:1, 27:24), what the men could not see for many days (27:20), who stood by Paul that night (27:23), how many people were on the ship (27:37) and how many got safe to land (27:44). Then read Acts 27:25 together.

Tips for the classroom

For preschoolers, cut out the pieces ahead of time, so all they do is color, draw and glue. Tell the storm calmly; the point is that God kept His word to every person on board. Tell the viper on the island simply (Acts 28:3–5): there is no snake piece, and no snake games.

Teaching the story first? Use the free Paul shipwreck lesson and the word search.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a simple Paul shipwreck craft for preschoolers?

Cut out each child's pieces ahead of time and glue the verse strip on the back of the sea card. Preschoolers color the sea card and the boards and draw a face in each board's window. Then they glue the front of the ship on the dotted spot and push the boards to the shore, because "they escaped all safe to land" (Acts 27:44). About 15 minutes, no cutting by the kids.

How much does this Paul shipwreck craft cost?

Under 50 cents a child: one printed page, 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?

Acts 27:25 (KJV), "Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me." It is printed on the verse strip that kids glue on the back of the sea card.

How can older kids make this craft harder?

Use the harder level for grades 3–5. Kids also make page 3: a fire that stands up on the island, the bundle of sticks Paul laid on it, and a rain cloud for the sky. On the island called Melita the people made a fire "because of the present rain, and because of the cold" (Acts 28:1–3).