Parable of the Sower Sunday School Lesson for Kids

This free Parable of the Sower Sunday school lesson teaches kids to listen to God's Word, understand it and keep it, so it grows and bears fruit in their lives. Jesus told of a sower whose seed fell by the way side, on stony places, among thorns and on good ground (Matthew 13:3–8), and then explained it Himself: the seed is "the word of the kingdom" (13:19). It comes in four age levels, each a separate printable teacher lesson, plus one take-home sheet for families. Pick the one that fits your class. Everything is in the order you teach it.

Choose your age level

• Preschool (ages 3–5), 20–30 minutes, 2 pages: a walk-to-the-ground game, a short story with hand motions and repeat-after-me lines, three simple questions, a shortened memory verse ("having heard the word, keep it") with motions, and a good-ground drawing.
• Kindergarten to 2nd grade, 45 minutes, 4 pages: the Where Did It Land? seed toss, the story in simple words with Jesus' own explanation, five recall questions with answers, the Plant the Seeds memory verse game, and a Grow or Wither review game.
• 3rd to 5th grade, 45–60 minutes, 4 pages: a listening game, kids look up verses in their own Bibles during a fuller story and Jesus' explanation (Matthew 13:18–23), five thinking questions and three recall questions, and a four-corners game matching each verse to its ground.
• Preteens (ages 11–12), 45–60 minutes, 3 pages: students read Matthew 13:1–9 and 13:18–23 out loud themselves, with every old word explained, then compare what Mark and Luke add. Six discussion questions, a journal page, and two memory verses (Luke 8:15 and Matthew 13:23).

Lesson at a glance

• Bible passage: Matthew 13:1–23 (also Mark 4:1–20 and Luke 8:4–15)
• Main point: Listen to God's Word, understand it and keep it, and it will grow and bear fruit in your life.
• Memory verse: Luke 8:15 (KJV), with Matthew 13:23 added for preteens
• Ages: preschool to preteen, in four versions

Lesson outline (the same in every version)

1. Opening game: a short game about seeds landing in different places, or about really listening.
2. Bible story: Jesus teaches from a ship by the sea side (Matthew 13:1–2); the sower and the seed that fell by the way side, on stony places, among thorns and on good ground (13:3–8); "Who hath ears to hear, let him hear" (13:9); and Jesus' own explanation of the parable (13:18–23). Every fact has its verse reference so you can check it.
3. Questions to ask: with answers, at the right level for each age.
4. Memory verse: a game or motions to help kids learn Luke 8:15.
5. What this means for us: hearing and keeping God's Word, the gospel (Acts 2:38), and a challenge for the week.
6. Activity: the Parable of the Sower word search, crossword, maze, worksheet, the Parable of the Sower craft, a grow-or-wither game, a four-corners game or a journal page, depending on the age.
7. Prayer.

Tips for teaching the Parable of the Sower

• Call it what Jesus called it: "the parable of the sower" (Matthew 13:18). It is a story Jesus told to teach, not an event that happened.
• Let Jesus explain it. The meaning in every level comes from His own words in Matthew 13:18–23, with Luke 8:11–15.
• Use the King James words: by the way side, the fowls, stony places, among thorns, good ground, and "some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold" (13:8). Each level explains the old words.
• The Bible doesn't say what kind of seed it was, and in this parable Jesus explains the seed and the ground, not the sower. The lessons don't guess.
• Short on time? Do the story, three questions and the memory verse. That is a solid 25-minute lesson.