Wise and Foolish Builders Sunday School Lesson for Kids

This free wise and foolish builders Sunday school lesson teaches kids to hear Jesus' words and do them. Jesus told this parable at the end of His teaching on the mountain: "Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock" (Matthew 7:24). The rain descended, the floods came and the winds blew, and that house fell not; the house on the sand fell, "and great was the fall of it" (7:25–27). 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 block-building game, a short story with hand motions and repeat-after-me lines, three simple questions, a shortened memory verse ("a wise man, which built his house upon a rock") with motions, and a house-on-the-rock drawing.
• Kindergarten to 2nd grade, 45 minutes, 3 pages: the Hear It and Do It game, the story in simple words, five recall questions with answers, the Build the House memory verse game with eight paper bricks, and a Rock or Sand? game.
• 3rd to 5th grade, 45–60 minutes, 4 pages: a Heard It or Did It? opening game, kids look up verses in their own Bibles during a fuller story (Jesus on the mountain, the two builders, the people astonished at His doctrine, and the crowd at Pentecost in Acts 2:41), five thinking questions and three recall questions, and a look-up race through Jesus' sayings in Matthew 5–7.
• Preteens (ages 11–12), 45–60 minutes, 3 pages: students read Matthew 7:21–29 and James 1:22–25 out loud themselves, then discuss saying versus doing, hearing versus building, and Jesus' authority. Six discussion questions, a journal page, and two memory verses (Matthew 7:24 and James 1:22).

Lesson at a glance

• Bible passage: Matthew 7:24–27 (with 5:1–2 and 7:28–29 for the setting)
• Main point: Jesus wants us to hear His words and do them.
• Memory verse: Matthew 7:24 (KJV), with James 1:22 added for preteens
• Ages: preschool to preteen, in four versions

Lesson outline (the same in every version)

1. Opening game: a short game about hearing and doing, or about what holds a house up.
2. Bible story: Jesus teaches on the mountain and ends with a parable: the wise man built his house upon a rock, and the foolish man built his house upon the sand. The same rain, floods and winds beat upon both houses. The house on the rock fell not; the house on the sand fell. 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 Matthew 7:24.
5. What this means for us: hearing and doing Jesus' words, the gospel (Acts 2:38, which the people heard and did in Acts 2:41), and a challenge for the week.
6. Activity: the wise and foolish builders word search, crossword, maze, worksheet, the wise and foolish builders craft, a Rock or Sand? game, a Bible look-up race or a journal page, depending on the age.
7. Prayer.

Tips for teaching the wise and foolish builders

• Tell the kids it is a parable, a story Jesus told to teach a lesson. He said, "I will liken him unto a wise man": liken means compare. The Bible doesn't name the builders.
• Keep Jesus' own words: "the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew," "it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock," and "great was the fall of it" (Matthew 7:25–27). Jesus explains His own story: the difference is doing His sayings (7:24, 7:26).
• Jesus didn't say the wise man would have no rain. The same rain, floods and winds came to both houses. That helps kids who are going through hard things.
• Short on time? Do the story, three questions and the memory verse. That is a solid 25-minute lesson.