Parent Resources for

THE POLAR EXPRESS

Faith Building Family Activities for The Polar Express By Jim Burns, Robin Dugall and John Fanelli Welcome to a great opportunity to engage your children in learning some of the values communicated through the movie, The Polar Express. This film gives you an excellent and timely opportunity to underscore biblical truth and values by utilizing a wonderful film that is sure to become a classic Christmas story viewed year after year by families everywhere. The main theme of The Polar Express is revealed at the beginning of the film and often repeated in words and in visual images. It first is uttered from the Conductor when he says, Sometimes seeing is believing --- And sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we cant see. The Big Idea in this movie is FAITH. Now, the fun begins! The way that you can most effectively help your kids understand the concept of FAITH is to go beyond only telling them stories or reading Bible passages about what God says to actually SHOWING THEM -- in very simple ways -- that there are things in this world that we cant see, but that we can always rely on. You see, when these things that are mostly taken for granted, are brought into focusGod is revealed in a very real and special way. Remember, your children will remember only a fraction of what they are toldbut they will remember a VAST MAJORITY of what they see and especially experience. Experiential activities are the keys to helping your kids learn. And, always keep in mind: SIMPLICITY IS BEST!! Following, youll find family activities that you can use to help your kids understand what it means to believe in something they cant see and create opportunities for them to talk to about God and faith. Rememberthese ideas do not have to include deep conversation. Rather, use these faithbuilding activities and Bible passages to look at the world through your childs eyes. Youll be amazed at how simple and wonderful it can be and how much they learn and grow as a result.

Family Activity A Special Person Needs a Special Ticket Goal: Teaching that each child is special and has been gifted by God in a unique way. Polar Express Setting: Each of the children in The Polar Express had a train ticket that the conductor punched holes in. In the beginning, he only punched two letters, and the kids didnt know what the letters meant. As they discovered who they were, and how they needed to grow, the Conductor revealed the entire word to each of them. The words were Believe, Lead, Learn, Depend On, and Lean On & Count On. Activity: This Christmas, give your children the gift of discovering how special they truly are. As the season begins, make a train ticket for each of your children, and punch one or two letters from a word that describes their special gift, or a word that will help them to learn who they are, or how God wants them to grow. Make the ticket as simple or as fancy as you want, punch the letters in, and give it to them as an early Christmas gift. Remind them of the tickets seen in The Polar Expressand then about how special they are to you and to God. As Christmas gets closer, punch the rest of the letters of their special word into their ticket without them seeing it, and wrap it as a gift for them to open on Christmas morning. After Christmas, frame the train ticket, or laminate it, or hang it on the tree as an ornament but keep it somewhere where they can see it often. Then, each year as they grow and mature, make a new train ticket with a different word. Scripture Passage: There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 Questions: Why does God make everyone at least a little bit different from everyone else? Would it be good or bad if everyone was exactly alike? What are some things you are really good at? How can you use the things that you are really good at to make God happy? Teaching Point: Each of our children is special and gifted by God in their own unique way. Help them to see that it is okay to be themselves and that you have faith in them, just as they should have faith in Gods love for them. Every time they look at their finished train ticket, theyll be reminded that God has made them very special by only making one of them. No one else in the world is exactly like them, and God doesnt love anyone any more than He loves them. By the time theyre grown, as they see all of the tickets youve made for them, theyll not only know who God has gifted them to be, but they know that we never stop growing and learning about ourselves, and about God.

Family Activity Go Fly a Kite Goal: Using the wind as an example to teach that faith includes believing in what we cant see. Polar Express Setting: The Conductor says, Sometimes seeing is believing --- and sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we cant see. Activity: Take your children to a park and help them fly a kite. Let them feel the tug on the string, and enjoy the beauty of the kite as it floats high above them. Scripture Passage: (Jesus said) ... Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe. John 20:29 Questions: How does the kite stay up in the sky? How do you know the wind is holding the kite up when you cant see the wind? Teaching Point: Something as simple as flying a kite can teach kids about believing in what they cant see. God is like the windwe cant see itwe dont know where it starts or where it endsbut we can feel it. We can see how the wind affects the world and the weather and our lives, and we can learn to respect and trust it.

Family Activity Egg Drop Goal: Teaching how God protects us. Polar Express Setting: The Boy isnt completely sure whether or not he should get aboard the Polar Express. The Conductor brings out his clipboard and shares information about the Boy and gives him a reassuring wink. The Boy decides to get on the train. Activity: This activity is often done in Elementary School science classes to teach lessons about gravity. Start off by tossing a couple of raw eggs in the air and letting them fall to the ground. Have some fun! Make a mess! Now, together with your child, see if you can figure out a way to clothe the egg in order to keep it from breaking. This turns the discussion into a project. Try to use the things you may already have around the house or garage, and get creative with the ways you try to protect the egg. Dont be afraid to try anythingno matter how silly it may seem. The kids will love the challenge of keeping the egg from breaking. Some suggestions: Wrap it in rubber bands Put in inside a Styrofoam cup Freeze it inside a block of ice Put it in the middle of a bowl of Jell-O Wrap in it bubble-wrap

To make it more fun and challenging, keep increasing the height from which you drop the egg each time you have figured out a way to protect the egg. Scripture Passage: You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Psalm 32:7 Questions: Why do the eggs fall when we drop them? Why dont they just float in the air? How hard was it for us to find ways to keep the eggs from breaking when we dropped them? Teaching Point: Every kid believes in gravity, but no kid has ever seen it. Like the wind, we can see the effects of gravity in our world, but we cant see the gravity. Remind (or teach) your child about gravity and that it is a force that God created. The egg activity teaches about the protective nature of Gods love. God doesnt like to see us get hurt when we fall. Gods nature is a lot like the Conductor who made the boy feel safe enough to board the Polar Express. As you find different ways to protect the egg, always remind your child that likewise, God is always there to protect and guide us.

Family Activity A Walk in the Dark or a Walk in the Park Goal: Faith includes trusting that God will lead us through the unknown. Polar Express Setting: The Boy is with the Hobo on top of the train as it rapidly approaches the Flat Top Tunnel. If the boy doesnt jump off the top of the train, his life will be in danger. The rock face of the tunnel is coming straight at the boy. The Hobo says to the boy, When you get to your jumpin-off point... JUMP! The boy jumps into the darkness. Activity: Go to a room that the children are very familiar with and tell them to walk across the room (the larger the room, the better). Make sure they can walk straight across the room without needing to go around anything. Of course, it will be simple for them to do, and they wont understand the point of the exercise. Then tell them to try it againonly this time have them walk in the dark (if the room cannot be made completely dark, let your children wear a blindfold). Make sure its the same room, and theyre walking the same way they did the first time. They will still be able to do it, but they will be much more hesitant to walk quickly across when they cant see where they are going. They may even hold their arms out in front of them as they walk. For older children, you can even add the distraction of loud noise as they walk. Alternative Activity: Another activity to teach the same lesson is to take your children to a field or a park and let them walk about 50 yards in a straight line from one spot to another (the distance can vary depending on the age of the child). They will be able to do it with no trouble at all. Then have them try it again with their eyes closed and see how long it takes for them to veer off the straight path. It wont take long. Have them walk the whole distance without looking, and let them see how far off the straight line they wind up at the end. Scripture Passage: Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 Questions: Why was it so easy to walk across the room with the light on? Why was it harder to walk across the room in the dark? Were you scared to walk in the dark? How did it feel not being able to see where you were going? Teaching Point: We get so used to knowing where we are going, that we dont think about how important our eyes are in guiding us to go where we want to go. A big part of faith is trusting that God will lead us during tough times. Only by trusting Him when things feel scary or bad, can we be sure that everything will turn out okay.

Family Activity Riding Bikes With Confidence Goal: Teaching the faithfulness of Gods love. Polar Express Setting: The Boy took for granted that there was no point in believing in anything. The Girl took for granted that she was not a leader. Know-It-All took for granted that he already knew everything. The Lonely Boy took for granted that he would always be sad and alone. Activity: Take your children on a simple bike ride. Stop a number of times. Have your children get off their bikes, walk around, then get back on their bikes and start riding again. Questions: Have you ever wondered why you can balance on a bike? Do you ever wonder if you would still be able to ride your bike the next time you started out again? How do you know you will still be able to ride a bike tomorrow? Scripture Passage: For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100:5 Teaching Point: Kids have faith in their ability to ride bikes. So much faith, in fact, that they take their ability to ride completely for grantedas do we. Similarly, the Boy, Girl, Know-It-All and the Lonely Boy took their assumptions for granted. Sadly, we sometimes take God for grantedand without intending to, convey that to our children. Riding a bike is a beautiful symbol of faithand a simple metaphor of the faithfulness of Gods love. Riding a bike brings us a sense of wonder and freedom and exhilaration. It can also bring fear and pain and doubt in ourselves. Just look into the eyes of a child that has just fallen off a bike, and youll see what losing faith looks like. But as we teach our kids to get right back on after you fall, God teaches us to turn right back to Him whenever we fall. We can rely on Him to be there for us always!

Family Activity Time Journal Goal: To teach about the importance of how we use one of the most important gifts that God gives us our time. Polar Express Setting: The Conductor of the Polar Express is obsessed with staying on schedule, and getting to the North Pole before Christmas Day begins. We frequently hear him tell the passengers, Ive got a schedule, ya know. Activity: Pick a day preferably one that you and your children have off from work and school and make a detailed, down-to-the minute journal of how each of the family members uses their time for an entire day, from the minute everyone wakes up until the minute everyone goes to bed. Everyone keeps their own journal (age permitting, of course), even if you do things together during the day. Be specific about the details and about keeping track of every activity for every minute of the day. Keeping track of every moment counts regardless of how minor or mundane an activity may seem, because everything we do takes time. The very next day, while it is still fresh in everyones minds, sit down together and compare journals. Let everyone share how their time was spent. Scripture Passages: Teach us to make the most of our time, so that we may grow in wisdom. Psalm 90:12 (NLT) Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows and we are gone as though we had never been here. Psalm 103:15-16 (NLT) Questions: Yesterday, did time seem to drag along or fly by? Are you surprised by how much or how little you did yesterday? If you could do yesterday over again, would you do something different? Teaching Point: Time is a gift that God gives us and is to be treasured. Each moment can only be used once, and then its gone forever. The Conductor of the Polar Express was focused on the destination, and making sure he got there on time. Use this journal of one day in the life of your family to teach everyone to embrace the journey, and appreciatenot just use time.

Family Activity Wind at Your Sails Goal: Using the wind as an example to teach that faith includes believing in what we cant see. Polar Express Setting: The Conductor says, Sometimes seeing is believing --- and sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we cant see. Activity: On a windy day, take your child and a toy sailboat to a park that has a pond, or, go out for a ride on a real sailboat. Scripture Passage: And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6 Questions: What makes the sailboat move? Where does the wind come from? How do we know the wind is really there when we cant see it? What happens when we try to sail the boat into the wind? Teaching Point: The same lesson taught by flying a kite can also be taught by sailing. Its easy to feel the power of the wind as it fills a sail and glides a boat across the water. Its easier to sail in the direction the wind is blowing, than to go against it. In the same way, it is always easier to follow where God is leading than to try and struggle against Him on our own.

Jim Burns is the President and founder of HomeWord and host of HomeWords 1-minute and 30minute daily radio programs heard across the United States. Robin Dugall is the Executive Director of the Youth Leadership Institute at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, CA. John Fanelli is the Creative Arts Director of the Youth Leadership Institute at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, CA. HomeWord 800.397.9725 www.homeword.com