The new year ahead
To think about the new year ahead.
by Jan Edmunds
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To think about the new year ahead.
Preparation and materials
- You will need seven pieces of A4 card. On one side of each write one letter, together spelling out NEW YEAR. On the other side write the word and the sentence to accompany that letter.
- An OHP will help in reading the poem.
Assembly
- Welcome the children back after the Christmas holiday. Another year has passed and we are entering into a new one. Tell the children that you will need some of them to come to the front to help you.
Show each card as you talk about it, then ask a child to come and hold it up. - N is for the word ‘new’. This can be a new start for everyone.
E is for the word ‘everyone’. Everyone has a chance to do something.
W is for the word ‘want’. It is important that we really want to make those changes.
Y is for the word ‘year’, made up of 12 months. As each year goes by we grow, we learn more about life and hopefully become better people.
E is for the word ‘every’. Every year we make new resolutions of one kind or another but how many of us actually keep to them?
A is for the word ‘attitude’. We need to have the right attitude towards those things that really matter.
R is for the word ‘ready’. Ready to do our best as the new year begins. - Invite your audience to look at the letters again. What do these letters spell? Yes: NEW YEAR. You might like to see if they can remember what each letter stands for.
- Invite them to share the poem. You might prepare this with children reading.
New year
Every day is a new day,
New adventures, new games to play.
Learning new lessons, new things to find out,
We’ll begin to discover what life’s all about.
Doing our best so the more we know,
We can gather knowledge as we grow.
A new year, a new friend,
We just don’t know what the year will send.
Time marches on for me and you,
There’s simply nothing we can do.
So think about your resolutions,
Be sure you come to the right conclusions. - You may like to spend a short time in discussion about new year resolutions. Are they just personal, or do they affect others as well?
Time for reflection
Think about any resolutions that you might make, or have already made. How will you manage to stick to them?
Prayer
Let us hope that this new year will be a peaceful one.
We hope that world leaders can find solutions to the many problems that exist.
Help us to be more caring in the things we say and do
so that we can help to make our world a better place.
Please be with us now and always.
Amen.
Song/music
‘It’s a new day’ (Come and Praise, 106)
Publication date: January 2010 (Vol.12 No.1) Published by SPCK, London, UK.