Stepping Stones

An assembly from the Culham St Gabriel archive

Suitable for Whole School (Pri) - Church Schools

Aims

To look at life as a journey.

Preparation and materials

• Lay out a series of stepping stones made from PE equipment or pieces of paper. You may wish to make courses of varying levels of difficulty. Along the course, place items such as an old plastic bag with sweets hidden in it (this should be placed near the start of the course), an item of clothing, a book, gadget of some sort, pencil, toy, ball, rucksack and so on.

Assembly

1. People often say that life is a journey. What do you think they mean by this.
   
   Listen to a range of answers.
2. Do you think that this is a good way to view our lives?
3. Do you know what stepping stones are and has anyone ever walked on some?
4. Could I have a volunteer to walk on our ‘stepping stones’ here?
   
   I would like for you to look at the items on the stepping stones and stop to pick up two of them on your way to show to us. When you have shown the items to us, put them back on the path.
   
   Repeat this with a few more volunteers – try to choose children you know will select different items on the route.
   
   Our volunteers chose different items as they walked from one stepping stone to another. Why do you think this happened?
   
   It is because each person is different and has different interests.
5. As we go through life, we come across lots of situations. Some of them are good, some of them are difficult. Sometimes on our journeys we can be in such a rush that we miss things.
   
   Show the children the old plastic bag and pull out the sweets inside.
   
   Sometimes we come across situations that are challenging or we are afraid to try. Sometimes we come across people we find it difficult to get along with or those who bring great joy to our lives. Every situation, though, good or bad, can be a ‘stepping stone’. Each one is a part of our journey through life and moves us on to the next stage.
6. There are things to learn in every stage of our lives. Some lessons are tough, some seem relatively easy, but each gives us an opportunity to learn and move forwards. 

Time for reflection

Imagine your life so far as a journey. Where have you travelled from, through and to? What adventures have you had along the way? What have you learned? Who or what has helped you? What can you do to help others on their journeys in each stage of their lives?
Prayer
Step by step we journey, watched over by those who care,
Step by step we journey, learning the ways as we go,
Step by step we journey, each stage we pass through we grow,
Step by step we are guided by each new experience we share.
God be with us at every stage of our lives.
Amen.

Song/music

'I am planting my feet' (Come and Praise, 103)

Follow-up ideas

1. Devise a board game with the title 'The Journey of Life'. Consider the stages of life - what are they? Include easy and difficult paths, encounters, help along the way, items to be collected or discarded.
2. Write some poetry or prose begnning with the words, 'Lessons I have learned in life  . . .'
3. Create other images to represent stages in life, such as ladders, branches of a tree, carriages in a train, a river, starting from a tiny spring, widening into a river, then forming a wide estuary and flowing into the sea. The children could then create artworks showing stages in their lives in their chosen images.