Jesus is like a superhero in so many ways. He was powerful, brave, self-disciplined, cared for others, helpful, and put the needs of others before his own.
1. Follow the superhero: Participants take turns at being ‘the superhero’. The superhero (leader) stands at the front of the line and walks around. Everyone falls into step behind them. Participants take turns at being the leader. If the group is large or there is not enough time for everyone to have a turn, draw the name of the leader from a hat or use a random name generator. Pretend the superhero is leading the group to safety.
Variation 1: Conga line or obstacle course
Variation 2: Secret leader - The group stands in a circle. A secret leader makes simple movements that the rest of the group imitates. A nominated participant stands in the middle of the circle and tries to guess who is the leader. Make it harder by letting the group stand randomly around an area. Tip - Make sure the person who has to guess is out of the room, wearing a blind fold or has their back turned to the group so they don’t know who the leader is.
Discussion:
What role was most challenging (Guesser, Leader, or Followers)?
What did you enjoy most about each role?
Was leadership important during the task? How and why?
What insights into leadership did you gain from participating?
Can you relate this experience back to the example of Jesus’ leadership? Did he exhibit any of the qualities that the effective leaders in this activity did?
How well did you work as a team? How could you have improved?
How does the experience of being a follower relate to that of being a disciple of Jesus? Do you view his disciples differently after considering this?
If you were the leader and you were choosing a group of followers based on this activity, who would you choose and why?
Do you think Jesus was thinking about choosing his Apostles in a similar way? Does considering this give you more insight into Jesus and his apostles? Why/why not?
What is one thing that you can take away from this activity?
2. Superhero pass: This is a lot like pass the parcel with two parcels. Participants sit in a circle and pass around two bags or containers filled with slips of paper. One container is filled with some problems they may face in everyday life. The second is filled with superpowers, when the music plays, the students pass one bag clockwise and the other anti-clockwise. When the music stops, the participant left holding the box choose a slip of paper. The group must then work together to formulate a plan to solve the problem using the nominated superpower.
Example problems:
You see a student who has no one to play with at lunch time
There is a student who has not been asked to join a group during an activity in the classroom
Someone is calling your friend names
Your friend forgot his lunch and doesn’t have anything to eat
Your friend is sad because their grandma died
You forgot it was your friend’s birthday
Your little sister is frustrated because she doesn’t know how to play soccer
You must do something you don’t enjoy (like cleaning up your room)
You must try something you have never done before (like going on school camp)
It’s your first day at a new school
Your friend’s mother is sick
Your friend is struggling with the homework
There’s a new kid in the class and no one has made friends with them yet
Your friend’s costume is homemade, and the rest of the class have bought costumes and the kids are teasing her.
Example superpowers:
Prayer
Empathy
Listening
Parable (the power of story)
Asking for help
Bravery
Self-discipline
Helpfulness
Concern for others
Putting the needs of others before your own
Sharing
Honesty
Kindness
Wisdom