For alternative actions that can be used during any unit at any time of year, see Saying Sorry Actions: Options 2, 3 and 4 on pp. 40–2 of Book 1.

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Saying Sorry Action: Option 1

Action: weeding a 'garden'

At St Peter’s, Walworth, we use a tray with soil or a brown cloth and paper or real flowers, covered with lots of green paper strips to look like weeds). Large groups may like to make sure their garden can be carried around the circle.

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Place your ‘garden’ in the centre of the circle.

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If your church follows the liturgical year, you may like to start with the following:

In Green Time, everything grows.

Flowers grow, trees grow and the Church grows!

We’re part of the Church, so we’re growing too!

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Jesus wants to plant the seed of God’s Kingdom in all of us!

Let’s close our eyes and imagine

the seed of God’s Kingdom growing inside us!

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After a moment:

Let’s open our eyes again.

To help seeds have space to grow,

we need to pull the weeds out.

When we say sorry to God,

it’s like we’re ‘weeding’ our heart.

We’re pulling all the bad things out

and giving space to the beautiful flowers.

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Let’s imagine our heart is like this garden.

Let’s go around the circle and pull one weed out of the garden

so we can see the beautiful flowers growing beneath.

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As the garden is ‘weeded’, lead the group in either

Option 1: singing the ‘I’m sorry’ refrain, or

Option 2: humming the first two lines of the ‘We need a new start’ song, followed by singing the refrain ‘We’re sorry, we’re sorry, we need a new start’.

 

When the group has finished weeding, ask a child to remove any remaining ‘weeds’ from the garden.

Look at our beautiful garden!

Now we can see all the flowers growing.

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The Good News is that when we say sorry,

God will always give us a new start!

We can grow beautifully again.

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God’s Kingdom can grow inside us

just like our beautiful garden.

After 3, let’s shout, ‘God gives us a new start!’

1, 2, 3: God gives us a new start!

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Saying Sorry Action: Option 2

Action: showing how a seed grows tall with our bodies

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Let’s close our eyes for a moment.

Jesus wants to plant the seed of God’s Kingdom in all of us!

Let’s imagine Jesus coming to us now.

Let’s ask Jesus to make our hearts ready.

Hold a moment of quiet.

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Now let’s imagine Jesus planting the seed of

God’s Kingdom in our hearts.

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After a moment:

Let’s open our eyes again.

Let’s show how a seed grows!

Let’s curl up into a ball like a seed.

Lead the children in curling up into a ball.

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First, we need to put our roots down.

Let’s show our roots with our fingers.

Lead the children in wiggling fingers.

We need to let our roots grow down deep.

Lead the children in wiggling fingers down.

Then after 3, let a little shoot pop up.

1, 2, 3 . . . Pop!

Poke your hands up over your head like a little shoot.

Then start to grow up tall.

Gradually stand up, swaying like a growing stalk.

Taller and taller, onto our tiptoes . . .

Reach up with pointy hands and on tiptoes.

Let’s turn our faces up towards the sun!

Then let our leaves or branches spread out wide.

Arms stretch slowly outwards.

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Look at those beautiful plants!

Let’s ask for God’s Kingdom

to grow even more inside us today.

And let’s remember to live by the rules of God’s Kingdom

by loving each other.