Integrity During Hard Times: Object Lesson for Kids

The insides should always match the outsides! Just like fruits!

It is never too early to learn..

Are my kids too small to be taught about integrity? It sounds like a heavy word for them to know and understand about it.

Well, the answer is no, they are not too small to learn about it because, in fact, integrity is all around us, in every place we go and in every little thing that we do. Here are the instructions for this lesson so you can reproduce it for your kids in the classroom or at home!

Materials

-A banana

-An orange

-A $5.00 bill (or any paper currency)

Lesson

Step 1

Approach and ask them, "Do you know what is integrity?"

If they say that it is trustworthiness, doing the right thing even when no one is looking, or anything closely related to that, tell them that they are right! But if they do not know the answer, explain briefly that it is something that everyone has to have, including them, then move on to the second step!

Step 2

Grab one and show them a banana. Tell them that you grabbed them in the grocery store below the sign that says "Banana." Then talk about how the outside matches the inside using the 5 senses! You may say something like, "It also looks like a banana. It smelled like banana, and when we peeled it, we knew that there was going to be banana inside!" Maybe ask a kid to take a bite of the banana and then ask him or her, "Does it taste like banana?" The answer would likely be yes!

Step 3

Grab an orange and show them. Do the same thing you did in Step 2. Point out how integrity is just like a banana or an orange, where the inside matches what is on the outside; it always has to be aligned.

Step 4

Now ask them what they would think if they had a friend who was telling them that someone stole his or her pencil. Of course, the response would most likely be something like, "Stealing is not a right thing to do!"

Step 5

Now turn the table over and ask them what they would do in a situation where no one would know if they stole something. Pretend you are walking along, and the kids notice a $5 bill fall out of your back pocket. Now tell them that they have choices and ask, "If you really believe that stealing is wrong, you believe it in your heart and mind, and you have integrity, what do you think you should do?"

Step 6

The answer may vary, but it should be something like, "You should call out to that person and say, "Hey! You dropped your money!" and then give the money back." Point out that they would let what is right guide their action, and that is what integrity is: letting the right things guide their action!

Final step

It is always good to teach kids how to do their own reflection from an early age. Tell them to take a good look at themselves today and ask them the question, "Am I a person who has already demonstrated integrity?" Am I an honest person at heart? Do my inside and outside match?"

Some Bible verses to discuss more on integrity...

The story of Paul and Silas in Jail (Acts 16)

The story of Ananias and Sapphira (Act 5)

"The integrity of the upright guides them." (Proverbs 11:3)

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