Turning The Tables

Normally this blog details the silly things my kids do and say. Well, today I am ratting myself out… because it’s funny.

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I teach the preschool bible study for our church’s mid-week youth program.  We have a small class, typically four kiddos.  Last night we only had two.  After we read a story and talk about how it relates to the bible we usually do a coloring sheet or other activity. So last night we talked about ladybugs and how they can be helpful.  I had a story about a ladybug who always messed up when she tried to help until finally she found a way she could be really helpful (eating other bugs to help save trees). Then we talked about how God wants us to be helpful too.

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Anyway, the kids were coloring a sheet with a ladybug on it.  One of the kids counted the ladybug’s legs and announced she had eight legs. I told her she was right and then we started talking about other animals and insects and how many legs they had. We did spiders, cats, giraffes, ducks, and lambs.  Then I made a classic error that exemplifies the notion of “knowing your audience.” I asked them how many legs a dog has.

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I know most of you are very confused right now, except for my fab friend Karen who is probably cracking up right now because she knows what is coming next.

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You see Karen has a three-legged dog and her daughter is one of the kids in my class.  So after asking the question, the one little girl announced “FOUR!” while Karen’s daughter kind of giggled and said “my dog has THREE!”  At that point I was stuck. They were both right.

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In true fashion, Karen’s little one went on to explain to us that her dog Polly had cancer when she had four legs and now that she has three legs, the cancer is all gone.

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So my advice to you is to know your audience and always be prepared for the unexpected when dealing with kiddos!