Materials Required: Powerpoint (link), a can of coke (or healthier option), chocolate bar and a tea-bag pre-stuffed with money of some sort (I used a £2 coin)

Ideal For: Lower school (ages 11-14)

The Assembly

Intro: Introduce yourself

Illustration 1: Guess The Price (with powerpoint) – Play the price guessing game using the powerpoint. Here are some notes on the items if you choose to use ours.

The iPod Nano is the 8gb model with video camera

The Xbox 360 is the elite model with a 120gb hard drive

Honda Civic Type S, 1.4l petrol engine…manuel gears with air con, refrigerated glove box and electric windows

The house is a 5 bedroom detached house in a village with 3 reception rooms, 3 bath/shower rooms and 1/2 acre of land

Ask: How would you value yourself?

Illustration 2: Have the can of coke, chocolate bar and used tea-bag on a table at the front and ask for a volunteer, find out their name and invite them to choose an object to take home with them. Once their choice is made ask them why they chose that object.

Explain: We’re all very different, we have different interests & different abilities but in some way we often value ourselves and each other by looks.

I wonder how many of you recognise this lady? (show a picture of Susan Boyle)

Anyone know who it is? (Susan Boyle)

I have to confess that I never watched Britain’s Got Talent and I’m not a big fan of reality TV but I read about Susan Boyle in the papers after and like thousands of others I headed to YouTube to watch her performance…and I love her story!

We have this lady who isn’t the most attractive, who perhaps doesn’t take great care of herself and she walks onto this stage and by just walking on Simon, Piers and Amanda have made judgements about her based on her looks.

On the clip she mumbles and stutters and introduction and you watch it and think ‘There’s no way this lady has got any talent’ and then she starts singing…

And she’s fantastic!

Explain: I wonder how often we make judgements based on the way someone looks, or dresses?

I wonder what you thought about me when you came into assembly and saw me this morning?

It’s so easy for us to value people on the way they look and judge their worth based on their looks, whether it’s based on the clothes they wear or the bag they carry around school.

Sometimes we forget to take a deeper look at the person inside. If name of young person had looked more carefully then they’d have noticed that my seemingly unattractive used tea-bag actually contains some money. (Note: If the volunteer chose the tea bag you may like to mention that they didn’t judge on outward appearances)

One thing I believe as a Christian is that everyone is valued by God, one verse on the bible says ‘You are precious and honoured in my sight and I love you’ (Isaiah)

So as Christian I try and value everyone equally, I try not to make judgements on the people look but try to get to know them and I want to encourage you this morning to take that away with you.

As you leave assembly and go through the way think about the judgements you make without getting to know a person, perhaps you could talk to someone who you wouldn’t normally talk to, perhaps someone who doesn’t have that many friends and remember that like the tea bag what’s on the inside is worth more than outward appearances may suggest.

Thanks for listening and I hope you have a good day