Tower of Babel Activities for Kids (Genesis 11:1-9)

This Tower of Babel game for kids takes about 15 minutes, and it drops into any lesson on Genesis 11:1-9. Kids build a paper cup tower together, then try again after each child gets a secret “new language” card. It is written for a small class of mixed ages, about 4 to 12, and it works with 2 kids or 20. You need 20 to 30 cups, a few index cards, a marker and a Bible.

A free Tower of Babel coloring page activity sheet on Ministry-to-Children makes a calm finish after the cup tower game below. Kids draw the tower their own way.

Tower of Babel cup tower game at a glance

• Bible passage. Genesis 11:1-9, the Tower of Babel.
• Big idea. The people tried to build a tower that reached to the heavens, to make a name for themselves (Genesis 11:4). But the LORD came down (Genesis 11:5). People can’t climb up to God, so God comes to them.
• Ages. About 4 to 12 in one room. Older kids read the verses and the cards. Younger kids stack cups and make the sounds.
• Time. About 15 minutes: two building rounds and a scatter, then five minutes of questions.
• Group size. 2 to 8 kids at one tower. With 9 or more, build two towers side by side.
• Supplies. 20 to 30 paper or plastic cups for each tower, one index card per child, a marker and a Bible. A phone timer helps.
• Memory verse. “Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building.” Genesis 11:5 (BSB)

Make the secret language cards (5 minutes on Saturday night)

Write one rule on each index card. Make one card for each child, plus one for the teacher. Repeats are fine in a bigger group.

• Hum only. No words, just humming.
• Animal sounds only. Moo, quack or bark. Draw the animal for kids who can’t read yet.
• Hand signs only. No sounds at all.
• One word only. Say “blip” for everything.
• Made-up words. Talk all you want, but every word has to be made up.
• Numbers only. Count out loud, and say nothing else.

A child who speaks a second language at home can use it as a card. Kids hear right away how hard the builders at Babel had it.

How to play the Tower of Babel cup tower game

1. Read Genesis 11:1-4. Say: “Everyone in the world spoke one language. The people wanted a tower that reached to the heavens, so everyone would know their name.”
2. Round 1: one language (2 minutes). Set the timer. Kids build one tower together, and they may talk all they want. Cheer when the timer ends. Ask: “Why was that so easy?”
3. Read Genesis 11:5-7. Walk over and look at the tower as you read verse 5. Then have the kids unstack the cups for the next round.
4. Hand out the cards. Each child reads a card without showing anyone. Help the kids who can’t read yet.
5. Round 2: mixed-up languages (3 minutes). Kids build again, but each child may only talk the way the card says. Watch for laughs and tangled plans.
6. Read Genesis 11:8-9. Call “Scatter!” Each child takes three cups to a different spot in the room. Say: “God scattered them, and they stopped building the city. That place was called Babel.”
7. Sit down together (5 minutes). Bring everyone back to one spot. Ask the questions below.

With one or two kids

Play too. With one child, you and the child each take a card and build one tower together. With two kids, the three of you share one tower. The tower stays small, but the mixed-up talk is just as funny.

With a wide age range

Give the hardest cards, hand signs and made-up words, to the oldest kids. Give picture cards to kids ages 4 and 5. Ask a 10-year-old to read the Bible verses out loud each round.

If you have no cups

Use building blocks, small boxes, books or index cards folded into tents. Anything that stacks will work. Paper cups from the church kitchen are fine too.

Two more Tower of Babel activities from a reader

Here are two Tower of Babel activities for kids submitted by a generous reader. Thanks BARB! Use them in your ministry to add something fresh when teaching about the Tower of Babel from Genesis 11:1-9.

“Babel Talk” Activity

This is a fun way to experience what the events of Babel would have sounded like. All you need is some colored construction paper, an empty bucket, and some kids ready to make noise!

Cut about 1” squares of construction paper…3 or 4 colors.
Fold in half or quarter and put in a container.
Have the children, one by one, put their hand in the container and get a square. (I did this in the hall while the other teacher stayed with the children in the classroom). They cannot look and see what they want…they cannot tell anyone else what color they got.
When all the children have a square have them all say their color out loud (over and over) and look for anyone else that may be saying the same color.
When they find someone else…the two continue saying their color name and look for anyone else. Each color group was assigned a specific corner to assemble when they found all the children in their group.
It’s amazing…when we stood back to listen to the kids it really did sound like babble!!!!

“The Babel Rap” and Game Idea

There are many ways you could incorporate this Tower of Babel activity into your lesson time. The whole class could learn it together, or you could have some brave kids perform it as a group. To make it a game, divide the class into groups to see who can say it different way. Have fun!
>> Click here to download a printable version of BABEL RAP to use when teaching.

• Which group can rap it the loudest?
• Which group can rap it the quietest (while audible)?
• Which group can rap it the fastest?

“The Babel Rap”

Lots and lots of people
all around.
God said “Go”
The people said “No,
We’re gonna build a tower
up to the sky.”
God looked down
with a frown.
“I said Go,
the people said no
and they’re building a tower
up to the sky”.
God sent confusion
in their mouth.
Some went north
and some went south.
And no one’s building a tower
up to the sky.

 

Tower of Babel questions to ask after the game

For younger kids (ages 4 to 7)

• What did the people want to build? (A city and a tall tower, Genesis 11:4.)
• Was it easy to build when everyone talked the same way? Was it easy with your card?
• What did God do? (He came down to see. He mixed up their language and scattered them, Genesis 11:5-8.)
• What did the people stop doing? (Building the city, Genesis 11:8.)

For older kids (ages 8 to 12)

• Why did the people build the tower? (To make a name for themselves and not be scattered, Genesis 11:4.)
• God told Noah’s family to fill the earth (Genesis 9:1). How did the people at Babel go against that? (They settled in one place and tried not to be scattered, Genesis 11:2-4.)
• What are ways kids try to “make a name” for themselves today?
• Where in the Bible does God help people of many languages hear about Him? (At Pentecost, each person heard in his own language, Acts 2:5-11.)

What does the Tower of Babel teach kids?

The Tower of Babel teaches kids that people can’t build their way up to God. In Genesis 11, the people built a tower that reached to the heavens so everyone would know their name. God came down to see it, mixed up their language and scattered them over the earth.

For young kids, say it in six words: “The people built up. God came down.” God is the one who comes to people. He came down again when Jesus was born. John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”

For older kids, add the language part. At Babel, God mixed up the languages. At Pentecost, people from every nation heard the wonders of God in their own language (Acts 2:5-11).

Where the game fits in your Tower of Babel lesson

Play the cup tower game right after you tell the story, as the review. Or play rounds 1 and 2 before the story, and read the verses after. Either way, kids will remember why the tower stopped.

Need the rest of the hour? Ministry-to-Children has a full Tower of Babel Sunday school lesson for grades 3 to 5 with the story, review questions and two more activities.

Tower of Babel memory verse with motions

Memory verse: “Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building.” Genesis 11:5 (BSB)

Point down for “came down,” shade your eyes for “to see,” and stack your fists for “the tower.” Younger kids can do the motions while older kids say the words.

More Tower of Babel activities and lessons

• Want a short message for the whole group? Try this Tower of Babel children’s sermon on pride.
• Want kids to act out the story? Use the Tower of Babel story with a teaching skit.
• Telling the story first? Ministry-to-Children has the Tower of Babel story for kids from Genesis 11.
• Want a whole unit? See the God’s World Tour series, a 4-week children’s ministry curriculum for ages 6 to 12. Week 1, “Can You Hear Me Now?”, is on the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9).
• Need games for other Bible stories? The free 25 Bible Games for Kids PDF has 25 games, each tied to a Bible story, and 17 need no supplies.
• Teaching the whole hour? Sunday School Works has a Tower of Babel Sunday school lesson for a small, mixed-age class.