Exploring the value of thankfulness through the parable of The Lost Coin.
The video
KRISSI: Hi, I'm Krissi and this is the story called The Missing Coin.
Once, there was a man who loved his wife very much, so he decided to give her a gift.
"Oh, my darling wife."
"Yes, my darling husband?"
"I love you so much, I'm giving you this gift."
"Oh… Ooh, great. What is it?"
"It's a headdress. You wear it on your head. It's decorated in 10 silver coins."
GASPS "Oh my days, it's stunning! This is the nicest headdress anyone has ever given me. I'm thankful for every single coin on it and it will always remind me of you."
The wife loved her headdress and wore it everywhere. She wore it day and night, and day and night, and day and…
We get the picture. She wore it all the time.
One morning, she looked into her mirror. Oh, thank you very much. GASPS And she got a shock.
"Oh no! One of the coins is missing. What am I going to do?"
"Don't worry, wife, it's only one coin. You still have nine, shiny silver coins."
"No, I'm thankful for each and every coin and I won't rest until I find the missing one."
She looked all around. She looked in bushes, behind trees. Where, oh where, could that silver coin be? Ooh, is that it?
No, it's a spoon! What's that doing in there? She looked all over the house. Where was that coin? Oh, is that it? No, it's just the mirror. Ah well, I'll keep looking…
GASPS Suddenly, she saw the sunlight reflect on something else bright and shiny and there it was! The missing coin. The wife and her husband were very happy.
They threw a big party for all their friends, because they were so thankful for finding the missing coin. Come on, friends, party!
KIDS: Party!
KRISSI: Thanks for helping me tell today’s Treasure Story. It’s based on a story told by Jesus and is written in the bible. We’ll see you again soon.
ALL: Bye!
The parable of The Lost Coin is found in the New Testament of the Bible. A parable is a special story using situations that are familiar to listeners to communicate a meaning or a message. This story helps us to reflect on the importance of thankfulness.
In the story a woman has ten precious coins in a headdress which is a special gift from her husband. The woman loses one coin and searches for it everywhere - it says in the Bible that she lights a lamp and sweeps the house. When she finds the coin she tells her friends and neighbours and is thankful and joyful. The story, which has parallels with The Lost Sheep, shows that God looks for each person and each individual is precious.
Duration: 3' 41".
Final words: 'We’ll see you again soon. Bye!'
Video questions
- What does the husband give his wife at the beginning of the story? (A headdress)
- What is special about the headdress? (It has ten silver coins on it)
- How often does the wife wear the headdress? (All the time!)
- What happens to the headdress? (One of the coins becomes lost)
- What does the woman do when she realises the coin is lost? (She searches for it everywhere)
Teacher Notes
This video could be used to identify common features of religions and beliefs or to retell stories. Thankfulness is something seen as valuable in many religions and in non-religious worldviews too. Use a comic strip to draw the main parts of this story showing i) the ten coins; ii) one coin being lost and the woman searching for it; iii) the woman finding the coin, iv) being thankful and telling her friends and neighbours. The children could think of their most precious possession and how they would feel if they lost it.
The children might reflect on their own and others’ ideas, feelings and experiences. Using circle time, you could reflect on times when you have wanted to show thanks. What happened that made you thankful? How did you show your thanks - did you tell others, write a card, etc? Each child could write a card of thanks to someone in the school community or could create a simple origami flower and write a message saying thank you on a parcel tag.
People sometimes talk about having ‘an attitude of gratitude’ and see this as contributing to general well-being. Some people try to write down or remember things in their lives that they are grateful for. Create a gratitude wheel with the words ‘I am thankful for…’ in the centre and then write or draw items around the outside, like spokes on a wheel. You could use this every day for a week and add new items each day in a different colour.
Curriculum Notes
This short film will be relevant for teaching KS1 Religious Education in England and Northern Ireland, the Curriculum for Wales (particularly RVE as part of Humanities), and Early and 1st Level Religious and Moral Education in Scotland.
Further resources
