Here is a complete six-week Sunday school series on David, moving through his whole life in order: shepherd boy, giant-killer, hunted fugitive, faithful friend, king and songwriter, and finally a man who fails badly and repents. Each week has an objective, the passage, a story summary, discussion questions, an activity, and a memory verse -- enough to teach from directly with about 15 minutes of prep.
David is the best six-week series in the Old Testament for one reason: kids meet him as a child their own size and follow him into adulthood, which means the series can carry both "God can use you now" and "even the hero needs a rescuer." That second half is what most David units skip, and it is the half that makes the story true.
Ages: written for 6-11. Format each week: Hook (5 min) → Story (10 min) → Discussion (10 min) → Activity (10 min) → Verse and prayer (5 min).
Week 1: God Looks at the Heart (David the Shepherd)
Objective: Kids will explain that God evaluates people differently than people do.
Scripture: 1 Samuel 16:1-13.
Story: God sends Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint a new king from Jesse's sons. Samuel sees the oldest -- tall, impressive, obviously kingly -- and God says no. Seven sons pass by and God says no to every one. "Are these all?" Samuel asks. The youngest is out with the sheep, an afterthought nobody bothered to call in. That is the one. Read the full story for kids, or start with an overview of who David was.
Discussion questions:
- Why did Samuel assume the tall brother was the right one?
- Nobody thought to call David in from the field. How do you think that felt?
- What does God see in a person that other people miss?
Activity: Judge the box. Wrap two boxes -- one in beautiful paper with a ribbon, one in a grocery bag. Let kids vote on which they want, then open them: the ugly one holds the treat. Talk about what the vote was based on.
Memory verse: "People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." -- 1 Samuel 16:7
Week 2: The Battle Belongs to God (David and Goliath)
Objective: Kids will name one "giant" they face and identify who fights it with them.
Scripture: 1 Samuel 17:1-11, 32-50.
Story: For forty days a Philistine champion over nine feet tall taunts the armies of Israel, and every soldier stays in his tent. A shepherd boy arrives with lunch for his brothers, hears the taunts, and asks the question nobody asked: who is this man to defy the armies of the living God? He refuses the king's armor because he has never worn it, picks five smooth stones from the stream, and runs toward the giant. Read the full story for kids.
Discussion questions:
- Everyone else had heard Goliath for forty days. Why did David react differently?
- Why did David take off Saul's armor? What was he trusting instead?
- David said "the battle is the Lord's" (1 Samuel 17:47). What did he mean -- and what did he still have to do himself?
Activity: Name the giant. Kids draw or write a giant on a paper cutout: a fear, a hard subject, a situation at home. On the back they write who is with them. Stack the giants and knock them over with a rolled sock.
Memory verse: "The battle is the Lord's." -- 1 Samuel 17:47
Week 3: When Someone Turns Against You (Saul's Jealousy)
Objective: Kids will describe a response to unfair treatment that is not revenge.
Scripture: 1 Samuel 18:5-16; 24:1-12.
Story: David wins, and the crowds sing that Saul killed thousands but David killed tens of thousands. Saul never forgives that song. He throws a spear at David, sends him on suicide missions, and eventually hunts him through the wilderness with three thousand men. Then one day Saul walks alone into the very cave where David is hiding. David's men whisper that this is God handing him the kingdom. Instead David cuts a corner off Saul's robe -- and feels guilty about even that. Read about David on the run and how David spared his enemy.
Discussion questions:
- What turned Saul from David's biggest fan into his enemy?
- David had a perfect opportunity and a good excuse. Why did he not take it?
- What is the difference between defending yourself and getting even?
Activity: The corner of the robe. Give each child a scrap of fabric or paper "robe corner" and have them write on it one thing they could choose not to do the next time someone is unfair to them. Real, small, and specific: not repeat the rumor, not slam the door, not say the comeback they already have loaded.
Memory verse: "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God." -- Romans 12:19
Week 4: A Friend Who Gives Up His Own Claim (David and Jonathan)
Objective: Kids will identify what real friendship costs.
Scripture: 1 Samuel 18:1-4; 20:12-17, 41-42.
Story: Jonathan is Saul's son -- the crown prince, the next king by every rule there is. And Jonathan is the one who loves David most. He takes off his robe, his tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt and gives them to David, which is a prince handing over the symbols of his own claim to the throne. Later he warns David of his father's plot, knowing it costs him a kingdom. They part in a field, weeping. Read the full story for kids.
Discussion questions:
- What exactly did Jonathan give away when he handed over his robe and sword?
- Jonathan had to choose between his dad and his friend. Was he right?
- Who is a friend you would give something up for? What would it be?
Activity: Friendship trade. Each child writes one thing a good friend does on a slip, then trades slips with someone across the room and reads the slip they received aloud. Build the class list on the board: "In this room, a friend is someone who..."
Memory verse: "A friend loves at all times." -- Proverbs 17:17
Week 5: The King Who Wrote Songs (David the Psalmist)
Objective: Kids will explain that worship includes both joy and honest complaint.
Scripture: 2 Samuel 5:1-5; 6:12-15; Psalm 23; Psalm 13.
Story: After years of running, David is finally crowned king over all Israel. When the ark of God comes into Jerusalem, he dances in the street with everything he has -- and takes criticism for undignified behavior from his own wife. This is also the man who wrote roughly half the Psalms: "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing" from a boy who kept sheep, and "How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?" from a man who meant it. Read about David becoming king, dancing before the Lord, and David's shepherd song. For more on the Psalms as a whole, see our guide to the book of Psalms for kids.
Discussion questions:
- Why would a shepherd boy describe God as a shepherd?
- Psalm 13 starts with "How long, Lord?" Is it okay to say that to God?
- David danced in public and got mocked for it. When is it hard to worship in front of other people?
Activity: Write a class psalm. Two halves on chart paper: one column of "thank you for" lines, one column of "how long" or "please help" lines. Every child contributes one line to either side. Read the whole thing aloud as a prayer -- the honest column stays in.
Memory verse: "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing." -- Psalm 23:1
Week 6: When the Hero Fails (David's Sin and Repentance)
Objective: Kids will explain that confession is what God asks for, and that God forgives it.
Scripture: 2 Samuel 11:1-4, 14-17; 12:1-13; Psalm 51:1-12.
Story, told age-appropriately: At the time of year kings went to war, David stayed home. He saw a woman named Bathsheba, who was married to one of his own soldiers, and took her as his wife -- and when that could not be hidden, he arranged for her husband Uriah to die in battle. The king who spared his enemy killed his friend. Then God sent the prophet Nathan, who told David a story about a rich man who stole a poor man's only lamb. David exploded: that man deserves to die. Nathan said four words: "You are the man." And David, who could have had Nathan executed on the spot, said instead, "I have sinned against the Lord." Psalm 51 is what he prayed afterward. Read David's big mistake and David's repentance.
How much detail by age: For ages 6-8, say "David took another man's wife and then had that man killed to cover it up." That is honest and sufficient. For ages 9-11, you can add that David abused his power as king and that God's consequences for it lasted the rest of his life. Do not go further into the adult content in either group, and if a child asks a follow-up, answer with one plain sentence and move to Nathan.
Discussion questions:
- Why do you think Nathan told a story instead of accusing David directly?
- David was furious about the man in the story before he realized it was him. Why is it easier to see other people's wrongs?
- God forgave David, but the consequences still came. What is the difference between forgiveness and consequences?
Activity: The clean-heart prayer. Give each child a card with Psalm 51:10 printed at the top and blank space below. They write privately -- not to be collected or read -- one thing they want a clean heart about. Then everyone folds the card and takes it home.
Memory verse: "Create in me a pure heart, O God." -- Psalm 51:10
How Do You End a Series on David Well?
End on Psalm 51, not on Goliath. If the series stops at the giant, the takeaway is "be brave like David," which every kid already knows and none of them can do on demand. If it ends with a broken king asking God for a clean heart, the takeaway is that the greatest king in Israel's history needed the same mercy the kids in your room need -- and got it. That is the point the New Testament makes about David too, when it calls Jesus the son of David and the King who never fails.
If you have a seventh week, teach God's promise to David in 2 Samuel 7 or David and Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 9, which is the kindest story in the whole book and a beautiful picture of grace. For a review week, our 1 Samuel Bible trivia covers weeks 1 through 4 exactly.
Teachers who want more animated support for these stories can use the video lessons at Faithful Kids, which cover David's life as a full series with a quiz after each episode -- handy as your story segment on a week without prep, or as something families can continue at home.
Print the Trivia Pack for Your Review Week
Six weeks of David deserve a seventh week of nobody sitting still. Our free Bible Trivia Pack is 100 kid-friendly questions across easy, medium, and hard rounds, every answer with its Scripture reference -- print it, split into teams, and the review runs itself with zero prep.
Frequently Asked Questions
What ages is this David series for?
It is written for ages 6-11, with week 6 adjusted by age as noted in that lesson. Younger classes can take weeks 1, 2, 4, and 5 as-is with shorter discussion; our preschool lessons have a simpler David and Goliath version for ages 3-5. For a full-length elementary format with the same structure, see our Bible lesson plans for elementary.
How do I teach David and Bathsheba to children?
State plainly that David took another man's wife and then had that man killed to hide it, and spend the rest of the lesson on Nathan's confrontation and David's confession. Children do not need details; they need the shape of the story, which is that a good man did a terrible thing, was caught, admitted it, and was forgiven. If a parent objects to the topic entirely, offer week 6 as an at-home lesson and substitute David and Mephibosheth.
Why teach a whole series on one Bible character?
Because a series builds a person, not a poster. Kids who only meet David at the giant remember a brave boy; kids who follow him for six weeks understand that faith is a long arc with failure in it. Character series also make attendance stick -- kids come back to find out what happens next.
What if I only have four weeks?
Teach weeks 1, 2, 4, and 6. That gives you God's choice, the giant, friendship, and repentance -- the beginning, the famous middle, and the honest end. Weeks 3 and 5 are the ones that compress most easily into the others if you need to mention them in passing.
Did David write all the Psalms?
No. David is credited in the titles of roughly 73 of the 150 psalms, with others attributed to Asaph, the sons of Korah, Solomon, Moses, and anonymous writers. It is accurate to tell kids that David wrote many of the psalms, including the most famous one, Psalm 23 -- and inaccurate to say he wrote the book.
How do I connect this series to Jesus?
Point out the line running through it: David is the shepherd who becomes king, the one who fights the battle his people cannot fight, and the king who still needs forgiveness. God's promise in 2 Samuel 7:16 that David's kingdom would last forever is why the Gospels open by calling Jesus the son of David. Say it once at the end of week 6 and let it land -- David points past himself.
