Note to parent or teacher: Here is a 20-minute lesson plan on the following lesson objectives: “Learn the importance of truthfulness and what it means to practice it,” and “learn that making mistakes is a part of growth and development, and that being honest when one makes mistakes encourages learning and growth.” (Character Building: Values and Virtues: Truthfulness-1a,b)

Read “The Truth of the Purple Walls.”

Discuss the meaning and application of this stanza from a poem written by Sir Walter Scott:

“Oh what a tangled web we weave,
When first we practice to deceive.”

Talk about how Oskorn, Bershag, and Misang were caught in the web of lies they had woven, much like an insect is caught in a web woven by a spider. (Here are some pictures of spiders’ webs you could show the children.)

Read “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.”

Watch “Wolf, Wolf!”

Look up, read, and talk about the meaning and application of each of these Bible verses about truthfulness:

• Proverbs 28:13
• Proverbs 4:24
• Ephesians 4:25
• Colossians 3:9–10

Discuss how we appreciate the trust of our friends, members of our family, or others we interact with; but how if we are dishonest, it can cost us that trust.

Additional activity: 

• Draw a spider web on a piece of paper, leaving room to write the above-mentioned stanza from Sir Walter Scott. Then post it on the wall for a reminder of the importance of truthfulness.