Jolanda Howe

Hi Rachel, great question. This link on the Dwell website offers some helpful ideas and suggested resources with tips for making the classroom a faith nurturing place for children with special needs. You may also want to check out the Goodbye Classroom Chaos workshop. If you read through it you'll find lots of helpful ideas for creating structure and routines that may address some of the challenges you're facing.

The best source I know of for support and training would be the CLC Network. They offer something called the GLUE, which their website describes as "a step-by-step process that includes a spectrum of tools to aid faith communities in doing 'ministry with' rather than 'ministry to' people with disabilities."

I have learned a ton from Barb Newman's workshops and presentations. She is the director of church services at the CLC Network and the author of the GLUE Training Manual. She travels to speak and train, so keep your eyes out for local workshops offered by her and see if you can connect with the CLC Network to learn what kind of training is happening in your area! They may recommend that you pick up a GLUE manual too.  

Hi Leon, I think annual training and visioning sessions for Sunday school leaders is a great idea! Faith Alive used to have an excellent resource called Sunday School That Really Works. Check your bookshelves to see if you have a copy. If so, section 1 is all about developing a vision for ministry. I'll attached three sections of it--developing a vision, an assessment tool, and a visioning excercise under the all resources section on this network. You might find these helpful as you meet with your team.

We also offer many free workshops that you can use or draw from to develop enrichment times for your leaders. You'll find them here. But your question made me think about mentoring. I always find that the best way to grow a leadership team is to bring new potential teachers on as assistant. Give them a year to serve alongside an experienced teacher and get comfortable in the role before trying it on thier own. Team teaching is much more fun than solo teaching, so it's a win win situation. You'll develop new leaders and your current leaders will feel supported. Eventually new leaders will begin to share the responsibility so no one feels burnt out.  

I hope lots of other people post here to offer idea. But please, give me a call if you'd like to brainstorm ways to do training in your church. Helping leaders develop a plan to support thier Sunday school team is part of my job at Faith Alive. You can reach me at 800-333-8300, ext. 2789 or 616-224-0789 or [email protected].

Hi Leon, I'm glad I could be helpful. It sounds like you have you have a solid plan in mind with a timeline that will set you up nicely for next fall!

I saw that several people have read this question, so I thought others might be interested in this idea and wanted to post an update. I checked with our adult Bible study editor, Paul Faber. He recommended that checking out a few of our Discover Your Bible study guides and using the TV show clips as a starter, then reading the story from Scripture and using questions from the study guide to help explore the meaning. He has done similar things using video clips and he finds it very interesting to have the group talk about the text and compare it with the interpretation presented on screen. Sounds like it would be a fun study.

Paul suggested these titles in the DYB series: Genesis, Exodus, 1&2 Samuel and Judges because they cover many of the narrative portions of the OT that would probably be included in the TV show. For the NT the studies on Mark, John, and Acts would likely cover all or most of the episodes that deal with the New Testament stories. The episodes are likely based on stories, and those books contain most of the narratives of the NT. We also have Esther and Jonah from the Infuse Bible series (which is also inductive).

The two episodes I watched covered quite a lot of Biblical ground in short segments in each episode. I imagine that if a group watched individual segments over time it could use this approach for a few years! The History Channel offers the videos for streaming over the internet, so churches interested in using the videos would probably need to make sure they have streaming capabilities in their building. I'm not sure if there are any copyright issues to be concerned about. I think that if the videos are posted online for free at the network's website and you're playing them from that source then there shouldn't be any infringement for using the videos as part of a Bible study.

Please post other ideas here if you give this a try or have a different suggestion. Thanks!

I have a story about this. My husband and I travel to see his family and often stop at a church to worship if we're traveling on Sunday. About two years ago, before we had kids, we attended a little church that acknowledged us as visitors during the service and presented us with two little teddy bears. Mine was bright pink and his was brown. They welcomed us warmly and mentioned that the bears had been with them in worship and had been prayed over. The result was that we were clear targets for friendly "hellos" after the service. We were two grown adults walking around carrying teddy bears!! It was very well intended and sweet, but a little over the top! My husband, especially, felt like everyone in the church was on a mission to greet him and learn his name. We felt a little guilty because we were just passing through that town, with no real potential of attending again or joining the church!!    

Hi Albert, I also work for Faith Alive. I was just talking with Carol Slager, the director of congregational life and education at Modesto CRC, she said they ordered 30 copies of Homegrown so that could put one in each parent's box at church. They used the book as part of a parent’s class during Sunday school, but they wanted to make sure everyone had a copy, even if they didn't attend. I thought that was a cool idea! 

I'm a new mom and I'm accumulating lots of books to help me along, but the nice thing about this one is that you don't have to read it straight through. You can skim the questions and just read the page or two that are relevant at the moment. It’s good, practical stuff with lots of ideas. I think it would work for what you’ve mentioned, especially if the person visiting would include a little note in the cover that mentions a question or two they find most helpful. Sounds like you’re doing a great job reaching out to young families. We need lots of support! It’s a whole new adventure, and a big learning curve!! 

Good plan, Albert! I'm sorry that we don't already have a pamphlet to offer--I'd love to see the one you write when you're finished. The Jesus Storybook Bible is a great resource. Sounds like your church is very serious about supporting families--that's wonderful!

Hi Simon, a few years ago I wrote a commissioning litany for leaders and teachers for congregations to use as faith nurture programs kick off in the fall. It's not exactly what you are looking for, but it may offer a helpful pattern that you can adapt. You'll find it posted here on the Reformed Worship website. 

Hello, Try this pintrest site I created for showing appreciation to volunteers. You may also find these articles helpful, 30 Ideas for Calling, Keeping, and Celebrating Volunteers, Meaningful Meetings, Celebrating Success, and Time for a Checkup!