Step by Step—Session Prep
While leaders do bring fun into the classroom, they’re not clowns. Their fun has a serious purpose, and it’s carefully planned to land in square in the hearts of children.
Let's discuss faith-shaping ministries to kids.
While leaders do bring fun into the classroom, they’re not clowns. Their fun has a serious purpose, and it’s carefully planned to land in square in the hearts of children.
What do kids do best? Talk and move! Yet what do teachers often want them to do? Be quiet and sit still. What’s wrong with this picture?
We all have different “comfort zones” when it comes to prayer. Use these prayer pointers to expand your comfort zone!
A wise person once said you only need three loves and two skills to be a good teacher.
One of the most precious gifts you can give to the children in your group is to truly listen to them. When you listen, you’re giving them permission, inviting them to ask important questions and explore their faith.
Are you looking for some ways to encourage the kids in your group to talk and listen to God? If so, check out these suggestions for teaching children about prayer.
Wondering what the best kinds of questions are to stimulate kids’ imaginations and nurture their faith in the classroom? Check out these tips...
Sunday school teachers are a lot like plants. Without support they’ll dry up, wither away, and disappear. Sounds pretty harsh, right? But that’s the way it is with ministry.
As one experienced teacher put it, creating a disciplined environment to ensure optimal learning requires equal parts of technique and personality.
The kids who collaborated to write and star in this "Dear Teacher" video represent students with various learning disabilities. They wanted to share with educators how their brain works and offer simple ways teachers can help.
Looking for an impromptu, meaningful way for the children in your small group to retell the Bible story? Check out this idea from blogger Mina Munns at Flame: Creative Kids Children’s Ministry.
Children aren’t the church of tomorrow — they’re the church of today just as much as adults are! Find ways you can help kids identify, develop, and use their gifts for the benefit of the body.
I recently found a fabulous pattern for making wonderful stand-up Bible story characters. I’ve listed three ideas for how you might use them but I'm sure there are many more!
Puppets can be a great teaching tool for Sunday School teachers. They encourage creativity and can help lessons "stick."
Have you come across something or developed something to help kids learn about and experience the spiritual habit of fasting? By fasting, I don't necessarily mean fasting from food, but abstaining from something for a specific period of time for the sake of seeking God more fully.
How can we make listening a key part of our time together with kids?
I always like to spend a few minutes playing a getting-to-know-you game on the first day of Sunday school. Here are two of my favorites.
The answer seems obvious: to teach the Bible story or lesson we've been assigned. But I wonder if it's more nuanced than that.
Sitting still to answer questions is really hard for active kids. So I’m collecting ideas for jumpstarting conversations and disguising discussions. Here are a few that have worked for me.
Break up the long winter weeks by incorporating a “Beat the Winter Blahs” day into your season! Here's how . . .
On Thanksgiving Day (USA), YouVersion launched a new Bible app for kids. It promises to be an animated adventure designed to help kids explore the big stories of the Bible and begin cultivating a love for Scripture at a young age.
It's September! Are you ready to share the stories of faith? To create space for wonder, awe, worship, and imagination? Sometimes the thing that takes a lesson from excellent to amazing is the little spark of creativity that piques kid's interest.
Looking for new ideas for praying with kids in your classroom next season? Check out these creative prayer practices collected on Pinterest by our friends at the NC Synod Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Many Sunday schools take a break during the summer months. If yours is one of them, how do you say goodbye to your class as you send them off to enjoy the sunshine? If you’re coming to your last week of Sunday school, consider setting aside time do something special. Here are a few ideas.
It’s been a couple weeks since the premiere of the BIBLE on the History channel. I’ve heard a range of opinions, some hating it, some loving it. Last night I caught a rerun of some of the first and second episodes. I have to say that it was better than I expected, and it made me wonder what other Sunday school teachers are thinking.