Discussion Points:

• The word spreads faster when one person (or domino) tells two, who tells two, who tells two…
• It isn’t always easy to get to far places, but it is possible
• Working together to build the chain is a lot like how the church functions – a lot of very different people do their parts to accomplish a big goal
• Sometimes we get flustered with each other, when one person’s mistake takes down a long line of dominoes. Working in groups is always like that, and we need to develop forgiveness and love to cover those moments.

It was tough, but eventually they did it. We took video of the big payoff and posted it on the church Facebook page so they could show their families.

Q. I am looking for a craft activity for pre-schoolers relating to wearing the armor of God. I had an idea of using card-board cutouts and clothing them with tinfoil armor. Do you have any other ideas?

A. Your idea is good. You could divide the class up and have different teams work together on different pieces (breastplate, shield, greaves, helm). As an object lesson you could allow one person from each team to use the armor and the others can throw cotton balls (or something else soft) at them. Have the students use the armor to deflect these attacks to demonstrate what armor is used for.

Another idea would be to get a big appliance box (sometimes stores will let you take them). Cut a whole at head height, and have the class draw and decorate a set of armor around it (you can still use foil to decorate). Then you can take pictures of each child standing with their face in the “helmet” with their armor on.

Oriental trading has a $10 set of armor. They also have decorate it yourself swords and shields.

Online ideas include:
http://www.dltk-bible.com/crafts/armor/mpaperarmor.htm
http://www.daniellesplace.com/html/bible_themes_armorofgod.html

Anyone else have some ideas to share?

Previous Comments include:

These tips on the Armor are appreciated.We are going to use them in our end of year Sunday School programme.thanx!!

We posted a coloring picture for the armor of God that doubles as a craft. The kids can coloring & cut out the pieces before gluing them to the figure.

http://ministry-to-children.com/armor-of-god-coloring-pages/

Things to Know: The series does not take a Protestant or Catholic viewpoint, but tries to remain objective in that sense. For example, when discussing how many books are in the Bible, they explain why different Bibles have different numbers of books. One Preacher character wears a collar. Teachers who are uncomfortable with the creative license used in the VeggieTales series will appreciate that this series focuses on the truth of the Bible, and aims to inform kids about the exact contents of scripture.

Impressions: The series is fun, but does lack some of the cache of the VeggieTales series. Perhaps because it is less about storytelling and more about information. It doesn’t shrink from long words but presents them clearly. School age children are the target audience simply from the complexity of some of the concepts. The format lends itself to picking out specific segments if you want rather than showing an entire episode. They are very ambitious in the amount of information they try to cover in a single episode. The Exodus episode covered material I would have spread over many weeks, myself.

My pre-schooler loves the songs, but loses focus during the exposition. That’s understandable, but you might look at the format and think a pre-schooler is the desired audience. I invited an 8 year old from my Sunday School class to give me her impressions and she said she liked the series, would watch it by choice, and learned quite a bit from it. She especially liked the songs and recommended the show to kids her age.

Watch a video review from Karissa (8) and Rhea (4) after watching episode 2 part 2.
Review of What\’s in the Bible

Pros: Lots of modern curriculum skip through scripture to teach concepts, which is perfectly valid. But it can leave students without an overall understanding of the history and scope of scripture. I was raised in a very through-the-Bible style of teaching and appreciate having that background. This series attempts to connect scripture on a grand scale and provide an understanding of the Bible in general, which is great.

Cons: Too advanced for pre-schoolers, this series applies more to grade school kids. Don’t expect the same level of humor and story as in VeggieTales. Tries to fit a LOT of information into a short space of time. Much more educational than you might expect at first.

More Info: The series has a web site at http://www.whatsinthebible.com/ with preview videos to watch.

Where to Buy:
Christian Book Distributors

or you can buy DVDs or download digital versions for less at http://store.whatsinthebible.com

Disclosure: I was provided two DVDs and asked to review the series on my web site, but I was not paid to do so. My review was in no way influenced or reviewed by them before posting. I felt the series was a good match for my audience. I will receive a small commission if users buy through the Christian Book link above; none from the whatsinthebible.com url.

FYI: it may matter to some users that images include Christmas, Trinity, images of Jesus (with longer hair), baptism (showing immersion), angels (depicted as female with wings), a Minister in robes, and a missionary.

Age Range: the box says 3 and up. My daughter enjoyed the game at 3 years of age and has no problem matching and remembering the pictures.

Pros: There is good information on the call cards, which can be used for instruction. All the printed material is on sturdy card stock, and the box has instructions and ideas on the back.

Cons: The font is cursive, and may be challenging for new readers.

Where to Buy: Buy directly from the maker at http://www.lucybingogames.com/ from Amazon.com

Disclosure: I was provided a free (6) card set to evaluate to see if I wanted to sell them on my site. I was not asked to link to the seller, or paid to review the product; that was my idea. I only chose not to sell them myself because I don’t carry any inventory but my own.

A. I taught a mix of readers and non-readers for years and while it means a change of style, it can be a lot of fun.

My strategy included:

a) Read selectively. I would pick the most relevant verse or two to the story, and either I would read it or I would have the willing reader read it aloud. I would stop after every half sentence or so and check to be sure everyone understood what was going on by asking questions about the verse.

b) Mix images with text. I had lots of flashcards for things I wanted the kids to remember, that included an image with each word. The pre-readers memorized the images and would at least become familiar with the word’s sound and look even if they couldn’t read.

c) Allow activity during storytime. For longer stories, I would break the story into small sections. Frequently we would get up and act out a short element of the story, or I would allow them to color a related image while I was telling the story. Or I would have dolls acting out the story and the kids take part by making sound effects or telling me what would happen next.

d) Use movement and song to reinforce memory. Having students make up hand motions to memory verses, or make their own song to describe a story helps reinforce learning when they can’t read to help them remember.

Even for kids that can read, these are good ways to reinforce learning in non-verbal learning styles. I have a whole page on the different learning styles and various ways to incorporate at http://www.sundayschoolsources.com/learning_styles.htm that may give you some more ideas to incorporate into lessons. There is more info at: http://www.sundayschoolsources.com/Teaching.htm

Q. I started teaching Sunday School about a year ago, we have a very small church, in grades 1-5 I only have 3 sometimes 4 children. We attend a church where the children sit through the entire service with their parents, and Sunday School is after fellowship time.

Any ideas on how I can get the adults to see to it their children stay for Sunday School? I give little object lessons at the beginning of the worship service and I’ll have sometimes 12 children come up for that, but still only 3 come to Sunday School.

A. First of all, thanks for your efforts in teaching the children! I have worked in mostly smaller classes and it can be very rewarding because you really get to know the kids well.

Your object lesson strategy is a great one – you are reaching the kids where they are. My thought would be to hand out something to the kids after the object lesson – maybe a worksheet that they can work on during the service. And tell them that if they come to Sunday school they get a special incentive – a prize or trading card. (I have free trading cards on the site you can print that can match the lesson). The idea is to get the kids to convince their parents to stay, not you.

Another idea would be to do a monthly or quarterly push with a specially themed class, and do an all out blast in the bulletin, object lesson, etc to advertise it. Maybe some families will get their feet wet if they don’t feel like it’s a weekly commitment. And if the kids enjoy it and want to come back – they can convince their parents to stay. They know all the tricks.

The problem is each family has their own reason for not staying and unless several families have the same obstacle you can address, your battle is uphill. It’s awesome that you’re willing to go beyond your class hour to try to reach the kids.

Which is of course good advise for all walks of Christian life.
special thanks to Brother Roy Beasley for providing content.

Previous Comments include:
Love what you said here. I htink it all comes from preparation and allowing God to work the word in you first..your life. I have taught adults and kids for 25 years. The best lessons are those that you have loved and allowed God to work in you as I said before. When that happens, when you have allowed God to work hs word in you first during the week you teach passionately from your heart from just from your head. Kids or adults sense it and know..it sparks enthusiasm and breaks down barriers when they see I have lived the word and go through things just like them.
Anyway, agree with you 100% . http://www.kickricksundayschoollessons.com

Great Idea about enthusiasm and being an example. i was once a sunday school teacher and your advices are really useful for them. not just for them but for everyone. thanks for sharing. http://your-dailyword.blogspot.com