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Sunflowers are symbolic of adoration. Sunflowers turn their heads to the sun, which is the origin of their common name. Christian Educators turn their heads, hearts, and minds to the Bible to teach evangelism, bringing others to faith in Christ, enlistment, increase the local church membership and edification, building up membership to maturity, growth and development in the faith. This document is a developmental resource guide for the Christian Educators working specifically with ages 2-12. It outlines specific techniques, education principles, and concepts for

teaching God’s Word to children.

Shalom Christian Ministry Center 515 Kirby Hill Rd,

Fort Washington, MD 20744 301.567.5505; shalommcc.org

Overseer Dr. Florida T. Morehead, Pastor

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PREFACE

In the parable Jesus told in Matthew 13:18-21 He spoke of several types of

individuals who heard the word, but only the one who understood it bore fruit, "the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding what was

sown."

Christian education is important to complement the stirring of the emotions of new converts, to ensure they remain devoted to Christ beyond the initial emotionalism of

being forgiven and saved.

There must be extended periods of devotion to the Word of God. We see this demonstrated in Acts 2:42 and 11:26, 18:11, 19:8-10.

The new converts in the early church remained in the apostles' teaching, fellowship

and prayer for extended periods of instruction with a minimum of 1 year. As a result, believers were rooted and grounded in the faith, knowing what they believe thus, achieving life-long results. This requires a call for reliable and qualified men and

women to teach.

Therefore, the Shalom Christian Education Ministry Team embraces each facet of that education proves to be prominent in teaching Christianity, notwithstanding, the

compelling need to fulfill the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20.

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Table of Contents

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 4

How to use the information in this document ................................................................................. 4

PART 1: FORMULATING A SELF-DIRECTED CHRISTIAN EDUCATOR DEVELOPMENT PLAN ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6

SAMPLE CHRISTIAN EDUCATION LEARNING ACTION PLAN – ............................................. 13

TAKING ACTION AND MONITIORING PROGRESS ....................................................................... 13

Part 2 – Developmental Guide for Children’s Ministry Christian Educators ......................... 14

Module #1 - Involving All Three Learning Styles in Your Classroom ....................................... 15

Left Brain and Right Brain Functions .................................................................................................... 15

Use of Sense Function with Young Children ....................................................................................... 16

Identifying the Three Learning Styles of Children ........................................................................... 16

Module #2 – Understanding Various Developmental Stages ....................................................... 20

Glossary Terms .............................................................................................................................................. 24

Module #3 -Teaching a Multi-Age Group ............................................................................................. 25

1. Establish Buddies ..................................................................................................................................... 26

2. Utilize Experienced Readers ................................................................................................................ 26

3. Create Special Privileges for Older Children .................................................................................. 26

4. Modify Supplemental Activities .......................................................................................................... 27

A FINAL WORD TO THE CHRISTIAN EDUCATOR FOR CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES .............. 28

Evangelism - bringing others to faith in Christ ................................................................................. 28

In what ways will you focus your role as a teacher in all three areas? .................................... 29

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Introduction A hallmark of a successful Christian Educator is that they give priority to their own continuous learning and development. Regardless of their overall level of competence and experience in a given area of Christian Education, successful Christian Educators continually strive to expose themselves to new information, acquire new skills and benefit from new experiences. It is hoped that this document will serve as a valuable resource in support of a planned and self-directed effort to develop you as a Christian Educator, with specific focus on working with children ages 2-12. It is not intended to serve as an overall plan for career or personal development. This document may be used as a tool to assist with that process.

How to use the information in this document

The first section, Formulating a Self-Directed Christian Educator Development Plan, focuses on the process of creating and using a learning program to for self-improvement as a Christian Educator (i.e., how to develop a learning plan).

The next section, Developmental Guide for Children’s Ministry Christian Educators, contains a series of modules, ideas, suggestions and resources for specific learning needs and Christian teaching environments. The purpose of the content in Part 2 is to help focus and stimulate your thinking, and to point you toward other sources of information, as you prepare a plan to develop specific competencies. You are encouraged to use the ideas, suggestions, and resources that are best suited to your individual circumstances and learning style

This booklet is not intended to be read from front to back, cover to cover. Rather, it is best to refer to it selectively as a starting point toward an overall plan to address your developmental needs. It is recommended that you focus on the sections of Part 2 that correspond to the proficiencies that you wish to develop. This booklet should be used in conjunction with the October 2010, Shalom Christian Education Resource Guide – found on the web at the following address: http://www.slideshare.net/ShalomMCC/shalom-christian-educationresourceguideworkingdocument1

This document is intended to serve as a starting point in a self-directed Christian Educator Development Plan for Children’s Ministry Educators. There are many other resources available to Christian Educators interested in pursuing a development plan or opportunities for development, in various aspects of their personal and spiritual development. You are encouraged to seek them and use them.

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The earliest Scripture references clarifying the purpose and authority of teaching in the Old Testament are: 2 Chronicles 17:7-9, Ezra 7:10, Isaiah 2:1-3 and Micah 4:1-3. Gordon Clark, a Professor and Reformed theologian wrote: "The first and basic point in a Christian philosophy of education, or a Christian philosophy of anything, is Biblical authority." Therefore, the importance of Christian education is to teach the student that all knowledge is integrated within the nature of God (and His inspired Word) and therefore, have order and purpose for our lives. The goal is to enable spiritual growth into a mature adult, equipped to shoulder responsibilities as God's image-bearer devoted to glorifying the Creator. This is based upon 2 Timothy 3:14-17. Although it is clear that 2 Timothy 3:14-17 reflects Paul's instructions to Timothy, it can also serve as marching orders for today's Holy-Spirit filled and led teachers in the following ways: 1. Paul instructs Timothy to continue in the things he has learned. Thus, a teacher must first be a student of the Word of God him/herself. 2. Paul also expounds upon the fact that Timothy was taught the Holy Scriptures from childhood. (c.f. Deuteronomy 6:4-6) Thus, a teacher should not be a novice or a new convert. 3. Continuing to look at 2 Timothy 3:14-17, we see the Biblically stated aptitude of the Scriptures: a. To make one wise unto salvation b. Increase in the knowledge and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ 4. "All" Scripture is to be taught (OT and NT) and they are: a. Given by God through inspiration b. Profitable for doctrine (instruction) c. Profitable for reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness. 5. The Biblically stated, goal of Scripture Instruction: a. Spiritual maturity b. Equipping Saints to do all good works.

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PART 1: FORMULATING A SELF-DIRECTED CHRISTIAN EDUCATOR DEVELOPMENT PLAN Busy Christian leaders frequently make plans or resolutions for their development. They have an idea about something they wish to change, they feel committed to changing it, and they may even have a specific plan in their mind about how they hope to go about changing it. Typically, as the weeks and months pass, existing commitments eat away at their time, other priorities arise, and the good intentions fade into unfulfilled plans. It is unlikely that any successful competency development plan was ever formulated without initial good intentions. However, as with any action plan, to have a reasonable chance of being successful, a development plan must be:

Formalized and written down in such a way that the objectives, and the steps to be taken to reach those objectives, are clearly defined. Objectives should be realistic.

Time for learning activities should be scheduled in advance and rigorously adhered to. To the extent that it is possible, measures of progress should be identified at the outset, and should be monitored at predetermined intervals.

The key to the success of the learning plan is to develop clearly identified objectives that are realistic given the energy and the time you are willing and able to devote to your development plan. Typically, it is best to concentrate your efforts on a small number of specific areas. The following are a few guidelines to consider when you are thinking about, and preparing your plan for development.

Step 1: Identify areas needing improvement

o Gather information on your strengths and weaknesses Use all available sources of information, including any Christian Education-related results and related information that have been provided to you as a result of feedback from others, and frank, honest self-reflection.

Formal assessment results Formal assessment results in a seminary or bible college environment that you have participated in can be a rich source of information on your strengths and weaknesses. Combined with direct feedback from people who see you act in different contexts and from different perspectives, this information has the potential to provide a solid foundation for a self-directed plan to develop your weaker areas of teaching. Also consider:

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Pay special attention to the comments that are provided by your Director of Education or other coaches assigned. These comments will provide you with valuable feedback about your performance at both your current and desired levels, as well as your potential for development. This information should be taken into account as you begin the road to development.

Direct feedback from others - Direct feedback from your teaching partners. Involving your teaching partners in the process can provide a number of positive benefits. First, your teaching partners can help you to obtain further insight into your strengths and needs for development. Second, by involving your teaching partners, you will bring attention to your developmental efforts, and your improvement is more likely to be noticed. Finally, seeking their feedback may make them more willing to reciprocate and will foster an environment with greater communication and more emphasis on continuous learning and development. Feedback gathered from outside of your current church environment. Feedback that you have received in the past outside of your current church environment (for example, within your family, at bible study or with friends) may also provide a valuable source of corroborating information to take into consideration when identifying your strengths and developmental needs. Honest, thoughtful self-reflection Reflect on yourself and on the information that you have gathered. There is no source that can provide more valuable information on your own behaviors, strengths, and weaknesses than you. It is important that you strive to be honest and as objective as possible in assessing yourself. It is also important that you receive and acknowledge feedback from other sources openly and non-defensively. Reflect upon the results of feedback that you receive from others. In some cases, you may feel that what others have indicated as a weakness is not a weakness. If so, then you need to reflect upon why they perceive it as a weakness. Similarly, what you perceive as one of your learning needs may not be perceived that way by others. In this situation, you may want to consider why you perceive that area as a weakness, and reflect on whether your learning plan could be more fruitfully targeted in other directions.

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o Summarize the information you gather - Integrate and “distil” the information. Making a concerted effort to gather feedback on your weaknesses from such a potentially diverse array of sources certainly has the potential to be a rather ―humbling‖ experience. It is important to recognize that not every behavior or competency identified by a given individual or assessment tool as a weakness will necessarily be a weakness. You will need to ―distil‖ the vast amount of information you have at your disposal to identify a small number of competencies (two or three at most) upon which you can focus your efforts. Keep in mind that the feedback you receive from individuals will depend on a variety of organizational and interpersonal issues, as well as their personal beliefs about what constitutes effective versus ineffective behavior. Those beliefs may vary enormously from individual to individual. Feedback from individuals is best used as a way of confirming information received via the formal learning environments. You may wish to give more weight to information provided by your spiritual leader/Pastor and/or other individuals whose values and beliefs you perceive to be closely aligned with your own. Pinpoint specific behaviors to work on. A given skill is really a mosaic of different behaviors that manifest themselves in your teaching and Christian service in a number of different ways. It is unlikely that you are weak on all the teaching skills. Once you have decided that a given skill could benefit from development, look closer to find which aspects of the skill constitute the weakness. Feedback that you receive from teaching partners (as discussed above) is another important source of that kind of information. You may also find it useful to refer to Part 2 of this document (―Developmental Modules and Resources‖) and review the suggested developmental activities that correspond to the skills you wish to develop. Identify your strengths. It is important to remember that you have strengths in some teaching skills, and not just needs for development. Identify your strengths and keep them in mind as you create your development plan. When you are choosing which developmental actions to take in order to address your weaker competencies, you can use your strengths to compensate for your developmental needs. For example, if you are strong in working with 2-3 year olds, but weaker teaching 12 year olds and older, you may be able to compensate for the latter by fostering a cohesive and collaborative teaching partnership opportunity to assist others with that skill. You may also be able to capitalize on your strengths by creating developmental situations in

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which your strength emerges, but that also force you to exercise your developmental needs. Exposing yourself to such situations will enable you to feel challenged on the one hand, yet also comfortable on the other.

Step 2: Create a Learning Action Plan

o Identifying one’s areas of weakness both accurately and precisely is the first, and arguably most critical, step toward developing those areas. The next step is to create and document an action plan. For each skill, list specific behavioral objectives and create a written plan outlining all the activities you intend to use toward meeting those objectives.

These activities may be as simple as reading a book on Lesson Plans or arranging a monthly brainstorming session. Alternatively they might be as involved as taking a formal course in Christian Education Principles, seeking a developmental assignment in a different functional role with older or younger members of the ministry, or pursuing an advanced degree.

Identify learning activities. List the actions you intend to take toward developing your weaker skills. Some of the activities will be actual behaviors that you want to make an effort to practice on the job (e.g. ―speak more slowly‖). Other activities will involve pursuing additional resources with the intention of gathering further information to support your developmental efforts. Refer to the ―Developmental Modules and Resources‖ section of this document and, in particular, the suggestions that correspond to the skills you recognize as the most challenging to you. Keep in mind that the way in which some skills are expressed varies by group and context in which a Christian Education Teacher is working. For example, some Christian Education environments have the one-school house approach, while others allot for you to break children down into age and abilities.

When you are deciding which learning activities to pursue, keep in mind that these activities should be concrete and measurable. Often, the overall target of your learning will be abstract and seemingly insurmountable (e.g., ―I will improve my ability to work with young children‖). To maintain your focus, and to work deliberately toward your goal, create a series of steps that you can follow easily and that, by completing them, will show you how close you are to accomplishing that goal. In short, breaking down your learning tasks into stages can help the seemingly impossible become possible. Also consider asking those

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around you to help you with your development. When you are deciding what learning activities are appropriate for you, think about mentors, coaches, spiritual leaders, teaching partners and enlist the help of that person or group. By asking for their help before you begin, you can ensure that these individuals are willing to help you if you feel overwhelmed or be able to provide feedback as you are monitoring your progress in the future. Consider a peer learning partner/teaching partner. A peer learning partner is someone that you can work closely with to help keep you on track with your action plans, while you reciprocally help them. Building relationships with a peer learning partner is invaluable. Seek a variety of resources such as books, videos, workshops, and the internet for more perspectives on how to develop specific skills (or aspects of a skill). Some of the available resources have been listed in the ―Suggested Resources‖ sections. Consider your preferred style of learning when incorporating varied resources into your learning program. Some people retain information best when it is presented in a multimedia format. Others learn best by reading a variety of different sources. Still others will gain most from the more structured environment provided by a workshop, seminar or course. Seek a Christian Education Developmental Assignment. In addition to providing the basic experience and exposure that is required for a Christian Education Teacher, ―on-the-job‖ learning is the single most effective means of developing your weaker skills. There are a number of common characteristics of job experiences that facilitate Christian Education Teacher Development. Take on a developmental task to work with specific age groups. Remember, a developmental assignment should involve different kinds of tasks and different people than those with whom you are accustomed to working, should have clearly defined time frames, and clear measures of success and challenges. Above all, it is probably the element of challenge that defines a truly developmental experience. Assignments where the individual must learn in order to succeed and where benefits of success and challenges are clearly defined are the types of assignments from which Christian Educators learn the most. To maximize your development through an assignment, you will need to have a solid understanding of your developmental goals and a willingness to engage in research and networking to find the best fit. Using your network of contacts is also important. Your network may include people that you meet within the church, the church family, or

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participants in major faith-based conventions/conferences, or those you meet through training or other learning events. Let these people know what you are looking for and ask them for information and advice. Be realistic in your expectations and leverage the experience that you already have to build a stretch assignment within the church.

Step 3: Create a system to monitor your progress on an on-going basis Prioritize targets.

o You may want to prioritize your targets, so that those you view as easiest to achieve and/or with the greatest payoff are implemented first. For example, ―hold weekly or bi-weekly teacher meetings‖ may be easier to implement than ―work with other teachers‖ and may pay greater dividends.

Establish timelines. Identify a date by which you intend to achieve each behavioral objective you have targeted. View these targets as individual steps toward achieving the larger goal of developing overall skills. More substantial targets may be more realistically approached by setting less ambitious interim targets, with their own timelines, to be achieved in a stepwise fashion. Some targets may have relatively short time spans, some may take longer, and some may require monitoring on an ongoing, or long-term, basis. Also remember that the achievement of your targets will take time. Not every skill can be developed at the same rate, nor will a given learning need develop at the same speed for everyone. Taking some time to think about your priorities and your own comfort level will allow you to set timelines that are appropriate for you. Periodically, you should schedule time in advance to assess your progress. Specify a series of regular occasions (e.g., weekly or biweekly) to think about and record your ongoing progress. It is critical that you take the time to assess whether you have reached your goals when you had planned to achieve them. In other words, once your target dates have come and gone, have you developed in any way? You may want to use a simple rating scale (e.g., 1 through 10) to assess your progress in addition to recording more specific observations in point form. You may also want to include feedback from others (see below). Regardless of precisely how you go about it, regularly monitoring and recording your progress will draw more attention to the tangible, though subtle, improvements that you experience throughout your development program and this will serve as a reward and motivator. The process of ongoing self-monitoring also encourages the early identification of those areas which will require more effort and/or time to develop than originally planned. This will allow you to modify your development plan pro-actively, rather than

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simply experiencing the de-motivating frustration of failing to meet rigid target dates. Seek out and benefit from your Christian Education Director. Optimize the Christian Educator Director as your coach, who can help you to maximize your performance and development. Coaches can help you develop your self-awareness as a Christian Education Teacher and guide you in learning activities or practices that target your specific challenges or developmental needs. Seek out and benefit from a mentor. It is important that your mentor be somebody from whom you feel you can learn, with whom you can identify and with whom you have a relatively comfortable working relationship. You should feel comfortable seeking advice or airing concerns with your mentor. You should share your learning plan with your mentor, use him or her as a source of frank and honest feedback, and seek his or her help in achieving and monitoring, your targets. The Pastor or Spiritual Leader is usually the mentor in a Christian Education environment. However, Christian Educators should also seek out other members of the Christian Education Leadership Staff to serve as a mentor. Find one or more learning partner(s) with whom you can provide mutual support, reinforcement, motivation and feedback. In identifying learning partners, considerations similar to those described above for a potential mentor would apply. Keys to success:

Assess yourself honestly. Another key to your success is the extent to which you are objective and honest in appraising your own strengths and weaknesses and targeting areas for improvement. Seeking further input from others is helpful, but it is important that you acknowledge and take responsibility for the areas that you could improve.

Capitalize on your strengths. While identifying and developing

your weaker skills is important, it is also important that you identify and give attention to your areas of strength, and look for ways to increase your opportunities to exploit those strengths. This will improve your overall effectiveness by making your strengths more prominent in your overall repertoire of skills and behaviors, and also by allowing you to compensate for your weaker areas while you develop them. It is important, however, that you do not allow yourself to continually fall back on your strengths to the exclusion of developing weaker areas.

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Set reasonable targets. The extent, to which your learning plan

targets reasonable or ―doable‖ interim targets rather than lofty, over-optimistic long-term goals, is crucial to the success of your developmental efforts. Doing so will make both your targets and your progress toward achieving those targets more immediate and tangible than focusing solely on longer-term goals. Recognizing the achievement associated with meeting those interim targets can serve as a source of reinforcement and motivation.

SAMPLE CHRISTIAN EDUCATION LEARNING ACTION PLAN –

TAKING ACTION AND MONITIORING PROGRESS

Step #1 Skill and Developmental Needs

Step #2 Concrete Learning Activities

Step #3 Monitoring Progress/ Target Dates

Lesson Plan Development: Improve my ability to prepare and execute a lesson plan

1. Ask peers/and Christian Education leaders to review my lesson plans – shadow me as I execute my lesson plan – provide me feedback; 2. Coordinate with my Christian Education Director to preview my lesson plans, critique my plans, and provide recommendations

Set dates to meet with my Christian Education Director in the next two weeks (set dates) – Schedule on my Calendar

Teaching Development Improve my skills to teach different age groups

1. Offer to take on teaching assignments with different age groups 2. Initiate targeted skill development strategies with different age groups

Begin preparation this week (set dates) – schedule it on my Outlook Calendar As soon as my strategy planning is complete – implement steps to improve implement – schedule on my Calendar

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Part 2 – Developmental Guide for Children’s Ministry Christian Educators Children’s Ministry workers are among important volunteers. Helping to steer children onto spiritual paths, volunteers provide children with a foundation that will be used throughout their lives. Our goals move beyond getting children to understand Biblical facts and matters of morality, etc. The proper teaching will provide spiritual growth. These modules are designed to give you heightened and detailed understanding of how to manage classrooms in a children’s ministry setting so that the big goals can be met. You will learn the basics of effective communication with children, parents, and fellow volunteers and gain valuable tips to help avoid pitfalls that create burnout and dissatisfaction. The material herein will help you run your classrooms smoothly and with confidence. The modules are: Module #1 – Involving all three (3) learning styles in your classroom

This module outlines the three learning styles and methods to include them into your classroom to ensure the teacher reaches each child, regardless of his/her learning style.

Module #2 - Understanding various Developmental Stages

This module outlines the various developmental stages of a child and identifies how to embrace the stages to enhance learning.

Module #3 - Teaching a Multi-Age Group

This module outlines the methods for teaching multi-age groups and provides key steps on ensuring that each child learns in a multi-age environment.

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Module #1 - Involving All Three Learning Styles in Your Classroom Teachers who try to bring in visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning styles to each lesson will find that they have sent nearly every child home with their points made. Such a class might include a reading/watching portion, a listening/discussing portion, and a hands-on application portion. Lessons can be designed like this, keeping in mind the developmental stages of the children involved. It’s easy to fall into a rut of relying too heavily on your own preferred learning style, but by keeping in mind that everyone learns differently, it is possible to find balance.

With the help of computers, television and the Internet, more than one style can often be used at one time. Cartoons of bible stories, available on DVD or Internet downloads, involve both visual and auditory learning. Playing a cartoon while children are doing an art project can also be a way to reinforce a Bible story taught in some other way.

Left Brain and Right Brain Functions Researchers have identified behaviors that acclimate to the left and right sides of the brain. The left side of the brain controls logic, analytical reasoning and communication. The right side controls creativity and intuition. Children who are left brain dominant are very good at writing, reading and mathematics. Right brain dominant children are artistic and creative. They often like to fudge lines and avert structure to give their creativity the freedom it needs to thrive. As traditional schooling relies more heavily on evaluations of left brain functions, right brained children may be labeled as less able or poorly behaved. Yet historically, most of the geniuses in the literary and scientific communities show strong right-brained tendencies. In church ministry, we don’t need these evaluations and can give every learning style fair play by creating lessons that cater to all.

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Use of Sense Function with Young Children In the preschool and early school years, children use all their senses to evaluate the world and make sense of it. We often hear children say, “Let me see it,” if someone is holding something. What they really want is to touch or hold it. They may even want to smell or taste it. The more senses involved in the learning process, the greater chance that the message will find its way into hearts of every child present. We see a drop-off in the let-me-touch curiosity around age nine. However, that may be an automated response to years of school learning, which is mostly auditory and visual. Those in charge of students up to sixth grade might see value in passing things around—even maps and charts with sparkles or stars amending specific points.

Identifying the Three Learning Styles of Children Researchers have been able to divide learning styles into three groups - auditory, visual and kinesthetic.

Children have a primary modality, though they may get the benefit of other styles, too. You can determine which learning style children are prone to by watching them in class. For example, let’s use sample names, even though directions are clearly written on a work sheet, Blake will ask, “What are we supposed to do?” Manuel enjoyed seeing the pictures the teacher held up while giving the lesson, but in the discussion, he grew bored. Kiesha gets up close to every picture and says, “Let me hold it,” and she wants the lead role in every drama. Blake is an auditory learner. He wants to hear what he’s supposed to do, and that’s what will help him complete the assignment best. Manuel is a visual

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learner. He would rather look at things relating to the lesson than try to analyze it. Kiesha is a kinesthetic learner. She enjoys hands-on experiences and getting in the middle of things. In the next few pages we will see more about these learning styles in detail.

The Auditory Learning Style Auditory learning is the one most relied upon in a classroom. When a teacher stands before the class and teaches a math or history lesson, she is mainly using her voice. Students are expected to learn by listening. Auditory learners tend to feel comfortable in classroom settings. Auditory learning has been used since the beginning of history to pass along important stories about ancestors and myths and legends important to a tribe. We can be part of this tradition by the oral story telling we use in Sunday school.

Auditory learners don’t only like to hear a lesson—they like to talk about it. They will be among the first to raise their hands and answer questions. You may have noticed that hand-raising has only a little to do with a student knowing an answer. It has more to do with a learning style. Some students who know an answer may prefer to sit quietly without raising their hands. Others might have only a vague idea of the answer but seem quite willing to sort their thoughts out aloud. This would be an auditory learner.

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Some ways to engage auditory learners:

Tapes of dramas and dialogues which students can hear while imagining the visuals.

Musical songs like ballads that tell tales Discussions about what happened to characters in a lesson

The Visual Learning Style Visual learning is also a big part of schooling—hence, blackboards. While taking, a teacher will turn and write notes on the board. Often, students will copy in their notebooks what the teacher has written. These are probably visual learners. We rarely see a prominently placed blackboard in Sunday School, which is probably the human instinct sensing that students have enough of this in school. However, Sunday School can make good use of visuals, especially with laptops and access to the Internet.

Visual learners often appreciate a lesson most if they can read it first. If a teacher reads a lesson aloud from a publication while students look at their own copies, or if students take turns reading, the visual learners respond well. Some ways to engage visual learners:

Charts, maps, illustrations and photographs Sunday School books that present lessons within Power Point presentations & online games

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The Kinesthetic Learning Style Kinesthetic learning is hands-on, where students become part of the lesson by doing. This is the least used learning style in school, though it is found in “labs.” Computer labs, science labs, and English labs imply that students will be doing things instead of just watching or hearing things. For many students, this is the most engaging part of school. These children are kinesthetic learners. Rather than hear what life was like in ancient Babylonia, they want to touch a model of the Tower of Babel. They would rather make ancient Egyptian bricks than hear how houses were made.

While these students can be annoying in school due to constant fidgeting and loss of concentration, they are gifts from God who should be fortified in Sunday School. They enjoy making things and also becoming part of things by acting out dramatizations. The child who fidgets through a book reading but wants to play the lead in every drama is probably a kinesthetic learner. Some ways to engage kinesthetic learners:

Hands-on activities involving the recreation of things from Biblical times

Dramatizations requiring children to play Biblical roles Props, wardrobe or copies of ancient artifacts that they can hold,

wear, or copy

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Module #2 – Understanding Various Developmental Stages A major portion of this lesson will be devoted to understanding the development of children ranging in age from 2 to 12. The next four pages will each be devoted to an age group, starting with the 2-3 year old age group. Details of their developmental stages will be covered, including the mental, social, emotional, spiritual, and physical. Included is an average attention span and a suggested student-teacher ratio for each group. Leaders should develop sensitivity to these ranges and encourage teachers to do the same. At the same time, remember these are guidelines, and children will vary tremendously in their individuality. Hence it’s not appropriate to use terms like ―slow‖ or ―not normal‖ when discussing children. One successful way to utilize the material is to always remain flexible for the individuals. Development of Children ages 2 – 3 Average attention span: 2-4 minutes Needed teacher/attendee ratio: 1 teacher per 3-5 children

Mental: will not remember much of last week, as memory is not yet developed require (and adore) repetition are concrete thinkers; cannot understand abstract concepts like Jesus being a light (they will imagine a light bulb) learn best through games and exploring can follow simple directions (containing no steps or if/then statements)

Social:

―play alone‖ yet in clusters; are not ready for team games are trusting of adults want to share affection with teachers and other children love to explore; games should give chances to succeed respond well to routine

Emotional:

can’t yet consider the needs and feelings of others have a strong desire to please are receptive to praise

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Spiritual: do not have imaginations developed enough to understand ―spirit‖ have a sense of wonder will naturally accept the concept of God can understand a God who is invisible and yet who created us, loves us and

is very real Physical:

enjoy games that involve jumping, crawling, walking and simple hand movements need a combination of rest and activity should be allowed to move around with some freedom love to play with toys and games that develop coordination

Development of Children ages 4 – 5 Average attention span: 5-10 minutes Needed teacher/attendee ratio: 1 teacher per 5-6 children

Mental: have imagination and enjoy fantasy play. are still concrete thinkers; will not understand symbolism. will be confused by references to dates in history or places on maps learn best in activities involving senses: touch, sound, sight, smell

Social:

thrive on praise and positive energy enjoy playing in groups if the games are simple are able to perform seek for independence; should be allowed to roam with safety limits

Emotional:

are prone to fears appreciate the security of rules and routines have a sense of self build self esteem by playing games of success

Spiritual:

can understand right from wrong are able to apologize and to understand forgiveness can talk to God, thanking him for things and asking him for things. can grasp that God is watching over us and loves us, even when we make

mistakes

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Physical:

enjoy running, hopping, jumping forward and backward, playing catch with a large ball

thrive in varied periods of rest and activity are establishing more muscle control appreciate chances to practice new skills

Development of Children ages 6 – 8 Average attention span: 10 - 15 minutes Needed teacher/attendee ratio: 1 teacher per 7-8 children

Mental: are able to complete simple reading and writing tasks enjoy rhyming and chanting love to act out dramas are still literal in their thinking and should not be introduced to many symbols understand simple time and space concepts such as dates and places

(but B.C. and A.D. should not be introduced yet) enjoy memorizing, such as Bible verses

Social:

enjoy working in groups and forming clubs are very trusting of adults and tend to respond well to confident adult predictions

such as ―you’ll enjoy this‖ or ―this will be fun‖ understand their ability to share God’s word with others look up to older children, admiring and copying them

Emotional:

love attention, and hence, love to talk. seek approval and respond well to praise. need rules that are fair, consistent, and easily understood. understand responsibility, hence the notion that God will help them do the

right thing

Spiritual: learn best by guided study through the Bible stories and principles like brief discussions about life choices may become baffled by God’s invisibility and eternal existence are aware of forgiveness and can understand Jesus in context of Savior.

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Physical:

enjoy games with a variety of small and large motions are still very active and require frequent changes in activities enjoy singing, dancing, and performing.

Development of Children ages 9 – 12 Average attention span: 20 minutes Needed teacher/attendee ratio: 1 teacher per 8-10 children Mental:

are starting to understand abstract concepts and symbols (such as Jesus being the bread of life)

have a more acute learning ability reflecting years in school understand time passing and concepts such as B.C. and A.D. can enjoy writing, research and speaking before the group.

Social:

want to be seen as capable and are sensitive about being perceived as young or little

like independence but need guidance in social interaction enjoy leading others but only for short periods look up to pre-teens and teens, admiring and copying them

Emotional:

are prone to unsteady emotions require supportive understanding and love from leaders thrive under leaders who are good role models of Christian behavior,

as they are keen to hypocrisy and inconsistency tend to hero worship, and respond well to thoughts of Jesus as a hero

Spiritual:

are receptive to ideas of morality can understand the concept of salvation question how God answers prayers have a heart for telling others about Christ and doing service projects

Physical:

can play games that require fine motor movement enjoy line dances and other cooperative activities of movement enjoy changes in pace rather than changes in activity are active, and enjoy games that get them moving more clearly seen if they have divided into the mental, social, emotional,

spiritual and physical.

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Glossary Terms Abstract Symbols— concepts that cannot be understood via the senses or simple discussion in morality. Hence, these generally start to become clear in the oldest developmental stage of 9-12. Abstract symbols would include such things as Jesus being the Word, the vine, or the bread of life. Concrete thinkers—younger children who cannot grasp abstract symbols. Generally before fourth grade, concrete thinkers are capable of understanding morality, heaven, and Jesus as a Savior. Developmental stages—The ages children pass through that researches have divided into the four age brackets

given in this lesson. The developmental stages can be

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Module #3 -Teaching a Multi-Age Group For many reasons, youth ministry teachers may find themselves leading a group with several of the developmental stages combined. Situations beyond Sunday school include field trips, vacation bible schools, after-school programs, and pageants. Mixing ages can be a great experience. In smaller churches, which are easily set up for mixed-group learning, youth ministers often wish they had bigger churches. However, directors of programs at large churches will say that they’re always trying to act like small churches—because it helps bring that family atmosphere to attendees! Mixing ages creates a family feel. We must remember that long before institutionalized schooling was the norm, America relied on one-room school houses. Kids love to watch shows like Little House on the Prairie where such are featured, probably because instincts draw them to appreciate a cluster of kids acting like extended family. In a group where ages can range five or six years, this is where your leadership instincts and discernment can really get some exercise. Some kids can be natural born leaders if given the chance. Giving them a title that they can be proud of like ―worship leader‖ will make them enjoy helping younger ones. Younger children tend to hero-worship older children. A mentorship or leadership program will give the younger children exposure to older ones that they may not get often in school. And older children enjoy leading, especially if they have adults on hand to offer support and guidance. Of course, questions arise, such as do I speak down so the youngest ones can understand? Younger children can’t sit still as long, so do I talk less? One norm with a proven track record is not to speak down to younger children and yet cater to their movement needs as much as possible. Mothers of five will tell you they spend very little time baby-talking. They rely on the younger ones to stretch and grow. Yet squirming and fidgeting can be more distracting than mind wandering, so catering to the younger children’s need to change direction frequently might also be wise.

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Key Steps to follow when teaching multiple age groups:

1. Establish Buddies

Pair one older child with one younger child as a ―big buddy‖ and ―little buddy.‖ The buddies can work together in a variety of ways in the classroom.

Pair them up for working on scripture memorization. The older child will be amazed how easily the younger can memorize and the younger will enjoy helping the older learn a new verse.

Pair them up for craft projects. Many times we do not attempt complex crafts with younger children because there are not enough adult helpers. In a multi-level classroom you have an advantage, which age-separated children’s ministries do not; you can utilize the ―big buddy‖ to assist their ―little buddy‖ in completing the craft. They can work on the craft together!

2. Utilize Experienced Readers

Children sustain more attentiveness when they are not hearing the same voice for the duration of the Sunday School lesson. Enlist your older students to read aloud the Bible verses. The older students will love reading aloud and the younger children will be eager for the day when they will get to read aloud in Sunday School!

3. Create Special Privileges for Older Children

Create certain privileges which can only be done by the older children. For example, if your classroom goes up through 6th grade, set aside special tasks only given to the 5th and 6th graders to complete.

These older children could help lead the other children in singing a few songs at the beginning of class each week.

These older children could be used to act out an upcoming Bible story, as an introduction for the other children, in the form of a play or reader’s theater.

The older children could help set up and close down the room each week or make copies for the teacher before the start of class.

By setting aside special privileges for the older children, they will get to experience leadership and set an example for the younger children. This will also give the younger children something to look forward to doing when they become 5th graders.

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4. Modify Supplemental Activities

Most lessons you will teach, when reading a passage from the Bible and explaining its meaning, will look similar across all elementary grade levels. The difference and challenge comes in the application and follow up activities.

One modification is to break them up into age leveled groups at the close of a lesson to discuss how the lesson can be applied to their everyday life. Then the groups will report back to the whole class. There can be a K-1 reporter, a 2-3 reporter, and so forth until all groups have shared their application of the lesson.

Another modification can be made in the area of crafts. The same craft can be completed by K-5 children, but for the K-2 children you can prep part of the craft ahead of time. You can have everything prewritten on their craft or you can precut parts of the project. The older children can complete all of the writing and cutting independently in the same about of time it takes the younger children to complete their modified version.

Serving in a small children’s ministry can be challenging, but it also has its great rewards! You get to know all of the children in your church personally. You are blessed to work with one child from kindergarten through 6th grade and see how they grow in their knowledge of the Lord over a period of years.

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A FINAL WORD TO THE CHRISTIAN EDUCATOR FOR CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES

Ephesians 4:11-13

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,

pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry,

for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and

of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the

stature of the fullness of Christ: The King James Version, (Cambridge: Cambridge)

1769.

In summary, we have proven that the Word of God was given by God, through the

inspiration of the Holy Spirit, fulfilled by Jesus Christ, commissioned to believers

through the church for the instruction in righteousness unto the unity and maturity

in the knowledge and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This great and awesome

responsibility rests with those who have been called and appointed by God to teach

the Holy Scriptures (1 Corinthians 12:28).

Christian education in the church involves the following areas of

concentration:

Evangelism - bringing others to faith in Christ

Enlistment - increasing the local church membership

Edification - building up membership to maturity,

growth and development in the faith.

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In what ways will you focus your role as a teacher in all three areas?

Evangelism:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Enlistment:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Edification:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

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"O that we may love our Bibles more, and keep closer to them than ever and then

shall we find the benefit and advantage designed thereby, and shall at last attain the

happiness therein promised and assured to us." (Excerpt taken from the Matthew

Henry Commentary on 2 Timothy 3:14-17)