bible lessons children
We know that as a sunday school teacher, you are a unique type of person who understands the complexity of being both a leader and a friend, but all teachers make mistakes. The first major mistake I can think of that will take your classroom from being a space for love, learning, and fellowship, to a place of frustration, negativity, and oppression, is being too serious. I know that you are doing everything you can to make your sessions enjoyable and fruitful for the children, so I encourage you to read through these articles. With each one there are several suggestions about how you can improve your classroom so that it becomes more like the space you imagined it would be.
The first thing to do is ask yourself some simple questions to get your class back on track. “Why am I doing what I am doing?” “What about my tactics is working, and what is not working?” “How can I change my own behavior and attitudes to achieve the environment I wish to create?” These questions may be all you need to get your classroom and your teaching style back on track. Everyone makes mistakes. Take the time here to learn how to fix them!
Often, teachers focus only on the lesson throughout their sessions, and while the lesson is the most important part of the session, having fun is also allowed! If teachers focus too much on the serious, faith-filled side of Sunday school, children are bound to become bored of lessons and their attendance will drop off. When they do come, they will be rowdy, unproductive, and unhelpful. This will stop you from doing your job as a teacher, because you will have created an environment not conducive to growth and education.
Sunday school is a serious place and one where children can learn a great amount about their lives as children of God and about christianity in general, but it also needs to be a place for fun. Even the most normally well-behaved children need to let off steam now and then. While your lesson should be focused on christian principle and values, children need to understand that Sunday school is a safe place that they can learn while they relax.
To create a safe space where children feel comfortable, make it clear to your students at the beginning of your sessions that Sunday school is supposed to be a place of learning and fun mixed together. Tell the children that you will have a lesson each week that will be the focus of the session, but let them know
that there will be fun activities that go along with each lesson, and that you hope they will make suggestions and help make the sessions enjoyable. Remind them that Christianity isn’t a boring or useless lifestyle but one that can combine moral living with regular life and produce normal, fun-loving people just like themselves. Just as christian living does not mean trading fun for faith, nor does Sunday school. This should be an important part of your sunday school lessons.
Also, taking yourself too seriously can hurt the dynamic in your sessions. Keep in mind the audience that you are speaking to. While most teachers know a great deal about bible theology and are comfortable discussing Christian principles with a group of their peers, remember that your audience is a group of children, some with very little exposure to Christian thought before your classroom. For that reason, simply speaking the words is not enough to get them to understand. You must be able to loosen up yourself and find different ways to explain things, or else the children will feel overwhelmed. Tailor your lessons to the children and be prepared to explain things several different ways; all of those ways should be something they can relate to.
Julia Shipley is a committed Christian and loves to teach young people the word of God. For more information visit http://www.quick-christian-resources.com
