Kids Ministry

Dedicated to helping Kids Ministry leaders in their mission of making disciples

Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Levels of Biblical Learning, Preschoolers, Sunday School

The Gospel Project for Preschoolers and the Levels of Biblical Learning

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KjonesWelcome guest blogger, Karen Jones:

We are in a season of change over here in Nashville at the Lifeway corporate headquarters. Solid walls and office doors are a thing of the past, and those of us on the Lifeway Kids team are learning the joys of cubicle life. Bill Emeott recently stopped in his tracks as he walked by my cubicle and saw a Levels of Biblical Learning poster hanging on one of my cubicle walls. Why was he so surprised to see this staple of Lifeway Kids Ministry Publishing on display in my workspace? Because I am the Preschool Content Editor for The Gospel Project for Kids.

The Gospel Project for Kids has a reputation for taking a little different approach from the other Lifeway Kids curriculum family members. We tackle Bible stories that others tend to avoid for preschoolers. We jump at the chance to teach little ones bigger words and deeper theological concepts, but as is the case with most families, despite our differences we share many of the same characteristics.  

Think of a puzzle. Some people find all the corners and edge pieces first. Then work on filling in the middle by assembling one section at a time. Other people dump all the pieces out and dive in. Either way, the puzzle gets assembled. The Levels of Biblical Learning teaches preschoolers biblical concepts in a way that builds and gives them what they need as they need it. The Gospel Project for Preschoolers believes in introducing preschoolers to deep truths at an earlier age than usual so they will have a framework in place when they are ready to put those truths together. Either way, kids learn that the Bible tells that God sent a Savior to rescue people from sin.  

I have been using Lifeway preschool and children’s curriculum for more than 15 years, so I am no stranger to the Levels of Biblical Learning. I know the Levels of Biblical Learning were thoughtfully crafted by experienced educators, so when I am struggling with how to word something in a way preschoolers can understand, I often turn around and look at my Levels of Biblical Learning poster for direction and inspiration. I will often ask editors serving on other teams who use The Levels of Biblical Learning daily for their feedback on age-appropriateness, hear how they treat a certain Bible story, or get advice on activities.

So while The Gospel Project for Kids is not designed around the Levels of Biblical Learning, it is certainly informed by it. We may have a slightly different methodology, but we have the same aim: to see kids transformed by the life-changing truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  

Karen Jones is the preschool content editor for The Gospel Project for Kids. Karen came to Lifeway in 2014 with over 15 years experience in preschool and children’s ministry. Karen earned an M.A. in Christian Education from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Karen loves living minutes from downtown Nashville and teaching preschoolers at Immanuel Church.

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Sunday School

Teaching Inconsistently, Consistently

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Landry Holmes_9689How can we teach toward the uniqueness of individual children while maintaining a sense of classroom consistency? What is the balance? Here are some things I have learned that may be helpful in your classroom at church:

  • Set general boundaries. Make sure each child has the cognitive, developmental, and physical ability to comply with these basic guidelines. Boundaries may include staying in the classroom, treating one another with respect, and following the guidance of teachers.
  • Be flexible. I taught a child who, because of multiple special needs, had difficulty sitting with a group of kids. During large group, I allowed him to sit with a teacher in another location in the classroom where he could engage his hands in an activity. He still listened as I told the Bible story to the other children who were sitting in a circle. If I had insisted the child sit with the group, he would have been so disruptive that none of the kids would have learned anything from the story. The child with special needs actually responded in such a way that I knew he was comprehending biblical truth.
  • Provide choices. When kids are allowed to choose between a given set of activities, they tend to learn better. I know some kids who thoroughly enjoy creative art, while others would much rather build something or experiment with nature items. Choices create opportunities for children to learn in the ways God has wired them without being forced to do what everyone else in the room is doing.

 Boundaries, flexible expectations, and choices of activities help kids learn individually and as group. Treating children as individuals created in God’s image can actually lead to consistency in the classroom when we provide clear expectations for them and for the group.

Landry Holmes leads Lifeway’s Kids Ministry Publishing Team and is a kidmin volunteer at his church. He is a husband, dad, father-in-law, and dog person.

Kids Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Leadership, Parent Helps, Parenting, Sunday School

Helping Kids Use Those Family Resources

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Tim PollardIf you are like me, you find it difficult sometimes to have those family devotion times together. Life sometimes gets in the way, but it is always easy for you to connect with your family, even if for a few minutes each night.

My church uses Explore the Bible as their main teaching curriculum each week. With Explore the Bible my children come home each week with a Family Card that has an object that my kids learned about in class and the card also has three content related questions that will help us connect to the content they studied. This card is also helpful for my children who can use it to remember the Bible story they heard in class that morning.

If your church is using another Lifeway Kids curriculum line, each comes with a family resource page that will help you connect with your kids about what they studied. Bible Studies For Life has a One Conversation page that gives parents and kids a common point of conversation between what mom and dad studied and the study your kids learned about when they were in church that same day. Bible Studies For Life also has a fun new resource called Take-Home Cards. These neat cards have fun facts and trivia about Bible people, places, and things that kids can use to quiz parents about their own Bible knowledge.

The Gospel Project has an activity page that goes home each week that contains suggestions for a family time that connects with what everyone in the family studied that day. These pages give a point of connection for the entire family if your church uses The Gospel Project for the entire family.

Each of these lines also comes with an app you can download which will give your kids learning activities and games they can play to continue their learning at home. No matter what Lifeway Kids resource you use, there is a family element that is integrated into that resource. If you notice your kids are not bringing home some of those resources, connect with your kids ministry leader and ask about helping your family connect.

Tim Pollard teaches 3rd-6th graders Explore the Bible: Kids Worship on Sunday nights at Tulip Grove Baptist Church. He’s passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, TN.

Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Leadership, Sunday School

Biblical Archaeology with Kids

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Tim PollardBy Tim Pollard

One of those classes many years ago in seminary that I think secretly everyone dreaded (but I loved) was biblical geography. I was able to get through this class by memorizing locations and names of biblical cities with a catchy tune my roommate and I took from a popular TV show. The geography tests were always difficult, but I truly loved the study of archaeology that came with it. Archaeology, from a biblical perspective, always put an image with a biblical reference.

It’s very cool now that I get to interact with biblical archaeology from a kid’s perspective. Explore the Bible Kids seeks to introduce boys and girls to the wonderful world that contains the places discussed in the biblical narrative.

Why is archaeology important?  Archaeology gives a reality to the Bible places and events that occur through the stories that boys and girls hear. When we can present images of artifacts and places that existed in Bible times, kids can see those images and have a better understanding of what was really going on in a biblical narrative. Images open up a new avenue of learning for kids as they study His Word.

If you aren’t using Explore the Bible Kids take time on your own to pull some resources that relate to the biblical content you are teaching and use those images to help kids be able to understand the context and environment of the story they heard. Teach kids to love the reality of Scripture and to experience it on a whole new level.

Tim Pollard is passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, TN.

Kids Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Parent Helps, Resources, Sunday School

Using a Social Media Plan

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Jeff Land-150x150Are you a planner? Do you always want to know “What’s next!”? It seems that lots of Kids Ministers are planners and for a very good reason. We have to have a plan for helping kids know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. That plan is effected by what camps we choose, which VBS we use, and the weekly curriculum we choose for our kids to study. Each of Lifeway Kids’ curriculum lines will help you as you develop that plan.

In the past few years, Kids Ministers and church leaders have recognized what we have known for many years: Parents need to be a part of the plan. Apps, take home pages, cards, and other resources have been developed to help bring parents in on the conversation.

There’s another great planning resource that you might not be aware of: it’s a social media plan. Each of Lifeway Kids’ ongoing curriculum lines now offers a social media plan to help you connect parents to what their kids are learning each week in their Bible study classes.

Using the plan is easy:

    1. Find the social media plan that fits the curriculum you use in your church: Bible Studies For Life: Kids
    2. The Gospel Project for Kids (choose the quarter you want and look under “Parent Resources.”
    3. Explore the Bible Kids (available on Enhanced CD)
  1. Decide how you want to share the information. Consider starting a Facebook page, Twitter Account, or Instagram for your church’s Kids Ministry.
  2. Copy the information provided from the Social Media Plan for your chosen curriculum and paste it into the status update bar for your social media site.

Remembering to update your church’s social media every single day could be a confusing and time-consuming task. I like to use Hootsuite, because you can schedule multiple posts to update each day on several different sites. I take time at the beginning of every quarter to use the social media plan on Hootsuite for the entire quarter, then I don’t have to think about it again for three months.

By providing social media posts for your parents to read each day with their kids, you are giving them little nudges toward spiritual conversations with their kids.

Keep up with Bible Studies For Life: Kids and The Gospel Project for Kids on Facebook for all of the latest information.

Jeff Land serves as the Publishing Team Leader for Bible Studies for Life: Kids. Jeff holds degrees from Mississippi College and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Jeff has served as a Children’s Minister and teaches kids weekly in his church.

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Preschool, Preschoolers, Sunday School

Preschool Bible Learning Activity

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rp_vogel-150x150.jpgThe Importance of Movement with Preschoolers:

God has wired preschoolers to be “on the move.” They do not do well in learning environments where they are required to sit/be still for extended periods of time (no more than about one minute per year of age!) Try some of these movement techniques to help your Bible-learning activities with preschoolers be more effective:

  • Use lots of music. Provide background music for all preschool learning environments. In group time experiences, preschoolers love to move their bodies, sway to music, and sing very simple songs that help them learn Bible truths.
  • Preschoolers learn best in an environment that provides choices. This type of experience allows them to move from activity to activity depending on their interests and approaches to learning.
  • Play lots of games that require movement: detecting, exploring, investigating.
  • Let the kids find the Bible verses as they are able. Let them actually help you do things … make play-dough, help serve snacks, set up activities. Let them manipulate items (puzzles, blocks, art supplies, dramatic play) to help cement Bible truths into their hearts and lives.

Preschoolers “on the move” are “happy learners!”

Jerry Vogel serves as a Childhood Ministry Specialist in Lifeway Church Resources. He is married to Janie and has four children and thirteen grand kids. Jerry is committed to enriching the lives of those who teach kids as well as making eternal investments in the lives of children.

Bible Study, Kids Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Leadership, Small Groups, Sunday School, Training

Using Teaching Pictures to Teach

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Tim PollardTeaching Pictures are a powerful tool to use in any classroom, or even at your home. There are many styles of artwork to choose from when considering a teaching picture. The style of art you choose to display is up to you, and could be chosen based on your style of teaching, the environment you are using it in, or even just personal preference. Here are a few things to remember when using teaching pictures in your classroom.

  1. None of the figures being displayed are the actual people we are teaching about. These are drawings, not photographs. No matter the style of art, these are only an artist’s representation of what a real person looked like. Each artist will draw the same person differently. We can teach our kids to focus on the setting of the image, and not what the people look like, since honestly, none of us knows exactly what any of those people really looked like. (I secretly think we will all be quite shocked one day!)
  2. Focus on the setting. When we use a teaching picture it should do just that, teach. The art that is chosen for a particular story will serve the purpose of reinforcing the concept or lesson being taught. Use the teaching picture to elicit responses from boys and girls that go beyond the people, to discover what the picture itself is teaching. What does the setting teach about the Bible story? What are the people doing that lead us to learn more about God/Jesus?
  3. The artwork will convey what you help the girls and boys in your group experience through it. Many times I hear leaders criticizing one style of art while praising another style. In reality, kids today are in a very media driven society and are inundated hourly with photographs and real time video. It may take some work on your part to make sure when kids walk away from your group experience they know that the images of the people and stories in the Bible are as much a reality as the photo they saw this morning posted on their favorite social network.

At the end of the day, the teaching picture is a powerful tool. Teaching pictures can open a child’s imagination and transport them to a place in history. Use the pictures to help those learners connect with a Bible truth, and let that truth dwell in their hearts.

Let us hear some of your stories about your favorite teaching pictures and how you used them to open God’s Word in a new way.

Tim Pollard is passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, TN.

Bible Study, Kids Bible Study, Leadership, Preschoolers, Special Needs, Sunday School

Using Visual Schedules in Bible Study

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096 copy4Along the way we meet some really neat people. Tracy McElhattan is one of those. Please welcome Tracy as she guest blogs today on Kids Ministry 101.

“Help! My room is chaos and I don’t know what to do!” 

This is a common concern in KidMin.  One tool that I’ve used to help manage my own classroom during my years as an early childhood educator in public schools is called a visual schedule. I’m so excited that Lifeway’s Bible Studies for Life will be offering a way to easily create this tool to use in church KidMin classes starting in the Fall of 2016! However, you can go ahead and download these great visual schedules today and begin using them in your classroom: 3s–Pre-K, Kindergarten, Grades 1-6, and Special Buddies.

What is a Visual Schedule?

A visual schedule:

    • Is a way to specify the order of planned activities,
    • Indicates when activities are finished, and
    • Identifies any changes from the regular schedule

A visual schedule used in the way described below functions like an illustrated “agenda.”

How is a Visual Schedule Used?

A visual schedule can be used in a variety of ways.  At church, one way to implement a visual schedule is to:

  1. Decide on your classroom routine.
  2. Choose words, pictorial representations, or simple photographs of each activity included in your routine.
  3. Display the schedule.
  4. Teach children how to use it.
  5. Assess and adjust the visual schedule.

A visual schedule does nothing if hung up in the classroom and never talked about again.

Who Benefits from a Visual Schedule at Church?

While visual schedules are often used with children with autism or young children with language delays, visual schedules can benefit everyone!  For example, use a visual schedule:

  • With an entire preschool class to help children understand, anticipate, and follow the expected classroom routines.
  • With a child with low language skills, by providing a menu of acceptable choices during free play.  For example, show the child pictures of the block area and housekeeping area and ask the child to point to the area in which she would like to play.
  • With a child that has difficulty with transitions, provide an individual schedule so that the child can see the day’s activities, pull the completed activity off the schedule, and anticipate the next event.

Effective use of a visual schedule can facilitate a more positive atmosphere so that teachers can concentrate on building relationships and instilling Truth.

Children thrive when they know what is expected of them and when they have consistent routines.  Most of us use visual supports to help us through our day— watches, calendars, to-do lists, agendas, etc.—so why not provide the same support to children?  

References:  Meadan, H., Ostrosky, M.M., Triplett, B., Michna, A., & Fettig, A. (2011). Using visual supports with young children with autism spectrum disorder. Teaching Exceptional Children, 43(6), 28-35.

Dr. Tracy McElhattan serves as Director of Preschool Ministries at Blue Valley Baptist Church in Overland Park, KS.  Tracy also writes and edits Bible Studies for Life curriculum for Kids.  Previously, she has worked in public education in various roles for 13 years, including teaching and research.  Tracy’s passions include teacher training, inclusive education, leadership development, good conversations, and enjoying life with her husband raising their two young boys.

Kids Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Sunday School

Finding Jesus in the Shadows of the Old Testament

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briandThe Bible is one big story of Jesus, but we have to be careful to resist the temptation to find Jesus in every single detail of the Old Testament—which would mean we are then reading the Bible as allegory, where the basic meaning of the text is set-aside for a hidden, often mysterious meaning underneath of it.

So how do we show that all of the Bible is about Jesus without going too far? Here are four ways to see Jesus in the Old Testament correctly.

Messianic Prophecies
When most people think of where Jesus is in the Old Testament, this is what they think of. Messianic prophecies can be considered the clearest and safest way to see Jesus in the Old Testament because they are affirmed in the New Testament.

EXAMPLE: The prophecy of the virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14) is affirmed in Matthew 1:18-25 and Luke 1:26-35.

Images of Jesus
God gave us a multitude of pictures that foreshadow Jesus in the Old Testament. Unlike prophecies, these images do not point directly to something about the life and ministry of Jesus (such as the virgin birth), but they do reveal part of God’s plan for Jesus. Many Old Testament images of Jesus are affirmed in the New Testament, but not all are. Be careful when you come across what you believe is an image of Jesus that is not supported in the New Testament. Make sure there is a clear, biblically sound, connection to Jesus. Also, do not minimize the importance of the straight-forward meaning of the Old Testament account.

EXAMPLE: Abraham’s test to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22) is a picture of God sacrificing His Son, Jesus.

Gospel Truths
Many passages do not point directly to Jesus, but indirectly by clarifying the core nature of the gospel and our need for and God’s provision of Jesus. At times, we see how deeply sin has ruined us and the helplessness of our sin condition. At other times, we see God’s holiness, purity, grace, mercy, and kindness. Still at other times, we see what a right relationship with God can look like. All of these help us to develop a Christ-centered theology of the gospel.

EXAMPLE: The law shows us our inability to meet God’s perfect standard (Romans 3:20).

Redemptive History
We cannot forget that the Bible is a book of history. God promised Adam and Eve that someone was coming (the Messiah, Jesus) who would crush Satan. Much of the Old Testament advances this narrative and leads us directly to the manger in Bethlehem, the cross on Calvary, and the empty tomb in the garden.

EXAMPLE: The establishment of the kingdom point us to King Jesus who was coming.

Brian Dembowczyk is the team leader for The Gospel Project for Kids. Brian earned an M.Div. from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a D.Min. from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Brian, his wife and their three children live in Murfreesboro, TN, where Brian enjoys drinking coffee and teaching 1st-3rd graders at City Church.

Kids Ministry, Resources, Sunday School

Using Explore the Bible On Location in a Different Location

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Tim PollardIf you have been using Explore the Bible in your teaching environment, hopefully you are aware of the wonderful video element that accompanies this curriculum called Explore the Bible: On Location.

We think that it is very important that boys and girls are able to connect the Scriptures they are reading with real-life events or objects. As a matter of doing that, we have created this series of videos. These videos take boys and girls on a modern-day journey to interesting places and engages them in discovering cool facts about the Bible or stories that come from it. Modern-day hosts bring kids along with them as they discover new and exciting things.

While these videos are intended to be used along with the curriculum, here are a few ways you can use them outside your teaching environment.

  1. Show the video in corporate worship. By using the video in corporate worship your kids’ parents will get to see what their kids are learning during Explore the Bible. This also gives your parents an opportunity to connect with little learners based on things they have learned and may serve as a fun recruitment tool if you need some additional leaders in your ministry area.
  2. Take the video on a mission trip. The video elements are packaged conveniently on a DVD that can quickly be loaded into most laptop computers and shown wherever you go.
  3. Use the video in your check-in station. If you have a check-in station that has video capabilities, have the video running as a teaser for the session that’s coming up.
  4. As a promo during special events. Whenever you have special events at your church, even if they aren’t kid related, show the video as a promo for what your regular Bible study classes are doing.

… Leave us a comment and let us know how you are using the Explore the Bible: On Location videos in (or out of) your church.

Tim Pollard teaches 3rd-6th graders Explore the Bible: Kids Worship on Sunday nights at his church. He’s passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, Tennessee.

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