Frequently Asked Questions

Sections:

The Bible
The Children
The Team
The Teacher
The Programme

The Bible

Q. How do I adapt a Bible passage or story for a wide range of children’s ages or intellectual abilities in the same group?

A. Firstly, teach what the passage is saying. Don’t adapt or try to find a message for a sub-set, such as 4 year olds. Secondly, work hard on your presentation skills. When presenting the details of the story aim towards the more intellectually able children, but structure your questions at appropriate levels, e.g. simple questions for younger children and more difficult questions for more able children. Stretch all children intellectually. Thirdly, use appropriate visual aids to help keep the younger children’s attention.

Q. Can you give me any ideas on making the Bible stories interesting?

A. The keys to your question are:

1. Know what the passage is teaching.
2. Practise your story telling skills. Watch professional story tellers on TV.
3. Include the mood/atmosphere of the story appropriately in your presentation.
4. Use your voice and facial expressions to engage the children. Speak slowly and clearly, pause for effect.
5. Use appropriate visual aids to help reinforce the facts.
6. Select the right location to tell the story; don’t always do it in the same place and way. E.g. for Rahab and the spies try telling the story under a table(s) to represent the spies hiding under the stalks of flax on the roof of Rahab’s house (Joshua 2:6). When Jesus stills the storm you could make a boat shape from tables or boxes and have the children sitting inside. [Perhaps you could splash some water around, sparingly.]

Q. What should I do when the children say they have heard the Bible story before (many times) and they know it all? They switch off!

A. If you are a confident teacher you could ask one of the complainants to tell the story. Make a note of the key points on a flip chart and fill in the gaps and correct the errors after the volunteer has finished. The other children will do this for you with great enthusiasm.
If you are not so confident, ask a difficult question about the passage and when the children don’t know the answer, you can start telling the story yourself.

Also, if the children are old enough, you can ask them about the application of the story to their lives/behaviour. This is an area where we all fall down. Knowledge of the details in Bible stories without relating it to our lives/behaviour should always be attacked head on.

The Children

Q. How tough should I be in disciplining unchurched children who attend an after school Bible club?

A. Discipline should always be exercised consistently and fairly to all children, irrespective of background. Agree the principles with other leaders on how the club is to be run and apply the rules lovingly. Don’t nag children, but make promises to them and keep them. Obviously, if there are children with special needs then care must be exercised. Please don’t play favourites or allow the children to be rude, disrespectful or violent. Overlooking poor behaviour will be perceived by the children as weakness, not love, and will lead to anarchy.

Q. How do you tell someone off without damaging their self-esteem?

A. Take the child apart, so that you are still visible but cannot be overheard by the other children. Tell the child that you love them, but their behaviour is unacceptable (use words appropriate for their age). Make sure that they understand why this is so.
When disciplining children the following are important:

1. We should never consider our actions in the light of an anticipated reaction.
2. We should always do what is right for the child and the other children in preference to maintaining our comfort zone.

Q. How can we stop an 8 year old boy from constantly fidgeting?

A. Firstly, does the fidgeting disrupt the group or just you? The key question is, ‘How does this boy’s fidgeting affect the Bible teaching time?’ If it doesn't, chill out and ignore it. If his behaviour is affecting the group try and get his interest by getting him to help in some way with the story presentation. You could try giving each child in the group a question about the forth coming story that you want answered after you have finished telling the story.

The Team

Q. How many teachers and helpers should I have in a group of 15 five year olds?

A. Ideally 2 to 3. You should be aware of current legislation relating to child protection/best practice, which will give a minimum number of required adults per number of children. Small children need and deserve the attention of a responsible adult during the story telling, craft and activity times. 1:8 is manageable but 1:5 is better.

Q. We are always short of helpers for our 7 and 8 year olds. What should I be looking for in prospective helpers or teachers?

A. 1 Timothy 2:2 outlines what is required for a minister/preacher/teacher. The two key elements are reliability (‘….reliable men’) and competence (‘….. qualified to teach’). The same applies to the teachers of children. Both teachers and helpers should possess the following basic traits:

1. A committed Christian.
2. A commitment to study the Bible and pray.
3. A love for the children.
4. Reliability.
5. Good communication skills.
6. A sense of humour.
7. Patience.
8. A servant heart.
9. Inexhaustible energy.
10. Creativity, imagination, brilliant up-front skills.

By the way, this person doesn't exist. There are no tick lists that are right. God, in his graciousness, gives us an infinite range of people to work with whose feet are made of clay. Just look for godly saints who are reliable and competent and train them up!

Q. All our children’s helpers are volunteers. What should I do when they let me down by not turning up?

A. A couple of points:

1. As much as they have let you and other helpers down, try not to take it personally. The issue is that they have let the children down.
2. Determine the facts before committing yourself to any action. It may be that there is a good reason why the person didn't turn up. If it is a first or uncharacteristic forgetfulness, then forgive, forget and graciously get on with life.
3. If it is happening regularly it may be that the person is over-committed and you may have to ask them to resign.
4. If the person is just lazy or inconsiderate you will have to let them go. Carelessness like this would not be tolerated in their secular employment and it should not be tolerated in God’s work, even if they are volunteers.

The Teacher

Q. I have been teaching children the Bible for decades and am worn out, discouraged and feel undervalued. What should I do?

A. Irrespective of the availability of someone to take on your teaching duties you should seriously consider taking a sabbatical. There should be joy in our ministry and when that goes the children will know and it will have a profoundly negative effect on them. If you decide to have time off to recharge your batteries and refresh your relationship with the Lord, please don’t feel guilty about it. People get tired and discouraged. The sensible thing to do is to recognise it and stop punishing ourselves and those around us. Take a break, you deserve it.

Q. How should I allocate my teachers and helpers to classes? I have a vacancy in our three year old class and there are two possible candidates. One is an energetic 18 year old girl from the youth group and the other is an experienced parent with oodles of teaching experience with 10 year olds. Who should I choose and why?

A. I would always recommend that you allocate your most experienced teachers to the youngest group. The logic is simple. It takes gifted people to take deep theological truths/doctrines and package them so that 3s, 4s and 5s can understand them simply. Older children can ask questions, rationalize and challenge teachers. Younger children are like sponges. They sit there like suet puddings and absorb everything, good and bad. Therefore appoint your experienced parent and not your green teenager.

Q. I believe I have a gift for teaching young people but as I teach every week I never get into church. Other people seem to be growing spiritually but I think I am in a hole. Help!

A. You must pay serious attention to your spiritual maturing or you will dry up. Like boiling a frog it will be slow and almost imperceptible before you starve spiritually. If you are giving out and not taking in, you don’t need to be Solomon to work out that soon you will be running on empty. Quiet time, tapes and Christian books are helpful but you also need the fellowship, encouragement and teaching of fellow Christians. Tell the person in charge of the children’s work how you are feeling and see if it is possible to share the teaching load with another person so that you can get to church at least once every 3-4 weeks.

The Programme

Q. Our church starts with the children/teenagers in the service before we go to our own activities. We have about 40 minutes before we have to return to the adult church for the end of the service. What would you recommend we do in those 40 minutes?

A. The key has to be the Bible teaching slot. All the other activities, such as praying, singing, memory work, games, celebrations, refreshments, registration/notices, must be subservient to the Bible story/study. Our relationship with God is based on our love of Him, which is based on what the Bible says. What we sing and say and how we act is centred on our knowledge and love of Jesus, God’s Redeeming Son. Work out how much time you need to teach the Bible, then design the rest of the programme to fill the remaining available time. All your activities should reinforce the main teaching point of the Bible passage.

Q. Do you have any ideas about making the worship service in our Sunday school better?

A. I take it that you use the word ‘worship’ to mean more than just singing. Worship is centred on ‘service’, so the object is always our awesome God, not ourselves. Doing things that make me and the children feel happy or better about ourselves is self-indulgent. Some practical suggestions:

1. If you have musicians, use them to choose, play and teach good Bible songs. They don’t have to stay for the entire programme but could return to church after their slot is finished. If you don’t have any musicians there is some good music and songs available on CD or cassette.
2. Songs should teach Bible truth. It is helpful if the tune is easy to learn and catchy.
3. When introducing a new song it is helpful to repeat it for several weeks until it has been thoroughly learned. Children enjoy singing the same songs over and over again. This is how they learn.
4. Provide instruments and write the words on acetates for OHP for those children who can read. Action songs help the younger children take part.
5. Have a prayer time when children are given the opportunity to pray publicly on a given theme, e.g. Sorry Prayers, Thank you Prayers, etc.
6. Think about having a clever introduction to the Bible story/study to stimulate your audience for the lesson to come.
7. Include an interactive ‘memory verse’ learning slot for everyone.

Q. When should we start teaching life issues to our children and young people?

A. The best time is when the children are encountering them at school. E.g., sex education is generally given at ages 10 to 12, sometimes even earlier. When the mechanics are being taught to our kids you should be teaching the ethics of sex from the Biblical perspective. Teach the Bible and apply the ethical issues arising from it as early as intellectually possible. You must arm them for their battle with the world before they become victims.