One of my favourite parts of teaching is conversation. There are times in a normal classroom setting for children to quietly listen while I share a story, read from the Bible or give instruction. But, as far as I am concerned, I have not done my job as a teacher if I have not interspersed that lecture style with plenty of opportunities for good conversation between the students and myself. I don’t want to always be the one talking. I also want to listen. I don’t accomplish this every time but it is my goal to engage with each child that I teach.
This is one of the reasons I love simple activities like the ones below.
In these activities the teacher and students draw simple pictures and participate together in discovering the important words and ideas in a Bible story.
Draw a simple picture or outline and then fill it in with thoughts and ideas you have learned in the Bible story.Draw a grid on paper and mark categories. Fill each category with thoughts and ideas you have learned in the Bible story.Choose a word or name from the story and outline the letters of that word. Have children fill the letters in with thoughts and ideas you have learned in the Bible story.
I thought I’d finish off 2014 by posting a simple game to use as a review in Bible Class.
Well, at least I assumed it would be simple!
A woman named Debbie (Arizona, USA) emailed me awhile back with the suggestion of adapting an “X and O” game into a review activity for Bible Class. Children list words and ideas and then play a game similar to “tic-tac-toe” or “noughts and crosses”. The example in the picture above is from the Bible lesson Conquering the Land and Fighting Giants.
It turns out that many of us play the game but we know it by different names. That’s why I stuck with the simple title of “X and O Review Game“. Here are some of the other names listed by Wikipedia:
Tick-tack-toe, Tic-tac-toe, Tick-tat-toe, or Tit-tat-toe (USA, Canada)
Noughts and crosses or Naughts and crosses (United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa)
Exy-Ozys, Xsie-Osies (verbal name only) (Northern Ireland)
Xs and Os (Egypt, Republic of Ireland, Canada, Zimbabwe, Romania)
O-X (Mauritius)
Older Than You Think
I was amazed to find out that In fact, 1st Century Romans played a version of this game that was very similar to what we play today! So this game has been played since the time of Christ.
Same Same but Different
As my Thai friends say, “same-same but different”. God’s Word does not change but it is shared in different languages and and by various methods that fit the culture and understanding of the hearer. You know the needs of the children you are teaching. I’m hoping you are reading the ideas on www.missionbibleclass.org and then adapting them to your own teaching situation and language.
If a simple and inconsequential game of “X and O” can still be played and enjoyed by adults and children century after century then how much more lasting is the Word of God for all people for all time?
You will prepare a white paper before class by drawing or writing something on it with a white crayon. Nothing is visible to the children at first but your drawing will begin to appear when you apply paint to the white paper.
This is a simple idea for teaching or artwork and it can be adapted to any lesson or subject.
Paint (Water based paint. I like using tempera paint with children because it is washable but any water-based paint like acrylic will do.)
Paint brush or sponge to apply the paint.
Instructions:
Plan the picture or writing.
Use the white crayon or candle to draw a picture or words on the white paper. Because this is white crayon on white paper the paper will appear to be blank.
Use the paint brush or sponge to apply the paint to the white paper.
The paint will soak into the paper but not into the parts covered in wax. Whatever you have drawn with the white crayon will “appear” as you apply the paint.
Helpful Hints:
You can use a black pen to do the writing or drawing first and then place the blank white paper over it and trace it.
Prepare this in sunlight or near a lamp so the wax will reflect and you can more easily see what you have drawn.
Apply the paint to some blank areas before you reveal the picture. Kids love surprises so draw out the suspense a little.
Experiment beforehand with the consistency of the paint so it won’t be too thick or too thin.
Applications:
Use this idea to tell the Parable of the Hidden Treasure and Valuable Pearl. Use brown paint to depict the treasure being found when the man was digging in the dirt. On another paper draw lots of little pearls and one huge one.
Write a memory verse or important word from a story and let the children guess what it is before you apply the paint.
Use a black pen to draw part of a picture but leave parts blank. The missing parts will appear as you tell the story.
Guide the children in creating their own hidden picture.
Today I had fun making a “how to” video for playing a review or application game for Bible class.
Two girls allowed me to video them explaining how to make a home-made rice bag that can be used for a variety of games in Bible classes. Spending this fun morning with them reminded me again that we don’t need expensive teaching tools to share God’s with children. We made a great game using rice, old socks and a little imagination.
