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Help for Sunday School teachers
Choosing your Sunday School curriculum
The first and most important decision to make about Sunday School is what material to use. We now have new Mennonite Sunday School curriculum for junior youth and high school. It's part of the new series, Gather 'Round. I highly recommend it! It is both Bible-based and learner-oriented. Each lesson includes a "Faith Insight" which explains the context of the story to the teacher. From there, the lesson progresses through steps that connect the Bible story to the youth's own life and calls on the youth to respond to it. The junior youth material has a booklet for each student, while the high school material is a leader's guide with some reproducible handouts. It can be printed from a disc or downloaded from the Gather 'Round web site. Handy! Resources for teachers The Gather 'Round curriculum follows a four-year path through the Bible. Click here to see the 4-year outline. Gather 'Round does not provide high school curriculum for the summer quarter, so here is a list of possible things you could use in the summer. Be sure to keep a record of what material is taught when and by whom. This will keep your teachers from repeating material with the same kids. Here's a chart you can use. Another resource for Sunday School teachers is the Gather 'Round handbook. It includes information about the curriculum's theological foundations, how the Bible is used, faith formation, educational principles and teaching tips for every grade level. Teaching tips for junior youth begin on page 143 and tips for youth teachers begin on page 154. Ask your Sunday School superintendent for a copy. There are numerous elective studies from the Mennonite press. Some titles are: Adventures with the Anabaptists, Tent of Meeting, Peace—Just Live It!, and Decide for Peace. These can also be ordered by calling 1-800-245-7894 or go to Faith & Life Resources. All this Sunday School material is available in the youth ministry resource library. (Please use the material in the library to preview and decide. Then buy the material from Faith & Life Resources. It is reasonably priced, your church has a budget for Sunday School material, and we need to support our publisher if we are to have quality Anabaptist material.) Of course there are MANY other publishers producing material for youth Sunday School. Say you find a great-looking curriculum but you’re not sure if you should use it. How do you decide whether it is appropriate? Mennonite Church USA has created a tool for you! MennoLens is a checklist and a guide to help you evaluate curriculum. Blessings to you as you teach our teens!! |
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