Time for a Census?

Once every ten years, our nation undertakes a census, a count of citizens and an investigation into who they are, what characteristics they exhibit.

Once a year, your Sunday School should also undertake a census. List by name all the children of Sunday School age who are baptized members of your congregation. Then note, to the best of your ability, what characteristics they exhibit.

• Do they attend Sunday School? How frequently?
• Do their parents attend Bible class?
• What other church connections do they have? Worship? Day School attendance? Participation in choir? Other activities?
• Who are their friends within the congregation?
• What challenging circumstances do they face?

What value is there in such a list?

• It is a prayer list. Pray for each family and child, personally and corporately.
• It may suggest social connections that could encourage more frequent attendance.
• It can be a source of incremental improvement. The Smiths have never been to Sunday School; what entry level event might attract them? The Jones attend only once in a while; what strategy or incentive might help them be more faithful? The Roberts children sometimes come but their parents are never in Bible class; what class might appeal to them?
• It can be a aid to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

It's a plan that has been used before! "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration . . . ." (Luke 2:1-2 ESV)

God's blessings as you teach His children His Word!

Thanks!

Thank You, God, for . . .

• Thousands of volunteers who teach Sunday School each week.
• Parents who bring their children to church each Sunday for worship and Bible study.
• Parents who teach the Christian faith to their children as part of their daily family routine.
• Dorothy and Carl Felten, neighbors who reached out to my brother and me during our childhood to make sure we had the opportunity to attend Sunday School. Dorothy taught my Sunday School class for at least five years in a row; Carl provided transportation and regular incentives to keep us coming back (yea for Dairy Queen!).

Thanks, God, for the blessing of teaching Your children Your Word.

How Is Your Sunday School?

Is it dead?
About twenty percent of the congregations in our church body report having no Sunday School at all.

Is it small?
About twenty percent of the congregations in our church body report having 1 to 25 students in Sunday School.

Is it average?
About half of our Sunday Schools have 100 students or less.

Is it worthwhile?
God has promised to bless His Word wherever it is taught; He is at work blessing your Sunday School.

One not-quite-simple step each congregation should every year is to contact every family with children of Sunday School age with an invitation to Sunday School. By mail is okay; by phone or in person is even better. If you visit, take along an extra leaflet from the appropriate grade levels. Show how the Gospel is central to every lesson.

Three other important ways to support your Sunday School:

1. Hold it at a separate hour from worship; don't place these two vital ministries of your congregation in competition.
2. Offer visit-friendly adult Bible studies at the same time as Sunday School; not all your parents will be willing to volunteer in the Sunday School all the time.
3. Maintain contact with each family from the time of Baptism until the time you begin Sunday School with a Cradle/Nursery Roll program; let them know that you care about their children and are looking forward to seeing them in Sunday School when the time is right.

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Dear Lord . . .

Hear our prayer on behalf of the Sunday School. In Your grace and mercy . . .

• Grant that all churches find children in their midst with whom to share Your Word.
• Grant to all churches willing servants to teach and direct the Sunday School.
• Bless pastors with both the desire and ability to make Sunday School a high priority in the congregation's ministry.
• Bless congregations with an abundance of gifts to support Sunday School with excellent resources.
• Teach discernment to Sunday School leaders to recognize the errors of moralism and works righteousness and to seek an appropriate balance of Law and Gospel as they choose curriculum for their teachers.
• Give parents both the desire to see their children in Sunday School each week and the willingness to attend Sunday School each week themselves.
• Give all who teacher Your Word wisdom and understanding, both of the Word and of the students they teach, so that their lessons might be effective in building Your kingdom.

We ask it in Jesus' name, Amen.

Are you getting the latest CPH news?

Someone forwarded a great idea to me last week: a digital newsletter about a wonderful product; both the newsletter and the product were published by a published other than the one I work for. "Why doesn't CPH do something like this?" the writer asked. "It would be so helpful!"

Of course, we do! We offer regular e-mailed newsletters to our customers in 14 different categories of resources. You can also receive information through Facebook, Twitter, podcasts, and news releases. Buttons for these by categories of information services can be found on our Web site, cph.org, in the upper left corner of the gray information box that occupies a large chunk of real estate at the bottom of each page on the Web site.

You can go directly to the "sign up for e-mail" screen by clicking this link: http://www.cph.org/t-topic-newsletters.aspx.

Visit "CPH Sunday School" on Facebook. We'd love to be liked and to hear from you.

Blessings as you teach God's children His Word.

The Worship-Education Dilemma

Twice in the past week, I was reminded of the challenges that churches create for themselves by scheduling worship and Christian education simultaneously.

I gave this advice to a DCE (who, as it turned out, did not need it): "Do not schedule worship and education simultaneously. Even when the spirit is willing, the flesh is weak. Families will be tempted to cut back to one hour. Adults miss Bible class, children miss worship, everybody loses.  I know that facilities cost money and when attendance grows that middle hour looks attractive for worship as well as education. My advice is don’t do it."

And I heard our senior pastor at the congregation where I am a member, during the sermon at the 9:30 a.m. worship service (and all others), the admonition that parents should not choose to worship at a time that precludes their own attendance at Bible class or deprives their children of the opportunity to be in both worship and Sunday School. (I'm sure he did not miss the irony that he was preaching in a service that take place during the congregation's Sunday School hour.)

Wise congregational leadership will address the issues raised by a crowded sanctuary in ways that will not have a negative impact on Christian education for adults and worship attendance for children. How else will children learn to worship than by doing so with their parents? What kind of example for valuing the study of God's Word is given by parents who do not study God's Word along side of, at the same time as, their children?

There will be a definite cost to keeping the hours of worship and Christian education separate. In spiritual terms, however, I believe it will be less than the cost of placing worship and Sunday School in competing time slots.

God bless you as you enable God's children, children and adults, to study God's Word.

Sunday School and Sexuality

In my role as senior editor for Sunday School materials at Concordia Publishing House, I get a bit of mail. Today brought an anonymous letter from a concerned retired teacher. Her concern is that Sunday School not teaching sufficiently what the Bible says on the issue of homosexuality.

We more often get correspondence on the other side of this issue, from teachers who are uncomfortable with teaching lessons that touch on sexuality issues (David's sin with Bathsheba, for example, or Joseph fleeing the advances of Potiphar's wife).

What age is an appropriate time for Sunday School lessons that include discussion of things things? I suspect it might be different for different topics: adultery, homosexuality, dating and marriage, and others. I also suspect that there might be some regional a differences, congregations more comfortable teaching such things at different ages.

What would your teachers be comfortable with?

I will confess that to considerable caution. The best place for these discussions is in the Christian home. A child's parents have a responsibility, as well as the most natural opportunities, to teach these things.

At most any age, the Church can teach about sin, including sins of a sexual nature, in the most general way: these are reasons that each of us needs a Savior, and sins for which Christ died. Beyond that, I'd be willing to stay out of the sexuality subjects completely.

This is another area where teachers will need to be the final editor. You know what your students need to know, and you know what their parents will expect of you in your role as the Sunday School teacher for their children. A curriculum's inclusion of such topics, or their omission, does not intend to force you into uncomfortable discussions.

God's blessings as you teach His children His Word!

What You Are Is What You Were When You Were Ten

More years ago than I care to admit, I was challenged (near the end of a 16mm HR training film) to reflect on the impact that my life at age ten had on my "after age ten" existence. The premise of the film was that a lot of our attitudes, beliefs, and practices are imprinted at about age ten. From that time on, we don't change all that much.

Maybe that's a stretch, but as I hear it today, it has a ring of truth, at least in matters of spiritual formation. A child's attitudes about church and Sunday School, his or her beliefs about what God is like and what life with God is all about, and devotional and worship disciplines at age ten may predict where that child will be in ten, twenty, or fifty years later.

What if this is true? What would you like that ten-year-old child to be hearing, learning, and experiencing?

• Opportunities for service in the church and community?
• Sunday School lessons filled with forgiveness for sin and assurance of God's love and mercy?
• Weekly participation in worship and Sunday School as a family?

What was life like for you at age ten?

What specific attitudes, beliefs, and practices would you like to imprint on the children you teach?

God bless you as you teach His children (and their families) His Word!

The Impact of the Lectionary

How much does the lectionary impact your Sunday School?
Here at Concordia Publishing House, we have crafted our lesson sequence with two things in mind: (1) biblical literacy and (2) the three-year lectionary. The result is, of necessity, a compromise.

In pursuit of biblical literacy, we depart from the lectionary in significant ways. The readings of the lectionary do not incorporate a chronological look at the Old Testament; in fact, large swaths of the salvation narrative from the Old Testament are not included in the lectionary at all. In order to expose students to the key events in the salvation narrative, we teach Old Testament lessons in a chronological sequence in each fall quarter, dividing the Old Testament into four very unequal parts. Other departures from the lectionary occur in the spring quarters. The events of Holy Week cannot be adequately taught in just one Sunday School lesson, so some lessons before Easter often depart from the appointed Gospel reading. Similarly, the Book of Acts contains many events worth teaching in Sunday School, so other Gospel lessons are sacrificed. When all is said and done, students will study the appointed Gospel text about seventy percent of the time in our winter and spring quarters. And we've worked hard to have even this degree of congruence with the lectionary.

But then we have to ask: what about those who do not use the three-year lectionary? A portion of our LCMS congregations have retained the one-year lectionary. Another portion still worship out of an older hymnal, while our Sunday School lessons are pegged to the lectionary as revised in the Lutheran Service Book. And there are a fair number of congregations where the lectionary is unique to that congregation, where the pastor preaches series of sermons that do not use the historic lectionary and then chooses readings that support that sermon topic.

When it happens, teaching the Gospel lesson for the Sunday in Sunday School provides powerful reinforcement. It connects the worship and education experiences and allows them to support one another. It gives the family a solid core on which to build with devotions and discussions through the week. When it does not happen, the students still get a solid lesson, rooted in God's Word, that teaches salvation through faith in Christ each and every week. We seem to be on target for a lot of congregations. How about you?

Does your congregation use the three-year lectionary in your worship services? Another version of the lectionary? No lectionary at all?

What do you like, or not like, about the sequence of lessons in your current Sunday School curriculum?

What aspects of the curriculum are equally or more important than lesson sequence?

God's blessing as you teach His children His Word!

One Size Does NOT Fit All

How big is your Sunday School? How does its size influence its structure and your choice of curriculum?

Small Sunday Schools
Two-thirds of the congregations of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod report an average worship attendance of less than 125 people. Assuming that Sunday School attendance is likely fifty percent of that figure or less, we're talking about a lot of congregations with less than 50 children age 3 through grade 8 in Sunday School.

The small Sunday School faces significant challenges. Among them is fewer paid staff (a pastor and a part-time secretary?), so little ability to customize curriculum. My guess is that the small church organizes Sunday School along traditional lines and purchases a traditional curriculum, adapting as needed for their local situation. That's good!

Large Sunday Schools
A couple of larger Sunday Schools in large congregations have come to my attention recently. The congregations are significantly larger than average (2500 and 5,000 members; worship attendance reported at more than 1,000 and more than 1700 people respectively). Sunday School statistics are not published but attendance for threes through grade 8 is likely 300 to 500 students.

The large congregation also faces significant challenges. It is more difficult to motivate members to participation beyond the Sunday morning worship service. As a percentage of worship attendance, Sunday School attendance is usually smaller for large congregations. There are more paid staff, however, some of whom have specific responsibility for Sunday School. The Sunday School is often structured along less traditional lines; a large group opening and Bible presentation followed by small group discussion is a frequent pattern. Material may be prepared locally from scratch or heavily customized to meet the specific needs of this one large congregation.

Theology Matters
It is to be hoped that both large Sunday Schools and small ones will give equal attention in their choice of curriculum materials to theological content, especially the faithful teaching of God's Word, Law and Gospel, sin and salvation.

Cross Explorations
CPH now has a curriculum designed for a less traditional Sunday School structure. It will work well in small Sunday Schools and large ones. It adheres to the doctrine expected by confessional Lutheran congregations. I hope our large congregations will check it out! (And our small ones, too.)

Would you describe your Sunday School as large? Small? Somewhere in between?

How does your size influence your structure? Have you made some unique adjustments?

How has your size influenced your choice of curriculum?

Learnings from "Second Grade Bible Sunday"

Our new congregation, St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Des Peres, MO, recognized second graders and their families with the gift of a Bible for each student as part of the worship service this past Sunday. At least 80 percent of the students, including (I was told) many who are not likely to attend Sunday School. Still attendance was good for this event. What can we learn from this event and apply to other aspects of the Sunday School?

Personal contact bears fruit. It was obvious that the families of each second grader had been contacted, made aware of the event, and invited to participate. I'd like to think that contact was personal (phone or visit) rather than just by mail or blanket e-mail.

People responded to the offer of a significant gift. The Bibles presented were not cheap (a $25.00 value). They were special and personalized for each child. (Okay, the personalization was to take place later and that could have been improved, but it was a big deal for these kids.)

Give the event and the participants visibility. The students and their parents were invited forward by name during the worship service, introduced, and applauded. It was a relatively big deal. I've seen in other congregations a connection made between this gift of the Bible and the parents' baptismal promises. It would have been nice if the pastor had prayed with these families at the altar, but he did pray for all parents and students just moments before. How many other times will a second grader get to stand in front of the congregation and be applauded just for being there?

The worship event was tied to participating in that morning's Sunday School class. The students were encouraged to be in Sunday School that morning with their new Bibles. The Bible would be personalized with name-plates and other information, the students would meet the regular Sunday School teachers. It was an attempt to make this one-time event the beginning of a habit of regular participation.

I hope it works for these children, that they become regular students of God's Word!

How could this kind of milestone event be leveraged into regular participation?

What other events of this kind could be added to the congregation's calendar to encourage parents and children to participate in Sunday School?

What great ideas do you have for making the most of "Second Grade Bibles Sunday"?

Rally Day

Does anyone even call it that any more? Christian education Sunday, maybe? A Sunday, usually near the end of August or the beginning of September, when the congregation focuses on Sunday School. Here are some objectives you might consider for your Rally Day.

State the Obvious!
We all need God's Word! Rally Day is an opportunity to remind the entire congregation that hearing God's Word and studying God's powerful message is at the heart of the Christian life. It is the way that God has chosen to be with His people in our time. Children, young people, parents, and all other members of the congregation benefit from being reminded.

Give Visibility!
Rally is an opportunity to give your Sunday School program prime face time with the worshiping congregation. Let the children sing, act out the Scripture lessons, and help the ushers. Recognize those who have agreed to teach and serve in other Sunday School roles though a rite of induction or commissioning.

Contact Students Personally!
At least once a year, every student eligible for Sunday School in your congregation should be contacted personally by his or her potential teacher or another volunteer with an friendly invitation to attend Sunday School regularly. The week before Rally Day is a great time to do this. Since your Sunday School operates during the summer (it does, doesn't it? If you wonder why check out this earlier post), you might legitimately focus on those who are not attending regularly or at all. But you cannot assume that notes in the weekly bulletin or church newsletter, or even a well-written e-mail, will have anything like the impact of a personal phone call or home visit.

Refresh the Premises!
Rally Day is a great excuse for major house-cleaning. Clean the cobwebs, light fixtures, walls, doors, windows, and floors. Take down dated, faded, or tattered posters and decorations. Paint rooms that need it. Scrub the furniture. Clean any classroom toys (now, but more than once a year). Examine the building with the eyes of a stranger, and post improved signs as needed.

Promote Students to Their New Classes!
Okay, I'm of mixed mind on this one. Rally Day is a great time to do this. It is an exciting step for almost every child, one they look forward to since it conveys a positive message of growth. It can be scary for some children, though. And, for many students, the entire summer is confusing, since they "graduated" from their last grade in May, but the church didn't seem to get the message. Promotion in June is a logical and appropriate alternative.

Rally Day, Christian Education Sunday, should not be the only time you give visibility to this crucial ministry in your congregation, but it is one you should not miss!

When do you promote your students?

What date do you prefer for Christian Education Sunday?

What other objectives do you have for your Rally Day?

God's blessings as you teach His children His Word!

Teachers Interaction Magazine

The Fall 2012 issue of Teachers Interaction magazine, the magazine for today's Sunday School, was released last month. Have you seen it? (E-mail me at tom.nummela@cph.org if you have never seen this magazine. Include your mailing address and I'll make sure you get a sample copy.) I had the privilege of editing this magazine for the past 14 years, but have recently turned the reigns over to my colleague Mark Sengele.

This issue centers on the topic of "Christology," the doctrines of the Church that unpack the person and work of Jesus Christ. It does so using language that volunteer teachers can understand and make their own. It is worth the "single copy" price of $5.50; it's even a better deal as part of a subscription. You can check it out at teachersinteraction.cph.org.

Here's a rundown on this issue: "Pastor Timothy Pauls introduces the topic in “Christology in Sunday School,” challenging us to teach clearly but to allow God’s mystery to be believed rather than understood. In “We Wish to See Jesus,” the editor presents the case for a Sunday School that is truly centered on Christ. Pastor Charles Lehmann looks at the lessons in this fall’s quarter of Growing in Christ Sunday School materials and succeeds in “Finding Christ in the Old Testament.” DCE James Lohman suggests ways our students can be involved in serving Christ as we serve others in “The Hands of Christ.” Reverend Scot Kinnaman provides a helpful look at some things we can share with our students about the Divine Service in “Our Worship Teaches Christ.”

Teachers Interaction is the only magazine of its kind, devoted exclusively to volunteer Sunday School teachers and those who support them. It can be a great supplement to your teacher training. It is tailor-made for those who teach God's children His Word. I hope you'll check it out!

What would make Teachers Interaction an even better value to you?

What topics do you think this magazine should tackle in future issues?

The Sunday School Director

Directing a Sunday School is not an easy task. The Sunday School Revolutionary, Darryl Wilson, has posted recently and not so recently on his blog about the duties of a Sunday School Revolutionary, and his list is impressive. I've selected one worthy post; check it out, and browse the others if you wish. (It is worth noting that Mr. Wilson is a Baptist and "Sunday School" in his world view is primarily for adults.)

It strikes me that the Sunday morning experience is comprised of three primary components over which the SS director has some control, or should have: the teacher, the curriculum, and the classroom. (The fourth component, of course, is the student.)

The Teacher
The director works to have the very best teachers possible, offers them training and support, and directs their efforts for the benefit of the student. The teacher is a volunteer, but he or she is not a free agent; in accepting the position of teacher, he or she is agreeing to some specific duties and obligations, such as preparing adequately, using the curriculum provided, and following such policies are in place to guide his or her work.

The Curriculum
The curriculum must teach the faith and doctrine of the church. This is the top priority and should  not be overlooked. There are many curriculum choices available; very few of them teach God's Word clearly and accurately. The director should be able to resist pressure to use any material that does not meet this standard.

The Classroom
The director should know the spaces in which Sunday School classes are taking place, understand their good and bad features, and work with other congregational leaders to constantly improve them. He or she should be alert for overcrowding and plan for future growth.

Each of these areas is worthy of expansion, perhaps in future posts.

What do you think are the key concerns for the Sunday School director?

How does your director (or is that you?) spend most of his or her time? Is that how it should be?

Thanks, directors, for all you do so that others can teach God's children His Word.

Cross Explorations, a New Model

Last week CPH celebrated the launch of a new Sunday School curriculum: Cross Explorations. (The material is in stock and is shipping today.) This is the first time in almost fifty years that CPH has published two Sunday School curricula simultaneously. Our customers now have a choice.

Cross Explorations is a hybrid curriculum: part large-group/small-group and part site rotation. It can be used effectively in large and small Sunday Schools. And it will work just fine in a traditional self-contained classroom. Check it out at cph.org/sundayschool.

All leader material for the curriculum is packaged in one convenient kit. Student material is purchased separately. All items in the kits can be purchased separately. The curriculum is designed for children grades one through six and includes an adult component for parents.

The curriculum follows the Growing in Christ scope and sequence, so a congregation can continue to use that curriculum for early childhood, junior high, and high school classes for a unified curriculum.

Cross Explorations uses a simple one, two, three process.

One: Engage
All students meet for a group opening, which can include parents.

Two: Explore
Students break out into age-level Bible study for grades one through three, four through six, and adults. A small congregation may have just two classes; larger congregations may offer more than one class at some levels.

Three: Express
Students rotate through two, three, or four sites to review the lesson and express themselves in drama, crafts, music, or other activities. Material is offered for all four sites each week, but the congregation can choose which sites to offer each week. The number of Express sites offered will depend on the local schedule and the number of students.

Cross Explorations is a new way to teach God's children His Word. And it's from CPH, so you know your students will hear the Gospel every week.

Is your congregation ready to try something new?

Which Express sites sound most likely for your congregation?

Building Attendance

A conversation is occurring in another forum about helping families with small children and teens make it to both church and Sunday School in the face of busy lives.

Here was my contribution to that exchange:

Thanks to all of you for your concern in this area. It strikes me that the issue is the same for families with teens and those with small children, for families without children, singles, seniors, and . . . you get the point. The issue is priorities.

Satan works to crowd God out of our lives or marginalize Him (The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis is an interesting read on this point).

Duty used to be a relatively strong motivator for many families; not so much any more. Guilt can work for some and for a time, and preaching both Law and Gospel is what the Church is all about. But if you are going to preach the Law, it is essential that it be followed with honest Gospel, or the result will be resentment not joyful service.

I would suggest that we haven't done a very good job in the Church in the past twenty years of effectively communicating what Sunday School is all about. Why should parents and others make Sunday School a priority over sports, breakfast out, and yes even sleep? Each Sunday we have the opportunity to encounter Jesus Christ in Word and Sacrament through Sunday School and the Divine Service. Such encounters prepare us, adults and children alike, to live as God's children in the world.

What are some ways to help marginal families understand this?

Bless us, Lord, as we teach God's children His Word.

What Do You Do with a Very Small Sunday School?

I'm getting hungry for some fresh statistics about Sunday School in the LCMS. I guess I'm going to have to bug our marketing people for some survey data.

The trend that I'd like to test with some research is that I'm hearing more concerns and comments these days from very small Sunday Schools, congregations where Sunday School is often one group of mixed-age children studying with just a single adult.

Needless to say, this often requires a high degree of flexibility in all areas: a teacher who can "roll with the punches" and teach a lesson for preschoolers or preteens, or perhaps one of each in that day's class; students who will endure the awkward initial moments when there are no friends in the class and no else his or her age; a curriculum that can shift with the flow of students and still work effectively.

Here are some things I know in my heart will be true about such a Sunday School.
* The teacher will be the key to its success. I know this because it is true of every Sunday School classroom. The personality, preparation, and practice of the teacher will outweigh other variables. What should you do? Invest the position of Sunday School teacher with high honor and importance. Pursue the very best candidate, even if it means enlisting the person who might otherwise be an elder, choir member, or leader of the women's group. Make Sunday School the highest priority.
* This Sunday School will require significant investment. It will more expensive to provide materials; the cost of the teacher's resources will be divided among just a few students. It will require people resources. What should you do? Don't short-change this critical ministry. It will be tempting to cut back and try to get by without good materials, especially if attendance is sporadic.
* Attendance will fluctuate. And the impact of even one family being gone may be huge. What should you do? Emphasize good communication, so that teachers have every opportunity to prepare for those who will be attending, rather than those who didn't come this week. Send unused student material to absent families to review at home; this is a great excuse to encourage and educate parents.
* God will be present and bless the study of His Word! The class that consists of just one teacher and one student, even if it lasts only 20 minutes because many activities are skipped or go quickly, is still the opportunity to teach one of God's children His Word. What should you do? Give thanks, make the most of even the smallest opportunity, and pray that God will send more children next week who are hungry to hear the Word.

God bless!

Will you use PowerPoint in Sunday School?

I'm not the cutting edge technology person I once thought I was. More and more, I'm relying on others for assistance in the technological parts of my work. But I'm striving to grow.

I'm doing workshops now using PowerPoint outlines. It really is a helpful tool.

The new Cross Explorations curriculum from CPH will offer several PowerPoint resources. The Explore openings will be available as PowerPoint programs, including the songs with linked music. The Express Music sessions will have the option of recorded music, lyrics on PowerPoint, and lyric PowerPoints with linked recordings. These resources, of course, will be beneficial only to congregations where projection systems are in place allowing the PowerPoint resources to be displayed in the assembly area or classroom.

To be frank, we don't really know how many of our customers will find those resources helpful or how many will simply be frustrated. I'm looking forward to the mail.

The point I'd like to make is this: technology is here to stay. To the degree that we fail to use it in Christian education, we risk being marginalized by the students and families for whom technology is fully integrated into their daily lives.

* What resources do you think our publishing house should be offering in digital formats or with digital components?

* Do you use projected PowerPoint resources in your Sunday School? When and how?

* What should be our top priority in this regard?

God's blessings as you use technology to teach God's children His Word!

The Benefit of Color Printing

I had occasion at least twice this month to defend the use of full-color printed material in our Sunday School curricula at Concordia Publishing House. It seems that some churches, maybe many churches, are looking for materials for Sunday School that are completely reproducible locally on the church's copier or the teacher's home computer printer.

The Logic
From one perspective, this seems to be an attractive alternative. The publisher provides everything in one book or on one CD. The teacher makes only as many copies that he or she thinks will be needed that week (and, I guess, runs back to the copier if one extra student shows up). The church saves money, because they don't have to buy extra student material that they might not need.

The Reality
The publisher has to increase the price of the book or CD, because most of the cost of developing the material (thinking, writing, editing, producing, and even printing) still exists even for the black and white book pages or digital files on the CD. The church pays the office supply store for the student pages (paper and toner) instead of the publisher. The teacher makes a couple of extra copies, just in case, and still has extras, resulting in more cost not less (but not directly to the Sunday School budget line, I suppose).
And the students miss out: no full-color, realistic Bible art; no full-color activity pages; no stickers; no full-color posters.

The Question
Am I the only one who cares?

Would teachers, parents, students, and church leaders rather just have a mono-chrome curriculum?

Isn't this a matter of priorities for the congregation? How much is Christian education worth?

Is the educational contribution provided by full-color materials not worth the investment?

How much does color help you as you teach God's children His Word?

Improving Biblical Literacy

Following up on my last post, I just composed a response for a pastor whose congregation is considering a new model (modified workshop rotation) to increase biblical literacy. Here's what I wrote:
First, let me say that what you suggest is certainly possible. There has been, over the past decade a movement in some churches toward what you describe, usually called “workshop rotation,” so called because, when student numbers warrant it, students can be grouped and rotated through two or more workshop, one each week. The “workshop” leader teaches the same lesson in the same style (drama, cooking, crafts, etc) each week to a new group of students. CPH has not produced a “workshop rotation” curriculum. We are leery of the resulting narrow range of Bible accounts that are then studied in a given period of time. We think it requires more than just a few Bible accounts a year to teach the entire sweep of salvation’s plan. That is not to say that I prefer a shallow approach, in which a large number of lessons are taught superficially.

These are my premises:
• You and I, and most of the parents and students in you congregation, probably grew up in a Sunday School that taught a different lesson each Sunday. The lessons repeated every three years or so, and the result was at least a passing acquaintance with a large number of Bible accounts. That pattern is not inherently flawed.
• If Sunday School leaders and teachers spend the same amount on time improving their present system of curriculum, preparation, and teaching that they would spend in reviewing, choosing, and implementing a new system, the resulting improvement will be about the same. It is not the new system that makes the most difference, but the time and energy invested in any system.
• The material in a typical Sunday School curriculum today (and that includes Growing in Christ from CPH) provides enough teaching activities to fill more than an hour in a typical Sunday School. The teacher must pick and choose the activities that will be best for his or her students and focus on them in order to teach the main points effectively, while leaving time at the beginning of each lesson to review the key points of previous lessons, and at the end of the lesson to review the key points of the lesson just taught. The teacher that tries to cover everything in the teacher guide will wind up glossing over the key points, skipping the review, and still feel frustrated every week because “I wasn’t able to cover everything.” The students retain the material, not because the class covered everything, but because the activities that were chosen engaged the students and made connections between the Bible and contemporary life.
• Doing this final edit of any lesson—choosing and revising the activities so that they will engage your specific students—is hard work and requires preparation that too many teachers don’t invest each week.
• The whole process of retention, call it a lack of biblical literacy, is aggravated in our present day by the growing numbers of students who do not attend Sunday School every week. The depth and breadth of their biblical knowledge is not assisted by repeating lessons on multiple weeks, because they miss significant opportunities for learning new material and reviewing past lessons. The real solution is not to teach fewer lessons, but to get students into the classroom more often.

So, I’m not saying that what you propose is not possible; it is. Assuming that you plan carefully and student number to vacillate widely, you could in theory order the lessons you want when they are available and save the material until you need it. A 13-lesson quarter of material might last you for two or even three quarters. But it will be a lot of work figuring out how to extend the material over two or three weeks. You should be prepared for the extra work. And care will be needed to avoid sending the message that a student now only has to attend one week out of two or three since the lessons are repeated, which would result in even less biblical literacy than you currently faced.

I will admit that I am a traditionalist. I think that the traditional Sunday School can still work and thrive in most congregations.

Let me suggest another tool that you might want to promote in your congregation: biblequizzesonline.com. My wife built this Web site several years ago in response to her own concerns for biblical literacy among the students of our congregation. She continues to maintain it each week, providing a 10 question quiz that promotes accountable Bible reading. The Web site provides a way to read (or listen to) the Bible account for each lesson in Growing in Christ, followed by an on-line quiz with immediate feedback on correct and incorrect answers. This is one tool that teachers and families can use to promote biblical literacy.

I’m sorry if my response is not what you hoped for. I’m open to whatever follow-up questions you might have.

If you are looking for a new model for your Sunday School that incorporates a different form of rotation—“site rotation”—you might be aware that CPH is offering a second alternative for Sunday School in Fall 2012: Cross Explorations. This model combines large-group (“Engage”)/small-group (“Explore”) Sunday School with a rotation of sites in series of “Express” sites. You can learn more at http://sites.cph.org/sundayschool/.

Thanks for working hard for your Sunday School, Pastor. God will bless your efforts to teach His children His Word.