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!

Three Simple Things

I'm a pretty old-fashioned guy. I like calling Sunday School "Sunday School." I think it's not a bad idea for students to gather once a week for age-appropriate Bible study with their same-aged peers. I like Sunday School material with realistic biblical art, not cartoons. And I'm okay with lessons that are fairly traditional. I think every lesson should teach about Jesus with clear Law and Gospel.

But as I look at Sunday School lessons these days, I find myself looking for three simple things (in addition to great Lutheran theology).

• an activity that gets the students up out of their seats.
• an activity that gets the students talking to one another.
• an activity that lets the students express their faith in words or actions.

It's not rocket science. Activities like these will improve student attitudes and behavior. They will grow as God's children.

What do you look for in the lessons you teach?

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Is There Value in Sunday School?

Suppose your congregation was a perfect congregation.

• Your members attend church every Sunday.
• Your pastor preaches excellent sermons that reach old and young people equally well.
• Your congregation supports a day school in which all eligible children are enrolled.
• Your parents are comfortable in their roles as the primary influencers of their children's spiritual life and growth and engage in daily family devotions and faith conversations with their children.
• Young and old members alike are avid readers of the Bible and do so daily.

Would there be any point in having a Sunday School?

I would argue that even in that amazing congregation, Sunday School would be a valuable opportunity for all families. It would provide:

• age-appropriate interaction and instruction for each child
• comprehensive coverage of the entire scope of the salvation narrative
• a place to build relationships with Christian peers
• outreach opportunities for friends and others from the community
• another chance to hear the blessed Gospel

Of course, your congregation and my congregation fall woefully short of that perfect standard. Sunday School then helps fill the gaps. It is surely worth every moment, and every penny, we invest in it.

God bless you as you provide opportunities for His children to study His Word!

The Best Class Ever!

You didn't use the suggested worship. Your students joined several other grades in a joint opening devotion led by the Sunday School director.

You didn't use the opening activity. A local news story had captured the interest of your students, so you allowed them to share their thoughts, offered some comments, and led the discussion into the Bible account for the day.

You didn't present the Bible account using drama like the guide suggested. Most of your students are not very outgoing, but they like to draw, so you had them line up at the board and have each one illustrate one paragraph of the text.

You didn't use the scripted teacher talk. Instead you phrased questions in your own words and followed up on insights your students shared.

You did remember the key point and general thrust of the lesson from your review earlier in the week, and you kept to that outline, more of less.

You didn't use the suggest application activity, but instead tied the Bible text back to the local event with which you started.

You didn't sing the suggested hymn in closing, but the text was right on target, so you challenged your students to listen carefully as you played the recording.

You didn't use the closing prayer, exactly. Your students are generally willing to pray petitions expressing their spiritual concerns, so you allowed each of them to offer a short prayer and closed with just a couple of phrases from the printed prayer.

You didn't use the leaflet this week, but you passed it out, and you noticed a couple of the students tucked it into their Bibles. Maybe they will use those daily Bible readings this week.

It was one of the best classes you've taught this quarter. The students were engaged. The Gospel was clearly shared. And the lesson material provided just enough structure and substance to get you started and keep you on track. You were the final editor, making choices and adjustments based on local conditions the publisher could never have anticipated.

Thanks! God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Who Is Missing?

You are five weeks into a new quarter of Sunday School. Routines are established. The dust has settled. You know your students pretty well and they know you.

It's time to ask, "Who is missing?"

Are all the students present each week who could be? Who should be? Probably not. Make a short list today, one or two names of students you miss. What would it take to get them to class?

• A personal contact?
• A promise (fulfilled, of course) of an activity they will find interesting?
• Contact from another student?
• An offer of transportation?
• A reminder to parents of the important opportunity that is being missed?
• A nudge from the pastor?

Say a prayer. Choose one thing you can do. Do it today.

God will bless you as you teach His children His Word.

What Needs to Change?

Nearly every teacher and leader in Sunday School that I talk to these days shares the same concern. Their Sunday School is not as good as they would like it to be. Something needs to change. All too often, the assumption is made that a new curriculum is the solution to our Sunday School ills.

I was struck then by this quote from pastor, Christian educator, and blogger Pete Jurchen: "I'd go so far as to say that a teacher could have a very dry curriculum, one that doesn't seem 'relevant' or 'fun' and doesn't have a lot of videos or activities, and could still make it an engaging learning experience if the effective learning techniques were employed. How we choose to interact with learners and teach material, it would seem, has a vastly greater impact on overall improvement then what we use to teach."

It is wonderful, of course, when our curriculum has relevance, fun, videos, activities, and engaging learning experiences. The truth is that "engaging learning experiences" are more about the interactions between the teacher and students, the relationships, than about the material. I and the other editors on my team spend the bulk of our time creating the best material we can. But we know that the material is only half of the equation. The teacher is the other half.

We pray for Sunday School teachers who will spend a little time each day preparing for his or her next class, who will work to know the personal story of each student, who will tailor the lesson activities we provide to be of maximum benefit to the students they teach.

Thank you for time you spend creating engaging learning experiences for your students as you teach God's children His Word.

A Class of One

It may be that some Sunday in the next month, many teachers will be faced with a very difficult situation . . . a class of one. It it not surprising that many will find this situation difficult of a couple of levels. Let's deal with two specific areas of concern.
Physically
In our present societal culture, my first piece of advice, when faced with a single student when it comes time to start your Sunday School class is this: don't.
I encourage all agencies of the Church to adhere to a two-deep policy: two adults present at all times with children. This is especially true when there is only one child in the class. How could anyone in the church be concerned about my conduct, you might ask. Tom Nummela must have a warped mind. None the less, for the protection of the volunteers involved as well as the children, this should be a  matter of policy. It is often mandated by your church's insurance carrier.
If you find there are just two of you in the room . . .

• Join another class, one level up or down as needed. The other teacher will probably be surprised, but things will sort out quickly and everyone will benefit.
• Recruit another adult or parent to join you. The child's parent would be ideal. Everyone will be more at ease.

In either case, explanations will be a whole lot easier if it is simply in response to the church's policy.
Educationally
Assuming that you have that extra body in the room and are going ahead with the lesson, consider these realities:

• Discussion may be difficult.
• The lesson will go very quickly.
• It is time to get personal.

Getting personal will help on several levels.
As the teacher, be personal. Share your story. Make sure the student knows that you teach about Jesus because you love Jesus and know He cares for you. Reveal enough about yourself to give the student some opportunities to relate to you.
With the student, get personal. Spend some time at the beginning of class to get to know the student. Ask fact questions about family, pets, school, hobbies, sports, and other interests. Even if you know the child well, get to know him or her even better. The point here is both to learn and to let the student practice talking to you. When the lesson discussion comes around you'll find it will go much better.
Read the Bible account, re-tell the account, and ask review questions. The review could be a two-person drama, perhaps. You'll have time to round up a few props, practice the lines, and really get it right.
Build your review and application questions like a pyramid. Lay a base of easy questions, ones with obvious answers. Structure the questions so that the student cannot answer in one or two words. (Remember, you want the student to get comfortable conversing with you.) After the base has been laid, look for the analysis questions that will unpack motivation, why the people in the story acted as they did, and why God acted as He did in this situation.
When it comes to application, lead the student to see that he or she is like the person God helps in the story, more than the one who helps (not the Good Samaritan, but the man who fell among thieves; not the shepherd or the woman who lost the coin or the father, but the lost sheep, coin, and son).
As you teach, decide whether the application activities in the lesson will work with just one student. Invent your own craft ideas as you go along. Invite the student to illustrate the story on the board, or draw a picture on paper to share with parents. Take the child along to the supply room to gather some cool stuff to create some take-home art.

Finally, be brave. Sing the songs suggested in the lesson; no one will hear but you and an audience of one. Try something new; if it doesn't work, your learning partner will be forgiving. Above all, let the Gospel shine clearly. The class of one is a rare opportunity to assure that child of God's love and forgiveness in a personal way. Make the most of it.

God bless you as you teach God's child His Word.