Teachers Two-Deep, Even in the Summer

Those familiar with this blog will know that I have long recommended that Sunday Schools staff two deep in each classroom: two adults present each week throughout the class session. Not only is it helpful in the event of unforeseen events (such as bathroom trips), but it helps maintain discipline, and it is often recommended or required by your church's insurance carrier.

This summer, assuming you continue your Sunday School, two deep is still a good idea, for all those reasons, and one more. As family schedules flex through the summer it will be far easier to maintain a nearly full staff. Yes, on a given Sunday one or more classes may wind up with just one adult in the room, but that's a lot better than none.

And remember, the second adult is WAY easier to recruit than the first since that person can be assured of a partner for support, leadership, and assistance.

God bless you as you teach His children His Word this summer!

Will Your Sunday School Have Visitors This Summer?

Let's hope so! When they come, is this what they will find?

• Information about Sunday School, including where first-time attenders should sign in, was in the worship folder.
• The Sunday School registration location was well marked and easy to find.
• Visitors are greeted warmly when I arrived.
• Enough information was requested to make me feel my children would be well cared for. My cell phone number was requested so that I could be texted if anything came up during the study hour.
• I was escorted to my child's classroom and introduced to the teacher.
• Lesson material was available for my child, just as for the regular attenders.
• Someone invited me to attend the adult Bible class and offered to help me find the class I was interested in attending.
• Someone followed up by phone later in the week to see how things went and invite me to return.

God bless you as you teach God's children His Word this summer!

Yes, Summer Sunday School

Sunday School is hard work!
Summer Sunday School is even harder.
But it is worth it.

• Student will continue to learn about God's Word.
• Visitors will know your congregation is serious about Christian education and have points of connection.
• Families will not "get out of the habit" of Sunday School each week.

Do you want to hear more? Check out this previous post.

CPH's summer release is "Pray, Praise, and Give Thanks" and the material takes a look at the Lord's Prayer using a State-fair theme. Check it out at cph.org/SundaySchool and click on "Our Programs"!

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Pray, Praise & Give Thanks: Jesus Teaches Us to Pray

Ah, summertime! What could be more fun than going to the county fair? From riding the Ferris wheel to participating in pie-eating contests, there’s so much to do, see, and learn. With a fun county fair theme intertwined into each lesson, Pray, Praise & Give Thanks helps students search thirteen Bible stories to learn about the Lord’s Prayer.

• Daniel and the Lions' Den
• Jesus Heals the Centurion's Servant
• Peter & John Heal a Lame Man
• Jesus Teaches His Disciples to Pray
• The Baptism of Jesus
• Zacchaeus
• Paul & Silas in Prison
• Job
• God Provides Mann & Quail
• Joseph Forgives His Brothers
• The Temptation of Jesus
• Three Men in a Fiery Furnace
• The Saints in Heaven

How Many Teachers Will You Need This Summer?

The exact answer, of course, will depend on how many children you expect to reach each week in Sunday Sunday School.

A small Sunday School, though, can probably manage with two teachers, one for each of two age groups. In Concordia Publishing's "H2Oh! God Keeps His Promises," we have pared down summer Sunday School to two levels.

Level A serves non-readers and early readers, generally preschool through grade one or two. Level B serves readers, generally grade two or three through grade six. Both levels share a common full-color lesson leaflet with activities that will intrigue your students and be helpful in class and at home.

The program offers options for creating a site rotation experience each week or teaching the children in same-aged classrooms. And the detailed teacher guides will make teaching easy even for the new teacher.

What is your preferred arrangement of classes during the summer?

Will your regular teachers continue through the summer, or do you recruit new teachers?

How many students do you expect?

God bless you as you teach His children His Word this summer!

To Break or Not to Break for the Summer

You will need to work carefully with congregational leadership on this one, but here's my take.

Achieving a vibrant, growing Sunday School requires huge amounts of energy! Keeping your momentum is difficult, reversing a declining trend even harder. Think of the amount of energy it takes to get that boat moving through the water, to overcome inertia and the drag of friction. When Sunday School is discontinued through the summer, you may actually train your families not to attend, let key volunteers find other things to do with their time, and make a statement about the program's ongoing value.

On the other hand, summer is when lots of families relocate and visit new churches. They are eager to establish roots, and have their children meet new friends. No summer Christian education opportunities will not cut if for them.

With these thoughts in mind, you might want to review the article provided through a recent e-mail from Concordia Publishing House. You can reach it through this link.

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

What Are You Doing This Summer?

Have you chosen your Summer Sunday School curriculum yet?

Be sure to check out "H2Oh! God Keeps His Promises."

Sample materials will loaded to cph.org/sundayschool next week (click on either "Growing in Christ" or "Cross Explorations" and then click on the word "Summer" near the middle of your screen).

Dive into these Bible stories to discover the promises God made to His people in the Bible and to us! Young explorers will jump into the Bible to learn more about Noah, Moses, Elijah, Jonah, Naaman, Lydia, Paul and others as they discover how God has poured out His love for His people in these fourteen Old and New Testament stories:

H2Oh! Everywhere (Noah)

Walking through H2Oh! (Crossing the Red Sea)

Miraculous H2Oh! (Water from the Rock)

H2Oh! Survival (Elijah at the Brook Cherith)

Fire and H2Oh! (Elijah and the Prophets of Baal)

Cleansing H2Oh! (Naaman Healed)

H2Oh! Ride (Jonah)

Revealing H2Oh! (John the Baptist)

Changing H2Oh! (Wedding at Cana)

H2Oh! Safety (Built on the Rock)

Servant H2Oh! (Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet)

Meeting at the H2Oh! (Lydia is Baptized)

H2Oh! Rescue (Paul’s Shipwreck)

Living H2Oh! (The River of Life)

(Five other "water" Bible accounts will be used in CPH's 2014 VBS, "Gangway to Galilee!" It's a summer to share God's rescue.)

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Advancing Grades in Summer Sunday School

Two questions:
1. Do you continue Sunday School through the summer? I think you should; you can find out why here and here.
2. Do you promote students to their next grade at the beginning of the summer or at the end?

If you don't have Sunday School during the summer, there's only one advantage to promoting early: that's if the students get the opportunity to meet their next year's teacher before the summer break. But then, when the excitement is at a high, you send them home for the summer to let the new interest die away? That doesn't make sense.

If you do have Sunday School during the summer, I think it makes sense to promote at the beginning of the summer quarter.

• Students have just been promoted in their day school or public school, some (like kindergartners, sixth graders, and eighth graders) may have actually graduated! It's a big deal! "I'm not in second grade anymore, I'm in third grade. Why does the church make be go to second grade all summer?"
• You'll have a Rally Day or Christian Education Sunday at the end of the summer. (You will right?) That's another opportunity to give your Sunday School a boost, attempt to corral those non-attending families and get them back into the Sunday School habit. If you promote at the beginning of the summer, you'll get two opportunities to make Sunday School a big deal.

Summer can be a "low" season. Use any excuse to infuse a little excitement.

(What's that you say? "Tom, why didn't you mention this a few weeks ago?" My bad. So do it on the first or second weekend of July. You can still give Sunday School a little boost this summer.)

God bless you as you teach God's children His Word this summer!

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!

Veggie Tales This Summer?

Those who know me will be able to predict my thoughts on any plan to use videos of talking vegetables as a substitute for teaching the Gospel in summer Sunday School classes.

My advice? Don't.

I'm not alone in my low opinion of the theology that underlies these videos. Check out Gene Veith's recent blog on the subject; it shares a "change of heart" from the VeggieTales creator himself.
http://www.geneveith.com/2012/06/06/veggietales-creator-repents-of-moralism/

Children do not need the Church to provide them entertainment on Sunday morning. If it is entertainment they are seeking, there are dozens of other activities they can choose from, and they often do.

How much better to invest that precious hour in teaching God's children His Word!

Teaching a Class of One

You've heard about "an army of one." How about a class of one?

In many Sunday Schools, especially as summer takes its toll, a class of a single student is a common experience. How do you teach a class of one? Let me start the list of things to consider.

• Leave the door open. This is an invitation for others to join, including late-arrivers or students who might be shy. It also is an alternative to the best practice of staffing two-deep. (One child and one teacher in a closed room will run counter to most child-safety policies.)
• Don't fret. Give your class of one the clear impression that it is "business as usual"; don't make your one student feel bad or odd for having come to hear God's Word.
• Make conversation, Part 1. You've talked to children one-on-one before (your own, a niece or nephew, the child of a visiting friend, and many others). Take the opportunity you've been given to get to know this child as a friend. Ask the student about his or her week, family, pets, favorite activities, plans for later in the day.
• Make conversation, Part 2. Work to make your class discussion an extension of this conversation. "I like to start each Sunday School lesson with prayer. Will you pray with me? Do you have anything we can pray about?" "This is the leaflet that goes with today's Bible lesson. What event from the Bible do you think this picture is capturing?"
• Watch for opportunities to extend the lesson. The lesson will fly with only one student to teach. Discussion will be brief; sharing will take place quickly. You will have extra time. Plan ways to use the extra time profitably.
• Take a field trip. Visit the sanctuary to see the baptismal font up close. Talk about the vocation of pastor and visit the church office area (where many students never get to go). Be sure to let your Sunday School director know where you and the child are going. Don't leave the building without a parent's permission.
• Don't ignore opportunities to use music. If you or your student are shy about singing, you will be tempted to skip using the songs or hymns that are associated with the lesson. Don't. Use the recordings as listening opportunities. Read the words together. Listen to the music as you do written activities.
• Solicit feedback. If your "class of one" is a talker, you have a tremendous boost. He or she will likely answer your questions willingly and perhaps even volunteer contributions to the conversation. If he or she is more reticent, find other ways to learn whether the student is assimilating the information you are sharing. Watch for non-verbal cues: nods, puzzled expressions, the light of understanding. Utilize non-verbal methods for feedback. "Point to the words in the Bible text/lesson leaflet that tell us why Jesus did this." "Let's draw a picture of how this event in Jesus' life ended."

What tips do you have for teaching a class of one?

God will bless your efforts to teach even just one of His children His Word!

Why Have Summer Sunday School?

I don't have hard data, but based on our experience here at Concordia Publishing House, it seems that substantial numbers of congregations "take a break" from Sunday School during the summer months. The reasoning for this generally invokes things like "families are always gone," "kids disappear during the summer," or "we can't find enough people to teach." These can be serious challenges. They will require work to overcome, perhaps hard work. Why bother? I can think of three reasons!

1. Children (and adults) still need to hear the Gospel.
God's Word is His promised source of life and strength for His people. We don't "take a break" from eating, or drinking, or breathing during the summer. What would we take a break from God's Word?

2. It is easier to maintain inertia.
Eighty percent of our effort often goes into getting something moving (especially my wheelbarrow full of dirt). Taking the summer off kills Christian education inertia. It speaks loudly about a relatively low priority for Sunday School, as opposed to trips to the lake. It lets families "get out of the habit" of spending two hours at church each weekend.

3. Visitors are plentiful.
Large numbers of families relocate during the summer while their children are out of school. These families are looking for new church homes and making decisions about where to re-establish roots. They are looking for churches that will meet the whole families' spiritual needs. They are looking for churches with great Sunday Schools. "Well, we don't have that right now, but if you come back in a couple of months . . ." won't impress them.

Will you have Sunday School this summer? Why? (or why not?)

How will you sell your choice?

Planning Can Combat Summer Slump

The Sunday School Revolutionary, Darryl Wilson, writes an interesting post about this subject. You can read it here, but let me share some of his thoughts and some of my own.

Why a Slump?
The Sunday School Revolutionary suggests these:

vacations

family visits

children's summer sports leagues

recreational outings, such as a weekend at the lake

late Saturday evening activities

Add to that all the normal reasons that families have difficulty making it to Sunday School consistently (the lure of the mattress, going out for breakfast, split custody of children, and more) and the problem magnifies.

What Can You Do?
Mr. Wilson offers a great list of ideas for combating the slump:

Invite your absentees each week.

Implement Saturday night calling of every member, guest, and prospect.

Focus on inviting guests every week.

Have a class or Sunday School-wide photo Sunday and work to have the whole class present.

Conduct a contact contest during one month or the entire summer between two halves of your Sunday School.

Plan a meal and fellowship immediately after Sunday School and worship.

Have a teacher/worker appreciation Sunday and encourage members to bring appreciation gifts to teachers/workers.

Provide breakfast; food is a guaranteed attraction. 

What Should You Avoid?

Skipping the lesson is a no-no; teaching the Gospel is the reason for Sunday School, so don't fail to provide substance.

Pass on videos of talking vegetables who teach moralism instead of salvation.

Don't leave the parents without an attractive study alternative; if the parents come to Sunday School, so will the kids.

Don't focus on unsustainable activities; water games will be fun, but unless you are going to do it every week, you will wind up disappointing your attendees somewhere down the line (also see the first item in this category).

Here's the point in a nutshell: you know that summer will present challenges for your Sunday School. Plan now (okay, it's almost too late) to combat the forces of attrition by creating reasons for families, students, and staff to be excited about Sunday School all summer long. Whatever investment you make is bound to pay off in more opportunities to teach God's children His Word.

What are the most common reasons your members will miss Sunday School this summer?

How will you combat Sunday School slump this summer?

Summer Sunday School

Summer brings new challenges for Sunday School. Sometimes teachers become scarce. Those who have taught faithfully for nine months take a break. Replacing them is often a struggle. Attendance may sag; families go away on vacation, or just take a vacation from church.

Some congregations pack it in; keeping Sunday School functioning is just too much work, they say. But then they have to start all over again in the fall. Some congregations go the summer entertainment route: puppet shows, magicians, and videos featuring talking vegetables and graceless moralism. But I also know that many congregations press on, continuing to offer their standard Sunday School classes come what may. And I know of many that take the summer as a chance to do something new, site rotation, intergenerational classes, and the like---but with a continued emphasis on Law and Gospel, such theological and pedagogical content.

CPH's Growing in Christ summer material can be taught in a traditional classroom setting, but adapts wonderfully to a site rotation format. The first week of June, my wife and I (well, mostly my wife) taught over 30 first through fifth graders by ourselves and it went fine. (Thankfully, more volunteers have stepped up as summer has progressed.)

How is it going where you serve?

What is your biggest summer challenge?