How Does Video Fit?

It seems more and more that video is an integral part of the Sunday School experience in some churches. What can video do?

• It can tell the Bible story or part of the story.
• It can introduce a concept.
• It can provoke critical thinking.
• It can prompt discussion.
• It can illustrate life application.
• It can explain content.

It seems there would be some obvious rules guiding the use of video in Sunday School.

• It should present Scripture accurately.
• It should support clear teaching of Law and Gospel.
• It should assist the teaching role, not replace it.
• It should be integrated into the lesson through introduction and follow-up discussion. 
• It does not need to be long; usually 2 or 3 minutes is enough.
• It should not be used merely to entertain.

Our current Sunday School materials are supported in the middle school and high school levels by carefully selected, brief video clips. You can find them on the Concordia Publishing House channel on YouTube, or you can access easily through our Sunday School website (browse to cph.org/sundayschool, click "Tools," and scroll down to "Middle/High School Videos"; they are arranged by Old Testament units). And it is likely that video will be a component of the next generation of Sunday School material from CPH.

How do you use video in your Sunday School?

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Can't Wait for Easter?

Perhaps you'll enjoy, and have an opportunity to share, this video from your friends at Concordia Publishing House.

God bless your Easter celebration and as you teach God's children His Word!

What Is Lent?

Lent begins February 18 with Ash Wednesday.

Once again, Concordia Publishing House is observing this new Church Year season by offering a high quality video you can use to introduce Lent to your class or your congregation.

Check out the video and some additional background on this penitential season on the CPH blog.

God bless you as you teach His children His Word.

Video Options for Junior and Senior High

Are you looking for videos to supplement your youth Bible study lessons on Sunday mornings?

YouTube (www.youtube.com), with more than 65,000 new videos added each day, is a rich source of video material, but it may seem an impossible haystack in which to find that one video needle you're looking for.

Have I got a deal for you! The Junior High and Senior High Growing in Christ Bible studies, available each quarter at cph.org/sundayschool, now offer a suggested video resource for each lesson. You can find the lists at the beginning of the teacher guides, but you can also scroll down on the Sunday School Web site to the tools at the bottom of the page and click "Jr/Sr High Videos" for a direct link to the playlist. The guides also provide a shortened URL that can simplify the task of finding these videos.

The videos have been screened for objectionable content or theological errors. The teacher guides offer specific language for connecting these videos to the study.

Here's what the teacher guides advise:
Go to the YouTube playlist online at bit.ly/1knXwnU to play any video in this quarter. Find the correct playlist for your level and quarter. Click “View full playlist.” Choose the video you need. To use the videos, you need an Internet connection and a tablet or other computer. Skip any ads and cue the video."

A word of caution: YouTube recently changed how they display our playlists, so older URLs may not take the user all the way to the playlist page. Look for the "Playlist" tab.

God bless you as you teach His junior and senior high "children" His Word!