Training Local Sunday School Teachers and preparing culturally relevant materials when there is no curriculum

Robin Rempel, Liz Foerester, Michael Turner and Faith Turner

3 years ago

Children matter! Jesus exemplifies and mandates that children be taught God’s Word. How can children be taught about the Bible in a way they will understand when there is no curriculum to follow? Maybe there is no money to purchase Sunday/Sabbath school (SS)materials. We do not want the devil to steal the minds of our children and destroy their lives. What can we do?

Good news: Sunday school teachers can be trained (in about a week) to utilize locally available materials and to design their own simple and very effective curriculum.

Tips:

SS teachers can work together in pairs or triplets. This will make the lesson preparation time be more enjoyable and more creative. (Afterall, two heads are better than one even if one is a cabbage head!)
Teachers always learn more than students, so training local teachers is a wonderful discipleship strategy to reach the younger and the older generations.
Local is better! Local language, local materials, local song styles, local teachers are always more effective than foreign language, materials, songs, teachers…. And local is far more sustainable!
Professional (expensive) curriculum does not necessarily make an effective SS teacher.
Start with what is available. Build SS lessons around whatever Scripture or Scripture stories are available in the local language.

Build-your-own curriculum based on simple principles and skills: Use the tortilla model!

1. Every SS lesson will have 4 main parts (divide the tortilla into four parts):

Bible story

Memory verse

Singing

Praying

1. 1. (Crafts or Games)
  2. (Revision)
2. There will be several different ways to teach each main part. Use the different ways for variety or to accommodate different age levels

Bible story

1. 1. 1. Read, re-read together, observe the text, discuss, life application
    2. Show visuals (pictures, video) and tell the story
    3. Dramatize the story with puppets or with people
    4. Utilize a cultural object lesson

Memory Verse

1. 1. 1. Disappearing words (chalk board)
    2. Word cards mix-up and re-order
    3. Hand motions or actions representing words
    4. Recite to rhythm or tune

Praying

1. 1. 1. Repeat after me (the teacher)
    2. Pray quietly simultaneously
    3. Prayer reminder object (craft)
    4. Pass the object and pray in turn
    5. Small groups holding hands
    6. Pray the Scriptures
    7. Sing a prayer

Singing

1. 1. Compose a new song to fit the verse or truth/theme of the story
  2. Sing with clapping and dancing
  3. Sing with hand actions (sign language)
  4. Sing with instruments (shakers, clackers, drums, etc.)

Teacher Training:

Demonstrate the whole (in L2)
Demonstrate the parts (in L2)
Practise the parts (in L1)
Practise the whole (in L1)

Resources:

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