We Learn About God s Gifts

Transcription

1 Preschool / Kindergarten Teacher s Guide Fall Quarter, 2018 We Learn About God s Gifts Unit 1 God Gave Us Our World September 2 God Made the World... 7 September 9 God Made the Plants September 16 God Made the Animals September 23 God Made People Quarterly Objective: The learner will identify God s great gifts. Unit 2 God Gives Us Our Homes September 30 God Gives Us Families October 7 God Gives Us Clothes October 14 God Gives Us Shelter October 21 God Gives Us Food Unit 3 God Gave Us the Bible October 28 God Gives Us His Word November 4 Josiah Finds God s Word November 11 Jesus Reads God s Word November 18 Timothy Learns God s Word November 25 Paul Teaches God s Word Volume 3, No. 1 Fall Quarter, 2018 Writer: Lena Case Editor in Chief: Kyle Elkins, kyle.elkins@bogardstore.org Business Manager: Wayne Sewell, wayne.sewell@bogardstore.org 2018, Bogard Press, 4605 N. State Line Ave. Texarkana, TX

2 Memo to Teachers Telling Does Not a Learner Make! Extensive educational research shows that telling is the least effective method in teaching. Children leave a passive class without remembering what the lesson was about. Bible truths become a part of their lives only when personal experiences are a part of class time. The more children become involved in a class session, the more they learn from it. Good storytelling is a teaching method children s leaders must have and continue to develop to reach young learners. The learners short attention spans demand brevity, but with good visuals, voice accents and physical involvement the learners will stay with you through the story. Telling without the help of pictures to visualize what you say or actions that allow learners to participate, leaves a serious need unfulfilled. Boys and girls retain very little of what they only hear. The lesson plans for this quarter suggest active learning ideas to make retention of Bible stories and life application of them more permanent. Try them. You will find children show more interest when they get to do activities related to the Bible lesson. Direct, personal experiences that are purposeful must involve the learner s senses, mind and body. You are a learning facilitator. That is, you guide learners in doing things correlated to the lesson theme that result in maximum learning for them. Some children may hear the Bible stories for the first time. Make them exciting. Be their coach as learners discover new ideas through participation. 2

3 Children learn wherever there is action in which they can have a part! An attractive classroom helps, but involvement means more. Provide both and children eagerly enter to learn. The learning atmosphere plays a vital role in early childhood spiritual training. Make the classroom a comfort zone for little ones, a place where they feel happy, safe and loved. Provide child-size chairs and table. Hang or display the bulletin board and other visuals at children s eye level so that they can easily see what you share with them. Use room decorations related to the unit theme or with a seasonal focus. Reduce window glare with sheer textured curtain panels from a discount store. They are inexpensive and help soften natural light as well as add attractiveness to the room. Children learn where there are caring adults. Workers in the department must focus on the children instead of each other. Visit among yourselves outside class time. When children are there, give undivided attention to interactive conversation with them to guide coach facilitate learning for each child. Position a cheerful, enthusiastic greeter at the door to welcome each arrival. Even a child who is regular in attendance may need the encouragement of a friendly, familiar face to make him willing to let go of a parent. That initial experience at the door may also determine whether or not a visitor wants to return to the room. Children learn from a cluttered room, but not the positive feelings about God s house that we want them to develop. Clean house. If you have saved outdated literature for mission projects or as resources for future use, stack it neatly in a box in which new literature comes and store it somewhere. Unclutter your space by organizing supplies and current lesson materials. A worship center makes a special place for children to give offerings upon arrival. Arrange the offering container, a Bible, a pretty fall picture on a cardboard easel and a bouquet of wild flowers on a low table. Put the table near the entrance. As the worker in each center guides conversation to the lesson theme each week, learners find Bible principles apply to daily life. Learning centers are a teaching plus for making class the most fun of all. Where Do Children Learn? 3

4 Let Learning Begin! Get ready! Class begins when a child enters the classroom. Children come to Sunday School expecting to learn eager to do activities that help them understand and remember Bible truths in the lesson. Children the ages of your learners can probably learn more than anyone else in church. They come with an openness to absorb what they experience, and they learn from the minute they walk into the room by seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and tasting. Everything that happens during the church hour should help them learn the central theme of the lesson. Learning centers provide the change of pace young learners need. One child may want to work only with play dough until worship time assembly begins. Others may use play dough for a while, then look at the picture book, work a puzzle and help build something with blocks all in the time allotted for Early Time Activities. Always set up learning centers before learners arrive, and ALWAYS have a worker to guide conversation in each center. Conversation is one of the most important ways a teacher leads a learning center activity. Repeat the Life Application of Lesson Objective (found on the lesson maps at the beginning of each lesson) several times while interacting with the children and guiding their learning experiences. You may use the words, songs, stories and one-on-one conversation to do this. Without a coach, the activities simply become busywork. Active learning is possible even in the smallest classroom. Use the wall, windowsill, floor, corners of the room and even the ceiling for activities. (A mobile hanging from a long cord attached to the ceiling becomes a learning tool for children who help make it.) If you must use the same table for more than one learning center, arrange materials for the first one before class time but put supplies for each additional activity in a separate box. After finishing the first activity, everyone helps clear the table to prepare for the next. Children anticipate discovering that fun learning materials will come from each box. Nature Center Seeing, touching, tasting, smelling and hearing the wonders of God s creation will make a much greater impact on learners than if you only tell them that God made everything. Use a small bookshelf, table or windowsill on which to display some of the special things God made. Provide a magnifying glass to examine the items more closely. Book Center The value of picture books for young learners is immeasurable. Childhood specialists who understand the future need for children to have reading skills stress the intrinsic benefit of reading. Children are not in class to learn to read, but by helping them enjoy books related to lesson themes, you help them for life. Select picture books with few words. Puzzle Center Simple pictures with few pieces are the criteria for choosing puzzles for young children. Wooden puzzles are a lasting investment. With proper usage like putting them together to make sure all the pieces are there before putting them away they will last for years. Art Center Making an object related to the lesson is another way children learn. Specific instructions in lessons using the art center tell how to make items. Home Center Lessons about family and home are a natural for this center using dolls, dress-up clothes and housekeeping ideas. Just follow the suggestions in the lessons to prepare materials for it. Field Trips Take the learners on a nature discovery walk. Enjoy the beauty God made with each child looking for something special. Play I see something God made for you... as you walk. Give one clue like the color or sound the object makes. Give additional clues until someone guesses it. Provide each child with a plastic zip-top bag for collecting treasure finds. See how many different items you can collect to display on your nature shelves or glue them to a poster titled God s Wonders. After completing the walk, serve apple slices, slender carrot sticks and raisins. Prepare all the food ahead of time and keep it fresh in sealed containers in a small ice chest. Take your group to a zoo or a farm to see animals God made. Helping children learn to appreciate God s wonders of creation develops aesthetic values in their character forming years. 4

5 Unit 1 Lessons 1-4 God Gave Us Our World What a beautiful time of the year to help young children learn about God s creation. Harvesttime and seasonal changes offer unexcelled opportunities for sharing the beauty of the world God made for us. Unit Objective To teach the greatness of God s power in making everything so wonderfully and to develop a firm belief in creationism. Learners in this unit will Know God made the earth as a place for people to live. Feel Appreciation and a desire to care for the world God made. Do Praise God for His gifts of creation. Bulletin Board Use a sky blue background for the bulletin board. Place Item 1 from the visuals in the center. Add a border of leaves cut from fall colors of construction paper using Item 5 patterns in the sky blue background Item 1 Item 5 construction paper fall scenes visuals instruction booklet. Display pictures with fall scenes around the room. This Unit and Your Children The intricate composition of the universe and everything in it is beyond the comprehension of the greatest of minds. We cannot expect young children to appreciate fully the magnitude of God s creation. Awe and wonder can be cultivated, however, as the children discover some of those intricacies for themselves. They accept with unabashed faith what some adults try to reason out with logical thinking. Why is it important that children study creation? It s because Satan is ready to devour the minds with contrary teachings. Evolution is such a far-fetched theory that it boggles Christian thinking to try to grasp it. But when taught early enough to little minds, it confuses the truth for them. We can see evidence of God s creative work all around us. Teach your learners in such a way they will have no doubt that God made our world. They are capable of learning this simple Bible doctrine. God s act of creation is one way He proves His love for people. Overview of Bible Lessons This four-lesson unit about creation covers each aspect of the work God did in the beginning. He started with nothing and added significant work each day to make earth a habitable place for man to live. The order of creation was as perfect as the creation itself. God Made the World This Bible material begins with nothing except God in Genesis 1:1. God spoke and things began happening. Learners will follow the events of creation in sequence. God Made the Plants Vegetation changed the landscape of the earth. God made them with a built-in propagation process; therefore, we still have plants and trees today. Door Decoration A door poster for the fall quarter, Item 3 in visuals, will add interest Item 3 Door Decoration to the class area. Put it on the outside of the classroom door at child s eye level. God Made the Animals The creation of the animal kingdom changed the earth scene as well. God made fish, birds and land animals as separate species. Never has one species of animal become another kind. God Made People Then came the ultimate act of creation when God made man in His own image. He was not God nor does he have the potential of ever becoming a god. But he definitely reflects God s likeness. 5

6 6 Unit 1 Pattern Page

7 LESSON 1 September 2, 2018 God Made the World Genesis 1:1-18 Memory Verse: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1 God Creates the World God spoke the world into existence. Genesis 1:1-18 The book of Genesis tells of the beginning of all things. In the beginning refers to the beginning of God s creation. The first words in the Bible state that God created the heaven and the earth. God spoke the world into existence. We must believe the truth set forth in Genesis or we cannot accept other truths about the Bible. This is the basic belief of all Christians. The declaration of faith of Bible believing churches sets forth God s creation as a foundational doctrine. Life Application: God loves me and made the world, a place for me to live. I will thank Him for His beautiful world. Lesson Objective: Learners will tell others that God made the world, a place for them to live. Bible Principle: God created the world and all things in it, including me. 7

8 8 God Made the World Lesson 1 Know God s Word The book of Genesis reveals the beginning of all things. How wonderful is God s world of nature! The harmonious, orderly structure and dependability of nature explicitly points to a careful and thoughtful designer. All that exists is the work of the One who is too wise to make a mistake. The first words in the Bible explain the origin of the world we enjoy. God spoke the planets and their atmospheres into existence. He made the earth for people with whom He planned to fellowship. In the beginning refers to the starting of time as we know it. Without believing in the Genesis account of creation, our faith in the rest of the Bible has no basis. The psalmists refer to God s creation, accepting the record of how it came to be. John 1:1-3 emphasizes the Christian s position that God made all things. Many other writers of Scriptures were inspired to proclaim that the world was made by Almighty God. For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created (Revelation 4:11). The basic belief that God created all things is a vital part of Bible doctrine. You can guide your learners in this lesson with confidence. You are not dealing with theories or opinions but with God s revelation of Himself in the history of man. Vocabulary Words created to bring into existence from nothing made formed or shaped heaven the area which surrounds the earth earth the planet which God created for man and His other creations; the ground world the earth and the people living on it Prepare Your Room Begin the new church year with a good cleanup for your room. Remove unrelated displays, clutter and outdated literature. Organize supplies and purchase replacements for used materials. Decorate your area clean room Item 2 Heart Smiles Micro- Mini stickers with the resources in the visuals to make children enthusiastic about coming. If yours is a multiuse room, used by more than one teacher and group of children, work out a plan for effectively using available wall space. Decide together where each of you will put displays. Attendance Chart Display the attendance chart, Item 2 in the visuals, near the entrance. It should be in a location where it can stay for the quarter. Have learners first names printed correctly to help more advanced learners recognize and read their own names. Heart Smiles Micro- Mini Stickers fit the record spaces on the chart. They are an incentive to prompt children to attend each week. Worship Center Prepare a beauty area in your room to help children experience awe and reverence for God, our Creator. Instructions for arranging a worship center are in the introductory section (Where Do Children Learn?) of this book. Early Time Activities Cheerfully greet each child on his eye level, then guide him to the worship center. Bulletin Board Children absorb much from their environment. The bulletin board helps them learn about the world God made. If you choose not to make a bulletin board display, use the picture, Item 1 in the visuals, on a tabletop cardboard easel, Item 6 in the visuals instruction booklet. Lead the learners in a discussion about the gift of our stickers Item 1 Item 6 Happy Birthday! stickers construction paper or tagboard Item 5 clear Con-Tact safety pins Item 4 musical toy earth as a place for them to live. Ask questions to lead children to notice details in the picture. Where are the trees God made? Can you find water God made? How many things that God made can you see in the picture? Relate creation to the child. Say, God knew you needed water, so He created it. You need air to breathe, so He made clean air. We cannot see the air, but we know it is there. Plants and animals provide food to eat. God made a wonderful place for you to live. Thank You, God, for the beautiful world You made. Keep a record of children s birthdays and know ahead of time when a child is celebrating his special day. Give a Happy Birthday! sticker to the birthday child when he arrives. Help him attach it to his clothing to wear. Let him be a special helper for the day. (Remember to do this throughout the quarter.)

9 Lesson 1 God Made the World 9 Name Tags Even though you know each child, it is usually helpful to have his name visible on the first day. Visitors need name tags as a special honor. It will help the children with name recognition as they see other children s name tags. Make them from laminated colored construction paper or tagboard using the leaf pattern, Item 5, in the visuals instruction booklet. Write the child s name in manuscript letters but not all capitals. It is good to introduce a child to the correct way to write his name. Use a safety pin to attach the name tag to clothing. Introduce the Bible principle for this lesson as you guide a learner to the attendance chart to add a sticker. Talk about the beautiful autumn world God gave us to enjoy. Discuss the details in the picture on the attendance chart. Say, Can you find the butterfly? God made the pretty butterflies to flutter over the flowers as they get food to eat. Where is the bird God made to fly in the sky? Who taught the bird to build her nest? I see something God made for you to enjoy. You like playing with them! Yes, it is people and animals. Today, we are going to learn about the wonderful things God made for us. Next, direct the children to the book nook, puzzle corner or nature shelves. If you do not have space for a variety of activities, select at least one of the Early Time Activities to use each week. Nature materials are most valuable for these lessons about creation as well as throughout the year. Children have a natural interest and curiosity about living things. They experience wonder, and they worship as they learn of God s world of nature. The beauty of fall foliage in our country is exceptional. Suggest children watch for changing colors of leaves in the next few weeks if the leaves have not turned colors already. Invite them to bring some colored leaves for the nature center. Invite the children to bring other additions for your nature display. Suggest that they watch for something special this week. Abandoned nature houses, flowers or some other nature find will create interest for all the children. Say, God is so good to give us a beautiful world to enjoy. Thank You, God, for such pretty flowers. Thank You, God, for plants that give us food. Spontaneous worship times occur unexpectedly. As children think in awe of the wonders of God s creation say, Thank You, God, for making such a special place for to live. Use names to personalize thanks to God. The puzzle corner will be a favorite area for some of your learners. There are many creation-related puzzles from which to choose. The two-piece God s creation puzzles, Item 4 in the visuals, are made especially for this course. To make the puzzles more permanent, laminate or cover the puzzle page with clear Con-Tact before cutting the pieces apart. When it is time for class to begin, sound a signal that children will enjoy hearing. A few notes on a musical toy or xylophone sound pretty. Make the sound until you have everyone s attention. Say, Boys and girls, when you hear this signal each week, it means pick up time. So listen. (Gently play the instrument.) What time is it? It is pick up time. Let us put books and puzzles where they belong. Worship Time Devotional Creation, Part 1, Psalm 146:5, 6 A brief worship time helps focus children s thoughts toward God s Word. Songs should relate to creation and praising the Lord. Use the creation time line cards, Item 7 in the visuals instruction booklet, for devotionals for the four lessons in this unit. Begin the series using numbers one and two today. Place them on the wall with Plasti-Tak. Item 7 Plasti-Tak Read Psalm 146:5, 6 from your Bible or shorten the verses for little minds to grasp. God... made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is. At first, when God began time, there was no earth. We are going to be learning about the time God made our earth. He made something special that day. On day one (display card number one), God created day and night. This is number one to remind us of what God made that day. Listen again to our Bible words. (Repeat the words printed above from Psalm 146. Then add number two beside the first card.) Here is a number two for day two. What words did you hear that tell what God made on day two? He made our earth and the air around it, and water lots of water. Next week, we will add some more numbers to our wall as we discover other things God made.

10 10 God Made the World Lesson 1 Lesson Set Make play dough with this recipe. Mix 1 cup flour, ½ cup salt, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar (be sure to include it), 1 cup water, 1 tablespoon cooking oil and your preference of food coloring. Cook in an electric skillet at 350 degrees, stirring constantly. When the mixture is no longer sticky, remove it to a countertop. Knead the dough until it cools. Store in a plastic bag or container. This makes enough dough for six children. Invite children to sit at a table to shape things God created. As children use play dough, they often talk together and share ideas. This activity usually has a calming effect on children who are too aggressive or overstimulated. Children can work out tension as they actively use their hands to create new shapes and designs. Show children how to make sun, moon and star shapes by pushing and shaping the dough. Children will enjoy cookie cutters for these and other shapes of nature items. The best cutters for play dough are those with simple outlines. As the children work, center conversation around the wonderful things God made for us. After five to ten minutes, sound your signal again to move to the next activity. Say, It is pick up time now so that we can hear the Bible story. Today, we will learn about the world and wonderful things God created for us on the earth and in the heaven. Make a game of pick up time to avoid objections. Say, Squish your play dough pieces all together into a big lump. Make the lump go bump, bump, bump on the table to pick up all the little pieces that have dropped there. Provide a storage bag for it. Say, Here is a plastic bag where you can put your play dough so that it will be ready when we need to use it again. Thank you for being such good helpers! Bible Story Cheerfully invite everyone to join you in a follow-the-leader walk around the room to get everyone walking behind you. Lead them to the story area where you plan to present the Bible lesson. If you have only a play dough recipe plastic bag cookie cutters Lesson 1 visuals visuals instruction booklet Bible small room, make a circle or two around the area and then sit down. Open your Bible to Genesis 1. Use the story printed in the visuals instruction booklet as a guide for your lesson presentation. As you tell the Bible story, use the visuals to illustrate it. Stretch Time Ask learners to stand with you and pretend to be little seeds planted in the ground. Then grow, grow, grow as you rise to full height and stretch your arms as far as you can. Then stand on your tiptoes and pretend to touch the stars. Say the words of the following finger play and do the actions suggested: God, You Are Very Great God made the earth Big and round. (Form circle with arms overhead.) He made plants To grow in the ground. (Place palms together with fingers pointing up. Move the plant up and spread fingers apart as a flower opening while keeping wrists together.) Heaven, too. (Point upward.) With day and night, (Place head on folded hands with eyes closed.) The world God made (Form circle with arms.) Was a beautiful sight. (Clasp hands.) God, You are very great! (Fold hands in prayer and look up.) Repeat it with the children imitating your actions. Do it a third time so that they can get the actions right and say the last line with you. After several repetitions, some of the children will say the other words with you. During this time of your schedule, sing Happy Birthday to any child having a birthday. Have a special prayer to thank God for making him and giving him special friends at church. This suggestion is not repeated in subsequent lessons, but it should be done for everyone having a birthday throughout the year. Make a note on individual lessons in this book of those having a birthday during the quarter. It will help you remember. Memory Verse Different construction paper shapes make remembering Bible words easier. Use the patterns printed for this lesson to make mobile pieces. See Unit 1 Pattern Page. Make a round patterns thread clothes hanger clock face with In the beginning written across it. Cut a white cloud shape for God created. On a sky blue cloud shape write the heaven. Use a green tree shape for and the earth. Letter Genesis 1:1 on an open Bible shape of white on a black background.

11 Lesson 1 God Made the World 11 Tie varying lengths of thread to the shapes and tie them in correct order to the bar of a clothes hanger. Tell the learners what words are on each shape. The clock says In the beginning. The white cloud, and so forth. Then ask the children to read the shapes with you. Point to each shape, pausing briefly after each. Learners get excited about reading the memory verse. They will remember the words when they see the mobile weeks and even months later. Bible Stories Leaflet The leaflets give children a variety of lesson related and age appropriate activities to help them learn. Write the learners names in the space provided on the front before class time. Have extra papers for visitors. Take the paper to the home of absentees this week with an encouragement to come next week. If you cannot visit, mail it with a personal note to each absentee. Talk about the picture on the front page of the leaflet. With modern space explorations we learn more and more about the greatness of God s creation beyond the limits of our small earth. Men who went to the moon marveled at the beauty of the earth from their outer space vantage point. Point out the memory verse under the picture. Ask learners to say the words with you again. Use the mobile shapes for reminders if needed. Then ask more advanced children to point to the words in the memory verse on their leaflets as you repeat them again. Follow printed instructions for completing the leaflet activities. Make and Take leaflets pencils crayons Bible Making something to take home is probably the most enjoyed activity in church. Children learn best by doing, so the process of completing proj ects in the make and take book will help you reach the lesson objective and make a life application of the Bible principle. Remove the page from the book before class time for younger learners. More advanced children will enjoy tearing their own pages along the perforated line. Provide crayons, watercolor markers or watercolors and brushes to color the picture before adding the stickers. Make a touch and feel picture by adding glitter over thin glue lines for the sun rays, a few small pieces of fall colors of construction paper for leaves glued on the large tree and a bit of sandpaper to glue over the largest rock. Have a page completed for learners to see as an example. Guide learners in doing the work, but allow them the joy of accomplishment. Active learning by doing work themselves excels over passively receiving finished lesson reminders a teacher hands out. Saying Good-bye Stamp a happy face on the hand of those who had a good attitude as they worked with others and learned the memory verse, or give Happy Face seals or Jolly Jelly Bean seals for learners to use. Remove name tags and place them on the wall for learners to use next week, or if you are Make and Take Project 1 crayons watercolor markers watercolors brushes glitter glue construction paper sandpaper happy face stamp and ink pad Mini Happy Face or Jolly Jelly Bean stickers stapler take-home papers confident of each person s name, let him wear the name tag home today. Give learners all papers and projects intended for taking home. Use a stapler to keep each child s papers together. Sing songs and do the finger play from Stretch Time while waiting on parents. Have you taught the Bible principle clearly? Did you reach the lesson objective? Can the learners tell others that God made the world as a place for them to live? Did they thank God for His beautiful earth?

12 12 God Made the World Lesson 1 Supplemental Activities Use the puzzles, books and nature center to let children tell you what they learned about God s creation. Provide a magnifying glass for the nature center to examine items there more closely. Children learn more readily through repetition. Creation Mural Attach a strip of white paper to the wall with Plasti-Tak. Have We Learn About God s Gifts written across the top. Put a collection of nature pictures from magazines, calendars or other sources on the table. Instruct the children to choose one they like. Help them glue it on the strip of paper to make a creation mural. Have enough pictures for each child to select two or three pictures to add to the display. As the children work, comment: God created all these things for your world. See the heaven (sky) God made? The sky is blue because the air goes up for miles and miles. The earth God made as a place for you to live has many beautiful gifts to enjoy. Go to the creation mural we made and point to something God gives you to enjoy. Tell us what it is. Let each child take a turn of naming something God created for him and pointing it out on the mural. Use the visuals from the Bible lesson to review story details. Let learners play the teacher and use the visuals to illustrate what they learned. puzzles books nature center magnifying glass paper Plasti-Tak marker nature pictures Lesson 1 visuals coloring pictures crayons watercolors Item 10 Coloring lesson related pictures is another good choice. The value of coloring entails a lot more than keeping a child busy. Manipulating a crayon, marker or a brush for watercolors or tempera paints is a learning process in itself. Use correlating pictures and have a teaching plus that benefits learners as a further emphasis on the lesson theme. Choose one of the coloring pictures from Item 10 in the visuals instruction booklet to copy for each child to have one, or select simple pictures from a coloring book that you can use to teach about the world God made.