Play! Listen! Talk!

What do preschoolers, paint and puppets have in common? They are all elements of a fun first day of Sunday School! One by one, preschoolers came to the door on their first day of Sunday School, peeked in and then found a place with a play activity. Do you have kids in your class who are reluctant to leave mom or dad? I’m always amazed at the way simple play materials like toy dishes and toy animals can quickly engage a child who had just been clinging to his or her parent.

Watching the kids play, I thought of people who might be a little anxious about their ability to teach kids, or who aren’t sure what to do because they’ve never taught kids before. If you are wondering if Sunday School teaching is for you, here’s the question to answer: Do you like to play and talk? If you do, then you have all the requirements needed to be a Sunday School teacher. You don’t have to be able to memorize a story to tell, or sing a song in tune, or quote a Bible passage. Here’s how it worked for us: Today while we were building with colorful blocks, we listed things God made of the same colors as the blocks. As we played with the toy dishes, we talked about things God made to grow so we can have food to eat. (We were even brave enough to use nature items as paintbrushes!)

So get ready to play, listen and talk with kids and you can have a fun first day of Sunday School, too! (And it doesn't hurt to have Daffodil the Duck Puppet or Buddy the Dog Puppet on hand to help you make friends!)

“I’m not finished yet!” I thought today as I talked to Jacob, a 5-year-old boy who had been in my class this past year. I had suddenly realized that he would be moving on to the first grade class. And I almost panicked as I thought, “But I haven’t finished telling you God’s Big Story yet! There’s so much more for you to discover about your place in the Story!” I wished Jacob could stay in my class another year!

Looking back on the year he’s been in my class, I knew there had been missed opportunities when the number of kids was so large I was focused on crowd control, or I forgot the question or comment I should have made at just the right time to connect his play to the lesson’s Bible truth, or the block activity didn’t work the way I envisioned it. But now, ready or not, he’s moving on! I’m passing the baton to his next teachers. Now it’s their turn to share with Jacob the discovery of who God is and His Big Story.

It’s amazing to think back on the teachers who shared that same discovery with me as I grew to know God. And it’s even more amazing to think of the teachers who all over the world are getting ready to share God’s Big Story with a new class of kids this fall. Aren’t you glad you’re a part of such an inspiring Story?

Anticipating the first day of Sunday School in just two short weeks, I took a look at the list of kids who will be in my class! This class of preschoolers includes

• one boy who barely talks and when he does he’s so quiet you can’t understand him,
• another boy who clings to mom every week, even after attending for over a year,
• a girl who can read and write,
• a boy who has never been in a class separate from his sister, and
• several bundles of energy!

After reading over the list of names, I wondered, "How am I going to meet the needs and establish the sense of security that each child needs—and at the same time, tell a Bible story, memorize a puppet script, and prepare for our fun not-to-be-missed Play to Learn activities?" Whew!

Here's my conclusion: It’s time to start praying! I’m praying for one child each day between now and our first day of teaching. It’s time to depend on God to prepare me and the kids (and their parents!). I’m praying that each child on the list (and more!) will be ready to come, and that parents will make the commitment to bring their kids regularly. Who’s going to be in your class? What are you praying for?

“I didn’t get a turn!” Kenna told me today. Have you ever heard those words in your class? These words are often heard in my preschool class. Whether it’s getting to tell the name of someone God loves, being the leader in the game or playing a favorite rhythm instrument, getting a turn is a big concern to preschoolers.

Sometimes I find myself passing over this concern with a quick response, “Don’t worry. You’ll get a turn.” But I’m thinking that I need to take the time to give a genuine response with eye contact and a smile. Why? Because I want the kids in my class to know that I truly care about what they care about. After all, they’re learning about Jesus’ love from me! And Jesus’ love is patient and kind and persevering. (Check out 1 Corinthians 13!)

So when we are playing, listening and talking, I’m going to do my best to make sure everyone gets a turn—and even more, that everyone knows that their concerns (big and little) are important to me.

We did all the right things today, we said all the right words, we enjoyed all the right activities, but I still left my class wondering, “Will it stick?” Will the words we said about reading, hearing-- and especially obeying--God’s Word stick with the kids?

As a Sunday School teacher I can build the foundation as we play, listen and talk about the Bible. Pouring water over a Lego house perched on a rock helped Jakob experience Jesus’ parable of the wise man who listens and obeys Jesus’ words. Playing a Bible verse relay game was a fun way for Brinley to “hide God’s Word in her heart.” And recognizing out loud Bailey’s unselfish actions in sharing a favorite rhythm instrument was a meaningful way of seeing God’s Word in action.

Now it’s Mom and Dad’s turn to add some building blocks to the foundation. As each child left today we gave a bookmark and let child and parent know these would be good markers to use in their Bible storybooks at home. Will it stick? I’m praying that tonight at least one parent takes the time to read and talk about a Bible story at home.

For most of the kids in my class, I’m probably not going to know five or ten years from now if God’s Word is sticking with them. But for today it’s enough to know God’s promise in Isaiah 55 that His Word will not return empty—it will accomplish His purpose. And I know God’s plans are bigger and grander than anything I can ever think of!

“I don’t want to do anything,” the 5-year-old boy said. His mom was ready to drop him off in our class, but no matter how she tried to encourage him to stay, he kept shaking his head no. “You’ll get to have a good snack.” “I don’t want to eat anything.” “You’ll get to make something fun.” “I don’t want to make anything.” “You’ll get to play with toys.” “I don’t want to play with toys.”

A five-year-old who didn’t want to play with toys? I think it was at that point that mom decided her words were not going to change her son’s mind. “Then you can sit here and not do anything.” And she was off to church.

For the first few minutes Matthew did just sit and not do anything. My attempts to talk with him were met with “No, I don’t want to do anything.” Gradually, however, his God-given desire for action won him over. Soon he was eating the snack, then listening to and talking about the Bible story, then making star rubbings and then playing. All the while hearing words about the good things God wants us to do.

On any given Sunday, for whatever reason, there are kids in our classes who “don’t want to do anything.” It took me a while, but I’ve finally learned that it’s OK. “It’s OK if you want to sit and watch. You can join us when you’re ready.” Giving each child time and space to participate in his or her own way is one of the good things God wants teachers to do.

What’s something important you’ve lost recently? How did you feel when you realized it was missing? Were you frustrated because it was something you lose all the time (like me—I can NEVER find my keys), or were you panicked because losing it was an emergency? When we asked kids yesterday what things their parents have lost, we heard all kinds of answers: keys, cell phones, important papers, jewelry, money, sunglasses—even the car! (I’ve done that, too—parked the car and completely forgot where it was!)

But talking about lost items was easy compared to talking about “lost” people. Even though all our preschoolers have probably been lost from their parents at one time or another, we wanted to help them understand what it meant to be “lost” from God. So as we told about the woman in Luke 15 who celebrated when she found her lost coin, we talked about how God is glad and celebrates when we become part of His family. I don’t know how much these little ones got it, but my prayer is that the message of God’s love for them and His excitement when they are “found” will be remembered and built on Sunday after Sunday. And just to emphasize the message today, as kids left we gave each one a chocolate coin: “Here’s a reminder of today’s Bible story. You are more valuable to God than any coin. He wants you to be part of His family!”