Trevor Lanz
Godly Play
The concept of Godly play I feel is a very important aspect to the development for children to grasp the stories and meaning of certain biblical themes. Godly play takes on the qualities of engaging and emercing the child into the story through visual aspects and puts the story in the child's element- which is play. Playing for children is not just a time of exercise, but a time of expression and a opportunity for the child express his or herself in their own personal way. So with that Godly play is directed to let the children "play" but in a directed and focused way on God. I think that this method can be usuful, but like all methods of teaching there is a place and time for it and there is a place and time for us to not use it. Developmentally, children's minds are always moving and growing- the Godly play captures their attention and nurtures it so that they can feel free to "play" in their own way, but also help in the creation of biblical concepts and stories. There are many resources and different methods and way to teaching and giving the gospel to children, but this method is stepping out of the classroom and traditional setting and letting the children connect in their best element which is Playing.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Experiential Basics, Methods and the Bible
Parables in the Bible were an important method because it was used as a tool to connect to the people within the culture. Describe how a certain parable can be taught to impact students in today’s culture…
One of the subjects that stood out to me in Chapter 1.2 was the section on Parables. I have always liked a good story; from Dr. Seuss to J.R.R. Tolkien. Stories are a part of our everyday life. They are fun to read, watch, and listen to, and they can also teach us a lesson. What is the question a parent usually asks their kids after reading a book? The answer: “What is the moral of the story?” or “What can we learn from this story?” Jesus does the same thing by using Parables. One of my favorite Parables is the Parable of the mustard seed in Matthew 13:31-32: He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” This represents the growth of God’s kingdom and it reminds me that Christian’s need to be willing to be a witness in order to bring others to God’s kingdom. Parables are important because they teach us a spiritual or moral lesson that would be easier to teach through a story rather than through an explanation. People can understand and remember stories better than they would a lecture. Therefore, I think that it is okay to use movies or books as an example to teach a lesson as long as the Bible is the main resource. You could use Horton Hears a Who as a lesson on listening or a lesson on faith. Or you could use The Lord of the Rings as a lesson on perseverance. Of course there is more to these stories than these subjects, but it would be a memory jog for the youth to help them remember the lesson. This makes parables and stories valuable for the fact that they are easy to remember and can teach a lesson worth remembering.
One of the subjects that stood out to me in Chapter 1.2 was the section on Parables. I have always liked a good story; from Dr. Seuss to J.R.R. Tolkien. Stories are a part of our everyday life. They are fun to read, watch, and listen to, and they can also teach us a lesson. What is the question a parent usually asks their kids after reading a book? The answer: “What is the moral of the story?” or “What can we learn from this story?” Jesus does the same thing by using Parables. One of my favorite Parables is the Parable of the mustard seed in Matthew 13:31-32: He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” This represents the growth of God’s kingdom and it reminds me that Christian’s need to be willing to be a witness in order to bring others to God’s kingdom. Parables are important because they teach us a spiritual or moral lesson that would be easier to teach through a story rather than through an explanation. People can understand and remember stories better than they would a lecture. Therefore, I think that it is okay to use movies or books as an example to teach a lesson as long as the Bible is the main resource. You could use Horton Hears a Who as a lesson on listening or a lesson on faith. Or you could use The Lord of the Rings as a lesson on perseverance. Of course there is more to these stories than these subjects, but it would be a memory jog for the youth to help them remember the lesson. This makes parables and stories valuable for the fact that they are easy to remember and can teach a lesson worth remembering.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Experiential Youth Ministry Handbook: Full Day Events
James Rose
Question: Why is it important for youth leaders to plan and organize an event ahead of time, and what are some ways we can prevent overlooking details?
In the book we learn that full day events are not just an extension of our normal youth meetings. These are events that are different, and need to be special, these are the events that create the opportunity for regulars to invite others. These events are the ones that you are going to have to think about before you do them, you will need to do some major planning in order for the event to go smooth and be effective in reaching the goal you desire.
The book talks a little about how to do this and how to make it easy for everyone. The key is to be organized in the details, take enough time ahead of the event to plan out what will be done when and why it is being done. You need to consider the five W's (who, what, when, where, and why) along with how long, how much, and how many when planning. The book also gives us some other pages to help us make sure the event planning goes smooth... page 112 is called "fun with logistics" and page 114 is called the "task tracker" and finally to be sure the goal is being reached use page 109, the "praxis lens."
Question: Why is it important for youth leaders to plan and organize an event ahead of time, and what are some ways we can prevent overlooking details?
In the book we learn that full day events are not just an extension of our normal youth meetings. These are events that are different, and need to be special, these are the events that create the opportunity for regulars to invite others. These events are the ones that you are going to have to think about before you do them, you will need to do some major planning in order for the event to go smooth and be effective in reaching the goal you desire.
The book talks a little about how to do this and how to make it easy for everyone. The key is to be organized in the details, take enough time ahead of the event to plan out what will be done when and why it is being done. You need to consider the five W's (who, what, when, where, and why) along with how long, how much, and how many when planning. The book also gives us some other pages to help us make sure the event planning goes smooth... page 112 is called "fun with logistics" and page 114 is called the "task tracker" and finally to be sure the goal is being reached use page 109, the "praxis lens."
Thursday, March 4, 2010
The Ideas Library: Details camps and Retreats
What are the pro and cons of how the church lock in used to be compared to how they are now?
After reading Types of Camps and Retreats I couldn't come up with any questions, mostly this section talks about different types of camps and retreats. I looked through it again and thought more about the church lock-in. In the book it describes how church lock-ins are done. They are done at the church and the students stay for a week (five days) and live at the church, eat and sleep. To them it is like a spiritual retreat. Everyday is planned, it suggests to study a book that is short enough to cover in a week. Plan a follow-up everyday after the study. The group can even do mission activities during the afternoon.
I feel that this type of lock-in would be more beneficial than our normal kind, where we stay one night and play games and possibly have a small lesson. It gives them more time with God and less time playing with friends, although both are good for us. The lock-in the book described seems more personal and more effective than one night playing games in the church with no sleep. The lock-in in the book is more of an experience with God and others, it has more potential to leave you spiritually filled and shows more growth than the one night lock-in.
After reading Types of Camps and Retreats I couldn't come up with any questions, mostly this section talks about different types of camps and retreats. I looked through it again and thought more about the church lock-in. In the book it describes how church lock-ins are done. They are done at the church and the students stay for a week (five days) and live at the church, eat and sleep. To them it is like a spiritual retreat. Everyday is planned, it suggests to study a book that is short enough to cover in a week. Plan a follow-up everyday after the study. The group can even do mission activities during the afternoon.
I feel that this type of lock-in would be more beneficial than our normal kind, where we stay one night and play games and possibly have a small lesson. It gives them more time with God and less time playing with friends, although both are good for us. The lock-in the book described seems more personal and more effective than one night playing games in the church with no sleep. The lock-in in the book is more of an experience with God and others, it has more potential to leave you spiritually filled and shows more growth than the one night lock-in.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Experiential Youth Ministry Handbook - Retreats and Camps
Jessica Smazenko: How can we help our students make a smooth transition back into "the real world" after camp experiences where they are isolated from outside influences?
After reading this chapter, I really thought about the importance of creating smooth transitions for the students back into the "real world" after the camp experience. I'm not sure of what an answer would look like fully flushed out, but I know that it would have to be a couple different things. For one, I think it would need to be intentionally planned into the camp. Address this issue and give the students practical applications that they can take out into their lives. Also, after talking with Dusty on Monday night, I really like the idea of giving the students surveys at the beginning of the week to see where they are spiritually and where they come from. This gives an idea of what they are going to be returning to and then things can be planned accordingly. Also, I believe it is important that the youth pastors or youth leaders are aware of who is going to the camps or retreats and keeps dialogue open with them when they return. Another idea is if more than one student went from the church, have a little "party" afterwords to ask how everyone is doing and just get back together in that same group of people. If they do not go to a church, then get them hooked up with a local church and youth pastor. All of these things can help the transition better.
After reading this chapter, I really thought about the importance of creating smooth transitions for the students back into the "real world" after the camp experience. I'm not sure of what an answer would look like fully flushed out, but I know that it would have to be a couple different things. For one, I think it would need to be intentionally planned into the camp. Address this issue and give the students practical applications that they can take out into their lives. Also, after talking with Dusty on Monday night, I really like the idea of giving the students surveys at the beginning of the week to see where they are spiritually and where they come from. This gives an idea of what they are going to be returning to and then things can be planned accordingly. Also, I believe it is important that the youth pastors or youth leaders are aware of who is going to the camps or retreats and keeps dialogue open with them when they return. Another idea is if more than one student went from the church, have a little "party" afterwords to ask how everyone is doing and just get back together in that same group of people. If they do not go to a church, then get them hooked up with a local church and youth pastor. All of these things can help the transition better.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)