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2020-02-26 to 28 Pictures: Charleston, South Carolina

One of the few upsides of having to cancel our Spring Break trip last March at the onset of the pandemic is that we are "stuck" with a rather large voucher from one of those discount airlines. Last autumn, Tricia and I spent a weekend in Savannah, Georgia and had a...

A John 3:16 Craft for Kids

John 3:16 is one of the most well known and reassuring verses in the Bible. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.John 3:16 (NIV) The following is a little craft I threw...

2020-03-01 Pictures: Lyndsey’s College Signing Day

This afternoon Lyndsey made it official, signing her letter of intent to play college basketball for the Hiram College Terriers starting next year. While she made the decision and committed to Hiram before Christmas, she has been looking forward to this day since her...

2020-02-13 Pictures: Lyndsey’s 18th Birthday

I am little behind on posting photos. These are some of my favorites from a couple of weekends ago when we got a chance to celebrate Lyndsey's 18th birthday. It's hard to believe that my little girl is officially an adult. It was nice to have the family all back...

What is DOCTRINE?

Introduction I love working with kids, and I love teaching them hard concepts in ways they can understand. To that end, for years I have been working on a dictionary of theological terms for kids and teens. In sharing those definitions, there seemed no better place to...

If You Want It Done Right

In all likelihood, you know how the phrase ends: If you want it done right, DO IT YOURSELF! This is a bit of a mantra for me, and frankly, something that I struggle with daily both in leadership and in my Christian walk.  In theory, this is easy to accept. ...

What Does God Hate?

This is the little and humble post that started it all. I happened to be reading through my Bible, and this passage impacted me so much that I posted a little blurb about it on Facebook. That was July 28, 2008, and I've been writing and sharing ever since. (Maybe...

#17 – Read About Teaching (Tips For Large Group Teaching)

Welcome to a continuing series of tips on working with large groups of children. I hope that you will find these tips useful and be able to implement them in your dealings with large groups of kids. If you do, please leave a comment and let us know. For a complete list of posts in this series, please see the index page. So, without further introduction, here is today’s installment.

I am an avid reader.  I read something almost every day, and I go through stages during a year when I read numerous books over a very short period of time.  Earlier this year, I posted My 2010 Reading List with some of the books I am reading, or plan to read, this year.  You’ll note from my list that many of the books I am reading are books written for children or about children’s ministry.  However, the third category of books on my list is “Books About Teaching.”  As teachers of God’s Word, it is important that we understand different teaching techniques and different ways that kids learn.  Just because God has gifted you with the ability to teach doesn’t mean that you don’t need to continue to refine your gift.  If you teach kids, make sure you add these books, or others about teaching, to your list of books to read.  Be constantly on the lookout for ways to improve your teaching skills.

One great source for information on how to teach is the Bible itself.  One Bible study that I did last year, and which I intend to write about later this year or early next year, is the teaching methods of Jesus.  Read through the gospels and reflect on how Jesus taught the people around him.  Note his methods and his tone and the teachable moments that he finds in everyday situation.  If those methods were good enough for the incarnate God, they ought to be effective enough for us.

Whatever you do in life, it is important that you study to remain up-to-date on current trends and to constantly improve your skills.  As an accountant, I have to take a certain number of continuing education classes each year in order to maintain my license.  Lawyers and doctors and other professionals have similar requirements.  If you work with computers, it is important that you read manuals and go to classes to keep up to date on ever changing technology.  We gladly invest the time necessary to grow in our professional careers.  How much more willing should we be to invest time in becoming better and more effective teachers of God’s Word?

Return to the Tips for Large Group Teaching in Children’s Ministry index page.

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