Think Like a Thief Trish Mayer, Children’s Pastor New Covenant COG Good Teachers are Thieves • When the teacher plays the role of a thief, they take ideas from… • Workshops • Trainings • Classes they attend • Events • Lessons observed from other teachers • Teachers make a mental note of what they saw (or ask for a copy of the lesson, etc.) and alter it to make it their own. Where do I ‘hunt’ to expand my ‘toolbox’? • Attend Children’s Ministry Trainings- (ex. FOCUS) • Meet with a School Teacher (ask about teaching methods, free websites, cool ideas, etc.) • Observe Teachers in the Classroom • Read Books, Children’s Magazines, Blogs • Social Media (scope out what other ministries are doing) • Look at Youtube for object lessons, or other cool ideas • Join or Create a Facebook Group for Children’s Pastors to Share Ideas • Call Other Children’s Pastors • Attend Another Church to Observe Children’s Church Procedures & Services The Reach Project Social Media Challenges for Kids Build a Fort Challenge Sidewalk Chalk Challenge Children’s Event Ideas Game Night Focus Children’s Event Ideas Game Night Focus Outdoor Children’s Event Ideas Outdoor Children’s Event Ideas Community Outreach Annual Pumpkin Party Physical Education Games and Life Application Focus • Look on Youtube- search for ‘pe games’ or go to www.physedgames.com 1. Dodgeball 2. Capture the Flag 3. Steal the Bacon 4. Mouse Trap 5. Battleball 6. Shark Attack Branding Your Ministry Bounce Backs & Prize Tickets (Made in Microsoft Word) Branding Your Ministry Items from www.vistaprint.com Birthday Bucks Made in Microsoft Word Branding Your Ministry Information Card & Welcome Card Made in Microsoft Word Branding Your Ministry Made in Microsoft Word Think Like a Thief Trish Mayer, Children’s Pastor New Covenant COG [email protected] Finding Life Application in Physical Education Games Wednesday night church can be difficult sometimes for children. Many of them have been sitting in front of a teacher or computer for hours and their attention span is spent. Children have a natural need to get exercise and excerpt energy as a deviation from their day. To help with this, we often play games for the second half (about 20-30 minutes) of our Wednesday night services and sometimes Sunday mornings if adult services go longer than expected. When we are at a curriculum transition we will sometimes take an entire Wednesday night and allow the kids to play a game or two. However, our goal is to fit something in that night that focuses on the spiritual aspect of life too. One thing we might do is take a physical education game from YouTube and try to think of ways we can take different aspects of the game and give it biblical life application. Below is a sample/template of this for you to use . The ultimate goal is to get your kids talking about that they experienced just after playing the game. Though questions and group discussion you will find that the children will bring up feelings they just experienced. It is here where you, as the group facilitator, can pull out how that feeling relates to their life and God. Here is an outline of what to do… 1. Pick a game- Type in ‘PE Games’ in the youttube search bar and watch a few games. Choose something you feel the kids would like. A few to consider are Steal the Bacon, Capture the Flag, War Ball, Mini Gym Riot, Dodgeball, etc. 2. Learn the rules of the game- You will need to be able to explain it effectively to the kids so take notes if you need to. 3. Decide who will officiate the game- You may need a whistle for some games so the kids know when it is time to stop. 4. Explain the game and the rules- At times you will need to model what you expect of them while you are explaining the game. Sometimes kids learn best with seeing what they should do (especially the younger ages). Remember it is also important to explain things they should not do before you begin to play (ex. running out of bounds, throwing balls at one another above chest (avoid other’s faces), etc.). It’s best to explain here where boarders/ lines/boundaries are located, etc. 5. Start with some play time- Let them play the game for about 15-20 minutes or to a certain score (ex. first team to ten points). Change teams, etc. When you sense they need a break stop the game. 6. Discussion time- Have the kids sit down on the ground, on a beach towel, or on a chair in your children’s department sanctuary for some discussion time. During this time we usually give the children a drink box and a snack. Once everyone is settled, we go through a series of questions. These questions are listed in the Lesson Sample Guide below. You can use these questions or make your own list to fit the direction you wish to go in your group discussion. Your goal is to relate an aspect of the game to their lives. During the game children will have positive experiences, humorous situations, and difficult challenges. You can often compare the experiences they face in the game to life situations (fear, anger, tripping and falling, etc.) You can take it a step further and give examples of people from the Bible and the experiences they had in their lives. Sometimes we don’t necessarily use a Bible figure in the life application discussion, but when it fits we do. Sometimes just focusing on a topic (ex. Fear) is enough. Be aware- sometimes these discussions may surprise you. For example- the discussion in the lesson sample below did not go as we anticipated. We thought it would possibly be a focus on fear. It ended up developing into a discussion on how we as Christians should have a determined, relentless, passionate pursuit of God. This was totally unexpected and was sincerely a super discussion with the kids! 7. Wrapping it up- When you are finished with the discussion wrap it up with a prayer. Then have the kids throw their trash, and either resume playing or transition to another game/ activity. Lesson Sample Guide: Chosen Game: Steal the Bacon (Watch the rules to Steal the Bacon to better understand what is being explained below. Below are a few screen shots from the video we used.) Grades: K-8, Team Focus Equipment Needed: Large and/or small cones, ‘bacon’ (a bandana, large sponge, or another soft item), a whistle for a large group LESSON OBJECTIVE: Students will demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the game (in this case Steal the Bacon). They will also learn/express understanding of how some concepts of the game relate to real life and God’s Word. 1. Choose a Game- For this lesson we will use Steal the Bacon. 2. Choose the Life Application Focus- Think about the game as it is played, and how the children will play defense and offense. Consider the situations the children will experience in the game. With Steal the Bacon you might ask yourself things like… • What emotions do you anticipate from them? • Will they feel before they have to play or while they play? • If they come against an ‘enemy’ in the game, how will that feel? • What things will they see and and experience? • What feelings will they have when they chase their opponent as the opponent takes off with ‘the bacon’? • What will they feel when they don’t catch the ‘bacon’ thief? • What will they feel being the one with the ‘bacon’ being chased? • Are there different thoughts and experiences because of the age of the kid? (Maybe you have a really tall kid going against a small one- You might even do this sort of thing on purpose to prove a point. What feeling might they have in this situation?) To gain life application it is important to determine what aspects of the game might generate emotion/feelings for the kids. Usually in PE games fear, excitement, anger, aggression, stress, fighting, war, feelings of protection, and team work occur. You could also consider that there are physical boundaries such as zones/lines/obstacles/barriers in some games. Chose which aspect of the game you want to focus on that night. Be prepared that the discussion may not go exactly the way you think it will. Sometimes these kids will surprise you with what they think/feel. Also, sometimes things happen that you may not have anticipated that you can focus on. Two example are: 1. At times a child may get into a crazy situation (like pickle) and they ‘zig-zag’ their way out of it. You could focus on how God can really surprise us with some the crazy situations he directs us out of. 2. Maybe two kids collide like they are hitting a brick wall. You might mention that sometimes in our lives we have hard times where life hits us hard, makes us cry, puts us on our backs, but God is always there. Sometimes these unpredictable situations happen and you may find the discussion moving toward what you did not anticipate. When this happens we usually let the kids express their feelings and do the best we can to relate it all to God. Most of the time these are the best conversations where you learn a lot about the child and they get to share their feelings with one another. 2. (Optional- but helps to bring home your point.) If you have picked the aspect of the game you want to focus on, then you have a second question to ask yourself.