Church school program features special workshop for teaching Bible stories

At a Christian Education meeting at Ballard Vale United Church in Andover, the topics of burnout and the difficulty of recruiting new teachers were discussed. It was during that meeting that Rachel Daniels, a church school teacher, remembered hearing about solutions to these issues at a United Church of Christ Christian educators conference that she attended about 5 years ago. A Workshop Rotation Model was shown as a fun and different way to experience church school for both students and teachers.

"The idea stuck with me," said Daniels, "so I suggested a session of the Workshop Rotation as a possible solution." According to Daniels, a session of Workshop Rotation lasts 3 to 6 Sundays and features classrooms transformed to support workshops (e.g. drama, cooking, computer, games, puppeteering, art, movies, etc.) Workshops are repeated for the number of Sundays of the rotation. So there is initial planning with weekly adjustments for the age range and developmental levels of each attending class.

Daniels found a website that helped spark some ideas. Rotation.org is a not-for-profit website run by volunteers and sponsored by Workshop Rotation churches and individuals who believe in freely sharing their ideas, enthusiasm and lesson materials with others.

"This amazing workshop rotation website is loaded with about 3000 ideas and lesson plans categorized by subject," Daniels said. "There I found inspiration for teaching the stories about Paul. For the lesson on Paul and Silas in Prison (Acts 16) I downloaded directions for creating a prison, scripts, a low tech earthquake special effect, and fun talking points for improvisation between Paul and Silas, the guards and the children." "In addition, I found a Christians vs. Pharisees game show with a wheel of fortune and questions based on Paul's conversion, as well as ideas for a chocolate making workshop where the students would learn Paul's ideas about love from I Corinthians 13."

Many members of the congregation jumped in to help.

"Obviously none of this would have been possible without a talented jail builder, a Paul, a Silas, three determined guards, two glamorous quiz show hosts and some chocolate gourmands," said Daniels. "These I found in my congregation -- enthusiastic people who did not usually teach church school but were glad to volunteer for three weeks of fun. As a result, our dedicated long-term teachers had a three-week break with the opportunity to remain in worship for the full service." The program expenditures were minimal -- about $60 in chocolate and $40 in prison building supplies. One member of the congregation, John McIntyre, donated both the lumber for the barred door and windows as well as the eight hours of labor for building, setting up, and taking down the prison.

The congregation was forewarned about the upcoming church school prison experience so parents could prepare their children. According to Daniels, a cautious five-year old buttressed herself with two favorite stuffed animals (and her mother) and made it through the prison class. At home she explained to her father, "Two guys were talking about Jesus and they got arrested". On later Sundays, she vehemently told her parents that she could not miss the chocolate class and excitedly related her teams' performance in the quiz show.

"We were thrilled that she, along with the other students, enthusiastically anticipated church school and recalled what they had experienced," said Daniels.

The children, as well as the adults, will certainly remember this Bible lesson; and it's one story that shouldn't be kept under lock and key. Ballard Vale United Church is located at 23 Clark Road, Andover, MA 01810. You can contact church staff at: (978) 475-2506 or pastor@bvuc.org.

Editor's Note: Information about additional workshop rotation curricula is available on the Conference website at www.macucc.org/education/curriculum.htm or contact Ms. Martha Butler Cook, Resource Center Director, at cookm@macucc.org.

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