Object lessons are when you use a physical object to represent the topic for that day. An example is when I taught about the Trinity, I had a three leaf clover. It showed three in one, like the Godhead. Object lessons need not be real involved. The most important thing, is are they a good representation of your topic. Last week I taught about the 3 parts of a person. My object lesson was nothing more than having each kid hold up three fingers. Then I asked them how many hands they were holding up. Narturally, after a few "smart" comments, they told me 1. Then I asked them how many fingers each of them had held up, and they said three. Then, I made the connection that that was how many parts a person had three, in one person.
Object lessons have two basic uses. They are;
As with everything you present, make them age appropriate!
Object lessons can be found in a bunch of books, all over the place. Start to think in the terms, "How can I illustrate this topic clearly?" Another place that has a great source of object lessons, is various webpages on the internet. Below are links to a few of such places. Take some time to look at them, and then be inspired to look for more of them on the Internet.
One of the good places on the Internet to get object lessons, is The Kidology Web of Kidologist Karl Bastian. To go there simply click on Object Zone, and when you get there click on Object Zone.
Another of the many places on the Internet to get object lessons is Children's Ministry Today. To go here, click on CM Today.
There are many., many others. You owe it to yourself and your kids to take a few minutes, and find out! To start, just follow the links at both of the above websites.
Don't make games an every week occurance. If you do, then kid'll get tired of them. Make them an exciting thing!
Don't pick games that rely on atheletic ability. If you do, then you have just decided that those that are the most atheletic are going to always win. And, if kid's feel that they never have a chance of winning, then you've taken the fun out of the game for a lot of them!
Do pick games to develop a Biblical sense of competition. (Give it your best, endure to the end, and play fair.)
Do develop a team spirit with your games. (Working together) The games should always be accompanied by verbal comments about how the game reinforces the day's topic, which it always should.
Everything that is done in a given class period should reinforce the topic of the day!
Even when using a game to "break the ice," it can be chosen to reinforce the topic of the day. An example is when I teach about God making everything, then to get into teams for a reinforcing game, and to "break the ice," I whisper animal sounds (like a rooster, a cow, etc.) to each kid, then have them make the sounds, and team up with the others that are making that same sound. I not only have divided the kids up into teams, and broken the ice, but I have reinforced the fact that God made all animals. That with a little verbal communication about God making animals, and the jobs done!
Ideas can be gotten any number of places! They can be gotten from 1000's of books, avialable at all bookstores, and even some other stores, as well as from your public library. Take secular games, and adapt them for your purposes! Then, there are a bunch of sites on the Internet that have games on them. To look at just a few, click on kids and stuff & Sidewalk Sunday School, and you''ll be transported to some. (There are even tips on how to conduct games!) I have even gotten ideas for games from the TV! An example is that, while watching a gameshow on the "Animal Planet" channel, they used a game that had people pretending they were snakes wiggling. So, with a little tape to hold kid's arms down, and "whalla," I have a neat game!
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Earn while you learn!
