10 Tips For Planning A Winning Sunday School Curriculum

By Author: Steven Belk
Total Articles: 4762
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Being a Sunday school teacher is highly rewarding as you see young lives being impacted and flourishing under God's care. Most Sunday school teachers are parents or volunteers with little formal teacher training. It can therefore be exhausting trying to manage the classroom and come up with a constant stream of creative ideas to keep the kids entertained. Here are ten tips to help you plan a curriculum that'll make your life a little easier and have a greater impact in your classroom.

1. Remember Your Role

Children are incredibly perceptive, and they will soon see your heart's attitude towards them. Your primary focus should be that of loving each child in your class, yes even the naughty ones, and letting this show through in your class. Encourage them to cement the weekly teachings in their lives. As much as possible you should be a role model and example of Christ's love for them. This is a big responsibility but should be the basis of all your teaching efforts.

2. Prepare Prayerfully

Let God in on your plans, He may have something better in mind. Even when using a resource book with a set curriculum ...
... you should start each preparation session with a few minutes of prayer. There may be aspects of the lesson that will touch a particular child's life and God would like to lead you to share the lesson in a certain way. Sometimes topics may seem uninspiring and you simply don't know where to start. Prayerfully ask for guidance and inspiration, most of the time those turn out to be the very best lessons.

3. Use Bible Resources

There are a number of fantastic resources available to help you plan your lessons. These include: books, posters, activity guides, music CD's, DVD's and course outlines and curriculums. They are even tailored for different age groups. Don't stick to just one resource, it's a good idea to have a basic plan and outline but add in other resources from time to time to keep the lessons fresh and interesting for your class.

4. Aim to Meet the Kids on their Level

Sunday school classes are typically segmented by age group and grade, but you'll still have a wide cross section of intelligence levels, creativity and personalities in your class. The trick is to create lessons that meet each child at their level. This is where bible resources become invaluable. They provide lesson outlines, ask questions and provide ideas for activities. You can assign different activities to different kids matching their interests and skills so that they get the maximum benefit from the lesson.

5. Plan to Keep them Captivated

Children have a short attention span, so standing up front and just reading a lesson won't make much impact. Refer to your bible resources and then think of fun ways to communicate the lesson. Use posters or cut out's to tell the story. Get the extroverted kids to do a quick play and entertain the class. Or play a game to illustrate a point. No matter what activities you choose, your best way to keep them captivated is to get them to interact and be part of the lesson. The more you connect with them on their level, the better they will absorb the lesson, too.

6. Theme your Lessons

The objective of Sunday school is to impart God's word to children. The best way to ensure you are achieving this is to theme each lesson with a biblical principle. You need to take the story or lesson and show the kids what it means for them, what they should learn from it. Most bible teaching guides will suggest themes for different topics and this can be very useful when creating activities and lessons.

7. Get Outside and be Creative

As long as you have the parent's and supervisor's permission it's a great idea to take the lesson outside. It can go beyond just going on a nature walk and teaching about God's creation. Get the kids to search for leaves, twigs and other items to build a collage around the lesson's theme. Let them make gifts or gather flowers to give to elderly people in the church. Lead a litter clean-up campaign in the neighborhood. All these activities can be tied into biblical themes of giving, serving and sharing.

8. Link the Lessons

One of the best ways to ensure your lessons are creating an impact is to reinforce them in subsequent classes. Refer back to other lesson's saying something like: "Remember when we heard the story of the Good Samaritan, who can tell me what lesson we learnt?" Then once you have feedback from the kids, link that into the current lesson. By keeping a record of the themes you have covered, you can easily create the links for future classes.

9. Make it Personal

You will always have one or more shy children in class who sit in the corner and say nothing. Find a way to connect with them. Christ's love is all inclusive and personal. Your lessons should be too. Don't be shy to read up on topics of parenting, teaching and relationships. It'll help you connect with the different personalities in your class.

10. Beyond the Classroom

Encourage the kids in your class to share what they have learned with their friends, parents and classmates. Kids don't have the same hang-up's as adults in talking about God, and often it's a way that parents, families and other children are drawn to attend church. You can also celebrate birthdays or good attendance with small biblical gifts that they can take home. A few ideas are: a scripture bookmark, pen, coffee mug, or journal. The more enthusiastic the kids are about your lessons, the more impact they will have in the world in which they live.
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