craft for year 3 RE

So I have been teaching RE (Religious Education) to grade threes now for about six years, and I have almost cracked the craft needs of this age group.

Apart from the origami disaster of term 3 2014.  But let's not speak of that.

The craft has to be:
- fitting in with the theme or story for the week - even if it is a very long bow being drawn...
- cheap (I need to purchase about 90 units for the grade - and the budget is...well..as much as I am prepared to spend...hopefully about 25c per kid)
- easy to do in 10-15 minutes
- yet complex enough to engage interest
- yet with differing layers of complexity for kids who just want to GET IT DONE and kids who want to pretty theirs up a bit (Can I use my textas Mrs Pine? Yes.  Can I use my highlighters Mrs Pine? Yes.  Can I give him blood and fangs Mrs Pine?  Probably no - it doesn't fit in with the story)
- easyish to prepare in bulk - we have a lovely group of older people at church who will cut out craft for me - but sometimes I am not organised enough to get it to them in time...
- I often try and write a memory verse or some of the story on the craft as well - just so when it is kicking around the playground or in the bottom of someone's bag the kids will know it is from RE

I have no illusions that I am making crafts to stand the test of time - but they may last long enough to go home and get talked about.  And so the story of the good news spreads.

So here are some photos of some crafts I have done this year.  I can't do a craft every week - it would do my head in.

And I will never try origami again.  I don't even have a photo of it...

Fishing game - tied in with the story of Jesus calling Peter the fisherman - long straw sticky-taped in half, string, small sticky backed magnet (I found these in a sheet of fifty), paper, paper clips - kids cut out their own shaped fish and wrote on the words

I do heaps of paper plate craft - this one was for Naaman being healed by Elisha by dipping into the river Jordan - used paper plate, long paddle pop stick and pre-cut cardboard man

Spinner - the Easter Sunday story - piece of card, two elastic bands - draw a picture of the tomb and then an angel on the other side - spin it round and round and it will BLOW YOUR MIND

Creation story clock paper plate craft - two paper plates joined by a split pin with a wedge cut out - we drew in the order of what God created in each wedge

Parable of the camel going through the eye of the needle - found a camel image, sewed two of them together with wool and pipecleaner needle

Story of the Holy Spirit like a dove coming down on Jesus - felt dove, scoobidoo string, googly eye

 Random little cardboard people that are useful for heaps of stories

Rainbow paper craft for the story of Noah - different coloured paper cut in increasingly smaller strips then stapled, says 'God keeps His promises

I thought I would also show you the cards I use to show the kids what we are doing each lesson.  We don't do everything every lesson - but it helps keep me and the kids on track, and know WHEN THE LESSON IS EVER GOING TO END

So, even though I am not a particularly crafty person, I do like problem solving about how to do craft with the kids that they will enjoy.  And that won't have me in sobs.

Except for the origami boxes.

That was poor craft decision making and planning on my part.  That day, my friend, I single handedly made 80 origami boxes.  The kids got steps 1 to 7 fine.  Step 8 was the killer.  I did everyone's step 8.

Warning to rookie craft RE teachers.

Don' decide that origami boxes with eight year olds are a good idea.

Stick to paper plates and pre-cut paper people.

I met a problem solver

I have been teaching year three RE (Religious Education) all year on a Thursday morning.  It is a volunteer job - I love it.  The 8 year olds are really fun and curious, and it is great to enter into their classroom and share in their lives.  They love being craftastic and dramatic.

However, there has been one little problem each week.  They are so keen to be helpful and carry my bags to the next classroom that an almost fight breaks out as to who is going to carry my bag.  Each week I try to pick different kids, but sometimes I just choose the child who is In My Face.

Last week a dear girl put up her hand and suggested that pulling names out of a bag would be a better solution.  I promptly delegated back and said great idea, do you want to organise it.

So this week I turned up on Thursday and was presented with this

She had gone above and beyond.  Covered, labelled, names inside.  I had met one of life's problem solvers.  Who solved problems with grace and style.  I wouldn't be surprised if I saw her name in a few years working out solutions to cancer, or traffic problems, or global warming, or anything she put her mind too.  She is one of those bright as a button kids.  And the rest of the kids in the class accepted the names pulled out of the tin to be my helpers graciously and well.

What a privilege.

gratitude attitude

Am I getting old?  I am about to embark on a blog post talking about 'those young things today'. Possibly.

Today was my first day back teaching grade three RE.  Exciting times talking about Judges - chariots stuck in the mud, tent pegs, and numchukkas (of course the discussion entered the zone of what weaponry was around for the Israelites to use).  I then told the kids a bit about our trip to China.  They listened fairly politely, but their ears only pricked up when I said I had brought back a present for them all (a small one - I had to buy 100 and they had to fit in the suitcase).  At the end of the lesson I distributed little gifts for them - hair clips and little erasers, and chopsticks that are also pencils.  Such fun. 

I have rarely heard such bickering.

(Except of course from my own children).

Can I have something different?  Why did Alana get that one?  I don't want this I want that.  She got more than me.  I missed out on a giraffe eraser?  Mine isn't working.  All the boys took everything.  I want another one.  Did you bring anything else?

I didn't hear an unprompted thank you.  Not that I got them little gifts to be showered in thanks.  But the attitude of expectation that they would be given 'stuff' was very high, and the appreciation was low.

It reminded me to be grateful for small things, and to teach my children to have an attitude of thankfulness.  To treat kindnesses as a gift not a right.  I hope I can practice having more of an attitude of gratitude.

On that note, here are today's things I am grateful for:
- having time in the day to spend thinking, praying, reading God's word and reading a John Piper book about thinking - yay long service leave!
- a fun nearly toilet trained puppy
- old friends who help your daughter with French with a smile and a servant heart
- husbands who cook dinner
- spotting the termite nest under the house before it is a termite mountain
- the opportunity to teach RE at school and the wonderful supportive teachers

Thank you.

Zaccheus song

I made a youtube (with the filming help of Annika) of the Zaccheus song.  Hopefully someone else can use it!

The kids at RE really enjoyed singing it and we sang it about 4 times in each lesson.

Here is the link!  Please excuse my poor ukelele playing - I only know four chords.

little ditty

I have spent the weekend at YNET - a youth leader's training event up at Mt Tambourine.  I learnt a lot about pride and humility, had a great time catching up with people and making new friends, and learnt four chords on the ukelele.

So now I am going to use those four chords in RE tomorrow to help tell the story of Zaccheus.  The chords are C, G, Am, F.  The tune is Jason Mraz 'I'm yours'.  I love it when I can use skills straight away that I have recently learned.  It consolidates the process, and I get to pass it on quickly.  And I am hoping I can sing loudly over my chord changes and fingering on the ukelele.  And that the tuning holds up for tomorrow (I tuned it to a website on the computer).

Here are the lyrics:

Zaccheus was a short man who lived long long ago

He collected all the money and kept some for himself you know

People did not like Zac

They never asked him back

One day Jesus came right into Zac's home town

Zac wanted to meet him and see Him all around

But Zac couldn't see

So he climbed up a tree

(chorus) Jesus came to seek and save the lost Luke 19:10 I'm sure (repeat)

Jesus said 'come down I really want to meet you,

I'm coming to your house to sit down and eat with you'

Zac's heart's been far away

but this is a brand new day

Zac changed his life, gave his money to the poor

He was a very different man than he was before

He gave it back times four

But he was still short

(chorus)

I plan on teaching the kids the chorus which is the memory verse for the lesson, then I will just sing the verses.  I hope it works!

I am also planning on bringing a significantly sized tree branch to school for one of my puppets to climb up and pretend to be Zaccheus.

Fun times at RE.

teaching RE to grade three

I have hit the ground running with RE this year.  Four classes of grade threes on a Thursday morning.  I really like it, and I like the relationship I have with the kids after getting to know them all last year.  They love dramas and craft and little videos (especially from Max7).  And their personalities are wonderful.

Great things that happened today:
- one of the boys who was very difficult last year and very shy and rolled around the floor a lot sat and listened the whole time today and came and asked me three questions - persistance and encouragement pays off - and catering to kinesthetic learners
- I told the story of the Good Samaritan five different ways in one lesson (using little stick puppets, straight from the Bible, on a little video, in a song and from a storybook)- I think they got the point in the end!
- when I challenged the kids to think about how they could be a Good Samaritan one little girl said she had no-one to play with at lunchtime.  Another precious girl whom I love to bits put her hand up and said (and these are her own words) that she had an 'opening' in her friendship group and this girl was welcome to join them. 

Nearly fell off my chair with delight.

What a blessing to be with 8 year olds as they hear the words of Jesus for the first time.

teaching RE to grade two

Since Easter this year I have had the pleasure of being a RE teacher for grade two at my local school.  I pack up my ipod (which has way too many Colin Buchanan songs on to be cool), a challenge (very happy with the minute-to-win-it game site for RE ideas - thanks Channel 7) and my Connect program and teach four classes a week. It is an amazing opportunity to talk about God in our classrooms.
After a quick student poll this morning the year's favourite RE activities have been:

- digging around in cold cooked spaghetti to find 'treasure' to illustrate King Josiah finding the book of law in the temple
- playing 'Gatekeeper' - a great game I made up where I get to be a grumpy gatekeeper who only lets in certain types of animals
- making sheep craft (really?  really???  are cotton wool sheep that good?  I thought I was being cheap..)
- playing the pedometer game where you shake your head to see how many clicks you can get with a pedometer strapped to a headband - I am sure I linked it into the lesson somehow

I will have to organise my Re ideas into some sort of categorising system.  That's what an organised person would do who wanted to remember them for another year.  Maybe.....