Calendar

Summer Sunday’s Cool – Part 1 (2014)

Posted on May 29, 2014May 14, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

What’s happening in Christian Education for ~~kids~~ kids and their caregivers (!) in June at FUMC?

Worship, our annual BIG GAME, and the start of a summer movie series!

Hey! Why not do all three together as a family?!

Our summer film series will feature selections from the “What’s in the Bible with Buck Denver.” (Yes, these videos are appropriate for adults and kids!) It will be a fun way for kids to enjoy a change of pace from our school-year Rotation lessons, while learning in this unique way about the Bible. And think of the family discussions this will open up!

This video series is by the creator of Veggie Tales! Here’s a short preview of this film series… (Watch here if you are reading this in an email.)

What’s up with our focus on families?

This summer we are encouraging families to attend worship together at Green Wood and to come to our video lessons on Sunday mornings (in the air conditioned Chapel!). Afterwards there’s Lemonade on the Lawn for some fellowship time. Join us!

Here is the schedule for June downtown on Sunday mornings…

Date	To learn about…
June 1	Attend worship/Communion as a family.
June 8	The BIG GAME! (Where we review the year, and see if the 6th graders are smarter than the rest of us!)
June 15	Let the movies begin! The What’s in the Bible video series. The Big Questions: What is the Bible? Why would the Bible be called “The Most Important Book?” What is God’s Rescue plan? (If you miss this week, to be introduced to all of the characters in this series watch this short video.)
June 22	Movie continues… The Big Questions: Who wrote the Bible? Is this an important question? Why the world doesn’t make sense until you’ve read the first eleven chapters of Genesis? The book of Genesis sets the stage!
June 29	We turn to the New Testament! Big Question: How could one man, Jesus, solve the huge problems of our sinful world?

Or if you can’t make Sunday morning then catch the action for kids at Green Wood on Saturday evenings…

Date	To learn about…
May 31	Cooking Workshop on the Walk to Emmaus – create “Resurrection Rolls.” Discuss how the lesson these rolls teach us ties to our story.
June 7	One last workshop on the Walk to Emmaus…In a Computer/Video Workshop students will see a unique rendition of our story performed by snow people!
June 14	Let the movies begin! The What’s in the Bible video series. The Big Questions: What is the Bible? Why would the Bible be called “The Most Important Book?” What is God’s Rescue plan? (If you miss this week, to be introduced to all of the characters in this series watch this short video.)
June 21	The video series continues…The Big Questions: Who wrote the Bible? Is this an important question? Why the world doesn’t make sense until you’ve read the first eleven chapters of Genesis? The book of Genesis sets the stage!
June 28	Worship with your family.

Photo credits:
Photos of kids are from my archives (some were taken by other church members).

Are you seeing ads? They are not from me! They are placed by WordPress, who otherwise offers a free platform from which to share lots of good-ness. If you see an inappropriate ad, please report it to support@wordpress.com. Include the URL, the date/time the ad appeared, and a screenshot of the ad.

Remembering… every day

Posted on May 22, 2014April 11, 2020 by Carol Hulbert

a person walks among flag-decorated gravemarkers

On Memorial Day we remember the men and women who died while serving our country. We also reminisce about lost family members and friends.We gather together, decorate graves, salute flags, and attend parades—a worthwhile day of tribute, a day of telling stories about service and honor and good deeds.

Where it falls on the calendar in the northern hemisphere, Memorial Day also signifies the start of summer. Sunny skies, picnics and vacations; more great memories in the making!

All this brings to mind other observances we need to recognize.

Remembering stories of God with us.

Brooklyn Museum - The Pilgrims of Emmaus on the Road (Les pèlerins d'Emmaüs en chemin) - James Tissot

Our children need to hear our stories of God walking beside us.

Our children need to be reminded of times when God walked with them.

In a recent Rotation from Luke 24:13-35, we heard Cleopas and his traveling companion reflect on their trip from Jerusalem to Emmaus, when they realized that Jesus had been with them!

Back and forth they talked. “Didn’t we feel on fire as he conversed with us on the road, as he opened up the Scriptures for us?”
Luke 24:32

We need to offer opportunities for our kids to join the “fellowship of the burning heart.”

Let this Memorial Day be the start of an every-day-sort-of-thing: tell remember-when stories about times when Jesus was with you.

The time the car broke down the night before the big trip (rather than on the road).
An out of the blue, call from a friend when you needed to hear from someone just at that moment.
A sunny day after so many grey, dreary ones.
Hearing a Bible verse that was just what was needed.
The list goes on and on!

What are your God-with-you stories?

Bothered & Bewildered: Stuck in a playpen?

Posted on March 27, 2014March 9, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

The book Bothered & Bewildered by Ann Morisy “Bothered and Bewildered” — that’s the sermon series for Lent this year (2014) at FUMC. The idea for this theme came from the writings of Ann Morisy. That is one of her books over on the left: Bothered & Bewildered: Enacting Hope in Troubled Times.

Ann guest-lectured this past weekend in Ann Arbor. In one of her three talks, Ann spoke about bringing hope to those who are troubled and anxious — to those in a bothered and bewildered state.

Ah, that would be me.

I’ll admit – I’m often dazed and downright dizzy, and in the in midst of an overloaded life, I’m wondering, who me? A child of God? And why am I here?

What about you? Ever feel that way?

I’m thinking that a generous dose of uncertainty also applies to our current Rotation on the events of Holy Week. Some of the characters in our story were definitely a bit baffled.

Why did Jesus overturn the tables in the Temple? (Matthew 21:12-13).
What was Jesus talking about – “the Son of Man will be handed over…” (Matt 26:2).
And what brought Judas to snitch on his teacher?! (Matt 26:14-16).

Yes, I’d say that the portion of our story covered in this week’s mini reading plan (below), includes people who are troubled and anxious.

Can we relate?

To continue a previously started trend, let’s explore the concept of people bothered and bewildered during that first Holy Week. People, not unlike us, who (to borrow another Ann Morisy viewpoint) fear stepping outside of the playpen.

a child chews on the edge of a playpen

Do playpens even get used any more?

Those places where we placed a small child to keep them out of harms way while we were otherwise occupied? Keep the thought of a playpen — a safe place — in mind as you use this mini reading plan with discussion questions around the family dinner table. Or wherever your family (or your friends!) gather together. Use the chart below to read and talk about this particular portion of our story… in stages… over the coming weeks. Or print it out.

(Check out the start of the mini reading plans here.)

Read	Talk about or do…
Matthew 21:8-11	A bit of a review: Why is the crowd all worked up; who is coming into town? Why were they shouting words of praise – Hosanna!? What sort of king did they expect Jesus would be? What hint should they have taken from Jesus’ choice of a mode of transportation? How do you suppose the sight of this parade makes the people think: perhaps it would be safe to leave our playpens?
Matthew 21:12-13	Why do you suppose Jesus turned things upside down in the Temple? Imagine you were a money-changer in the Temple; what would you have thought? Imagine that you are someone who needed to buy a dove to offer as a sacrifice in the Temple. How do you feel being turned away? (Sorry there are no doves; that man let them all loose when he was overturning tables.)
Matthew 21:12-13	What about this event bothers you? What questions do you have? If you were there would you feel like you were in need of a playpen of safety and security, or a playpen full of challenges? What do you suppose Jesus is trying to tell us about prayer and worship?
Matthew 21:12-16	Why do you suppose the chief priests and the teachers of the law were so upset about kids making noise in the Temple? This is just one example of how they seemed to always butt heads with Jesus. Jesus came to earth to help put the world right again, but he used ways that were different than what people expected. What way do you suppose a “take-charge” type of king would have used in this instance to right the unfair practices at the Temple?
Matthew 26:1-2	A review: What did the festival of Passover celebrate? (Hint: look at Exodus 12:1-14.) What does the word “crucified” mean? (killed on a cross) Why did Jesus allow himself to be killed (he could have run away)? (It’s okay if you don’t have a definitive answer to this question. Discuss it anyway!)
Matthew 26:3-5	What festival were the religious leaders talking about? (Hint: look in verse 2.) What sort of playpen were they setting up for themselves to avoid a backlash of protest from “the people”? Why do you suppose they were worried about what others thought?
Matthew 26:14-16	Which disciple tattled on Jesus? (Judas Iscariot) What was the bad plan that Judas made? Have you ever made a “bad plan”? What happened? Was forgiveness necessary? Do you suppose that Jesus forgave Judas? What sort of playpen would you retreat to if you made a really bad plan? Or would you think to choose to run to Jesus instead?

Are you ready to continue with the next in our series of mini-reading/discussion plans?

Photo credits:
Youngster in a playpen by Ross Belmont, licensed under Creative Commons BY NC-SA 2.0

The Events of Holy Week – shown in pictures!

Posted on March 13, 2014March 9, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

Show these photos to your kids and ask them to tell you the events of Holy Week.

A few other notes:

Want to see the lesson that was used for this workshop? Visit here.
Note that sometimes a class doesn’t get time to take all of the pictures for the entire story.
This post will be updated to add each class as they visit our Photography workshop. (All of the various classes have been added! Scroll down to search for yours.)
Bask in the wonder of retelling the story with pictures!
If you are in the area join us for the fun learning at at FUMC in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The 1st grade

The 2nd grade

The class is introduced to today’s workshop by looking at a photo album.

Judas accepts silver coins to betray Jesus

The 3rd grade

The 4th grade

The 5th and 6th grades

And a few from our Green Wood site

Did your kids know the events of Holy Week?

Photo credits:
Photos by Maria Koukios, © 2014, used by permission.

Rotation Schedule: the Events of Holy Week

Posted on February 27, 2014January 24, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

Dutchman's Breeches Happy Lent!

Our current Rotation is a look at the events of Holy Week. Holy Week covers the last days – the last week – of Jesus’ life on earth. Our aim is that kids will be able to sequence the events of Holy Week and re-tell the story of Easter. In the process of this learning, they will come to recognize that Jesus’ journey to the cross (and beyond) was a trip that Jesus made for them because of God’s love for us. This is why we celebrate Easter!

To see a growing list of opportunities to foster faith learning at home on the subject of Holy Week and Lent, click here. Might I suggest a few of my favorites? (Click on the pictures or the underlined words, to read.)

	Fill eggs with symbols of the story from Palm Sunday to Easter. Use these eggs to help children to learn and re-tell the story. Look for a starter set to come home with your child from our Storytelling Workshop!
	What can your family do to intentionally put God at the center of your life – say for about for 10 – 15 minutes a day? Here are seven ideas for your family’s Lent experience.
	A bit of history about Lent… and a suggestion to take time in this season to notice the sacred in the secular.

Where is the schedule? It was sort of out of date and has been removed 🙂

But here is what we did in each workshop:

In the Games Workshop students will play a “Family Feud” quiz game while learning story details.
In the Cooking Workshop students will create an edible map of Jerusalem, noting the location of the events of Holy Week.
In the Storytelling Workshop the contents of eggs found in a hunt help a Bible-times character to tell the story. Students will create their own mini set of storytelling eggs!
In the Photography Workshop students will re-enact the events of Holy Week and pose for still photographs of each scene.
In the Video Workshop students will watch portions of the live-action video The Visual Bible: Matthew, while enjoying popcorn (can’t have a movie without popcorn!).

Check out the Workshop Rotation Model for Sunday school at the original home of Rotation, where many of my lessons are posted under “CreativeCarol.”

If you are in the area, please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI.

Photo credits:
Flowers are from my archives.
Easter eggs by kanspice.
Forehead with ash cross by mtsofan.
Look! by Travis Nep Smith. All photos licensed under a Creative Commons License on Flickr.

A month about love: February 2014 Schedule

Posted on January 29, 2014January 29, 2014 by Carol Hulbert

Jesus was often peppered with questions. The toughest, trickiest one was probably:

Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?
Matthew 22:36

In February, we’ll be studying the answer Jesus gave. His response is so important it’s even named! Appropriately enough it’s called: The Greatest Commandment.

Jesus’ positive prescription?

It’s about love.

Read our story of Jesus’ Greatest Commandment in Matthew 22:34-40. Check out our schedule of Rotation workshops below!

To see a growing list of opportunities to foster faith learning at home for our stories on the Ten Commandments and the Greatest Commandment (because they are interrelated) click here.

For Saturdays at the Green Wood location, here is the schedule…

Date	Workshop	Activity
2/1	Cooking Workshop	Prepare snack mix to share with the L.O.V.E. Thy Neighbor program.
2/8	Art Workshop	Create a decorative hanging container out of clay, to store a copy of the Greatest Commandment. This case will be modeled after a Jewish mezuzah.
2/15	Worship with your family
2/22	Games Workshop	Play a game called “Titanic Challenge.” Learn about how to treat your neighbor.

And on Sundays, at the downtown location…

Date	Our workshops…
2/2	Enjoy worship and Communion with your family
	Cooking	Games	Art
	Pine Room	Social Hall	Room 212
2/9	5th & 6th grade	3rd & 4th grade	1st & 2nd grade
2/16	1st & 2nd grade	5th & 6th grade	3rd & 4th grade
2/23	3rd & 4th grade	1st & 2nd grade	5th & 6th grade

Note: In February we are doubling up the classes due to winter vacations and a predicted (unfortunate) increase in illness which can keep kids, and workshop leaders, at home!

What’s happening in each workshop?

In the Art Workshop students will create a decorative hanging container out of clay, to store a copy of the Greatest Commandment. This case will be modeled after a Jewish mezuzah. This one will be a keeper!
In the Cooking Workshop students will mix up and bag snack mix, to share with the L.O.V.E. Thy Neighbor program. What other ways will your kids help their neighbors?
In the Games Workshop students will participate in a game requiring cooperation (and treating your neighbor nicely!). Come join in a fun game of “Titanic Challenge.”

What is this all about? On Saturday nights and on Sunday mornings at FUMC our Cool Disciples experience Rotation Model Christian education, as they learn about Bible stories and concepts through kid-friendly multimedia workshops. If you are in the area please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI.

Learn about nurturing your child’s spirituality by subscribing to receive future posts (usually just one a week). Enter your e-mail address up above on the right, to have posts sent directly to your inbox. Or click on the orange RSS icon to subscribe in a reader. Thanks for visiting. Commenting is encouraged! Share what works in your family! Ask questions!

Photo credits:
Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
Love by Justin Lowery, who licensed this photo on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.

The Ten Commandments: January schedule

Posted on January 9, 2014January 16, 2014 by Carol Hulbert

A good idea for a New Year’s resolution: include faith conversation with your family. Receive help in this endeavor by subscribing over on the right. Enter your e-mail address to have posts (usually one a week) sent directly to your inbox. Or click on the orange RSS icon to subscribe in a reader.  
What could be more important than working on your faith journey together!

To see a growing list of opportunities to foster faith learning at home for our current Rotation story :: click here.

A quizzical-looking boy holds what appears to be ten commandment tablets

In January we are studying the Ten Commandments.

I hate to admit this, but… this may be a Rotation that your kids have trouble grasping.

But there is a way to combat this problem!

+++++Continue the learning at home!

Here is a place to start.

For Saturdays at the Green Wood location, here is the schedule…

Date	Workshop	Activity
1/11	Drama Workshop	Students will act out modern-day scenarios of the 10 commandments, challenging listeners to determine which commandment is involved.
1/18	Music Workshop	Watch two music videos. Sing and dance along to learn about the Ten Commandments!
1/25	Art Workshop	Create a keepsake copy of the Ten Commandment tablets.

And on Sundays, at the downtown location…

Date	Our workshops…
1/5	Enjoy worship and Communion with your family
	Art 1	Art 2	Drama 1	Drama 2	Music
	Pine Room	Social Hall	Room 204	Room 215	Room 211
1/12	(closed)	4th grade	5th & 6th grades	3rd grade	1st & 2nd grades
1/19	1st grade	5th & 6th grades	(closed)	2nd grade	3rd & 4th grades
1/26	2nd grade	3rd grade	4th grade	1st grade	5th & 6th grades

What’s happening in each workshop?

In the Art Workshop students will create a keepsake copy of the Ten Commandment tablets. (Both Art 1 and Art 2 will do the same project.)
In the Drama 1 Workshop students will enact the story as it is told by the leader; making use of props & music. Rumor says a golden calf will be there?
In the Drama 2 Workshop students will participate in acting out modern day scenarios of the Ten Commandments in action. Which commandment is represented in each scenario?
In the Music Workshop students visit the Bible mural timeline (and learn what the peachy-orange color signifies). Then they’ll watch a couple of music videos to learn about the Ten Commandments. (Dancing is optional.) Preview the videos here and here.

We do a different sort of Christian education for kids. We are a Workshop Rotation Model church. If you are in the area please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI

Photo credits:
Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
The “what is going on” child remixed by Carol Hulbert from an original photo by woodleywonderworks.
Golden calf by allspice1, all via photopin under a Creative Commons License on Flickr.
Tablets photo from my archives.

In this new year, I have a wish for you

Posted on January 2, 2014January 17, 2014 by Carol Hulbert

Happy New Year!

I hope that your new year will be filled with peace, and prosperity,
and encounters with the presence of God.

Oh shucks, that’s not my real wish.

I mean, yes, I really do desire all of that for you,
but here’s what I’m honestly hoping for…

That your family spends time together
incorporating stories from the Bible into your everyday life.

I’m hoping that when your child invites a friend over for dinner and this friend hears your family making sacred connections with the secular, and they question your child about this behavior, your kid proudly says, “this is what we do.”

How can you get to this point?

Read together the Bible. (Use a story Bible if your kids are young – here’s a good one: The Jesus Storybook Bible.)
Ask a question that start with the words “I wonder…”
Listen carefully to everyone’s replies.
Repeat.

For example, to prepare for our upcoming Rotation on the Ten Commandments, review the story of Abraham and Sarah. Read Genesis 12:1-4, and 15:1-5, and 17:1-9.
Then ask:

I wonder if God’s promises to Abraham ever came true?
I wonder what an everlasting covenant is?
I wonder how this story ties to the Ten Commandments?

Refer to this post if you’d like more discussion questions.

What can you do today, to practice what you hope to achieve in the coming year?

Photo credits:
Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
New Year’s greeting from 1910, by Puzzler4879 under a Creative Commons License on Flickr.