Resources

Don’t think of it as summer school

Posted on June 19, 2014May 14, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

We’re off to the movies! This summer, we hope you’ll join us on our movie adventure and also, continue the learning at home.

Summer school! (But don’t tell the kids!) Really! This is to help you pass along your faith to your child(ren)! Here are some questions to talk about at the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together.)

You can ask these questions even if you missed the first video showing last weekend!

Parents and caregivers: want to get a feel for the video? Click below to watch the first five minutes of our first video. (Or click here if you are reading this in an email.)

Don’t you agree that this is for adults and their kids? Join us!

You’ll both be learning together at the movies!

And, by using the questions below, you’ll both be learning together at home!

If desired, print out this family discussion guide here. (You can spread this out over several days.)

HAVE SOME FAMILY DISCUSSION…

What is a favorite book that you have recently read?
What if a friend told you that the Bible was their favorite book, what would you say?
Why do you suppose we should read the Bible? (No right or wrong answers!)

Buck Denver, one of the main characters in our video series, asks a BIG question in the first video: What is the Bible? How would you answer that question? (To watch a one minute video of some kids with their answers to this question, view here.)

Tell your kids that you’ve learned how to carry 66 books with one hand! Then show them how you do it, by picking up a Bible! Yep, the Bible is like a library; there are 66 books in the Protestant Bible! [1]
All of the books in the Bible tell us one big story. What would you say is that one big story? (Lots of answers, but the one we are focused on is that the Bible is the story of God and what he’s done for us; something that we like to call “God’s Rescue Plan”).
Take turns remembering stories in the Bible. Then take turns naming what that story tells us about God and what he’s done for us. (For example, our last Rotation, the Walk to Emmaus: Jesus is always with us.)

Sunday School Lady (a professional Sunday school teacher) tells us about the Old and the New Testament, and their different sections. [You can watch this part on-line in a new window.] [2].
First off, what is a “testament? (The word “testament” comes from the Latin word testamentum, which means “oath” or “covenant.” A covenant and an oath are promises with conditions, so the word testament essentially means a “promise.”)
Promises! More about what God has done for us! (His Rescue Plan!) Why do you suppose God made promises? (Hint: it has something to do with love!)

Stay tuned for more each week. See you in church.

[1] For older kids, add in discussion about how the number of books in the Bible is different in Catholic and Protestant Bibles. Do some research starting here and here.

[2] If your child asks about the “end of the world” (mentioned in Sunday school lady’s description of the book of Revelation), admittedly the end of the world sounds kind of scary! Some people use the words “the end of the world” to describe the time when all people will love and care for each other and obey God. (That doesn’t sound bad!) In the early days of the church some followers of Jesus (for example, Paul) thought that this would happen soon! Some even stopped working because they figured, why bother! (Read about it here.) Of course it hasn’t happened yet, so nothing to worry about! Besides it gives us plenty of time to, as John Wesley says, go on to perfection.” (Which means we’re working on Matthew 22:37-39).

Photo credits:
Photos from the producer of our video What’s in the Bible, under a fair usage category.

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.

Planning your family’s summer weekends? Add worship & movies!

Posted on June 11, 2014May 14, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

How does your summer calendar look?
Hopefully there is room for rest and rejuvenation.

How about room for God?

Have you been looking for a way to add faith conversations in your family? Here’s a suggestion:

A suggestion on what to do as a family on the weekends.

Start this coming weekend — or join us any weekend this summer! Worship at Green Wood at 5 pm on Saturday. (Come in your cut-offs!) Then join us downtown on Sunday’s at 9:30 for our…

Summer Movie Series!

For 1st – 6th graders we’ll be using the DVD series Buck Denver Asks … What’s in the Bible? created by Phil Vischer. (Phil created VeggieTales.® That’s Phil in the lower right corner of the collage of movie characters shown below.)

Phil Vischer and some of the characters from What's in the Bible? DVD series

I’ll bet you have questions…

What is this DVD series about?
A cast of lovable, Muppet-quality puppets interact with Phil Vischer and other real people, teaching how all of the stories of the Bible fit together as God’s great rescue plan! We’ll start in Genesis and work our way through the Bible. (But we won’t have enough weeks to cover it all!)
Will I, as an adult, really get anything out of this?
Yes! There’s humor, silly songs, and theological concepts explained! I’ll bet you’ll learn something. (I did!)
Why the change from the usual Rotation lessons?
Summer needs a change of pace; a different way of learning – together as a family!
What about my younger kids?
Green Wood is a relaxed environment for worship and kids of all ages benefit from worship. If needed your younger children can attend lessons held downstairs after the children’s moment.
What about my older kids?
4th grade and up are invited to apply to be a Class Assistant. Contact Beth at church.

What does your summer schedule look like?

Photo credits:
Collages were created using pictures from various sources: What’s in the Bible?, Sunday Software, and from photos taken by church members.

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).

Accept mistakes and celebrate grace

Posted on August 8, 2013August 8, 2013 by Carol Hulbert

It’s a nasty train of thought that I’ve carried with me for a long time:

But it’s not perfect!

All of my life I’ve been a perfectionist. In the 2nd grade when we were creating self-portraits at school, my mother was mystified by my insistence that I wear the same dress for several days in a row. (I wanted to get the details just right.)

I recall in 8th grade getting a “D” in Art class because I couldn’t finish my projects; I couldn’t get them to be perfect.

It’s a disease and I know that others suffer from it too. (Like the 5th grader I worked with who was afraid to estimate an answer to a mathematical problem because, well, it could be wrong!)

I think perhaps it is something that we teach ourselves to believe?

Here’s the pitch I’m repeating these days: Jesus is bigger than any mistake.

Try this at the family dinner table (or wherever your family is gathered together): Have everyone (adults included) share a mistake that they made that day. Repeat the process on a daily basis.

Exposing and naming our goof-ups teaches our kids that:

Everyone makes mistakes;
Home is a safe place to confess our sins;
When necessary, forgiveness can be extended;
We can all celebrate God’s gift of I-love-you-anyway Grace.

It’s not too late to learn: Jesus is bigger than any mistake. What learning is happening in your family?

Photo credits:
Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
Broken seedling by D. Sharon Pruitt, who licensed this photo on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.

Summer schedule 2013

Posted on July 25, 2013August 28, 2013 by Carol Hulbert

Welcome to this small spot on the web where we work together to figure out ways to nurture your child’s spirituality. Subscribe to receive future posts (usually one, maybe two a week). Enter your e-mail address to have posts sent directly to your inbox. Or click on the orange RSS icon to subscribe in a reader.

What’s up for kids and Christian Education in July and August at FUMC?
Starting July 13th and 14th, we’re off to the movies! Our special summer film series will feature six selections from the “What’s in the Bible with Buck Denver” series. It will be a fun way to enjoy a change of pace while learning some really cool stuff! (This video series is by the creator of Veggie Tales!) And, we voted on special days! Check out the schedule below.

Here’s a preview of this film series:

Here is the schedule for July and August and the beginning of September:

Date	Green Wood location Saturday evening	Downtown location Sunday morning
July 13/14	Both locations introduced the What’s in the Bible video series. (And we voted for special days!) (If you missed this week, to be introduced to all of the characters in this series watch this short video.)
July 20/21	Attend worship with your parental units	Stuffed animal day. Kids brought their stuffed animals to the movies! We learned about Genesis. Here’s an important message from today’s lesson.
July 27/28	Attend worship with your parental units. Missing hearing the theme song? (I figured you were. Here it is.)	We’re fast-forwarding to the New Testament. Here’s the trailer.
Date	Green Wood location Saturday evening	Downtown location Sunday morning
August 3/4	Stuffed animal day! Today we’ll learn about the first book of the Bible: Genesis. Watch a portion of what we’ll see.	Attend worship with your parental units
August 10/11	Pajama Day! What a fun way to view a video; all cushy-comfy in your jammers. However, it would be wise if you at least wore shoes. Or would it be smart? I wonder what the difference is between wise and smart? We are going to find out!	Pajama Day! (It will be so easy to get ready for church!) We’ll be watching part two of the Gospels. Here’s something that the adults might be interested in watching. (Kids can watch too but it’s a message for the grown-ups.)
August 17/18	Wear your funky hat day. Yikes, I hope it’s not too hot to wear a hat! Regardless, come and watch part one of the Gospels. You know the Gospels right? (Here’s a review.)	Nothing special day? But wait! When YOU are there it’s special! This week you won’t want to miss. It’s all about the special gift that Jesus promised his disciples. That’s right, the Holy Spirit. Is this gift available for us today? Come and watch and see!
August 24/25	Pajama Day – again! Today we’ll be continuing on with the Gospels. There is lots to learn about: healing and miracles and teachings and things that aren’t even talked about in the Bible! But they are important concepts to understand. Watch this one about the Trinity.	Pajama Day #2 (just in case you missed the first one.) We’ll be learning about the books of the Bible called the “Writings.” Can anyone name a book in the Writings section? Here’s one.
Aug. 31 /Sept. 1	Backwards Day. That will be strange. Hey, we’ll be talking today about what happened on Pentecost. Now that was amazing strange!	Attend worship with your parental units. Have you been singing the theme song?

We are a Workshop Rotation Model church! Yeah for fun, meaningful learning! Join us in two locations: On Saturday evening at Green Wood, or downtown on Sunday mornings at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI.

Photo credit: Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).

What was Jesus offering? Super water?

Posted on September 19, 2012July 8, 2014 by Carol Hulbert

It’s obvious. The woman Jesus met at the well is clueless. Jesus has offered her living water and she’s stumped.

You don’t have a rope or a bucket and this well is very deep.
Where would you get this living water?
John 4:11

Let’s imagine what was running through her head…

Living water?
What is he talking about?
He can’t mean water out of this well. He hasn’t got a way of getting anything out of this well!
Does he mean some sort of Super water?
Water that has a special ingredient so that I’ll never need any more water?
That would mean I wouldn’t have to trek to this well every day – and in the hottest part of the day so as to avoid those other women.
Yes, please! I’ll take some of that living water!
Who wouldn’t want some of that?!

Discuss what Jesus meant by “living water. How about playing a game at the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together.) Call it “Building answers” or “What’s inside her head?” or some other silly title.

Open a Bible to John 4:4 or have this kid-friendly copy of the story available. Tell everyone that Jesus is surprisingly radical in this story. He has offered this woman something that at first she doesn’t understand; it sounds strange to her. (And perhaps to you too!) It would be fun to pretend that we were inside the head of the woman in this story. What do you suppose she was thinking?

Pretend you are at the well and someone, whom you shouldn’t be talking to, asks you for a drink.
What one sentence comes to mind? You’ll probably need to prime the pump on this, so go ahead and start everyone off with: Whoa! Did that guy just talk to me!?
What is the next thought that comes to your mind? Build upon what has been previously thought/said.

Let’s say the progression goes like this:
First person: Who does he think that he is?
Second person: Doesn’t he know he shouldn’t talk to me?
Third response: Maybe I’ll ask him?

Don’t feel as though this has to be a scripted exchange of ideas. It may get silly! And that’s okay. Just have fun and go with what happens. Eventually turn the responses back to speculations about what they think that “living water” is. Allow all responses.

Here’s a way to finish up your game – Say a prayer:
God, who offers us living water; we accept! Fill us full up! We picture ourselves falling back into a calm pool. The living water lifting us, supporting us; we feel very close to you. We thank you that you love us no matter what! Amen.

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

Something in Common: Youth Worship and The Runaway Bunny

Posted on May 16, 2012April 9, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

This weekend we’ll get to watch our Youth lead us in worship. Youth Worship is a spring tradition! It’s alway lively! How can it not be, when worship is led by gobs of 7th-12th graders!

Youth Worship always has a theme to it. This year’s subject is Grace.

Help your kids to get more out of this worship by talking about the concept of grace ahead of time. (And debriefing about it afterwards.) What is grace?

Grace is someone saying: “I love you anyway.”

Ask your child(ren) if they could say “I love you anyway” in response to some of these situations:

When someone doesn’t want to play with me.
When someone uses something of mine without asking, and then breaks it.
When people laugh at me when I make a mistake.
When someone gets me in trouble for something I didn’t do.

It is hard isn’t it!

This is what God’s grace is; God saying, “Even though you messed up, I love you anyway. It is a gift from me to you. There is nothing you can do to pay me back.”

Want another way to teach about grace? Use a popular storybook.

This story starts off…

Once there was a little bunny who wanted to run away.
So he said to his mother, “I am running away.”
“If you run away,” said his mother, “I will run after you. For you are my little bunny.”

This bunny invents all kinds of scenarios where he runs away from his mother. But, no matter what, his mother assures him that she will run right after him.

It’s just like that with us and God.

How have you noticed God loving you no matter what?

a blue line

Photo credits:
Book shot from Amazon.
Youth group photo collage used with permission.

Games at the dinner table

Posted on May 10, 2012June 8, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

Who likes to play games? How about playing a game around the family dinner table? (Or wherever your family is gathered together.) After all, dinner table games can lead everyone into dialogue. And what could be better than a family talking!

Want to know how to bring up Biblical topics in your family time?

A game is a great way to have your conversation include faith stories. How about a game of Concentration? Only preparation necessary is to print out the these cards. (Have your kids cut them apart as part of their dinner-prep duties.) At an appropriate time, spread out the cards picture-side down. Everyone takes a turn to see if they can turn over two cards that match. Who ever finds a match, says something about the image on the cards.

Did you know that playing this game sometime this week can help your child to prepare for the big Cool Disciples review game this coming weekend? On Saturday evening and Sunday morning, we’ll be playing a large-group game to review the Bible stories we’ve covered since September. It will be sort of like the old TV game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” This game is always loads of fun.

A group of kids works together to determine an answer

A shot of last years 3rd graders formulating their answer.

Here are the stories we’ve covered since September 2011:

The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-15, Luke 11:1-4)
Psalm 23 (Psalm 23:1-6)
Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42)
The Story of Jesus’ Birth (Matthew 1:18-23, Luke 1:26-38 and 2:1-20, Matthew 2:1-15)
Moses: Bulrushes to Burning Bush (Exodus 1:1 – 4:17)
Moses: Plagues and Passover (Exodus 5:1-6:13, 7:1-12:42)
The Last Supper (Luke 22:7-20)
Nicodemus (John 3:1-17)

Regardless of whether your child can take part this weekend, add an occasional game to your family dinner. Need another suggestion? Check out last years review game idea.

a blue line

Photo credits:
Concentration card images from WPClipart and Open Clip Art Library. (Images are in the Public Domain.)
Photo of playing the “big game” is from my archives.