Theme: Prayer
Morning Sunday school:
Once Chris recruited 5th grade and up for his youth class, I had about six kids, which was great for this particular lesson. We went through the Lord's Prayer, tackling the tough words and then listing prayer requests pertaining to each section (physical needs under "daily bread," etc). Each of us spent time praying for our families, friends, and schools, and I encouraged the kids to do that on their own each day that week. After discussing the importance of learning to recognize God's voice, we played an active listening game. That was followed by snack and then worship upstairs. The kids sat well during that, and I think having a chance to play a game beforehand helped.
Afternoon Sunday school:
Since the kids in this class tend to be a bit older, and the service longer, we were able to go a little more in depth than we had in the morning. I had the kids "translate" the Lord's Prayer into their own words, and we went through the meanings one-by-one. I had the older kids look up and read other passages on prayer, like Ephesians 6:18 and Philippians 4:6. We also played another game: before discussing the Lord's Prayer, I paired the kids up and gave them three minutes to interview each other. Afterwards, I asked questions to see what they had learned. While many could now, for example, name their partner's favorite food, no one knew anything too deep or obscure – of course. I explained how, if we only spend a few minutes with God every so often, we won't learn much about Him; we have to read our Bibles, go to church, and pray regularly in order to form a true relationship. They really seemed to get the analogy, and I like that it works not just for prayer but for all Christian disciplines.
