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SSTN # 119 - November 19, 2003


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IN THIS ISSUE OF THE SSTN e-NEWSLETTER:



--> Christ-filled Snowflake Ornaments

1) Books of the Bible   
2) Secret Santa Warning
3) Creative ways to learn Bible books
4) Singing in Sunday school?

--> Christmas FunPak...Order now for the holidays!

5) Baptism Bulletin board
6) Creation Ideas
7) Craft ideas for Lydia story?
8) Pilgrim Pattern

--> Hands On Lessons of the Bible

9) Hymn Site   
10) Good Stewards
11) Signing Bible Books?
12) Disciplining 6-8th Grade
13) Parent's Day Out   
14) Good Stewards


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--> Christ-filled Snowflake Ornaments

Great for Christmas gift-giving or family crafting fun. Get a free sample
and see a video too! Click on "Chrismon Snowflake Ornaments" in the
Curriculum Creatives section at:

http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html 


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1) Books of the Bible 

We used empty video cases and slipped the name of each book in one. Then
we put them in a bookshelf. We would scramble them and the kids put them
in the correct order.

You can buy magnets that have each book of the Bible written on a magnet.
We used metal sheets and the kids put the magnets in order.  You can make
your own by using the freebie magnets companies give away (or the ones you
can put you business cards on, available at office supplies) and gluing on
a sheet of paper with books printed on it. Cut apart and enjoy.

We also did the craft sticks, made a set for each child (we used the small
ones).

We have the large game board that is fabric with vinyl windows (I bought
ours at Lifeway, but you could make one). I slipped the name of a book in
the different windows. The kids tossed bean bags and whatever book they
landed on they had to quote the books from that book forward.

Hope this helps!

Teresa
La Marque, TX


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2) Secret Santa Warning

Just a warning to watch out when you do Secret Santas with children.  If
you have a child who does not follow through with their committment, it
can be devastating to the other child on the receiving end.  I have seen a
child who got nothing at all from their secret partner while other
children around them received thoughtful little items all December long.
That would be hard even for adults, but it's really hard on kids.
SAlly Nixon


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3) Creative ways to learn Bible books

We made learning the books of the Bible fun by getting each student to
bounce a ball each time they named a book.  Everyone did the Old Testament
in 2 months.  This was especially a favorite for the boys.  They were
excited to have their turn each Sunday, naming the books in order while
bouncing the ball.

Butner Presbyterian Church
Betsy Dixon

--from SSTN: this is similar to Bible Four Square. Find it in the Bible
Games section at:
http://www.ChristianCrafters.Com 

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4) Singing in Sunday school?

hi, I am writing to ask some advices on making singing time more fun for
the kids ...this is a time were we put all the kids in one room
(ages 2---13)to sing together before we go each in his class..thanks
God bless


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--> Christmas FunPak!

Great for gift-giving or Christmas crafting fun. Click on the "Christmas
FunPak" link in the "Christmas and Advent" section at:

http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html 


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5) Baptism Bulletin board

I found a shell clipart and used it as my master. I typed but you can
write
on there the name of each child and the date of the Baptism on each shell.
The board is entitled "Let Us Welcome the Newly Baptized."  We have
Baptisms every month and I usually leave them up 2 months before removing
the names.

Sabrina in Nashville


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6) Creation Ideas

>"Our first topic is Genesis, the creation, and ideas for
>fun crafts or activities with this theme??

Sorry it took me so long to write you back Anne (and hopefully this will
help future teachings on creation)....but one of the things I did with my
First grade class (and I'm not sure, since I'm behind on my reading, if
anyone already suggested this) is that once I taught the lesson, I
provided the class with PLENTY of Play Dough. I let them Create....just as
our Creator created....something that they heard in the creation story.
They LOVED it!!! They got to take their creations home. You should have
heard how proud they were when mom/dad/etc. came to pick them up!!! Hope
this helps!! God Bless and Peace be with you all....
~Tina


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7) Craft ideas for Lydia story (seller of purple)?

I am in need of craft ideas for the Lydia story. She was a business women
who sold purple cloth to the rich. Any ideas?? Thanks!
Kara Claridge

--from SSTN: how about tie-dying t-shirts, caps, or scarves
with purple dye or grape juice?

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8) Pilgrim Pattern

I am looking for a pattern to make pigrims using small paper lunch sacks.
I used to have one it came from highlights. My class wants to make thrm
for our Thanksgiving supper for table decorations. If you have a pattern
you can email me at   mrstaylor36@hotmail.com  friends in christ felicia

--from SSTN: please share with all of SSTN so all may benefit from your
knowledge.


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--> Hands On Lessons of the Bible

KID-tested and teacher approved! Can be used with rotation-type programs!
Learn more at:  http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html 


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9) Hymn Site   

Hymn Site.com is a great resource! You can print out music and lyrics as
well as listen to the music and choose which instrument you want to have
your song played on, i.e. an organ, a piano, or with bells!

Check it out at:
http://www.hymnsite.com 


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10) Good Stewards

>I am hoping that someone will have some ideas about how to teach / reach
>high school kids on the topic of good stewardship. To show Stewardship as

Lisa
What we did with our teenagers was have a "lock-out" where the kids were
sponsored by the congregation members and lived as homeless people for 24
hours. They made their "homes" out of cardboard boxes and their meals were
consistant with what the homeless shelter would provide for someone to
eat. All they were allowed to take with them was 1 blanket (not a quilt),
1 comb (not a brush), and their bible. It was truly a huge learning
experience for all. With what they raised it was donated to PADS to feed
the homeless. The food they did eat was donated by a congregation member
and was really limited. What we found was there was alot of - I'm Hungry,
I'm Cold, and I'm Bored - but all of them asked to it again next year.

In Christ
Nancy

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11) Signing Bible Books?

A way that I was taught the books of the Bible when I was in Sunday School
was that we learnt the sign language for each book name.

Hi!  Rachel
Where can I find this information.

--from SSTN: check the links page at  http://www.ChristianCrafters.Com 
for a great sign language site.


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12) Disciplining 6-8th Grade

Dear O.G.
I have been teaching 7-8th grade for the last four years. We have always
had issues with this age group. The fact that they do not want to be there
is key. It was my mission to find ways to engage them so they would want
to be there. I have been successful by seeking youth group lessons that
include more physical activities and require more participation and
thought from their end. They do their own devotions and enjoy getting to
'teach' others what they've learned over the years. They really enjoy
getting out and putting into action what has been preached to them. Such
as having lessons at the nursing home, shoveling the church walkways for
second service, going down the street and inviting people into church. In
other words, I've found they really need to be shown how to live and put
into action the faith they have been taught. On the other end, I also
recognize their need for privacy - they keep their own prayer journal,
have a private faith buddy from the teen classes th!
ey can turn to, etc. Despite all of these successes, establishing respect
on those first Sunday's can be difficult. I was frustrated my first year
when after some difficult experiences, I called the parents and they
seemed disinterested too. You're right if this were public school parents
would be notified, yet just like public school some parents still won't
step in. The best I could do was offer adult/child classes in the first
two months. I would vary the Sunday's and invite each student to bring an
adult to class with them (parent, grandparent, older sibling, etc.) If
they came that day without an adult, they had to go up to our adult bible
class and adopt one for the day [adult class already warned ahead of
time]. The lessons include activities, games and a chance for them to find
ways to witness. They really enjoyed being an active part of the lessons,
they forgot that they unconsciously were better behaved with the adults in
the room!

In His service,
H.

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13) Parent's Day Out   

This message is in response to Nancy who was talking about the pit-falls
of holding a parent's day out. I have held such events, both on my own
through the kids that I baby-sit for and through various churches. There
are a few "pit-falls" if you could really call them that, as the benefits
are so many more in number than the set-back. Be Prepared is probably the
best advice I could give anyone considering such an event. More often than
not, you will plan for a certain number of children, and the day of the
event, so many more that are interested will show up. This is of course if
you are using some sort of pre-enrollment. If you are not using
pre-enrollment, than plan to have the staff on hand to deal with a large
number of children, because parent's will see it as a $3.00 babysitting,
and I guarantee that they will take full advantage of it. The other, and
probably most annoying "pit-fall" that I have run into, and from talking
to other people, it seems as if it is a "pit-fall" for everyone who has
held such an event is pick-up time. No matter what time you specify on the
fliers, parents are going to use every last minute of that time, and many
of them will also use many minutes after that. Children will more than
likely be hanging around waiting to be picked up long after your specified
pick-up time, and when planning events, you should do so accordingly so
that you do not have children bouncing off the walls waiting to be picked
up. Easy craft projects that require little supervision, coloring pages,
and an extra-story book or two to read make great end of the day
activities to keep the children who are picked up late entertained. You
may also want to consider establishing a policy ahead of time, where you
might add an additional hourly fee if parent's are late past a certain
time. I remember one year, half the parent's were an hour late, and two
kids were still waiting to be picked up three hours later. Good luck with
the parent's day out, and I pray that everything goes excellent for you!
Love in Christ, Sarah in California

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14) Good Stewards (high schoolers)   

This message is in response to Lisa, who wrote about teaching
high-schoolers to be good stewards. The best way that I can think of is to
establish some sort of community outreach with the students. They could
volunteer collectively at a nursing home to spend time with the elderly,
bake holiday cookies for members of the church who are elderly or alone
this holiday season, write letters to the troops over sea's thanking them
for being good stewards and maintaining their freedom's, reading to local
elementary school children, helping clean up or paint the church when it
is needed, a beach or park cleanup, and so on and so forth. While some of
these may be one time events, others could be come routine, such as
visiting a nursing home. You will be surprised how much love the elderly
and the students both will spread, and how excited both groups will be
when thinking about the next visit. If something such as this is
impossible, think smaller...in your own church. Maybe they could make a
meal for a busy working mother or father, or help an elderly person with
their groceries. There are so many ways that we can be good stewards, and
even though everyone thinks in the form of monitary units when mentioning
good stewardship, it is the little gestures that make the world go round.
Hope this helps! Love in Christ, Sarah in California


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