Picture the Bible: KidLit Kit: Jesus of Nazareth
Remember the television show, Cheers? Remember how a certain character would walk into the place and everyone would call out, “NORM!” That’s me when I walk into a library or our local bookstore. I rarely leave home with a book, and that’s because I usually leave with at least 3; two for my kids and one for me. Hand me a book and I squeal like a child on Christmas morning. Put me in a classroom with children, I’m going to be reading at least one book to them. Have you ever seen my year outline for children’s ministries? It has the usual suspects; teachers, dates, subs, lessons. But there’s also a column for ‘books to read’, paired with a subheading for each month of books to pull off shelves or get from libraries and bookstores so that we don’t have to worry about it for the month. Maybe this will help you understand the outright glee I have because of the Picture The Bible KidLit Kit; Jesus of Nazareth that landed in my inbox. The author of Picture The Bible shared this with me and it is the resource I didn’t know I was missing.
Picture The Bible KidLik Kit: Jesus of Nazareth revolves around fourteen stories of Jesus’s ministry. Each story uses the telling of the Scripture from Picture The Bible, background information for the leader, a creative project using materials commonly found in children’s ministry supply closets, a piece of children’s literature to read with the children, and a way to connect it with the Scripture. The lessons have many pieces to them, so the leader can pick and choose what works best for the class they are with. Additionally, the diversity of the activities makes it so you can easily use this in a multiage setting, tailoring to each distinct group within the larger one. The creative projects are accessible to all ages and ability levels (I say this as a special education teacher and as the parent of a child who has muscular and vision issues and a child with a reading disability). The children’s literature is diverse, and most are available at your local library. The resource is thoughtfully laid out and comes as a digital download. More units like these, but with different themes, will be released in the coming months.
Are you looking for something that is flexible and child-centered? This is for you. Are you working with a limited budget that requires materials you already have on hand? Here you go. Perhaps you want something that will span a whole semester of learning. Snag this. Maybe you have a group of children and families that are ready for a focused study on Jesus’s ministry. This would be excellent to use in a two generation Sunday School class or to be used with the children in faith formation time, supplemented with take home craft kits so families can work on the creative project together. Use the suggested children’s literature for the spine of your bedtime stories and prayers ministry and you have a whole semester planned. It would also be a good resource for those planning children’s chapel times and children’s moments in worship. The flexibility of this resource, paired with easy formatting and easy downloading, makes it one that you should check out.
