How to Use - Sunday Storytellers

How to Use the Curriculum

You’re in luck! We’ve designed the Sunday Storytellers curriculum so it’s easily digested and put to use. Each picture book is paired with curriculum that you can download from this website for free. You are welcome to adapt these materials to fit your own context and capacity; be creative!

Here are some thoughts on each of the basic components of every Sunday Storytellers session:

Welcome

The 15 minutes (or so) between early arrivals and late arrivals is an important span of time! Put all distractions aside and be fully present so your charges feel welcomed and seen.

The two adult leaders—the Storyteller & Guide—should be in place early enough to provide a warm welcome to all.
Have an easy craft on a table, something to pass the time for those who come early. It could be beading or coloring (coloring books with Bible/inspirational sayings or mandalas and an assortment of good markers work well).
Be sure to exchange names and introduce the children to one another, helping everyone connect; if it’s a larger group, nametags can help.
Consider customized nametags on lanyards that stay in the classroom, available to wear every time that participant comes in. Keep materials ready each session in case someone new comes along.
Keep a stack of white card stock in strips (8 ½” x 3” approx.) handy so new children can make a decorative “name sign” which, when finished, can be attached to the classroom door or wall with blue tape. With this simple craft, you help the kids feel ownership of the space and, at the end of the year, you’ll have a good accounting of the total number of children you served.

When it feels like everyone’s arrived, gather together around the storyteller. Define the storytelling space with a semi-circle of chairs or with a rug so it’s clear that once everyone moves there, it’s time to get started. Everyone should join the storyteller in that space, including the support volunteer, if possible. If someone is in the middle of beading/coloring, they can bring it with them to the storytelling circle.

Icebreaker

The Storyteller can make some introductory welcome comments and then facilitate an ice-breaker (you can often find a suggestion in the curriculum). It might relate to the season of the church (“what’s something your family does to get ready for Christmas?”) or something playful (“say your name and favorite ice cream flavor”) or, at the very least, go around the room with names and then “can anyone remember all of the names?”
The icebreakers are there because so often the children we see attend church irregularly and it’s best not to assume everyone knows one another. Make sure that everyone is introduced and re-introduced every time you gather. Also, if everyone gets to say a little something at the beginning – even if it’s just their name and their pet’s name – it makes it that much easier to speak up and share later on.
And we can’t forget that creating an atmosphere of welcome, unconditional love, and “radical hospitality” is far more important than the curriculum. Do all you can to make sure that the children connect with the children and adults in the room. That association of comfort with church is key to a life-long attachment.

Church Calendar

We use the big felt wall-hanging calendar from Godly Play resources since it provides such a great (interactive) visual. It’s a good practice to take a look at the calendar before diving into the book. You could point out Christmas Day (and Advent) as well as Easter Sunday (and Lent) to help the kids get their bearings in order to locate the current Sunday. Ask for a volunteer to move the arrow so it’s pointing to “today.”

Read the Book

The book is at the heart of your time together so make sure you have ample time to read it. Here are some tips:

Look at the cover together.
Examine/question the title (e.g. I wonder why it’s called that?).
Read the book “librarian style,” or face out. It may require some practice to hold the book to your side, with pictures facing out the whole time you’re reading but it’s ideal that the children are able to study the pictures while you’re reading aloud. Our criteria for selecting these books includes the quality of the illustrations, so we want the children to really absorb these beautiful images while listening to the story.
Before you turn the page, make sure everyone has seen the pictures.
Watch your pacing.
Read with enthusiasm & animation.
Refrain from changing your voice for different characters. Your goal as a storyteller is not to perform but to become somewhat invisible; it’s the story we’re showcasing here.
The Guide (the adult support volunteer) can help with crowd control (sitting close to a disruptive child without making comment)

Refrain from side comments while you’re reading – that goes for you and for the children. If someone does make a comment, signal you heard them non-verbally – with a nod, perhaps – but continue reading. The story is the thing! If a child raises their hand, just say that there will be time for questions and comments when the story is done. Laura Alary, in an article on reading aloud for Building Faith, puts it this way:

When children are really absorbed in a story they are under its spell. Avoid doing anything to break it. This includes eye contact, asking questions, or making comments about the book. The reason I avoid eye contact is that when you look directly at children, you tacitly draw their attention toward you. This is a good way to connect when you welcome them and introduce the story. But once you begin to read, you want their focus to turn toward the story itself. If you keep your eyes on the pages, it is more likely your listeners will too.

As tempting as it is sometimes, I never stop in the middle of a story to make a comment, offer an explanation, or ask a question. Not only does this interrupt the flow of the story and pull the children out of it, but it also can lead the whole group off on tangents from which they never return. As an author, I feel particularly strongly about this. Writers and illustrators work hard at their craft and create stories with intention and care. Reading a book aloud is a form of performance. It is a mark of respect for the creators of the book to allow it to be heard as a whole—like a piece of music. There will be plenty of opportunity for questions and comments after everyone has experienced the story.

Wondering Questions

The wondering questions that follow the story are modeled after those used in Godly Play, the foundational curriculum created by Jerome Berryman. The Sunday Storytellers wondering questions are used in the same way. There are no right answers to these questions so be sure that when you ask them you don’t have a particular answer in mind; instead you are truly asking from a posture of curiosity—you really do wonder what the children think! Any and all responses from the children should be affirmed and maybe reflected back to make sure the response was heard correctly and so clarification can be sought, if needed.

Feel free to pick and choose which wondering questions you use. Change the wording so you feel comfortable posing the questions or even create your own wondering questions. The only caveat would be: don’t ask too many questions… Nothing destroys the wonder faster than too much wondering!

Hands-On Bible

The instructions in the curriculum ask you to pass out the Bibles so be sure to have a stack of them close by. My Bible preference for this age is Group’s Hands-On Bible but it may not be to your taste; that’s fine. However, you’ll notice that the curriculum uses the New Living Translation (like the Hands-On Bible) so just be aware that you may not be in perfect alignment if you use another translation—not a big deal.

Put the children in small groups if needed, especially if there are younger children or children with special needs, who might benefit from the guidance of an older child or adult “guide” or support volunteer. The guide can float around the room making sure that everyone is at the right place or they can sit down with someone or a small group to help them out where needed.

This is the time to use a whiteboard or flip-chart pad and markers. It would be good to write out the book name, chapter number, and verse number for everyone to see (Psalm 42:8, for instance). Then it’s time for the scavenger hunt (though it’s not a race or competition!)! Can the children find the verse in their Bible? The curriculum often offers prompts for helping the children through the process. Going through these same steps each week will help reinforce them. The steps are:

Go to the Table of Contents… Find the book of ____________
Is that book in the Old Testament or New Testament?… What’s the difference between the OT and the NT? (Simply: the OT tells the stories before Jesus was born; the NT follows the life of Jesus and after his death.)
What page does the book begin on? Let’s go to that page. (Wait until everyone turns to that page before continuing.)
Now that we’re in the right book, let’s look for the chapter—see the numbers at the top of the page? (Wait until everyone gets to the right chapter before continuing.)
Now that we’re at the right chapter, let’s find the verse number. See those very tiny numbers in the text?

Once everyone has found the chapter and verse, you could ask for a (child) volunteer to read it aloud, assuming it’s a short one. But if it’s longer, it’s far more effective and meaningful for the adult storyteller to read it aloud.

Again, always ask for volunteers. Never ask someone to read aloud or even ask everyone to read a little bit. We’re not a school so we’re not practicing reading skills here. We don’t want to put a child on the spot to read aloud.

Once the scripture has been read aloud, you might want to write the entire verse or the most important part on the flip-chart page or whiteboard to help the children absorb it and refer back to it.

Craft or Activity

We have attempted to provide you with something substantial for arts and crafts in each lesson. Sometimes we propose an activity that ties back to the book. These are just suggestions! If you try something else with success, would you let us know?
The main criteria for a craft is: it needs to be something that requires creativity and thoughtfulness on the part of the child. Better than a coloring sheet is a blank piece of paper and an array of colorful markers. Group projects that stay in the classroom decorating the walls are fantastic and parents will thank you for not sending their child back to them with a sticky sheep made out of cotton balls.
The Godly Play curriculum also sets aside time for an art response, reminding children that they “have all the time in the world” to work on their project. This is a wonderful message to convey. Even if you do run out of time, the trick is that no-one has felt rushed. The children could take their project (and the materials needed to finish it) home with them or maybe you invite them to return and finish during coffee hour.

Snack

What can I say? Kids are always hungry. If you can have something (relatively) nutritious and (relatively) delicious ready to go, you’re on track to win hearts. You’ll need to check in advance—maybe as part of your intake process—about allergies and if there are dietary limitations (gluten or nuts, for instance); ask the parents to help you out by bringing something along that their child can safely enjoy during snack time. Crackers, gold fish, oatmeal cookies, pretzels, granola bars, all will do the trick. In addition, have juice, milk, or water at the ready.