Preschoolers & Children
Books & Articles
- Children and Spirituality: Live as Children of the Light (Hungryhearts, Volume 13, Number 1, Spring 2004). This edition of Hungryhearts is devoted to the spiritual formation of children. Articles include Spirituality and Children and A Developmental Perspective on Spiritual Practices. Hungryhearts is published by the Office of Spiritual Formation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
- The Power of God at Home: Nurturing Our Children in Love and Grace by J. Bradley Wigger.
Devotional Resources
- Pockets - is a fun devotional magazine for children around the ages of 6-12. It comes out 11 times a year (the January/February issue is a combined one), and each issue has a different theme. It has 48 pages and includes stories, games, activities, poems, daily Bible readings, recipes, and more! The art is colorful and fun. Pockets is published by The Upper Room.
Evangelism
Becoming Like Christ: Helping Children Follow J
esus
Item# 0840P006
$14.95
Becoming Like Christ: Helping Children Follow Jesus is a resource for children's leaders designed to help older children make a faith decision for Jesus. Six sessions introduce children to Jesus and what it means to follow him. Designed for use in many differeng contexts (Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Backyard Bible Clubs, etc.), this resource works well with both churched and unchurched children.
Group Resources
- The Way of the Child - For children ages 6-11 years, The Way of the Child leads children into a deeper relationship with God, instills in children spiritual practices to form lifelong habits, encourages children to respond to God, and provides an experience of vital community. For churches, The Way of the Child can be used in a variety of settings: Sunday School, weekday camp, after-school programs. The resource presents experiential sessions to use in a sustained program, is user-friendly, supports families, and is affordable and adaptable. This resource is published by the Upper Room. You can even watch a video introduction to this resource.
- Baptist Way Press (Baptist General Convention of Texas)
- CrossWalk - by Mercer Church Resources
- Exploring Faith, Power Xpress, and BibleZone Live! by Cokesbury (United Methodist) - Click here for a word from the Vice President for Children at Cokesbury.
- Faith Weaver by Group Publishing
- Gather Round a collaboration in the Anabaptist tradition including The Church of the Brethren, Mennonite Church USA and the Mennonite Church Canada (dated, begins fall 2006)
- Workshop Rotation Model
- CBF’s Missions Education Resources Form and Spark are CBF’s new children’s resources focusing on missions. Though traditionally used for weekly Wednesday or Sunday night missions programs, they could be used for Sunday school settings. Designed to make teaching easier, activities are easy to prepare for and easy to follow. Colorful sessions engage all the senses and incorporate a variety of activities, including art, music, nature, puzzles, books, group time. Samples are downloadable from: http://www.missionseducation.org
- If your church pays close attention to the Christian calendar through the lectionary, you might consider Godly Play (Reformed/ecumenical) or Seasons of the Spirit (ecumenical).
- In January 2006 North Carolina CBF sponsored a curriculum evaluation workshop that included some of the above resources. To access the evaluation, click here.
- Download a Sunday School Preparation Plan
VBS
- "Water U Doin?" VBS Curriculum - Produced by Passport, Inc. in partnership with Watering Malawi, this new VBS curriculum is available for purchase online. An informational piece for "Water U Doin?" VBS is available at this link by clicking on the "Resources" page. Order "Water U Doin" at www.passportstore.org or call (800) 769-0210. "If a church is looking for a resource that not only teaches children about real-life problems of people around the world and alerts them to one of the greatest crises in the world today, forming them into missionally minded disciples, 'Water U Doin?' is an excellent Vacation Bible School resource." Check out the rest of this review by Kristopher Norris.
- Check out the free magazine on the Cokesbury Web site that compares/contrasts this summer’s upcoming VBS resources. When ordering this magazine or making a purchase at a Cokesbury store, identify yourself as a CBF constituent and save 15 percent.
- Learn about this year's VBS curriculum from Standard Publishing - Studio GO! Game Show.
For more resources, go to www.cbfdestinations.info. To suggest a resource for this page, email Rick Bennett.