Junior youth these days have pretty full schedules. This makes it hard to do much outside the classroom. How can I promote the service component of the curriculum?
Signed: Jumpstarting the Juniors

Dear Jumpstart:
You have named a real issue for adolescents and their families. Busy, busy, busy lives do not allow for much volunteer time. Yet it is important for junior high kids to practice discipleship through service.

Would it work to have whole-family service projects? Invite youth, their parents, and siblings to participate in a service project together: baking cookies, making a meal, visiting a nursing facility, working at a food bank, knotting a comforter.

Or, plan for a more intense service component during school breaks when youth are not in school. Be creative in exploring options. It’s surprising how kids can find the time to volunteer when they are really interested in the activity. Find out how they would like to serve God by serving others.

I'm wondering about the purpose of the wondering questions during Reflect on the story. Whether I'm teaching preschool or third-graders, I'm not sure why we don't just ask questions that the children can answer. Can you enlighten me on what all this wondering is about?
Signed: Wondering myself

Dear Wondering:
There are a few reasons for including a time of wondering after the story. It gives children time to sit quietly and think about the story before they move on to other activities. The introverts among us need time to process the story. The extroverts among us can pause before they jump into a verbal response. A time of reflection allows the story to move beyond the intellectual level into the spiritual level. We want our children to connect with the story at a level deeper than just the facts.

When teachers wonder with children they are inviting them to listen with their hearts, and to ponder what truth God is revealing to them through the story. Verbal answers are not always necessary in connecting to these large truths.

If you wish, use the questions sparingly with very young children. Allow them to sit quietly with the story for up to 10-15 seconds. You are teaching them to listen for God's voice by being quiet. This is prayer.

Since the curriculum is dated, I'd like to know why Gather 'Round does not acknowledge holidays such as Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Thanksgiving Day. Why do you ignore these special occasions?
Signed: Holiday fever

Dear Holiday fever:
Gather 'Round is a Bible curriculum created particularly for congregations in the United States and Canada. It follows the biblical story and the Christian calendar year, not the secular year. The special days that honor parents or country are observed in our schools and homes. Some holidays are not celebrated in both Canada and the United States on the same dates; others are holidays for one country but not the other.

Our primary goal as curriculum providers is to help form Christian faith in our children, to help them grow in their relationship with God. We try to stay very focused on our central goal of nurturing children, youth, and adults in becoming followers of Jesus: people who know and love God, interpret God's word, belong to God's gathered community, and share God's good news.

Some children in my class don't know where to find the scripture texts for the session or even how to look them up. What tips can you give to help children become familiar with and comfortable using the Bible?
Signed: Shocked and dismayed

Dear Shocked:
To children the Bible is an unusual book with a style they don't really understand. Sunday school is a great place to teach skills for using the Bible. Take a few minutes every week for a month or quarter to teach basic Bible skills. Finding a text is like looking up an address. You go from country to city to street to house or apartment number to find an address. Similarly, you go from book to chapter to verse in the Bible.

Introduce children to the two testaments first. Then teach them about the 66 books. Show them later how each book is broken down into chapters and verses. Once they understand the basic makeup of the Bible, take time each week for them to turn to the Bible text and the memory verse.

As you practice using the Bible every week the children will become familiar with it. Encourage them to read their Bible at home by giving out Bible reading charts or assigning a story each week. Challenge them to memorize the names of the books of the Bible. If that is too difficult, help them learn how to use the table of contents.