Ideas to use
You will find on these pages a wealth of ideas for children's and all-age work. You can either use the search box above, or you can add some of the keywords on the left to find the right ideas for you.
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Expressing Faith through the Arts
This unit of work outlines an approach to exploring how people of faith, in particular those of the Christian Faith, express their beliefs through music, art, drama and poetry.
View ideaCrosses from around the world
The intended learning outcomes for this piece of work include that pupils should be able to recognise that the symbol of the cross has a variety of meanings and to discuss the symbol of the cross for Christians.
View ideaPlaces of Christian worship
The following outline looks at what makes somewhere a special place for Christian worship, how Christian worshipers feel about these places and how Christians experience God there
View ideaBarnabas the Encourager: making a difference
Ideas for working with the story of Barnabas, as found in Acts 4: 36-37 for an R.E. class session at Key Stage 2.
View ideaPeter and Cornelius: overcoming Prejudice
Ideas for working with the story of Peter and Cornelius, the Roman officer, as found in Acts 10, for an R.E. class session at Key Stage 2
View ideaThe Good Samaritan: showing compassion
Ideas for working with the parable of the Good Samaritan for an RE class session at Key Stage 2
View ideaWriting your own Lord's Prayer
Some ideas for working with the pattern of the Lord's Prayer to encourage groups to write a version of their own.
View ideaPalm Sunday: the horse and the donkey
Here is a possible re-telling of the events of Palm Sunday that comes at it from the point of view of two animals. Their differing perspectives capture the unexpected reversal of where real power lies that this day in part has come to symbolise.
View ideaThe Cross and the Crib: a class assembly presentation for Christmas
An outline for a presentation for Christmas that links the events of Bethlehem to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus
View ideaWhat Advent means
This is a short presentation to introduce the idea of Advent with a children's group or as part of an all-age worship.
View ideaBarnabas - the Encouraging Apostle
11th June is St Barnabas Day - a saint dear to the heart of the the Barnabas Schools' Team! His real name was Joseph and he came from Cyprus. He was given the nickname Barnabas, which means 'son of encouragement' for good reasons. He made a generous gift to the first Christians in Jerusalem and later he persuaded them to accept St. Paul into their number after his dramatic conversion. He also travelled with Paul both to Cyprus and later to the area we now call Turkey in order to tell others about the story of Jesus.
View ideaNumeracy - a window into God
Here is an assembly idea for sharing something about what Christians believe about God using everyday objects and imagery familiar to children.
View ideaWhat Christians believe about the Trinity: a classroom activity
This classroom activity explores what Christians believe about the Trinity. It's hard to picture God! We can try to show what God is like. The icon painters used all sorts of techniques to show the unshowable. Here is a starter session on one icon.
View ideaChoice circus: a dramatic activity
A drama game useful for exploring the two sides of an argument or dilemma.
View ideaBig story of the Bible in mime
This is an activity which can become a presentation by a class. The aim is to have a series of 13 simple mimes for the Old Testament story and 9 for the New Testament. This represents in proportion the length of the Old to the New Testaments in terms of numbers of books. The minimum number of people involved in the whole Bible mime is 13 or 14.
View ideaBooks in the Bible
This is a classroom activity to give an overview of the Christian's special book - the Bible.
View ideaBible anagrams
Anagrams have always been part of the regular diet of puzzles and crosswords. The following classroom quiz involves working out a series of anagrams of different Bible books. It could be a simple way into a lesson on the range and type of books that the Bible contains.
View ideaBible headlines - a classroom quiz
Have you ever wondered what some famous Bible stories might sound like reduced to such headlines or sound bites? This quiz of 'Bible Bites' is a guessing game based on characters and stories from the Old Testament and could be used to begin or conclude a lesson outline on the Bible.
View ideaBooks of the Bible - learning about chapters and verses
This is a lesson outline about how to get about the Bible and work out what is where.
View ideaFunny facts about Bible characters
The following activity could be used to introduce a session on the Bible. It has the added element of giving children a fun reason to look up verses from the Bible, making them familiar with using the contents page as well as chapter and verse references.
View ideaHeroes: Elijah and King Ahab
This lesson outline introduces the Old Testament character of Elijah and opens up discussion on what makes a hero.
View ideaTalking About Christmas: the Giving of Gifts
The theme is the visit of the Magi (wise men) to the baby Jesus, the gifts they bring and their possible meanings.
View ideaTalking About Easter: The Cross as a Symbol
The intended learning outcomes for this piece of work would be that the children should be able to recognise that the symbol of the cross has a variety of meanings, to discuss the symbol of the cross for Christians, to know that for Christians the empty cross is the sign that the crucifixion of Christ was not an end but a beginning, to explore how different Christian groups around the world use the symbol of the cross to express faith within their culture.
View ideaTalking about prayer: what helps people pray?
The following outline looks at different ways of praying within the Christian tradition. This could be part of a wider unit of work comparing and contrasting approaches to prayer between two major world Faiths. It will explore the importance of prayer to the life of a Christian and the variety of ways prayer can be expressed and experienced.
View ideaJanani Lawum from Uganda: 17 February
On February 17th each year the people of Uganda remember their famous Archbishop, Janani Lawum, who was murdered in 1977 because he stood up to the injustices of the country’s dictator Idi Amin. This is a story of someone whose Christian faith led him to act courageously and take risks on behalf of others who were suffering.
View ideaNumbers - the throw of the dice
Number work is central to the curriculum and the following outline makes use of numbers as a way into a story and then some thoughtful concern for others to use as a time of reflection in the classroom.
View ideaPentecost Power
A simple dramatic presentation for Pentecost - this sketch can be rehearsed in a very short time and requires very little line-learning.
View ideaJesus - Light of the World
Jesus calls himself the light of the world. Christians believe that this is the light that enters into the deep darkness of Easter and emerges triumphant, enabling his followers to become the children of light. From the little light in the hay in the Bethlehem stable, through the dazzling light on the Mount of Transfiguration, to the light of the resurrection morning, Jesus reflected the light of heaven on earth. This is the theme of this outline with activities linked to aspects of the life of Jesus: his birth, his healings, his transfiguration and his death and resurrection.
View ideaNew Beginnings with the widow of Nain
Ideas for an assembly or the classroom on the story of the raising of the widow's son by Jesus
View ideaNew Beginnings with Lazarus
Ideas for an assembly or the classroom on the story of the raising of Lazarus by Jesus
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