{"id":36587,"date":"2023-07-25T12:33:43","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T16:33:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thinkorange.com\/blog\/the-leaders-guide-to-choosing-curriculum-that-actually-engages-kids\/"},"modified":"2023-07-25T12:33:43","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T16:33:43","slug":"the-leaders-guide-to-choosing-curriculum-that-actually-engages-kids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thinkorange.com\/blog\/the-leaders-guide-to-choosing-curriculum-that-actually-engages-kids\/","title":{"rendered":"The Leader’s Guide to Choosing Curriculum That Actually Engages Kids"},"content":{"rendered":"

For every leader choosing a curriculum for their children\u2019s ministry, you\u2019ve got an important decision ahead of you. There\u2019s price, theology, media, customizability, and then the question of whether you\u2019ll still end up pounding coffee on a Saturday night to locate and wrangle documents and media together the next day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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But then there\u2019s the most important question \u2014 <\/span>will this <\/b>actually<\/i><\/b> engage the kids in my ministry?<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Will it help them develop a better faith and future because they can understand, apply, and be transformed every week of the year?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Now, if you are reading this, you\u2019ve probably already arrived to two big ideas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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You know that when it comes to what<\/em> you teach kids every week, you need a strategy.\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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That\u2019s one reason you need curriculum for your preschool ministry or children\u2019s ministry. You know you have a limited amount of time every year to influence a kid\u2019s faith, so you have to be intentional about WHAT you teach. <\/span>If you\u2019re not thoughtful about your yearly strategy, you could end up missing the most important things.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

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To say it another way, you are intentional about making sure your messaging strategy is <\/span>theologically sound.<\/b> The choices about what you teach, and don\u2019t teach in a year is a theological decision. Winging it every week, or piecing together a strategy can lead to an incomplete theological foundation if not evaluated through the lens of your annual messaging strategy.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Then, there\u2019s the second big idea.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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You know that it matters not just what<\/em> content you teach, but how<\/em> you teach it.\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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You could have the best scope and sequence (or as we call it,<\/span> scope & cycle<\/span><\/a>),\u00a0but if your weekly content fails to communicate in a way a kid can understand and apply, it won\u2019t be an effective strategy or curriculum.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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You understand that your message doesn\u2019t just need to be theologically sound but also engaging. <\/span>Kids can\u2019t learn from a message they aren\u2019t paying attention to or don\u2019t understand.<\/b><\/p>\n

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To say it another way, in order for your messaging strategy to be effective, it needs to be <\/span>developmentally appropriate.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

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So, how do you choose a curriculum that is both <\/span>theologically sound<\/b> and <\/span>developmentally appropriate<\/b>?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Well, we think it\u2019s possible to have both. It\u2019s the reason we create <\/span>preschool ministry curriculum <\/span><\/a>and <\/span>kids & preteen curriculum<\/span><\/a>. Curriculum can help you not just create a better strategy for your entire ministry, but bring effective messaging strategies for engaging every kid in your children\u2019s ministry and community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Choosing A Theologically Sound Curriculum<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Let\u2019s talk theology for a second. We know <\/span>what<\/span><\/i> you teach a kid about God will impact the rest of their lives, their future families, and the future of the Church. So, we take <\/span>what <\/span><\/i>they believe and <\/span>why <\/span><\/i>they believe it very seriously.<\/span><\/p>\n

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But the Bible is a big book, and they won\u2019t remember (or understand) all of it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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So, it\u2019s important to <\/span>prioritize and repeat what matters most<\/b> so that the truth of WHO God is and WHAT God has done for them will be cemented in their hearts long after they leave our programs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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If you\u2019re like us \u2014 you want want you kids to leave your ministry knowing everything. But, very quickly, you\u2019ve come to realize how impossible that is \u2014 and why it\u2019s so important to <\/span>refine the message<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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So how do we decide what\u2019s most important? Thankfully Jesus told us.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Jesus said \u201c\u2018Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.\u2019<\/span> This is the first and greatest commandment.<\/span> And the second is like it: \u2018Love your neighbor as yourself.\u2019<\/span> \u00a0<\/span>All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. (Matthew 22:34-40 NIV).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Simply put, Orange\u2019s <\/span>preschool curriculum<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>kids ministry curriculum<\/span><\/a> is centered around making what Jesus said matters most, matter most. This curriculum begins with the great commandment which can be broken down into three primary relationships.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Love God<\/span><\/p>\n

Love Others<\/span><\/p>\n

Love Yourself<\/span><\/p>\n

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Ok, let\u2019s talk about that last one for a second. We realize Jesus wasn\u2019t saying we should be selfish or self-obsessed. But He was connecting how we love God and others to what we think about ourselves. You\u2019ve probably seen how a person relates to God or the people around them is almost always influenced by how they see themselves. So, it\u2019s imperative we help kids understand who God made them to be and how Jesus can transform them.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The truth is, a kid\u2019s relationship with God, others, and themselves is life-changing\u2014but only if they understand those relationships in a biblical context. So, in addition to the big three relationships, there are some core theological insights we want to make sure a kid doesn\u2019t miss.<\/span> We call these the three basic truths, and every lesson, story, and topic re-enforces one of these truths.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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We want preschoolers to believe:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

God made me.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

God loves me.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus wants to be my friend forever.<\/span><\/p>\n

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We want kids to believe:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I need to make the wise choice (which is Wisdom),\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I can trust God no matter what (which is Faith).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And I should treat others the way I want to be treated (which is Friendship).<\/span><\/p>\n

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We want to make sure kids don\u2019t just believe the right things, but these truths begin to transform their lives and become the foundation of an everyday faith.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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So, as you evaluate your curriculum choices \u2014 ask how it<\/span> prioritizes what\u2019s most important<\/b><\/a>?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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