Today is the perfect day for me to blog! It’s a snow day! I wasn’t feeling so great in the afternoon/evening yesterday, so I actually prayed for a snow day. The Lord is good and knew that I needed a day of rest. Parts of Pennsylvania also need a day or two not to rest, but rather dig out of all of this snow!

If you’re a parent of a 1st or 2nd grade Sunday school student at Stewartstown Baptist or a follower of my blog, you may be wondering what our class did last week (Sunday, January 23, 2011).

…so what did we do?

Introduction to the Lesson:

During this time, the children were given a blank sheet of paper and markers to draw a picture of a good choice that they made during the previous week. It was also during this time that we were able to listen to a new compact disc. We enjoyed listening to Dianne Hart. Dianne spoke at our church’s women’s conference early this month. She has made a children’s compact disc that she sells to raise money for children’s missions. As a young adult with a passion for children’s ministry, this was a must buy for me! The children and I love the music! We can’t wait to listen to it again this Sunday. Let’s just hope my dancing doesn’t get out of control! The children enjoyed me dancing around the table to see what good choices they made last week. Okay, maybe they didn’t enjoy it, but I sure did!

After the third song on the compact disc, the children and I discussed the good choices that they made. We also discussed what would happen if they didn’t make these good choices.

Snack:

During this time, the children shared their verses that they wrote down in their Bible verse journals at home. I enjoy listening and discussing these verses each week!

The Lesson:

We read Daniel 1:1-20. I always stop throughout the text, and ask the children comprehension questions. At the end of reading the passage, they always enjoy a “mini quiz.” I find that the children really do try to pay attention to the story, just so that they can answer all the questions correctly at the end.

Lesson Extension (This is where I wished that I actually took more pictures than I do. I need to get on that if I want to make a real blog.):

The children and I worked together to make “how to make choices card holders.” These were a suggestion from the leader’s guide that our church purchases. I find that on occasion I am able to use their suggestions. On other occasions, the crafts require expensive materials, so I have to modify them to fit my budget.

The “how to make choices card holders” were made of 1.5 paper plates. I had the children take one whole paper plate and half of paper plate. Once they lined their 1.5 plates up to make a pocket, I went around and stapled the plates together. Inside the pocket, the children placed colored index cards. Each of these index cards contained a step that the children would need to take in order to make a God glorifying decision. The children enjoyed this project, and talking more about making decisions. I am excited to hear about some good decisions that they made this week!