RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

Do you ever wonder if the kids got anything out of the lesson you just shared with them?

If you do, you're not alone.  We've all been there.

Today, I want to share with you 10 secrets to kids learning from your lesson.

Some of these you may be already be aware of and even use.  If that's the case, read through them for a good reminder of how to make your lessons stick.

Secret #1 - Repetition.  Did you know if you hear something one time you will remember about 10% of it.  But if you hear something 6 times, your retention rate goes up to 90%!  When you are teaching your lesson, make sure you have the kids repeat the key truth at least 6 times.  Do this and you can be confident that it made it into their memory bank.

Secret #2 - Senses.  You can use kids' senses to help them learn.  Incorporate as many of them as you can in your lesson.  Here are a couple of examples.  You are doing a lesson on John the Baptist.  You talk about him eating honey.  Have a small sample of honey for kids to taste (reminder to watch for food allergies).  Another example could be you are talking about Zachhaeus being up in a tree.  Have a small branch that the kids pass around and feel. 

Secret #3 - Ask them.  Position yourself outside the classroom door as kids and their parents are leaving and pull aside a few kids and with their parent's permission, ask them to tell you one thing they learned today.  

See if they can remember the key truth they just heard.  If you get the canned answer "Jesus" or "God," then you know you've got some tweaking to do with your lessons.  

Secret #4 - Every day objects.  Attach an every day object to what you are teaching.  Here's an example.  If you are teaching about growing in your faith, tie it to the illustration of getting to the next level in a video game.  Another example - you are teaching about salvation and Jesus being the one way to heaven.  Tell the kids to remember this each time they see a one way sign on the road.

Secret #5 - Have them teach it.  One of the best ways to see kids "get" the lesson is to have them take a few minutes to teach it to one another.  There are lot of ways you can do this and make it fun.  It's also a good way to break up your lesson if it's more than 5 minutes.  Teach for 5 minutes and then have the kids turn to each other and talk about the lesson.  Give them clear instructions like drawing a picture of what they've learned and then explain it to the person they are paired with.

Secret #6 - Focus on one key truth.  What is the one big thing you want kids to remember from the lesson.  Rather than having 3-4 things you want them to remember, just have one.  Less truly is more. 

Secret #7 - Incorporate learning styles.  Children learn in different ways.  Some learn through music.  Some learn socially.  Some learn verbally.  Incorporate as many learning styles as you can. 

Secret #8 - Tell stories.  Kids (and adults) remember stories.  Jesus, the master teacher, used parables (stories) when He was teaching.  They can be stories from your childhood, stories from current news, stories from heroes of the faith.  And of course, Bible stories are the best.

Secret #9 - Aim high.  Let me ask you a question.  When you have several ages of children in one classroom or service, who do you put up front?  The natural tendency is to place the younger children up front and the older kids behind them.  That's what I did until I read this quote by Walt Disney. 


If you want kids to have an optimal learning experience, put the oldest kids up front and the younger kids behind them.  Why?  Because little kids look up to big kids and want to be like them.  When they see the older kids are listening, they will listen as well.

This little secret can make a huge difference in how kids listen and learn in your ministry.  Try it out.

Secret #10 - Go visual.  Today's kids hear with their eyes.  Use a lot of pictures, video clips, object lessons, etc.  When kids not only hear, but also see the lesson, their retention will go up.  

If you haven't seen our Connect 12 curriculum, each of the lessons incorporate these 10 secrets and capture kids' attention and plant the truth of God in their life.  You can see samples at this link. Dozens of churches across the country are currently using the curriculum with rave reviews of how it helps the kids get the lesson.

Your turn.  What are some learning secrets you can share with us. We'd love to see them in the comment section below.  

This past weekend, I was speaking at a church and one of the staff members was talking about small groups.  He made a great point that I want to pass along to you.  And that's this.

Dialogue is more effective than monologue when it comes to learning, understanding and communicating.

From children to adults, people are more engaged when you use dialogue to help them discover the truth you are trying to communicate with them.  

Many of us grew up in a monologue format.  We sat quietly (some of the time) while a teacher verbally taught the lesson.  The problem with using a monologue format is this - it's not the way kids (and adults) learn best.  In fact, studies show that it is the least effective way to learn. 

So why do we keep using a subpar learning method?

I think one reason is because it takes more work to create a good dialogue experience.  You have to get kids to open up and talk about the subject.  This means knowing how to ask the right questions and facilitating a good flow of discussion.  It's much easier to just plan for something you do by yourself while the kids watch and listen to it. But we should be more concerned with being effective than we are with things being easy.

Another reason is teachers are afraid they will "lose control" of the class if they let kids talk.  You have to get comfortable with a noisy classroom.   But done correctly, a noisy classroom is what you want.  When kids are engaged and learning, it is going to be noisy.  

We see ourselves as a teacher rather than a facilitator.  There's a big difference between the two.  A teacher gives out information.  A facilitator guides kids to discover the truth in ways they learn best. 

We miss opportunities to get kids talking.  Every activity should have discussion questions tied to it.  Every game should be used to jump start conversation.  Every lesson should have as much, if not more, questions to prompt discussion. 

Take a look at these stats.  It measures the effectiveness of teaching methods. 

Average Learning Retention Rates:

• Monologue (5%) - worst method
• Reading (10%) 
• Audio visual (20%)
• Demonstration (30%)
• Dialogue (50%) - 10 times more effective than monologue
• Practice doing (75%)
• Teaching others (90%) 

 Here are some steps you can take to move to more dialogue...

• Measure the time you spend in class using monologue versus the time you spend using dialogue.

• Include open-ended questions throughout your lesson.  Effective dialogue moves beyond yes and no answers. 

• Tell the kids you want to them to talk during designated times.  This shifts away from saying "ssshhhh" and "quiet please" to "let's talk more about what we read in that verse."   

•  Measure your success based on how much the kids talked versus how much you talked. 

Remember the voice of Charlie Brown's teacher and parents?  It was like "wonk bwonk, codlue, bdgamaiclic, ygamatick, etc.  (that was my attempt at writing confusing garble). When we sit kids down and become a talking head for the next 45 minutes, kids zone out and what they are hearing is something like Charlie Brown's teacher.  

One last thought.  Want to increase the effectiveness of your lessons?  Increase the amount of time you dedicate to dialogue and you'll see the results you're looking for.  

If you're looking for curriculum that gets kids talking throughout the lesson, then check out these series that we created.  One year's worth of curriculum.  Curriculum that is grounded in teaching kids 12 Biblical truths in 12 months.  You'll see a big element we've included in the curriculum, is lots and lots of time for dialogue.  You can get more information at this link and see lesson samples, videos, etc.