Teaching theme - 2011/2012
Our teaching is built into a curriculum where we make sure children are being taught fundamental truths of the Bible. Our aim is to give children strong foundations that they can build on as they get older.
FaithBear
Age 2 and a half - 4 Yrs Old
Life in the Spirit
School Reception - School Year 5
FaithBuilders +
School Year 6
Our teaching theme is taught following a visual timetable each week. This provides a structure around what we do.
If you would like to find out what we’ve learned this week – choose a location to find out more…
We produce teaching packs each quarter for our teams to work from – if you would like a copy to find out more about what we are teaching, just let us know.
Visual timetable
Our visual timetable is used to show the children the order of activities during FaithBuilders. It helps children feel more relaxed. After each part of the session, we’ll take a picture off the board so we can see what we’ve done and what’s coming up next.
If you’re new to FaithBuilders, ask one of the leaders to talk you and your child through what we’re doing during the morning. And if you’re child is unsure, you could agree which bits you’re going to stay with them for.
Welcome Time
This is our free play time. There’s loads of games to choose from – everything from play-dough to cars, table football to board games! It’s the time when children meet new friends and play together, and leaders can play too – all part of getting to know each other more.
After 20-30 minutes, we’ll start packing away and getting ready for WOW Time.
WOW Time
During WOW time, we join the other groups for the most high energy part of the morning. We might sing songs; watch a video or here a story. WOW time is slightly different in each of our locations, as it’s tailored to the age of the children and the size of the groups.
It’s also the time when we’re reminded about the gem jars. Each group has a gem jar that they can fill up by following the rules. If the gem jar is filled up by the end of each term, then children can earn special treats for a reward morning.
To follow the rules, we need to be reminded of what they are. And we’ve kept things really simple with just 3…
- Look after others
- Look after yourself
- Look after property
In Solihull, we also take an offering with our ‘It’s good to give pig’. There’s no expectation that every child brings money, but for those that want to, this is the time where we encourage children in the act of giving.
Every WOW Time includes a WOW Moment – something really simple that sums up what we’re learning about that week. This is followed by a Doing Verse – something from the Bible that helps shape what we do in the week.
Huddle In
Huddle in is all about going deeper. Each Huddle in time is tailored to the age of the children. For our youngest FaithBuilders, we’ll sum up what we learned and ask the children about the story. We might have something to watch or hold to help understand more about what we’ve learned – and then we’ll pray together.
For our older groups, our aim is to develop the discussion time. After remembering the WOW moment and what we watched, we then think about what it means. How can we put it into practice during the week? Then we’ll pray and ask God to help us follow what we’ve discovered.
Break Out
Now it’s time to get a bit active. Each week in break out we’ll play a game, do an activity or make something. It’s a chance to move around, and get to know each other more – as well as building on what we’ve learned about that week.
Huddle in and Break out also includes the very important time of having a drink and biscuit. And it’s not plain biscuits – we like to keep things exciting in FaithBuilders. Everything from Cookies to Jammie Dodgers – something to keep us going for the rest of the session!
Wind down
We’re coming to the end of the session – time to hand out all the coats, bags, craft and Doing Verse sheets. Getting ready for when the grown ups come at the end of the service.
Extra time
Sometimes, the service for the grown ups can go on a little longer than we expect. So this is when we’ll have extra time. Parachute games, quizzes, free play and other activities are great things to do whilst we wait!
So…that covers the main points of what we do at every session in FaithBuilders. We’re always happy to answer any questions you have – contact us or ask on of our FaithBuilders leaders.