I love to teach kids the Bible! It’s addicting, really, watching their faces light up when they “get” the lesson. For over 30 years, I’ve been plugging away teaching Sunday School, AWANA lessons, VBS – pretty much whenever they’ll let me up in front of a group of kids at church! The best part is the relationships I build with the boys and girls – they always remember me, and are eager to remind me what their favorite part of the lesson was!

Other teachers have asked me what me ‘secret’ is. What they really want to know is, “Why do the kids pay attention when you teach?” After all, I’m, ahem, more than 20 years old and no beauty queen. Why would they sit there and watch me for …yes…15 minutes or even a bit more?

Well, there are the little tricks that every good teacher already knows. I know I have to compete with video games and cartoons, to some degree, so I’d better be animated and colorful! I vary my voice pitch and tone. I move around a LOT! I use my hands and face to express emotion, to emphasize, to call attention to a point. But, the real bag of tricks comes with an extension cord!

You see, I have a new tool in my teaching arsenal, which has all but replaced my flannelgraph of old! It’s my computer and my Epson Powerlite Presenter. Now I have pictures and maps that illustrate my points, I can “fly” the students to the location of the Bible lesson, and I can give them the background information they need to understand the critical points of the teaching!

Let me give you a few examples. In VBS this year, I used the Presenter and my computer with a wireless connection to “fly” the kids to Capernaum. I simply used Google Earth to make a flight from the front of our church, up, up, and across the whole world, down, down, to tiny Israel, to the edge of the Sea of Galilee, to the little town of Capernaum. I saved it as a “trip” and was able to play it for the kids the next day. Wow. Google Earth had some pictures I used – like the picture of Peter’s house. What did this do for the kids? Well, they realized that these PLACES and these PEOPLE are real. Peter really did exist – and there are remnants from his house!

Every time we visit a new place, we can “take off” from church, and “land” at our Bible destination. We talk about the time Jesus lived, giving historical and geographical context. I look for pictures to illustrate important points. Google Earth has tons of great pictures from all across the region.

But that isn’t the only thing my little Powerlite Presenter can do. I also create illustrations for my Bible lessons. I look up pictures, scan in photos or maps, and search for images that will make the story come to life. What does a fisherman’s net look like? I can show them. What did Soloman’s temple really LOOK like? I have a model all ready to walk through. I simply save the jpg images, tag them with a numerical code that puts them in the order I want them, and download the images onto a flashdrive. I can plug the flashdrive right into the presenter, and use the remote to forward through them from anywhere in the room.

With just a little more work, I can also make up a slide show, complete with music from the region. Burn it onto a DVD, and the presenter will play that as well. Since Epson’s Powerlite Presenter has a good sound system and a mic, I’m not limited as to the size of my audience. I have used it in a single classroom, or in front in the sanctuary, projecting onto the “big” screen.

So, I’ll keep on teaching Bible lessons, teaching about missionaries’ lives, and whatever else God leads me to teach. And I will keep on looking for ways to bring it all to life for the kids whenever I do. Have you noticed that I never once have used the term “Bible stories”? That’s because they aren’t just stories, they are the real lives and real adventures of real people living for Jesus! Technology can help us make it just that real for kids, as well as for the adults we minister to!

How would you use a projector during a teaching time with children? Have you found other online resources that make Bible lessons come to life? I can hardly wait to hear!

Happy Flying!

Cara

Adam Hann

Adam works at LCBC Church in Lancaster, PA. He loves to spend all kinds of time online reading and learning new things. He also loves spending time with his wife and family. Check him out on Twitter or his Blog.

The post Flying to Capernaum appeared first on Christian Web Trends Blog: Church Websites, Design, SEO.

I found myself checking back to Kem’s book often reminding myself of some of the tips she gives. So, I thought I’d share my top three points that helped me in the process of crafting a new web presence.

1) “Take off the technology glasses…Start looking at it (the Web) as an environment where people gather and might bring their friends.”

This was super important for us. I work with 20somethings. We have a weekly gathering, but are realizing that a once a week thing isn’t necessarily what’s going to work for creating a network of 20somethings. We needed something where they could connect now, or on the go. Instead of just creating a static website, we went the route of the blog. Here is an environment where they can interact, share their thoughts, and connect with other 20somethings.

2) “What are our objectives? What will happen as a result of this new site? How will we measure our success?”

I have to admit. This one is a challenge. I love the idea of something new without thinking through the why. It’s just the way I’m wired. With that said, I have leaned heavily on this question while working on our new stuff. Sometimes you need to know “why” just to keep going. Even more importantly is to know what you expect of the site and how you will measure that. Simply getting visits to your site isn’t enough. You want action. Is your content being read? Are they buying your product? Are they signing up for your event?

3) “Use the paper content to drive people to the Web.” and “Don’t create handouts for your info counter.”

These thoughts are out of the “How to draw people to the Web” section. Honestly, this is probably a big thing for a lot of us, at least it is where I’m at in Pennsylvania. One thing I’ve noticed is it’s easy for us to offer multiple solutions to a problem. We want people to sign up on the web, but we are afraid people won’t go to the site, so we offer paper sign-ups. Registration #FAIL. If we continue to offer the paper solution, those people will never try the website. There’s no need too. We need to make sure we aren’t self defeating in this area. Our 20somethings ministry was being asked to have some information for our information racks at our church, so instead of creating a long description of what we do on paper, we made a simple 3.5″x3.5″ card, with our four environments on it. At the bottom it said, “Experience more at saturateonline.com”.

I could write a lot more on this chapter. There are so many practical take-aways, mostly in the form of questions to be thinking through. And like most things, always keep in mind that what might work (in regards to a website) in Pennsylvania might not work where you are. Get to you know your people. Determine who your primary users for your website are. Build it around them.

Also, hopefully me giving some examples of what the church I’m apart of doesn’t present the idea that we have it figured out. We certainly don’t. I’m constantly reevaluating our content and asking people how they engage with our websites/blogs, or even if they engage at all. There’s always more to learn!

Here are just a few questions to get you thinking about this subject:

1. Some churches have creative teams or a creative process for their weekend gatherings, or any other gathering/environment that they may have. If our online spaces should/could be viewed as environments, do you have a creative team for them? Is there a group of volunteers or staff who you meet with regularly to check in and see how your online environment is going?
2. What tools do you use to measure your goals online? Do you have goals? (I’d really love to hear some responses on this one below)
3. How are you driving people to the web? Do you have a culture at your church or non-profit where people automatically go to the web for info and connection, or is it a hassle to get people there?

9) Tell One Story at a Time <– Less Clutter, Less Noise –> 11) Rewrite Your Job Description

Adam Hann

Adam works at LCBC Church in Lancaster, PA. He loves to spend all kinds of time online reading and learning new things. He also loves spending time with his wife and family. Check him out on Twitter or his Blog.

The post Less Clutter, Less Noise: 10) Untangle The Web appeared first on Christian Web Trends Blog: Church Websites, Design, SEO.