Into the Woods! / Waldausflug!

Es ist manchmal vorteilhaft als Gemeindegründung keine eigene Räumlichkeiten zu haben. Dann hat man die Freiheit Kindergottesdienste in kreativen Orten zu veranstalten. Am ersten Sonntag im Juni haben wir einen Waldausflug-Kindergottesdienst für die Kinder in unseren SchulAGs gemacht. Da im Wald haben wir so viel Spass mit einander gehabt! Ich schreibe öfter in diesem Blog darüber, wie wichtig die Natur ist zur geistlichen Entwicklung von Kindern. Gott hat eine besondere Art mit Kindern in seiner Schöpfung zu sein und Kinder haben da eine besondere Art mit ihm zu sein. One of the great things about being a church plant and not having your own building is that you can have worship services in creative places. On the first Sunday in June, we decided to head to the forest. This was a special children's church that I planned for the kids who attend our after-school clubs and we had a blast together. If you read my blog very often, then you know that I am convinced that being in nature is essential to a child's spiritual development. God has a special way of being with children in his creation and they have a special way of being with him.

Im Grunewald, ein großer Wald mitten in Berlin, sind wir bereits für ein Abenteuer los gegangen. Meine Kollegin, Melinda, und ich haben uns vorher Gedanken über Wanderweg und Spiele gemacht, aber wir haben versucht den Interessen der Kinder zu folgen. Als wir an einen Teil vorbei gelaufen sind, wo viele Stöcke auf dem Boden lagen, wollten die Kinder etwas bauen.  Ein süßes Hüttchen ist daraus geworden. In the Grunewald, a large forest right in the middle of Berlin, we set out on an adventure together. My colleague, Melinda, and I planned the route ahead of time, and had a few games and activities up our sleeves, but we tried to follow the interests of the children. When we passed an area with lots of sticks laying on the ground, the kids wanted to start building, so we all pitched in an made a nice little hut together.

Beginning the story: what's in the box?

Eine Mutter in der Gruppe war Naturführerin und zeigte uns interessante Dinge, z.B. wie die Förster sich um die Tiere und Bäume kümmern. Es gab auch ein Spiel, "Finde etwas", wobei die Kinder Zetteln mit einer Aufgabe zogen. Darauf stand z.B "Finde etwas Weiches" oder "Finde etwas Schleimiges".  (Siehe diese Post für mehr Infos über das Spiel.)  Another adult chaperone was able to act as a nature guide and point out some interesting things to the children. We also played a game called "Find this" in which the children drew slips of paper with instructions to find something "slimy" or "small" or "wet". (Click here for more details about this game.)

Endlich kamen wir zum Ort, wo wir den Kindergottesdienst feiern wollten. Nach dem Mittagessen habe ich den Kindern das Gleichnis von dem Senfkorn erzählt. Da die Geschichte von Jesu um einen klitzelkleinen Samen handelt, der zum großen Baum wird, passte sie sehr gut zum Waldausflug. Ich habe hier erzählt, wie ich das Material für die Geschichte neu gemacht habe, so dass die Unterlage und Baum etwa ein Meter in Durchmesser sind. Die Kinder waren total fasziniert als der Baum vor ihren Augen "gewachsen" ist.Finally, we came to the area where we wanted to have church. After lunch, I told the children the Parable of the Mustard Seed, Jesus' story about a tiny seed that grows into a huge tree. As I mentioned in this post, I completely redid the materials for this story, so that the underlay and tree were about a meter in diameter. Although this story is very short and simple, the children were glued to the story as the mustard seed "grew" into a tree.

In der Kreativphase konnten die Kinder Steine und Baumrinde, die wir auf dem Weg gesammelt haben, anmalen. For our response time, the children painted stones and pieces of birch bark that they had collected along the way.

Der absolute Hit des Tages war aber im Schlamm neben dem kleinen Teich zu spielen. Er was zu frisch um zu baden, aber die Kids hatten Spass daran, den Matsch zwischen den Zehen zu quetschen. Solche taktile Erfahrungen sind neben dem ganzen Spass wichtig zur gesunden Entwicklung von Kindern, und es macht mir eine Freude dies zu unterstützen. The real thrill of the day, though, was playing in the mud on the edge of a small, shallow pond. Though it was too cold to really wade in the water, the kids had fun squishing their toes in the mud. Such experiences of getting dirty and coming into close contact with God's wonderful creation are essential to a child's development, both physical and spiritual,  and I am happy to help provide these experiences for young ones.

Zum Glück fing der Regen erst an als wir uns auf dem Weg nach Hause machten. Es war ein perfekter Tag gewesen! We started home just as it was beginning to rain. It had been a perfect day. 

Linked to The Magic Onions

Lenten Nature Table 2012

We just finished putting up our nature table to begin our Lenten journey in 2012. While there are some  familiar elements from last year, we've added a few new things as well. These symbols of our faith are powerful reminders that we are on a special journey with God during Lent.  We set aside more time to draw closer in relationship with our Creator, to allow him to change us, and allow him to prompt change in the world through us.

Below is our Christ Candle surrounded by the things we are finding in our park as of late. I love having the Christ Candle in our kitchen where so much real life takes place. We eat, talk, do homework, art and have breakdowns in that room. The Christ Candle is a gentle reminder that God is always there with me, no matter what our day may turn into. The leaves are from an evergreen bush much like holly and the berries are signs of life that show the winter is thawing. The red berries are called "Hagebutte" in German and they are often used to make tea. The white berries we call "Knallbeeren"("crack" berries), because they make a fun sound when you step on them.: ) And the dark berries we call "Vogelbeeren" (bird berries), because the birds love to eat them.

Four figures in the desert, one for each member of our family. This year, I let each person pick out their own figures. You can probably guess which ones are my son and daughter. A bowl of water reminds of God's power to cleanse and renew. It also reminds us of our baptism. And since our children have not yet been baptized, it reminds us to talk with them about what it is all about.

The puzzle pieces are from the Godly Play story, The Mystery of Easter. This is a brilliant story that helps children (and adults!) understand why we need six weeks of preparation to celebrate with God at Easter. In it, the storyteller and children put together a puzzle that is a cross. Since I couldn't fit my wooden cross puzzle on the window sill, I had the idea from  So Many Joys to make one out of felt.

The puzzle pieces become this . . . 

and then this . . .

The two colors represent both the deep sadness of the Crucifixion and pure joy of the Resurrection that we experience at Easter.

I couldn't resist picking up a yellow crocus to put on the table. These beautiful flowers are the heralds announcing that we are in a transition and that change is about to come. Also, our jar with the pictures of  the children we sponsor through World Vision. (More about that in an upcoming post!)

And on the kitchen table, we have a single pillar candle and a prayer pot that the children made last year. Over the next six weeks, we will put objects in it that go with specific prayers that will lead us up to Easter.

May you be blessed on your Lenten journey!






This post is linked to the 
Celebrating Lent Link-Up Party 




and The Magic Onions

and Catholic Icing

and Crafty Moms Share and Mama Mia's Heart 2 Heart

Nature Table: Lent

I wanted to share our latest nature table with you. As I've mentioned before, I am convinced that connecting children to God's creation is essential to their understanding of his character. Our nature table owes its inspiration to the Montessori nature tray and the Waldorf nature table.  (There are aspects of both educational philosophies that I consider valuable and we let ourselves be inspired by them.)  It is a great way to visually and playfully remind my children what Lent and Easter are all about and encourage them to pray.  The sand will probably end up on the floor, the water will be splattered here and there, and both will probably end up being a little muddy.: )  So is the journey sometimes. 

Sand . . . 

Jesus walking through the desert,  

Walking through deserts in our own lives,
Hungering and thirsting for more than that which we see,
Remembering our need for God's love and guidance.
One figure for each member of our family,
Important things happen in the desert.

Water . . . 

Essential to life,

Jesus' baptism and our own baptism,

Washed by God's grace and mercy,

Immersed in his love.

Wood . . . 

The crucified and risen Jesus 

with his arms spread out 

to embrace the whole world.

Exploring the Creator through Nature

Every time I tell the Godly Play story about God creating the world, I am filled with a sense of awe.  In the GP story and if we look closely enough in the Bible, we find a passionate and ingenious artist painting with his life’s breath onto the canvas of the world.  Oddly enough as a child and as a teenager, the Creation Story was boring to me.  It probably had a lot to do with the fact that I spent most of my childhood indoors to avoid the heat of the southern United States and way too much time in front of the television.  I was not actually acquainted with nature.  Unfortunately,  many children in the Western world are having the same experience that I had with detrimental societal effects.

In German we have a wonderful term called “Naturpädagogik” (“nature pedagogy”) which I really don’t know the term for in English.  The best I can come up with is “nature conservation education”, but nature pedagogy is so much more than just conserving nature.  (If any of you Waldorfers or Montessori pros in the English-speaking world have any suggestions for a better term, please let me know!)  It is getting to know nature, being a part of it, seeing what it does, and letting the seasons affect our everyday lives.  If, as Paul writes in the letter to the Romans, “creation in its magnificence enlightens us to His nature . . . .”, shouldn’t we as children’s pastors and parents be facilitating spiritual experiences for our children in God’s amazing creation?

Experiencing nature up-close is vital to a child’s spiritual and physical development.  On a pure physical level, nature has many benefits and here are just a few:

-       Nature has a calming effect on children. Children with behavioural problems concentrate better after walks in green areas.

-       Enhances cognitive abilities.

-       Children are more physically active and less prone to weight issues.

-       Nurtures self-discipline.

-       Nurtures healthy curiosity and problem solving.

 Here are some articles and websites that have the information above and more on the subject: Children and Nature Network, Young Children's Relationship to Nature, Outside Learning Enriches

In her book, “A Home Start in Reading”, Ruth Beechick writes of a school district that did a test to see whether children who learned to read at an early age performed better than children who were allowed to play outside and explore nature.  The nature children did better in the long-run, because their vocabularies and thinking skills were more advanced through hands-on experiences in the outdoors.  (Remember young children are sensorimotor learners and learn with all their senses.)

In their spiritual development, children exposed to nature encounter the mystery of God and develop a healthy curiousity.  The second greatest commandment is “Love your neighbor as yourself”.  Children, who for example grow plants and vegetables, develop healthy self-esteem, which is the prerequisite for this commandment.  Also, taking care of plants and animals helps children to develop  a respect for living things which in turn helps develop the essential quality of compassion.

How do you start?  Start simple. Almost any nature experience can be turned into a spiritual experience with a little thought and preparation.  Make art with natural things and incorporate them into your worship service. Here are some websites that have lots of good ideas: Naturkinder, Marghanita, The Enchanted Tree, The Magic Onions

A nature table (“Jahreszeittisch” in German) that combines Christian themes with natural materials is another great way to start.  Here are some websites that have good ideas for this: Living Montessori Now, A Little Slice of Life, Still Parenting

This is our January nature table. Christmas may be technically over, but not
for my 5-year-old! She made this nativity in her kindergarten
and we added some curious forest animals.

In a church setting, arrange an outing and hold your worship service outdoors.  In the summer, we do our Family Brunch in one of the parks near our home and the kids love it. It may be a bit chaotic, but the long-term benefits are worth the chaos!

The ultimate adventure with God and his creation:
my children, then ages 5 and 3,  in Uganda
with two newly found friends.