Godly Play: The Parable of the Sower

When asked an important question, Jesus often told parables to help his listeners think a little deeper. In Godly Play, we tell six of these core parables, and The Parable of the Sower is one of them. Jesus told this story when asked what the Kingdom of God was like.

The Kingdom of God is like seeds that are sown broadly. Some fall on the path and are eaten by the birds. Some fall between on stony ground and can't find get their roots deep enough into the earth to survive. Some fall on thorny ground and are choked by the thorns. Others fall on good soil and produce a harvest 30, 60 and 100 times that which the farmer sowed. 

We had three children this week that were new to our Godly Play group, so things were a bit "livelier" than usual, since they were not familiar with our routine. They were glued to the story, but I had a difficult time getting them to focus during the Wondering. Oh well, every Godly Play Storyteller (or anyone who works with kids!) knows that it is just like that sometimes . . . : ) When asked who the Sower might be, the children thought that he could be God or us. They also thought the most important thing was that the Sower actually got out and sowed the seeds. 

Every child that I have ever met is thrilled to be able to plant something and watch it grow. So just talking about sowing seeds would be boring - I had to give kids the opportunity to actually do it! As one of the options during the response time, the children made their own mini flower pots out of air-drying clay and planted garden cress in it. 

Cress grows fast and is edible (full of Vitamin C!), so it is a perfect way to illustrate the "good soil" in the parable and celebrate the coming of spring. One child came up with the sun shape below and several other children wanted to make theirs the same way. 

You can see tiny sprouts coming up two days later!

To read more about the wooden materials that I used for this parable, please click here. 

 . . . 

Unsere Godly Play-Geschichte diese Woche ging um das Gleichnis vom Sämann, das Jesus erzählte, als er gefragt wurde, "Wie ist es mit dem Reich Gottes?"

Während des Ergründungsgespräch habe ich die Kinder gefragt, wer der Sämann sei. Manche meinten, er könnte Gott sein, und andere sagten, er sind wir. Auch meinten sie, das wichtige an der Geschichte ist, dass die Samen gesät wurden. 

Nur übers Säen zu reden wäre langweilig - also müssten wir's einfach tun! Als Angebot zur Kreativzeit haben wir Pflanzentöpfe aus Ton gestaltet und Kresse eingesät. Ein Kind hat eine Sonne-Motiv für den Topf ausgedacht und einige andere haben's auch so gemacht. 

Linked to Friday's Nature Table at The Magic Onions

and Eco Kids' Tuesday at Like Mama-Like Daughter and Organic Aspirations

and Waldorf Wednesday at Seasons of Joy

What we can leave out and still have everything we need?

One of the typical "Wondering" questions at the end of Godly Play stories is "What can we leave out and still have everything we need for the story?".  This is a question that often makes people that are new to Godly Play nervous want to turn tail and run. At a superficial glance, it would appear that the question is saying that some part of the Bible isn't important. It's not suggesting that at all. Rather the question is training young minds to understand and use a very important educational principle: sorting through and prioritizing information. 

Each day our minds are overloaded with information, be it from face-to-face communication, internet, magazines, books or other forms of media. We cannot possibly absorb all the information, nor should we. Instead, we make choices to remember and hold onto the most important things. 

And each time we read a portion of the Bible or hear a sermon, we come away with only a fraction of what we read or what was said. We hold onto what we resonated with us the most. In a similar way, this Wondering question helps children begin to focus on what is important to them at their particular stage of life and what God may be speaking to them at that particular moment. 

And sometimes thinking about what we can leave out and still have everything we need leads to a remarkable insight. The picture below shows a nine-year-old boy's response during "The Lord's Prayer" story at Easter Club last week. The two arches have "Our Father in heaven" and "Then yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever". In the middle were the different requests such as "Give us this day our daily bread".  When asked what we could leave out and still have everything we need, the boy removed all the requests except for "Your kingdom come". I realized at that moment that he was right. All of the other requests were wrapped up in this one. When God's kingdom comes, all of the other requests will have been answered. 

This child decided that "Your kingdom come"was the most important
part of the Lord's Prayer by choosing to "leave out" the
other parts of the prayer. 

David Pritchard, a Godly Play Trainer in Spain and member of the  GP International Advisory Board, has written the best article that I have ever read on this subject here (and he states his case much more eloquently than I do!).

Jill, a Godly Play storyteller in North Carolina for over 20 years, named her blog, "What can we leave out . . . and still have all we need for the story?" She writes a lot about how this question has helped her as an adult to keep her perfectionistic nature in check so that she can get more done.: ) 

Learning to ask ourselves what we can leave out is a life skill that we all need, and one that we most certainly should pass onto our children. 

 . . . . . . . 

In der Godly Play-Religionspädagogik gibt es immer nach der Geschichte ein Ergründungsgespräch. Eine typische Frage in diesem Gespräch lautet: Was können wir hier weglassen und trotzdem alles haben, was wir an der Geschichte brauchen?

Hinter dieser Frage steht ein wichtiges, pädagogisches Prinzip: die Fähigkeit einzuordnen und priorisieren. Man wird jeden Tag mit einer Menge von Information überladen und müsste entscheiden können, was in Erinnerung zu behalten ist.  Dadurch kommen auch wichtige Einblicke.

Oben hat ein Kind nach der "Vater Unser" Geschichte in der OsterAG entschieden, alle Bitten außer "Dein Reich komme" wegzulassen. Ich müsste ihm Recht geben. Wenn diese Bitte in Erfüllung kommen würde, wären all die anderen Bitte auch erfüllt. Da habe ich auch etwas gelernt. : )

Easter Club 2013 Week 3

Wir haben viel Spass bei der OsterAG gehabt! Hier ist ein Blick auf die gemeinsame Zeit . . .  

This week's Easter Club was a lot of fun! Here's what we did together . . . 

Jede Woche darf ein Kind die Christuskerze anzünden. Sie erinnert uns daran, dass Gottes Licht immer mit uns ist, auch wenn wir die Sonne draußen gar nicht sehen!  Each week one child gets to light the Christ Candle to remind us that God's light is always with us, even when we can't see the sun outside.

Unsere Geschichte diese Woche handelte um das Gebet. Wir hörten wie Menschen auf ganz unterschiedliche Weise mit Gott reden und über das "Vater Unser", das Jesus seinen Jüngern beigebracht hat. Our story this week was about prayer. We talked about the different ways that people pray and the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "The Lord's Prayer". 

Wenn wir mit anderen Menschen reden, dann ist es, als ob wir durch ein Tor gehen würden um zu ihnen zu kommen. Eine Begrüßung hilft uns durch dieses Tor zu kommen. Es ist auch so, wenn wir mit Gott reden. Wir sagen etwas wie, "Hallo Gott!" oder "Lieber Vater". Jesus sagte, "Vater Unser im Himmel." Wenn wir einmal durch so ein Tor hindurchgekommen sind, dann können wir sicher sein, dass Gott alles hört.  When we talk to people, we greet them by saying, "Hello." It's a bit like going through a doorway. It's the same when we talk to God. We can say, "Hello God!" or "Dear Father". Jesus taught his disciples to say, "Our Father in heaven." Once we have gone through this doorway, we know that God hears absolutely everything we say!

Manchmal sagen wir das Vater Unser allein, und zu anderen Zeiten sprechen ganz viele Menschen es gemeinsam. Es ist das Gebet, dass alle Christen auf der ganzen Welt verbindet. Sometimes we say The Lord's Prayer alone and sometimes together in groups. It is the prayer that brings Christians all over the world together. 

Wir hatten auch Besuch von dem Gemeinde-Kantor, der schöne Frühlingslieder mit uns gesungen hat. We also had a visit from the church's Cantor who sang some nice spring songs with us.

Während der Kreativphase konnten wir eine Beschäftigung von den folgenden Angeboten aussuchen:

 During the Response Time, we had the following activities to choose from: 

Station 1: Hier konnten wir unseren lieblings Teil vom Vater Unser (oder der Teil, der für uns am wichtigsten war) aussuchen, und entweder etwas dazu malen oder schreiben.

Station 1: Here we could pick our favorite line from "The Lord's Prayer" (or the one that was most important to us), and draw a picture with oil pastels and colored pencils or write something about it. 

Station 2: Hier konnten wir Wollebilder auf Jutestoff filzen.
Station 2: Here we could make pictures by attaching wool roving to burlap.

Station 3: Bei diesem Tisch haben wir weiter an die "Pisanki" (ukrainische Ostereier) mit Pastelkreide gearbeitet.
Station 3: At this table we continued our glue and chalk pastel "Pysanky" (Ukrainian Easter Eggs).

Schaut wie gut gelungen sie sind! Look how beautiful they turned out!

Station 4: Wir konnten auch die Geschichten vom Regal nehmen und mit ihnen spielen. Hier spielen wir mit dem Gleichnis vom Guten Hirten.

Station 4: As always there are several stories for us to choose from on the focus table. We can choose which one we want to explore more and play. Below we are playing with the Parable of the Good Shepherd.

Wir feiern jedes Mal zum Schluss ein kleines Fest zusammen. Wir haben immer Bärenhunger und freuen uns darüber! We have a small feast together at the end of each session. We're always really hungry and look forward to it! 

Noch 2 Wochen! Bis nächstes Mal! Two more weeks of fun to go!

Wenn du die ersten 2 Wochen schauen möchtest, hier sind ein paar Links: 

If you missed any of our posts, click on these links:

Woche 1 / Week 1

Woche 2 / Week 2

For my Godly Play readers: This is not actually a Godly Play story from Jerome Berryman. Rather it is a story from some German colleagues in religious education, and it is told in Godly Play "style". If you pin the pictures on Pinterest or any other social media site, please do not label it as Godly Play. If you are interested in the text, please e-mail me and I will ask the authors for permission to share it.

Linked to Montessori Monday at Living Montessori Now

and Waldorf Wednesday at Seasons of Joy

Sneak Preview: Parable of the Sower

At my Godly Play Trainers' Course in Holland, I had the chance to use materials from Johanna Kaarto, a Godly Play Trainer in Finland. I was so impressed by them that I decided to order some of her DIY parable materials. They are reasonably priced and the etching in the wood is delicate and beautiful.

I will be doing the Parable of the Sower on Sunday. The last time I told this parable, it was with Playmobil figures. But that's the sort of thing you do when you are just starting out with Godly Play.: )  These days, I am slowing upgrading as time and money will allow.

I am using watercolor mixed with a little vinegar to paint the unfinished wood. (Think Easter egg dye - the vinegar makes the color more intense and adhere to the egg shell better.) I decided that acrylics would be too heavy and I didn't want to risk covering up Johanna's etching.

Now, I'll give them a coat of varnish before Sunday!

. . . 

Am Sonntag werde ich "Das Gleichnis vom Sämann" erzählen. Obwohl ich früher Playmobil  dafür benutzt habe, versuche ich langsam die Playmofiguren mit pädagogisch gerechtem Material auszutauschen.

Bei dem Fortbildner-Training für Godly Play in Holland habe ich Material von Johanna Kaarto in Finland benutzt. Da sie auch DIY-Material zum günstigen Preis anbietet, habe ich  die schönen Holzfiguren oben von ihr bestellt. 

Ich habe sie dann mit Aquarellfarbe und Essig angemalt, damit die Radierungen im Holz immer noch sichtbar werden. Letztens muss ich sie vor Sonntag lackieren!

Art Project: "Painting" with Wool & Burlap

Giving children a chance to create with natural materials is of utmost importance to me. It is vital to their physical and spiritual well-being to connect with the natural world. As a result, I am constantly looking for ways to do art projects using the gifts of nature.

When planning the Easter Club this year, I decided to try an idea from Birgit, the Waldorf educator in my children's former kindergarten. (She was also the inspiration behind the autumn leaf crown and nature nativity projects. ) We "painted" with wool roving and burlap.

Burlap (I learned from Featherglen that it is called "hessian" in British English!) is a 100% natural material and therefore extremely eco-friendly. Wool roving will stick to it without any type of glue, and children can make beautiful pictures with these two materials. This is, of course, a simplified version of what we call "dry felting", but without a felting needle. 

The picture below is an example that I made (of Jesus being baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist) to show the children.

Before the children began to work with the wool, I gave them this advice:  rather than tearing off a huge piece of wool (which is a natural tendency), it is better to tear off a small piece and then layer the small pieces onto one another. This way the wool adheres to the burlap more easily. 

Then, I demonstrated these techniques:
- rolling a small piece in the palm of the hand like play-dough
- stretching the wool very thin to make for a wispier look and for layering larger areas like landscapes
- rolling the wool into a long, thin "snake" to make strips

Children will become easily frustrated in this activity without these basic guidelines. (There may be others, so feel free to share from your experience in the comments!) Though the feel of the wool is pleasing, they will tear off a piece way too large and not be able to make it stick to the burlap. They also might not know how to shape it. 

My students, 1-4 graders, were quick learners and produced some beautiful work:

An "impressionistic" bunch of flowers . . . 

a little black mole frolicking above ground . . . 

a sunny landscape . . . 

a baby chick . . . 

and a menorah . . . 

With some of the looser pictures, I lightly went over them with a felting needle to make them stick a little more. And to transport the artwork home (always a concern for art teachers!), we carefully rolled up the burlap. As long as the child carefully unrolls it at home, the picture will remain intact.

 . . . . . . 

Ich versuche Kindern immer Kunstprojekten anzubieten, die mit Naturmaterial zu tun haben. Bei der OsterAG dieses Jahr habe ich mit für Wollebilder auf Jutestoff entschieden. Diese Art von "Malen" ist eine taktile Vergnügung und die Ergebnisse wunderschön.

Allerdings brauchen die Kinder zum Anfang ein paar Hinweise, sonst werden sie schnell frustriert:

- mit kleinen Stücken Wolle zu arbeiten, damit die Wolle zum Jutestoff klebt

- eine Demonstration, was man mit der Wolle machen kann, z.B. zum Ball formen wie man mit Knete macht

Die Kinder haben gut zugehört und haben danach ganz kreative Bilder gemacht!

linked to Waldorf Wednesday at Seasons of Joy

and Friday's Nature Table at The Magic Onions

and Montessori Monday at Living Montessori Now

and Eco Kids' Tuesday at Organic Aspirations and Like Mama - Like Daughter

Sketchy Sunday

As some of you may remember, my one New Year's resolution this year was to sketch for at least 10 minutes each day. Well, I can't say that I get to it everyday, but the result is that I sketch A LOT more than I used to! 

We're joining the Artsy Ants again for Sketchy Sunday. Being a part of their link party gives me a lot of motivation and some accountability as well to make time for drawing. And my children like to join in as well.

Last week, the theme was "Telephone". 

Here is my nine-year-old son's contribution:

And mine:

My 7-year-old daughter is still taken by the theme two weeks ago, "Kitchen", and drew this:

This week's theme is "Walking".

My son's work:

And here's mine. I was interested in the idea of a Victorian lady walking and came across a picture that produced this sketch:

I've also been spending a great deal of time at Art Graphica and letting myself be inspired by their on-line tutorials and classic art books. They inspired these two works:

A more realistic sketch in graphite . . . 

and an oil pastel still life . . . 

Next week's theme at the Ants is "Pet". They'd love to have more people join in!

Easter Club 2013 Week 2

Die 2-te Woche der OsterAG fing mit der Geschichte, "Die Gesichter Christi" an. Dadurch haben wir das ganze Leben Jesu von Geburt bis zur Auferstehung erfahren. Wie letzte Woche haben wir wieder überlegt, warum Ostern eine traurige und eine glückliche Seite hat.  This week's Easter Club began with the Godly Play story called "The Faces of Easter". It tells the story of Christ's life from birth to resurrection. Like last week's story, it also explains why Easter has both a sad side and a joyful one. 

Unten im Foto habe ich das letze Bild hingelegt, das auf einer Seite die Kreuzigung zeigt und auf der anderen die Auferstehung. Danach habe ich getan, als ob ich versuchte sie beiden Bilder auseinander zu trennen. Die Kinder haben festgestellt, dass dies unmöglich ist. Ohne die traurige Seite von Ostern hat man keine glückliche Seite. In the picture below, I am placing the last card on the underly that has the crucifixion on one side and the resurrection on the other. At one point, I take the card and try to physically separate the two sides from one another. Then, I explain to the children that this is impossible, and that this is the mystery of Easter. Without the sad part of the Easter story, we cannot understand the joyful side.

Die Bilder sind in einer Linie gestellt bis kurz vorm Ende der Geschichte. Da erkennen wir, dass obwohl die Kreuzigung ein Ende ist, ist die Auferstehung ein neuer Anfang. Wenn wir die Bilder in einen Kreis umstellen, kann die Geschichte immer weiter gehen. Danach sind die Kinder eingeladen um das Zimmer zu schauen, ob sie etwas finden, das hilft uns mehr von der Geschichte zu erzählen. Man kann unten sehen, was die Kinder ausgesucht haben.  The pictures remain in a line until the end of the story. But then we realize together that although the crucifixion is an ending, the resurrection is a new beginning. By putting the pictures in a circle, the story can go on forever. Then, the children are invited to look around the room and find an object that could help us to tell more about the story. You can see some of the things that the children chose below. 

Wir haben eine neue Station in der Kreativzeit hingefügt. Die Kinder malten "Pysanky" (ukrainische Ostereier) mit Kleber und Kreidepastel. We added a new station to the Response Time this week. The children began making glue and pastel "Pysanky". Pysanky are Ukrainian Easter eggs that often have Christan symbols on them. 

Unten zeichnen zwei Mädchen ihre Designs. Below, you can see two girls making the initial design for their eggs.

Kreidepastellen können Kindern eine große Quelle von Frust seine, da das Medium nicht gerade leicht zu steuern ist. In der Kunstpädagogik hat sich eine Methode entwickelt, in der die Kinder zuerst das Bild mit Bastelleim umskizzen. Nachdem der Kleber getrocknet wird, kann das Kind mit der Kreidepastellen in diesen "Kleber-Grenzen" leichter arbeiten. Chalk pastels are quite difficult for beginners to work with and many children are easily frustrated by them. A good method for helping children control the medium is to have them outline their designs in glue. Then, once the glue has dried, the child can boldly blend colors within these "boundaries" and avoid a big, chalky mess. 

Der zweite Schritt mit den Kreidepastellen kommt nächste Woche. The children will begin adding colors to these designs next week.

Das zweite neue Angebot war Wollebilder auf Jutestoff zu "malen". Die Wolle klebt an den Jutestoff ohne Bastelleim. Nachdem die Kinder ein bisschen Technik relearnt haben, konnten sie schöne Bilder entwerfen. Ich werde die Bilder zu Hause ein kleines bisschen mit Filznadel nachfilzen, damit sie fester bleiben.  Another new station was "painting" pictures with wool and burlap. The wool sticks to the burlap, so there was no glue involved. Once the children learned a few techniques (that I will describe in a later post), they were able to create beautiful pictures. 

Das Bild errinert an die Impressionistin, oder? Doesn't this remind you of an Impressionist painting?

Diese Kind hat einen Maulwurf gemacht, da es ein Buch darüber in der Schule las. This child made a little black mole that she read about in a book at school.

Wir hatten auch Stationen mit den Auferstehungseiern, Ton und Ölkreide. Unten ist ein Kunstwerk von einem Kind mit Ölkreide, in dem der auferstandenen Jesus und die drei Frauen am Grab zu sehen sind.  We also had our Resurrection Egg station, a clay station and one with oil pastels. Here is a child's oil pastel painting of Jesus coming out of the grave to the astonishment of the three women who witnessed the resurrection.

 Bis nächster Woche! See you next week!

Hier könnt ihr über Woche 1 lesen. 

If you would like to read about Week 1, click here.