D Music is an important part of faith development. It helps children develop their knowledge of God and it is also a way for them to express their relationship with God. Through music, children can explore who God is and how God relates to them.
Issue 43
1 Music is a way to learn about God:
Music communicates truth and information about God. Songs declare who God is. Look for songs that teach important themes and make sure that your songs convey some of the key ideas you want your children to know about God. Music is also a powerful memory tool and song lyrics have an amazing ability to help children remember truths and verses from the Bible.
2 Music is an expression of relationship:
Music is not just about input. It is not only knowledge and learning. It is about responding to God. Music allows children to express a range of emotions in a non-threatening way - when everyone else is singing around a child, no one is paying attention to them. They can let God know how they feel about him.
This WAY2GO magazine has a lot of ideas about music and some practical ideas to help you use it well with your children. If you have more ideas, let us know on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/SUNZ.nz
MUSIC IN THE BIBLE In Bible times, music was an important way for God’s people to communicate, pray and worship. Music was used to express a range of emotions and feelings towards God. Music was used to remind the Israelites of the e past and God’s faithfulness. Songs told their story. Welcome to th ine. az ag m WAY2GO Read Psalm 13:5-6. Then put some music on and give people r fo s yourself some time with God. It’s full of idea h children who work wit es and local But I trust in your unfailing love; in their church my heart rejoices in your salvation. community. pass it I will sing the LORD’s praise, Pull it out and . nd for he has been good to me. ou 2013 13 arjuly
SONGS
Songs have an important place in our programmes. Here are some handy hints to help you use songs well.
Think about why you are using songs. Are you: •Letting off steam? •Having fun? • Reinforcing the day’s learning? • Providing an opportunity for the children to respond to God in worship? Choose your songs and place them in your programme carefully according to what you want them to do. Do not choose too many songs, instead use a few well-chosen songs repeated over several weeks to help the children become familiar with them. Teach your songs well. Do not take too long teaching a song. Keep it moving along. Introduce a song by: •Teaching your leaders ahead of time •Singing it to the children •Singing it with the children •Introducing the actions last
Use the TRIM test to help you choose good songs: Trim
Think about this Ask these questions:
T R i M
Teaching Relevance
Interest
Meaning
Is it true? Does it clearly reflect biblical teaching?
Is it relevant to the needs of the children? Are the ideas expressed within their experience?
y ch ww
Are the words and music interesting to the children? Can children sing it? Is it enjoyable? Can the children understand what it means? Are there any hard words or phrases that need explaining?
When you have chosen your songs, write them out clearly. Write on calico thermadrape or use a data projector. Use lower case letters rather than all capitals and write in letters large enough to be seen from the back.
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More than Singing Music involves listening and reflection as well as singing. To try this with your children, choose some music or a song carefully. Think about using adult worship songs, but make sure you choose a song with lyrics children can understand, and without Christian jargon. Tell them that this is time for them to think about God and talk to him. Invite them to sit or lie down while they listen. If you feel like they need something to do while they listen, show some photos on a PowerPoint, or give them a piece of art paper and some charcoal to draw with. 14 sunz.org.nz
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ng i k You can make them with your a m Try children – that way they have a l a c i s u strong sense of enjoyment as they use them. Or if you prefer, get . these m s t n e together with your leaders, drink m coffee, eat muffins and make several instru
different sorts. This means you can put out different types of instruments according to the mood you want to create, or sometimes you can just put out a mixture and have some fun. When you make them, make sure they are strong and safe for your children to use. Lots of the equipment is available from discount shops very cheaply. There are some more ideas for easy instruments on our website www.sunz.org.nz in our WAY2GO section.
GUIROS
Each child will need a clear plastic bottle with ridges, a chopstick, sparkly pipe cleaners, glitter and PVA glue. Take the plastic bottle and put in a few sparkly pipe cleaners and some glitter. Put some PVA glue into the lid and fasten it tightly. Scrape the chop stick along the bottle and work out some different sounds.
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Ribbons
Each child will need an ice cream container lid (or you can use a paper plate), scissors and 3 lots of ribbon each 1 metre long. Take an ice cream container lid and cut a circle out of it. (Make it as big as possible.) Then cut a smaller circle out of the centre. Loop and knot the ribbons around the circle to make streamers. Spend some time working out some different movements with them.
GIANT DRUM
To make your giant drum, you will need a large piece of durable fabric like vinyl, suede, leather or fake skin from a fabric store. Cut the fabric into a rough circle. Each child will need a wooden spoon, scissors, permanent felts and lots of coloured electrical tape. Help each child to make a beater by taking a wooden spoon and wrapping the spoon end with electrical tape. Decorate the beater with permanent felts. All sit around the drum holding the drum skin tight in one hand and the beater in the other. Strike the drum together at the same time. july 2013
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What do a pile of pumice, a box of sticks and 2 SUNZ workers have in common? Well, last weekend they were all in Napier where Raewyn Rowney and Paul Dadd were invited by The Salvation Army to run a training day for children’s ministry workers in the Hawkes Bay area. It was a wonderful day and very exciting to see so many leaders enthusiastic about the children they work with. SUNZ run training days for churches like this all over the country. If you would like us to come to your church and work with you, please do get in touch with us. Email: way2go@sunz.org.nz Phone: 0508 423 836
Jesus’ Life Through the Lens Check out these fantastic, high quality photos of scenes of Israel. Each photo comes with background information and great ideas to use in your programme to bring the Bible to life. We are giving one of these away free to the first person who rings and mentions WAY2GO. If you miss out, they are available as packs of 5 different photos for $22.90 from SUNZ.
Godsongz for Kids This is a great CD with songs suitable to use in schools or church programmes. We like it so much that we’re giving one free to every SUPAkidz Club, but if you would like a copy for yourself, they are available from us. There is also a free clip on our website where Felicia and Rosemary talk about their CD and how to choose good music and teach it well. It would be great to help you talk about music with your team so check it out. Check these resources out and discover more online at www.sunz.org.nz, or freephone us on 0508 423 836 to talk about them with us. Scripture Union wants to work with your church to create opportunities for children and young people to discover and follow Jesus, grow as leaders, and influence the world. We’d love to hear from you.
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Scripture Union in New Zealand – PO Box 760, Wellington 6140 way2go@sunz.org.nz – 0508 423 836 – www.sunz.org.nz