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JAM – Jesus and Me!
JAM, or Jesus and Me!, is our rotation Sunday school that takes place
during the 11:00 blended service. Some Adult Sunday school classes that
meet during this time are Generation J and Seekers.
What
IS rotational Sunday school?
In rotational Sunday school, major Bible stories and concepts are taught
through kid-friendly multimedia workshops: Art, Drama, Music, Dance, Cooking,
Games, Movies, Puppets, Storytelling, Computers, and any other educational
media that is appropriate to the lesson at hand. The same Bible story
is taught in all of the workshops for four or five weeks, rotating the
kids to a different workshop each week.
Here’s
why it works:
The workshop rotation model concentrates on the major stories of the Bible
over and over again. It recognizes that kids not only love repetition,
but they need it to develop lasting memory and understanding of content.
The multi-intelligences approach in the model isn’t a fad or merely
kid-friendly; it is calculated to take advantage of our student’s
God-given thirst for multi-modal learning.
Imagine…
…kids who are learning about the Exodus from Egypt and the Passover.
They will spend one week sharing a seder meal, and the next week making
a Hebrew tambourine in the art workshop. The next week will be spent in
a dance and music workshop to better understand the role of music in Hebrew
worship. The following week, those same students will be in the Holy Word
Theater, discussing films that depict the exodus from Egypt. Another week
might be spent in the Acts worship, where the kids will have the opportunity
to wear costumes and act out the Bible story.
How
are the students grouped?
Students are grouped in “tribes” by grade levels:
Tribe of
Dan (Kindergarten – 1st grade)
Tribe of Judah (2nd – 3rd grade)
Tribe of Zebulun (4th – 5th grade)
The students should join the group that corresponds to their grade level in school. All groups will visit all of the workshops.
How
will the kids know where to go each week?
All classes will meet at 11:00 a.m. in the Upper Room (upstairs in the
education wing) for opening music and prayer. Then the groups will be
taken to their workshops by their “Shepherds”, the guides
who will remain with them from week to week. Students will return to the
Upper Room at the end of JAM, where their parents will pick them up.