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Looking for a low-cost curriculum for your small church Sunday school? Need your curriculum to work for multiple ages? Look no further! Read on to hear Holly’s ideas and experience solving this very problem.
Have you ever had to ‘wing it’ when teaching your small church kidmin?
I sure have! We all have to go with the flow sometimes, but trying to put together a lesson from scratch each week — especially if your kidmin ministers to children of multiple ages in one class — can cause stress and lead to burnout.
The problem is, kidmin budgets are often small or nonexistent for small church children’s ministries. Unfortunately, not many published curriculums are geared toward small churches, multi-age kidmin, or low budgets!
Let me tell you the inexpensive, widely available, easy-to-use resource that helped me stop scrambling week-to-week planning KidMin lessons: The Beginner’s Bible from Zonderkidz!
Why is this such a great Sunday school curriculum resource for small churches?
- Inexpensive: You can find a new copy for between $7-$10 online or a used copy for even less.
- There is an accompanying website, www.TheBeginnersBible.com, that includes free games and teaching resources.
- The Beginners Bible iPad app is free with stories, audio, and games.
- Each story is short, illustrated, and presents basic information for young learners.
- There are free video episodes available to stream on YouTube.
- Websites like teacherspayteachers.com also have printable activities you can purchase and download that correspond with The Beginners Bible.
- The stories follow the sequence of a regular Bible.
- Each story includes scripture references so you can easily locate the story in the Bible for more advanced learners.
Looking for a Sunday school curriculum built for small churches?
We recommend Two or More™—a low-prep, Bible-rich curriculum created specifically for small churches. It works with mixed-age groups, flexes to fit whoever shows up, and makes it simple for volunteers to lead. Learn why we love it here.
Already using it? Check out our Two or More™ video guide for practical tips to get the most out of every lesson.
How I Have Used The Beginner’s Bible
1. Sunday Morning Sunday School
I have used The Beginner’s Bible to teach my Sunday school class, ages 3-kindergarten. This is the perfect age group to read the stories and share videos, as well as play games you find from the website or the app!
I also made my Sunday morning class inclusive for children with special needs. Sometimes, that meant an older child joined us for our lesson — and sometimes a younger child or a child in need of more support to understand a story from The Beginner’s Bible.
No problem!
The pictures and videos are excellent visuals to use so children who are younger or have special needs can be included. There are no shortages of games or activities to go along with the story to engage all modes of learning –– listening, looking, and doing!
2. Homeschooling
In my homeschool, I use The Beginner’s Bible to introduce a story to my children (who are 3 years apart — kindergarten to third grade is a big gap!). The basic story, along with some questions or an activity, is enough for my kindergartener. My third grader enjoys using the scripture references included with each story to look up the ‘whole’ story in the Bible to expand her understanding.
Both of my children love watching the videos on YouTube after we have covered a story in The Beginner’s Bible!
I also purchased a curriculum package on teacherspayteachers.com that includes printable worksheets and activities to go along with The Beginner’s Bible, which I used to get my kindergartener used to doing some writing and table work. The package also includes some adorable crafts!
Stop ‘winging it’ each week in children’s ministry!
Give yourself the inexpensive gift of a convenient small church kidmin curriculum!
- It’s cheap and widely available
- There are tons of free companion resources available
- Younger kids will enjoy it as is
- There are opportunities for enrichment for older kids
- It’s organized and ready to go for you
Happy teaching! Find me on the Small Church Ministry Facebook community: Creative Solutions for Small Churches!
Looking for a step-by-step guide to starting or restarting your children’s ministry?
Check out the Children’s Ministry Bundle For Small Churches!
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