Had an awesome day teaching Sunday School.
Yesterday, I had a awesome day teaching Sunday School.
There are good days, bad days, and days in between with the Sunday School kids. We have a most unusual group dynamic because we have an unusually high number of special ed kids. It just worked out that way-- I guess because we are such an open and welcoming church.
Last Sunday was tough as we were doing a scene from “Jesus Christ Superstar” that the older kids just love, (Jesus in the temple), and this one kid kept going “meeeep!” everytime I turned my back. When I turned around, the other kids immediately point to tell me who did. It was our newest student.
I didn’t punish him, or single him out. I haven’t quite figured him out yet, and I figured a public scene wasn’t going to help matters. I needed to talk to his grandma first. She takes him to church. I need to find out more about him, and if he has special learning needs. I suspect he does, and we may have one more special ed student. His behavior is not that of a normal student, and he is having some difficulties fitting in with the others.
I didn’t punish him, or single him out. I haven’t quite figured him out yet, and I figured a public scene wasn’t going to help matters. I needed to talk to his grandma first. She takes him to church. I need to find out more about him, and if he has special learning needs. I suspect he does, and we may have one more special ed student. His behavior is not that of a normal student, and he is having some difficulties fitting in with the others.
I thought about him all week, and how best to handle the situation should the “meeps!” start again on Sunday, I was going to sit right next to him on his carpet square. This would totally freak him out. Iwwwww! The teacher is sitting next to me! Yeah, buddy, try meeping now... I’m six inches from your face, and will remain here for the remainder of class... Without my saying a word, or making a scene, I have subtly let him know that his meeping from the previous week did not go unnoticed. I decided his meeping meant he was seeking attention. So, I would give him attention. Lots of it, and at very close range. Matter of fact, everytime he did something, I would give him just as much attention. Lots and lots and lots of it. That should work, until I figure out how he is wired, what his internal issues are, and how best to meet his unique learning needs. My belief is that every behavioral issue has an underlying cause that needs to be addressed, not punished. Figure out the need, and solve the problem. I have a good relationship with my Sunday school kids. I just haven’t figured out this new one yet. But, I will.
Ah, but he was not there yesterday.
And, neither were two of my other children with special learning needs. So, it made for a very quiet Sunday School. I had about ten children in the class and they were enthusiastic and well-behaved. We had a terrific discussion before we started the movie about that day’s gospel reading, and then we reviewed the material we covered the week before. I was very impressed with how much the kids’ had remembered from the week before, and how precisely they could answer questions. They are totally mastering all the complexities we’ve been discussing-- the complex political and historical times in which Jesus lived. We talked about the Roman occupation. The Jewish high priests, versus the trade people, and the very poor Jewish people, such as the disciples, and many of the followers. (All of Jesus’ followers were Jews. Gentile followers did not come about until after his death. I didn’t know that until recently. I’d always assumed his followers included “everybody,” but that didn’t come about until about 50-75 years after his death, as his movement grew and people came to think of themselves as “followers of Christ.”)
We then watched the temple scene again, for the sake of those not there the previous week. And, I wanted the other kids to see it again, because, quite frankly, the “meeeps” had sort of ruined it the week before, and its a very powerful and important part of the whole movie. It is a true turning point in the relationship between Jesus and Judas, and marks the final straw that causes Judas to go to Caiphus and betray Jesus.
Plus, the music is incredible.
And, its just really fun to watch Jesus smashing a whole bunch of stuff.
We fondly call it “Jesus throws a temper tantrum.”
This concept is extremely important for the kids because it completely changes how Jesus is normally betrayed. (It is the whole reason why movie theaters were burned down when this movie first came out. Attitudes have changed since then. The movie is now rated “G.”)
Jesus is normally betrayed as what I called “Dollar Store Jesus.” Ever see those cheap wax candles, or plastic “stained glass,” with pictures of Jesus on them, and he is this pious soul, with almost no emotion, eyes turned upward to the heavens?
Well, nobody actually looks like that.
Nobody human anyway.
And, Jesus was human right up until his death.
It it makes his death so significant.
He suffered, died and was buried, and on the third day, he rose again.
That’s the whole point...
So, if the kids don’t get the “human” part, then the whole “rose again” part is not very significant at all.
The kids can relate to being so mad you want to smash something.
I pause the movie and ask them: “Have you ever felt like this? So mad you want to smash stuff?”
Every single of them yells: “Yeah!”
I shout: “Me, too! Plenty of times!” and we continue on with the movie.
When Jesus is singing the song “Gesthemene” and questioning his father’s decision to have him be brutally tortured, and killed on the cross, I stop the movie and ask the kids: “Have you ever disagreed with your parents? Thought they were wrong and you were right? Felt like they just didn’t understand you?”
Every single hand goes up.
I raise mine, too.
“That is EXACTLY how Jesus is feeling right now,” and we continue on with the movie.
“So, you can see how tough it was for him to then go through with all of this,” I said.
One of the kids raised their hand: “So, do you think it was God’s plan all along for Jesus to die like that?”
“Yes,” I responded, pausing the movie, “I do.... Now, why do you think that was important?”
He nodded his head very thoughtfully, you could just see the thoughts swirling in his head as he pondered these words, working out his own belief system.
There was silence for a long moment, and then several hands shot up into the air. You could just see the neurons firing as they all had those wonderful “ah hah!” moments.
I called on the very first one who’d raised their hand...
“Jesus had to die like that because if he didn’t rise from the dead then nobody would have believed he was the son of God!”
Ah....
Its a truly beautiful thing to watch in progress.
And, that, is what Sunday School is all about-- providing the children with all the information we have from those times, and then allowing them to work out their own belief systems.
I was so proud of my kids yesterday. They asked the best questions. I can just see how their thinking is evolving to the next level, and how much deeper they are looking into the material. Their understanding of the complexities of those times has grown so much. It is no longer a flat, dry, boring story to them. It has come to life with real characters, and real people, who really lived, and really had emotions, just like they do...
And, now, it is up to them to decide how they think, feel, and wish to believe about all of this...
Good kids. They are all good kids.
No “meeps” today
Monday, April 7, 2008
