How to teach effectively: Simplify your lesson.

 How to teach effectively: Simplify your lesson:

We know we've won as teachers when our kids practice what we teach in the classroom, on the playground, and at home. The whole point of simplifying a Bible lesson is to ensure that our learners understand concepts that are slightly difficult to grasp in the same way that the lesson is clear and that it edifies, guides, and instructs them in the right manner.

This is slightly embarrassing for me to share. I remember working with a congregation where I was a Sunday school teacher, and working there for a while was a challenge. I had become so confident in teaching kids, which, in itself, was a milestone to celebrate.

So now I am officially a Sunday school teacher in this particular congregation, but the kids' or my new learners were mostly IsiZulu speakers and were reliant on the language. Their new teacher, on the other hand—yes, she is a black South African, but teaching in IsiZulu—was asking me to pull a rabbit out of a hat, and last I checked, I was no magician, thank you very much.

I had hit a conundrum. I did what I do best. What is that, you ask? I teach. I taught these learners in the English language. I had explained to them that I would try as best I could to teach them, and I would try my best to explain certain concepts in IsiZulu.

I was adamant about teaching these beautiful little souls. I asked them what stories they knew in the Bible, and they told me, and I realised they did not know much, so I decided let's start, "In the beginning."

I had to keep in mind the different age groups I had in one class; our class was under a tree, so worksheets, crafts, and crossword puzzles were out the window—not that we had one, but hey, you get my drift.

• Consider your audience:

When preparing for a lesson, we need to consider everything about our audience, e.g., age, environment, demographics, and what appeals to them.

• Study the lesson:

When studying the lesson, we look at the words used in the scripture reading. Words like "God created" are too big for a toddler to grasp, so instead of "God created" we use "God made". We look for simpler words and ways to tell the lesson. "Christ was crucified. This concept you obviously would not teach to toddlers but rather older groups, but we would use "Christ was on the cross."

It is very important to consider the wording we use when teaching a lesson. The words we use are the fine line that separates our learners' understanding of the lesson from not understanding at all.

Please, please, please do study the lesson  know and understand the concept or passages of scripture. You can never sit with your Bible in your face and read out the lesson to your learners; that is CATASTROPHIC.

When teaching a lesson, how we teach matters too; we guide, we instruct, we demonstrate, and we do not preach to our learners. We are loving in our approach, welcoming, accommodating, patient, kind, gracious, and all things good and all things Christ, because essentially, our character speaks before we do.

• Application story:

This is like the hook of a song or the chorus of a song. An application story is a relational story; how do I relate the moral of the lesson to them? What does, the moral or concept have to do with them? These are questions we need to ask ourselves when preparing for our lessons.

E.g., "Jesus said, love one another."

Relational story or application story, Do we show love to our friends at school? Do we show love to our brothers and sisters? Do we show love to our Mommy and Daddy? How do you think we show love?

Drive the concept you are trying to teach by using a relational story or an application story; this makes the concept understandable and relatable.

• Teaching aids:

Teaching aids are exactly that: teaching aids; they do not tell the lesson or make the learners' understand the lesson; rather, they bring light to the lesson. A poster, worksheet, or picture that illustrates the lesson or concept you are teaching (visual aids). You could also have puppets as the characters in the Bible lesson you are teaching; you could have your learners act out the lesson right after you have taught it.

This is what I did for six months with my new learners. I tried my best to simplify the lesson to the best of my ability, but I did not dampen the moral or concept.

After 6 months, my little moppets began understanding English. I strictly stuck to the steps above. We often hear people say less is more, and at times it really is. A simple, clear, and concise approach to our learners can go a long way. A simple demonstration of a lesson can edify and guide our learners in unimaginable ways.