From: Adam
To: Randi and Kelly
Subject: Practicum Report #4
A. Time Spent this Week
10/14/07- 2 1/2 hrs. (SS=1 hr; AM Worship= 1 1/2 hrs)
B. My Class this Week
This week’s symbol of the Holy Spirit was circumcision. That’s right; I had the honor of explaining this one. Normally, there is a picture of the symbol on the handout page, but as you could guess there was no picture for this one. I taught on how the Holy Spirit gives us an inward desire to love and obey God. It is the Holy Spirit, not us, that cuts out sinful desires of the flesh and places in us a humble dependence on God. It is the Holy Spirit’s work, not ours.
Steve taught once again on the compassion of Christ. His format is a clear and systematic way of looking at the Scripture passages he has picked out. He has a handout printed out every week in a table form. For example, this time he had the Scripture verses on the left column of the table and three questions on the top row of the table. The three questions are: “Who was shown compassion?”, “How did Christ show compassion?”, and “What Response was given to Christ’s Compassion?” As we answer the question, Steve asks more questions and fills in details about the passage. He knows a lot about the culture of the people at the time, which is very helpful to understanding the passage.
I am finally beginning to get people’s names. These are some of the new names I have learned that participated this Sunday:
1. Lydia
Lydia was very involved this class period.
2. Lydia
No, I did not make a mistake. There are two Lydias. One is a freshman, and the other is a senior.
3. Diana
4. Jess
5. Kristen, Aaron, and Michelle
These three are friends from IWU who are all three nursing majors. They said they had a huge workload this week. For the most part they were quiet during class, but Steve called on each one of them to either answer and question or read scripture. Even though they did not voluntarily participate, they did so willingly when asked and were able to contribute meaningful answers.
8. Morgan
9. Alyssa
Alyssa prayed to begin class. She remained attentive the whole time.
10. Connie
I met Connie the first week this year, and she is very faithful and is good at contributes to the team.
11. Guy at the end of the row
I really need to learn his name, but he finally participated today! He answered one of the questions toward the beginning of the class. I did notice later that he drifted off.
C. My Questions this Week
1. I will be teaching the Sunday after next. Should I follow Steve’s way of teaching with the table, or should I bring in more class discussion? I guess I am a little nervous doing it Steve’s way because he is so knowledgeable and can also lecture on a subject. Should I do it this way to get practice with more a lecture type class, or should I do it the way I feel more comfortable with more discussion and interaction?
2. What kind of structure should I provide for the class? I am afraid that the class will expect me to teach exactly like Steve does, which is impossible. How do I present my unique teaching in a way that the class will understand and be able to learn from?
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Practicum Report #3
From: Adam
To: Randi and Kelly
Subject: Practicum Report #3
A. Time Spent this Week
10/7/07- 2 1/2 hrs. (SS=1 hr; AM Worship= 1 1/2 hrs)
B. My Class this Week
Today, I had the opportunity to present the Holy Spirit symbol of wind. The lesson this Sunday was on the Compassion of Christ. We looked at several Scripture passages: Matthew 20: 29-34, Mark 1: 40-45, and Luke 7: 11-19. Steve is a good teacher. He is very energetic and animated, and he uses gestures and hand motions. He presents it in a very clear way, but most of all, he really cares about us. He makes a point to learn everyone’s name and ask personal questions to get to know us. He is a really great mentor and teacher. He brings the passage that we are looking at to life. For example, we were discussing the passage where Jesus heals the two lepers, and he brought it to life by explaining that people with leprosy were shunned in those days. They had to carry around bells to warn people that they were coming. Steve pointed out that Jesus actually physically touched them to heal them. He related touch to compassion. He described what that would have looked like by describing that leprosy turns skin black. In this way, he brings the story to life. He also asks good probing questions to get us thinking.
We also took a Sunday school outing today at the Cunningham’s (members of the church). This was a good time of fellowship and worship. We ate, sang, and shared what God was doing in our lives and what we are thankful for.
1. Dave
Dave is Krista’s husband, and he goes to Taylor. He does not talk much, but when he does I can tell that he is still engaged in the lesson or conversation.
2. Dave #2
Dave does not go to college, but he faithfully attends every week. He is probably the most faithful attendee.
3. Krista
Krista is Dave’s wife. Krista is the organizer. She organized our Sunday school outing this Sunday at the Cunningham’s property. She delegated jobs and made sure we had enough food for everyone.
4. John
John was engaged in asking questions today. He asked some good questions about the lesson.
5. Alyssa
Alyssa is from Taylor, and she was called on to pray for us today.
6. Rebecca
She always tries to see the other side to things, and is very good at presenting it critically without being annoying.
7. Guy on the end of the row
He found his usual spot at the end of the row, and it did not seem like he was engaged this Sunday either. I did get an opportunity to talk to him last Sunday, and he does seem like a nice guy. He was open to talking to me and I felt a genuine sense of warmth toward me, but he does not participate much in class.
C. My Questions this Week
We had a class outing today after service around a camp fire, and it was a very worth-while time of fellowship. Is it necessary for Sunday school classes to do something like this? If so, how often?
Do you feel Sunday school class should be primarily a discussion between students or primarily a lecture with purposeful questions?
To: Randi and Kelly
Subject: Practicum Report #3
A. Time Spent this Week
10/7/07- 2 1/2 hrs. (SS=1 hr; AM Worship= 1 1/2 hrs)
B. My Class this Week
Today, I had the opportunity to present the Holy Spirit symbol of wind. The lesson this Sunday was on the Compassion of Christ. We looked at several Scripture passages: Matthew 20: 29-34, Mark 1: 40-45, and Luke 7: 11-19. Steve is a good teacher. He is very energetic and animated, and he uses gestures and hand motions. He presents it in a very clear way, but most of all, he really cares about us. He makes a point to learn everyone’s name and ask personal questions to get to know us. He is a really great mentor and teacher. He brings the passage that we are looking at to life. For example, we were discussing the passage where Jesus heals the two lepers, and he brought it to life by explaining that people with leprosy were shunned in those days. They had to carry around bells to warn people that they were coming. Steve pointed out that Jesus actually physically touched them to heal them. He related touch to compassion. He described what that would have looked like by describing that leprosy turns skin black. In this way, he brings the story to life. He also asks good probing questions to get us thinking.
We also took a Sunday school outing today at the Cunningham’s (members of the church). This was a good time of fellowship and worship. We ate, sang, and shared what God was doing in our lives and what we are thankful for.
1. Dave
Dave is Krista’s husband, and he goes to Taylor. He does not talk much, but when he does I can tell that he is still engaged in the lesson or conversation.
2. Dave #2
Dave does not go to college, but he faithfully attends every week. He is probably the most faithful attendee.
3. Krista
Krista is Dave’s wife. Krista is the organizer. She organized our Sunday school outing this Sunday at the Cunningham’s property. She delegated jobs and made sure we had enough food for everyone.
4. John
John was engaged in asking questions today. He asked some good questions about the lesson.
5. Alyssa
Alyssa is from Taylor, and she was called on to pray for us today.
6. Rebecca
She always tries to see the other side to things, and is very good at presenting it critically without being annoying.
7. Guy on the end of the row
He found his usual spot at the end of the row, and it did not seem like he was engaged this Sunday either. I did get an opportunity to talk to him last Sunday, and he does seem like a nice guy. He was open to talking to me and I felt a genuine sense of warmth toward me, but he does not participate much in class.
C. My Questions this Week
We had a class outing today after service around a camp fire, and it was a very worth-while time of fellowship. Is it necessary for Sunday school classes to do something like this? If so, how often?
Do you feel Sunday school class should be primarily a discussion between students or primarily a lecture with purposeful questions?
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