Video: Discipline in the Classroom

Please take 10 minutes to view the video below from my friend, Greg Gosselin. Greg gives a fantastic presentation on classroom discipline with principles that apply to both the preschool and the school age classroom. He also includes several practical strategies that you can begin this week in order to improve discipline in your class.

Sin or Childish Immaturity

Dunlop makes some key points about children and discipline in this chapter.

• She quotes Walter Wangerin's distinction between punishment and discipline. "Discipline is an extended and carefully managed event, not a sudden, spontaneous, personal reaction to a child's behavior." As transforming teachers, our job is to discipline, not punish.
• "Unless the misbehavior is deliberate and defiant, discipline can usually be gentle redirection." This redirection can take the form of a pat on the shoulder, a soft voice stating what you need the child to do, or moving to sit next to a noisy, wiggly child. If you sense that the behavior is defiant, let me know. I will intervene with that child and his or her parents so that you can continue teaching with as little interruption as possible.
• Discipling children also includes recognizing and praising positive behavior. An appropriate hug, a word of compliment in front of the parents or a note in the mail goes a long way in reinforcing the behavior that we expect from our children.
• Try to distinguish the child's behavior as either willfull sin, inappropriate behavior as a result of immaturity or acceptable childishness. Provide correctives that match the behavior. "With greater maturity and experience comes a better sense of whether something is just childishness, immaturity that needs to be gently corrected, or sin that demands loving intervention."

As children of our Heavenly Father, we receive his discipline. Although it does not seem pleasant, but painful, we and our students will receive righteousness and peace because we have been trained by our Lord's discipline. (Hebrews 12:11)

Videos: Characteristics of Preschoolers and Children

I've posted two short videos below from the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions about the characteristics of preschoolers and children. Each video is less than 10 minutes. Take some time today to view the age group video that corresponds to your Sunday school class. Pray asking God to teach you how best to teach his kids!

Knowing Who You Teach

To be transforming teachers, we need to know what we are teaching (God's life changing Word) and who we are teaching (preschoolers and children). Children learn in diverse ways and have different abilities based on their ages, development and life experiences. Dunlop gives several great suggestions for learning more about the children in our classes.

• Subscribe to a magazine geared to their age.
• Watch a few television shows that they watch. If you don't know, ask them.
• Talk to a school teacher who teaches the same age.
• Notice the vocabulary that the Sunday school learner guide uses.
• Sit down and chat with your kids about what music, movies, games, or videos they enjoy.

Take time to know your students. They are made in the image of God. Ask God to reveal himself to you through the students you teach each week.

The Faith of A Child

Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

Because of you, our children hear the word of God each Sunday. Yesterday I saw you nurture the faith of our children through excellent teaching.

• Our ones were walking along a "brick" path to discover a picture of Jesus riding the donkey.
• Our twos were sitting on their red story blanket singing songs and waving palm branches.
• Our threes were actually riding on the back of their brave teacher-donkey as he crawled on the floor passed the other children waving paper branches.
• Our fours listened to the Bible story read from God's word.
• Our fives pulled special markers from the Bible to read the Bible phrase.
• Our first graders hopped, swam, crawled or galloped across the room to learn about words of praise.
• Our second graders worked a puzzle with the books of the Bible.
• Our third graders waved palm branches to celebrate the Triumphal Entry.
• Our fourth graders used words and phrases to guess every day locations where they can praise God.
• Our fifth and sixth graders used media and Scripture to learn how to keep their hearts pure.

Heritage Teachers, you are making an eternal difference in the lives of these kids. You are planting seeds of faith that will bloom in this generation and in generations to come (Psalm 78:5-7). You add value to the church because of your investment in the Kingdom.