Church in School – More Ways to Connect

What is it?
An afterschool club based around reading stories from the Lion Storyteller Bible and acting them out
 
When?
Straight after school for 45 minutes

Where?
In a classroom

Who attends?
An average of 10 Key Stage 2 children weekly, mostly church attending children from many different churchmanships and some children who don’t attend church
 
How often?
Weekly, with parents attending every half-term

Who runs it?
Planned and led by Centenary Project Worker Kirsty Dronfield and RE lead for the school Mrs Briscoe with Oversight Minister Luke Graham visiting and leading some sessions too

General Structure

5 mins – Icebreaker game e.g. a thumb war
5 mins – Recap of the story so far, led by the children
5 mins – Read the next part of the story with each child reading a few lines each
15 mins – The children act out the story using simple props brought by the leader e.g. paper trumpets and a sheet representing a river
5-8 mins – Gather together to talk about what the story is saying about God, led by the children but facilitated and summarised by the leader
2 mins – The leader reads a prayer and invites the children to say their own or say amen at the end
5 mins – The children are given a memory verse printed on a piece of card and a sweet as they leave

Things to Note

The leader assigns the different acting roles and the role of director to different children each session. The director is given a loud speaker made out of card to show they are in charge of telling the other children what to do.

Engaging with Families

Each child was given a Storyteller Bible of their own to have at home as the church was able to get them cheap second-hand and provide them to the families. 

The parents of most of the children attend a special half-termly session which includes a performance by the children, discussion about the story and prayer. 

Young Leadership

The children are able to influence and take the lead in most aspects of the sessions and take centre stage when their parents attend. This makes it a very creative, chaotic and exciting group to run.  

The Impact so Far

The Storytellers afterschool club has enabled the children to get creative around Bible stories and relate to them in meaningful ways. They have really engaged with the Bible at home and even spot if the leader has missed something out when reading a story.

A lot of families already attend events ran by their own churches but a few from Storytellers have attended the community events organised by Kirsty and Luke.

Future Hopes

Kirsty’s prayer is that the children continue to engage with the Bible in their own way and feel excited to share what God is saying to them with their friends and family. She plans to continue the group but include a craft and more Bible study going forwards as these seem to be the parts that the children enjoy the most. She hopes that the children will perform stories in assemblies too so that she can keep inviting more children to have a go!

Comments from The Children

“It’s fun and we get to learn about the Bible and act things out.”

“We get to learn about God and take it in turns to lead and do different parts.”

“We learn about God and it’s still fun.”

Could This Work in Your Parish?

A similar structure may be right for your parish if you’re hoping to run an afterschool club but would also like to engage with parents too. This group might be good for engaging Key Stage 2 children and older and encouraging young leadership.

This could also be a helpful structure if you want to do something weekly but don’t have much time to plan and prepare resources.

Some possible aims when leading an assembly

• Promote positive qualities and life skills
• Discuss things in life which are difficult and complicated
• Link concepts to Bible verses and stories, or tell the children ‘what Christians believe…’ about a subject
• Provide time for children to reflect
• Invite children to ask God for help, particularly with aspects of school life

In a Church of England or Christian School

• Be led by the school as there may be many Christian elements already embedded in school life
• Collective worship in a C of E school may have more of a worship element including occasional sacramental worship
• Children may have jobs including writing prayers and helping to tell Bible stories.

Top Tips for Best Practice

• Get the children as involved as possible. E.g. by asking questions, using drama or giving children different responsibilities
• Use images, videos, props, demonstrations and real-life examples
• Break down the information or concept that you’re trying to convey into smaller chunks
• Don’t impose, invite: the children haven’t chosen to be there
• Remember you are a guest in the school
• Maintain appropriate boundaries when talking about experiences and personal beliefs
• Don’t forget DBS checks, safeguarding training and safer recruitment (if forming a team)
• Can the school provide an induction?
• If in doubt, discuss it with the school

What Next?

• Check out the examples and links on this webpage
• Meet with school leadership (and children where possible) to discuss a plan for your assemblies going forwards