God’s Garden Children’s Ministry curriculum is a complete curriculum for ages 3-12.
>>The curriculum was written with two main purposes in mind:
The first was to have a curriculum that was both Bible-based and supernaturally minded. What I mean by this is simply that I wanted a curriculum that treated the supernatural as simply a natural part of life. Therefore, instead of the supernatural being the main focus, it is included naturally as the curriculum travels through the Bible. Hopefully this will help produce children that have a strong Biblical foundation and view supernatural as “normal”, rather then something you have to strive after.
The second purpose was to tie the Old and New Testaments together. This is important because it helps children to understand the character of the Lord more clearly. For this reason each lesson is followed by a “New Testament Connection Lesson”. This helps to bring a continuity to the Bible. Hopefully as the children see the two connected together, it will help them to see the consistency of Father God in their lives as well.
>>The bulk of the curriculum consists of Fourteen Units with eight lessons each. (There are also an additional three units that are four lessons each.) These units are available for three age ranges: Preschool, Early Elementary and Later Elementary. At our home church we change things up in the summer and take a break from the curriculum. This means that it takes us three years to make it through the entire curriculum. It also means that a child will have gone through the Bible between two and three times during their time in our ministry. Since the curriculum changes through the age groups, it enables the children’s understanding to grow and evolve as they do.
>>The Pre-K curriculum uses “The Jesus Storybook Bible” for many of the lessons. While it would be possible to use it without that Bible, it is not recommended and would require changes.
>>The curriculum is a stand-alone curriculum. However, there are other resources out there that are great tools and recommended for you to keep on hand for use in the classroom as time allows. (For example: we have a “class game book” available in each classroom with easy game ideas / rules appropriate for that age group. Then, as there is extra time–or extra squirrelly children–teachers have a resource right there with ideas ready for immediate use. We also keep “My heart’s a bucket” booklets from Mike Seth available–along with the props!–available in each room.)
>>Each lesson follows the same format: Introductory Activity, Lesson and Optional Activities. For the older children many lessons also include Optional Journal Activities.
>>Sample Lessons: