Sunday mornings

During the school year, we utilize Workshop Rotation for children and youth.

At First Congregational, we want our children to know the stories of the Bible in order for them to have the tools needed to grow in the faith.  We believe that it is through these stories the children and youth learn
-to know God
-to discover how God wants us to live
-throughout history, humans have struggled with both of these same questions.
So how do we teach these stories?
Through the WoRM - Workshop Rotation Model

The Workshop Rotation Model
-is a "new model for teaching and learning in Church School, not just another curriculum.
-utilizes creative, interactive teaching methods.
-presents creative environments for learners
-teaches Bible stories and applies them to present-day life
-is modeled on the way children learn:  through drama and role-play, movement and games, computers, smells and tastes, visual stimulation, listening and talking.
Workshop rotation is a fresh method to help students grow in knowledge of scripture and faith in God.  Workshop rotation allows leaders to  teach in a way that best suits their gifts
The cornerstone of all learning is repetition.  This is true whether you’re learning to walk or shoot a basketball, memorizing math facts or learning a Bible story.Workshop rotation covers the same story for 3-5 weeks.  Slowing down allows students to learn and reflect on the stories.
Each age group rotates to a different workshop each Sunday, and spends the whole class period there.  Art one
week; cooking the next, for example. They hear the same story through a different teaching medium.  Because of the longer time in a workshop, they can do real art, complete a computer program, or fully prepare a
drama or puppet show.  Students learn better when content is presented in a multi-dimensional approach and reflect more as mastery improves.

Traditional classrooms have become
-A Bedouin Encampment
-God.com
-Thou Art!
-Acts of the Disciples
and other sites such as the kitchen and even the outdoors are regularly utilized.  Children "rotate" to a different workshop site each week to learn the Bible story.

see a movie of our favorite drama workshop - Four FriendsI