Year 3 Christianity. How can the Bible help a Christian with their way of life? (Autumn 2)
Session 1 - What is a sacred text? Is the Bible a Best Seller?
KEY WORDS - Sacred; Worldwide; Bible
QUESTION - What do you think will be the top ten list of books sold in the world?
Can they think of a book which has sold more copies than Harry Potter?
What book is the most important one in your life?
Why is it important?
Why do you value it?
Then think about a special event.
Other than being born what is the most important event in your life, do others remember it differently?
How do we record events today?
How were they recorded in the past?
The Bible is considered a sacred text within the Christian faith.
Look at a Bible timeline and explore how different parts of the Bible were written at different times.
Session 2 What is in the Bible and who wrote it?
KEY WORDS Books in the Bible; Different texts
Explore all the different versions of the Bible.
Compare child’s favourite book to the Bible- how is it different?
Watch the following clip to aid discussion 1 and discussion 2
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01910px
DISCUSSION 1
Look at a variety of different types of books and examine how they relate to the different books in the Bible.
Can anyone explain the different purposes?
Discuss contents - Finding out about different literature in the bible: poetry, songs, laws, history, prophecy, gospels, biographies, proverbs stories, prayers and teachings.
DISCUSSION 2
Explore how the Bible is a source of authority.
What does this mean for a Christian?.
BIG QUESTION - How many books are there in the Bible?
Session 3 How do you find particular verses in the Bible?
KEY WORDS Scripture; Testament; Saviour; Emmanuel; Messiah
Revisiting the timeline of the history of the Bible in groups. Can you highlight areas which you recognise and make connections to prior learning.
There are two main languages used in writing the Bible, Hebrew for the Old Testament and Greek for the New Testament. There is also a third language calledAramaicwhich was used for a few chapters.
Aramaic was a popular day to day language used in Israel during Jesus’ time so he may have also spoken it.
Using the followingchart to show the two parts of the Bible, the Old and New Testaments, as being thosewritten before and after the birth of Jesus. including some of the different literature found in the Bible as discussed last session.
Notice how some of the Bibles are the Good News Translation. Why are those versions called this?
How do you find particular verses in the Bible? Have a go with your shared copies.
Play Bible races, to become comfortable searching for the books, chapters and verses.
Find all the Old & New Testament books.
Remember to use referencing skills.
Find different terms used to describe Jesus.
Session 4 Why are there different kinds of Bibles?
KEY WORDS Bible Translation and Versions; Belief in action.
Explore a story that can be found in each of the Bibles e.g. a parable or a miracle, story of Jonah.
Work on large sheets of paper to compare the story in each of the Bibles which they have on their table then swop Bibles with another table.
Discuss how the text and use of language changes according to when the Bible was published and who was meant to read it.
Have a look at a particular verse which the class pick from a selection and search for it on different Bibles or Bible Gateway.
Why do they think different Bibles write things slightly differently?
Look at the website of Wycliffe Bible Translators. Watch the video about Gift and Kathryn.
Kathryn used to live in Cheshire West and was a Librarian in some of our local libraries before going to Uganda.
Discuss why Christians in the UK donate to this charity.
Why do people like to have the Bible in their own languages?
Consider how the lives of Christians in the communities in which Kathryn and Gift work.
How does knowing Jesus impact their lives?
Session 5 What does the Bible mean to a Christian?
KEY WORDS Faith; Wisdom; Guide; Belief in action
Ask a Christian about how their lives changed when they met Jesus or if they grew up knowing him?
Try and guess what these images could mean to a Christian...
The following idea is from Barnabus in School
Scratch your head looking puzzled and then open the book and read it – Christians believe it is like a guidebook that shows the way
Fence with the book as if were a sword – Christians believe it is like a sword to fight off what is dangerous and harmful, because it shows people what is the right way to live.
Use the book as a hammer – Christians believe it is like a hammer to break up wrong ideas about ourselves and others and even wrong understandings of God
Cuddle the book close – Christians believe it is a comfort when times are tough, reminding readers of God's love that doesn't change and God's plans that are bigger than the present moment
Pretend to eat the book -Christians believeit is like food that makes people strong. The stories in this book give Christians energy and nourishment for their day to day lives.
DISCUSSION
Do Christians consider themselves to be disciples of Jesus today?
What would it mean to be a disciple for those with a Christian worldview?
What is wisdom? It is about how you apply your knowledge.
Who would you turn to for advice who you consider to be wise?
In groups look at 5 of the Bible Wisdom Quotes.
What do they mean and can they think of a situation when that wisdom would be useful for them?
How would these quotes be useful for a Christian in their daily lives? Then look at the full list. Children to select their favourite quote then tell others in their group why they picked it.
Children can pick their top five wisdom quotes which they can then present as a poster.
TEACHERS NOTES
The 3 best selling books are -
BBC Two - Pathways of Belief, The Bible: The Old Testament, What is the Bible?
https://www.wycliffe.org.uk/stories/why-translation-matters/
https://www.wycliffe.org.uk/resources/videos/
https://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/ pick a selection of quotes from here or a similar website.
What does the Bible mean to a Christian?
What is wisdom? It is about how you apply your knowledge. Who would you turn to for advice who you consider to be wise?
In groups look at 5 of the Bible Wisdom Quotes.
I wonder what do they mean and can they think of a situation when that wisdom would be useful for them.
Then look at the full list. Select your favourite quote then tell others in your group why you picked it. Here is one example...
How is art used in the Bible?
Look at works of art depicting Bible stories. Discuss what they show, what they might mean and what feelings they suggest. Who are the people in the picture? What are they doing? How are they behaving towards each other? What might they be saying to each other? Which Bible story is the picture describing? What are the main colours? What do the colours add to the picture? Is it possible to take anything out of the picture and leave the same meaning? What do you feel when you see the picture?
http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/biblical-art.htm
http://www.johnaugustswanson.com/default.cfm/PID%3d1.2-26.html