Story Box Bible Tales (PDF Download)

Content

Story Box Bible Tales uses simple everyday objects and a variety of helpful prompts to encourage children to tell and share stories from the Bible, and interweave these stories with their experience of everyday life. The aim is to enable children to own Bible stories in a meaningful and lasting way, and to engage both children and adults on a journey where the story is told and shared together.

The story objects can be kept in a special box or bag decorated to reflect the theme of the story and used time and time again. Each story also offers an optional related craft activity designed to extend or enhance the storytelling experience.

All the stories are linked to key moments in life such as special times of year and significant milestones, or everyday themes such as holidays or making friends.

The ideas provide an ideal opportunity for families to explore the Bible together at home and talk about the memories and activities they share. In church, the stories can be used in junior church and Sunday groups, all-age services or midweek clubs.

Themes covered include:

• Times and seasons
• Beginnings and endings
• Everyday living
• Friends and family
• Learning about God's love

Ideal for 6-10s and their families.

Full contents list:

Times and seasons

• Christmas
• Easter
• Harvest
• Birthdays
• Holidays and days off

Beginnings and endings

• New baby
• Baptism
• Weddings
• Saying goodbye
• New places

Everyday living

• Using our skills
• Gatherings
• Relying on each other
• Caring for others
• Times of struggle

Friends and family

• Making friends
• Family time
• Giving each other space
• Falling out
• Coping with disappointment

Bible themes

• The story of creation
• Seeking God in all things
• Teaching about forgiveness
• Teaching about prayer
• Serving God

Bible index

Commonly used objects

Endorsements

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Author info

Eve Lockett is a licensed lay minister in the diocese of Oxford. She regularly contributes to family services and school assemblies, and for some years helped with an after-school club involving biblical storytelling. Eve graduated in English and Fine Arts from Exeter University and has a diploma in Biblical and Theological studies from Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. She has written two books for Barnabas, Tales of Grace (2005) and Tales for the Prayer Journey (2007).

• View other titles by Eve Lockett

Reviews

From The Church Times - 17 February 2012

Story Box Bible Tales offers Bible stories accompanied by simple, everyday objects. Like a Generation Game conveyor belt, the objects act as memory aids for the children recalling the story, and this is followed by questions that help children to reflect further. The objects include simple things such as a paper crown to symbolise kingship, or a piece of blue fabric for water. A craft idea accompanies each story and completes each session.

Also, a Bible index helps leaders to link the Bible stories given to the lectionary, if appropriate. Once the general principle of story and object is grasped, it would be fairly simple to adapt other Bible readings to the same story-object-reflection pattern.

The model offered by Eve Lockett in this book would be ideal for a weekly group, so long as some form of prayer were included. The 25 stories cover a variety of themes, and each session would fit a short junior-church-length period, maybe ten to 20 minutes. They are not always challenging, but the brief sharing of memories and personal experience could lead to helpful group insights. They are also ideal as a supplement to the stock of ideas for all-age sermons.

Reviewed by Dana Delap, a member of the Church of England's Liturgical Commission.

Book details

• ISBN: 9781841018119Z
• Published: 21 October 2011
• Status:
• Format: PDF Download
• Pages: 168