A diffident enquiry from one of the pews at the back

[racingsnake]

I have been following these converstations for a while, enjoying the variety of lurking behind a pillar or hanging about just out of sight near a bonfire. I came across you all while wandering on the internet looking for teaching resources, and it has just occured to me that you may have some ideas to share about teaching the Lord's prayer to five and six year olds (which is what I should be thinking about).
I actually find Halloween, Bonfire Night etc rather more interesting. Surely Bonfre Night isn't really about burning a 16th century Catholic but just part of the pre-Christian samhain/new year's festivities which has been given a nice acceptable non-pagan explanation? Probably the bonfires long preceded the Gunpowder plot?
Anyway, does anyone know of any really nice activities I could do with a class on Wed, based on the LP? I find the whole thing very difficult to explain. Maybe you do something in church or Sunday school, or your dc's have come home brimming with excitement from school one day?

I remember what Temple Grandin wrote about this from her perspective when she was a child(she's a famous engineer who has a highly visual mind...)

?The Lord's Prayer was incomprehensible until I broke it down into specific visual images. The power and the glory were represented by a semicircular rainbow and an electrical tower. These childhood visual images are still triggered every time I hear the Lord's Prayer. ... Another adult with autism wrote that he visualized "Thou art in heaven" as God with an easel above the clouds. "Trespassing" was pictured as black and orange NO TRESPASSING signs. The word "A-men" at the end of the prayer was a mystery: a man at the end made no sense."

Children interpret things in very different ways sometimes. But it got me thinking about how to make the Lord's Prayer into pure pictures, and then put them into sequence.

Yes, I like that idea. Lots of sequencing in classrooms, and I like the idea of the children making an image for key phrases. I remember one friend when I was at school who found the line 'Harold be thy name' a bit of a mystery. You would spot that kind of thing with pictures.

These look good:

www.coloring.ws/prayer.htm

Yes, they do. Great. I'll print them tomorrow. Time for a glass of wine then after putting dd to bed! Thank you!

You could start by using the contemporary version -

Our Father in Heaven,
Hallowed be your name
Your kingdom come, your will be done
On Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us today our daily bread and
forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not in temptation but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.

I think with little ones you just concentrate on memorise the prayer. Explanations can come later. The concepts are really quite hard for a five year old to grasp.

If you are teaching them about prayer in general, you can teach them the structure that the Lord's Prayer has - ACTS - adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication, and then get them to write their own prayers on one of these themes.

I like the idea of ACTS. I will add it to my bank of RE resources. Thanks.

This is another one which is good with children:

How to start?

Use your hand.
Your fingers can be used to remember different things to pray for.

thumb
this is the strongest digit on your hand. Give thanks for all the strong things in your life, like home and family, relationships that support and sustain you.

index finger
this is the pointing finger. Pray for all those people and things in your life who guide and help you. Friends, teachers, doctors, nurses, emergency services and so on.

middle finger
this is the tallest finger. Pray for all the important people who have power in the world, like world leaders and their governments, members of parliament and local councillors, the Royal Family, other world leaders and their governments.

ring finger
this is the weakest finger on your hand. It can not do much by itself. Remember the poor, the weak, the helpless, the hungry, the sick, the ill and the bereaved.

little finger
this is the smallest and the last finger on your hand. Pray for yourself.

We've used that one with our children when they were little. It is great.

Actually, now you've reminded me of it, I might use it at school with my form. Year 7 isn't too old