Milestones: First Haircut

Jeremiah received his first haircut this evening.  We've been talking about it for awhile.  Baby curls are cute, but he had what I affectionately referred to as "clown hair".  You know...flat hair on top with hair sticking out around the ears?  Yeah...I'm not really a fan.

Besides the clown hair, I realize that kids are made to grow up.  Not even his curls would keep Jeremiah a baby for long.

Now he's sporting a handsome new hairstyle and looking more grown-up to go along with it!

Our Story, Part 6

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

The thought of another child was definitely at the back of our minds...or maybe the forefront.  Following the Lord in faith is an exciting journey, partly because you never know what's around the bend.  And as we continually gave over our family planning, we wondered what God would do.

It wasn't long before we knew what was next.  One night, when Joshua was only a few months old, I noticed that my hair wasn't falling out like it normally does when I wash or brush it.  From my first full-term pregnancy I knew that could only mean one thing...

The Little One would soon be joined by a Little Two!

Claude and I were really excited about having another baby.  While most people responded positively to our news, we had some exhortations that made it clear not everyone around us was in agreement with our choice of family planning.

Of course, when we welcomed our first daughter, Hannah Elizabeth Chew, to the Crew on a beautiful October day in the fall of 2008, we didn't have any critics.  Who could be upset that we had "failed" to plan to prevent this little one from entering the world?

After Hannah's birth, life went on as it had for the year or two previously.  Claude was working, I was at home, and we were both still in the part-time orchestra.  We had some financial challenges around the time of Hannah's birth but God was faithful to see us through.  We were learning to rely on Him before looking to our own wisdom or resources - something that goes against the grain of what we were taught growing up.

Our one bedroom, fourth floor apartment was becoming less than ideal for two toddlers to be running around, so we started looking for a bigger place.  The problem was that in the New York metropolitan area we couldn't afford a bigger place.  So, we opted for a first floor, one bedroom apartment.  We jokingly said that with the size of the bedroom and knowing that only the laundry room was underneath us, we could live there with four kids and still make it work.

Little did we know...  ;)

We moved into our new apartment (just two buildings down the street from our old one) at the end of 2009, and just a couple months later we had another announcement to make.

The Little Three was on her way!

Abigail Joy Yong En Chew joined the Crew in September 2010, and we haven't stopped laughing with her since!  :)

Life after Abby was born was very full...and very stressful.  I had a hard time adjusting to taking care of a 3-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a newborn.  The winter that year was very cold and snowy.  With giant piles of snow blocking the shoveled sidewalks from the plowed roads, I couldn't go anywhere on my own.  It was a looooong winter and I was glad for spring!

But spring didn't bring all of the relief that I was hoping it would.

To be continued...

Friday Funnies: Spantastic!

I'm standing here listening to an almost 3-year-old say, "That's spantastic, Mommy!"

Any guesses as to what is so amazing that it requires a new word to be added to the English language?

Ramen noodles.  Yep.  I'm winning mother of the year award over here feeding the youngest of the Crew members ramen and frozen corn for dinner.  At least they like it!  :)

What compliments have you received this week?

 

Free Resources for Toddler Bible Lessons

Thanks for stopping by for our last day of the Bible Basics How To Series.  Our previous topics have included:

Why Teach the Bible to Toddlers?
5 Ways to Memorize Scripture with Your Toddler
How to Choose a Bible for Your Toddler
Necessary Materials for Toddler Bible Lessons

Today I wanted to put together a list of some free online resources that have used as inspiration for preparing toddler Bible lessons.  Hopefully these websites, Pinterest boards, and blogs will help get your creative juices flowing as you dig into the Bible with your toddler.

All Inclusive  Bible Lessons
These sites provide Bible lessons, crafts, songs, and printables for a variety of Bible stories.  I have used all of these to some extent, but I never follow a lesson plan to the tee.  I'm always getting ideas and then tweaking them to fit the needs of the particular lesson I am teaching and the toddlers that I'm working with.

In general, I have not found any fantastic resources for toddler Bible lessons.  This is a big reason why I write my own lessons and have started sharing them on our blog.  However, sometimes you just need a place to start and that's where these sites come in handy.

          Ministry-to-Children:  This page has many links to other resources, which is part of what makes it a good place to start.  The lessons are a little "fluffy" in my opinion...but everyone's going for something different.  I like that the lesson plans are laid out with scripture, a list of materials, and even questions to ask your child.

          Little Blots of Faith:  This is connected with another site that will be listed in the next couple of sections.  The lessons primarily contain links to various coloring pages and crafts.  They do, however, have a lot of different options for most of the lessons.  It's definitely worth stopping by to get some ideas.

          DLTK-Bible:  There are several different DLTK sites covering a range of teaching topics.  This one has a few ideas for Bible lessons, along with some crafts, coloring pages, and other resources.  Check out the side bar under "Other Sites" to find more teaching resources.  Many of the crafts and activities I do are not Bible crafts, but they fit the bill for certain Bible lessons.

Bible Coloring Pages and Printables
The following websites are useful for finding coloring pages.  Some are of better quality than others - and that can bother me on certain days.  But there are days when you just want a coloring page and the kids don't really care how well it's done.  I have used all of these sites for free coloring pages and other printables.

          Bible Printables:  These are generally good and the site is easy to navigate.

          Coloring.ws:  This is part of the DLTK network of sites.  You can find coloring pages on many different topics, including Bible.  I don't find these to be the best quality, but they are a good free resource and I have used many of their coloring pages in the past.

          Christian Preschool Printables, Coloring Pages:  This, like DLTK, has many different lessons, printables, and crafts to offer.  Most are geared toward a slightly older crowd, despite its title of "preschool".  Also like DLTK, I don't find these coloring pages to be of the best quality.  They are coloring pages, though.  And they are free.  I have used these a number of times in the past.

          Christian Preschool Printables, Bible Minibooks:  I really like minibooks, even though I haven't found many that are fantastic.  The kids usually like them as well.  There's something about a tiny little book that you made yourself that is just so engaging to a toddler.  Once you figure out how to cut and fold these, you can start making your own (I've done it with free clip art in Microsoft Publisher).

          First-School.ws:  Another DLTK site, this one offers a list of a few Bible coloring pages and crafts/activities.
  
Bible Crafts and Activities
The next set of websites have many different craft ideas for toddler Bible lessons.  Like the Bible lessons, I have used these sites as a springboard from which I usually develop my own projects.  Generally I modify crafts to fit materials that I have on hand or because the craft is a little too involved for a toddler.

          Toddler Activities at Home:   You can find other ideas on this website aside from toddler Bible lessons, but the list of Bible activities is pretty good.  I like that these are usually very simple and since they are designed with toddlers in mind, they need little modification to fit a younger crowd.  I also like the grading scale so that at a glance you can determine if it's age appropriate, simple, and as involved as you have time and resources for.

            Christian Preschool Printables, Bible Crafts:  This is another page from the website listed previously.  It has a handful of fairly decent lessons.  Just be careful as some of the links for lessons are to outside websites - which are not free.

          Christian Preschool Printables, File Folder Games:   I like file folder games, but I don't use them very often.  When I had only two kids (a 1-year-old and a 2-year-old) I actually had some time to assemble file folder games.  Now I just don't have the time.  But I think they're cute and have some potential for keeping little hands and minds busy while reinforcing Bible lessons.

          Christian Preschool Printables, Bible Games:  This is the last of the links for this particular website.  I find it hard to navigate, which is why I linked individual pages here.  These games are mostly printables like card games, puzzles, and the like.  I prefer games that get kids moving around, particularly for toddlers who can't sit still anyway.  Many of these seem a little advanced even for 4-year-olds.  But if you have slightly older kids who like these kinds of things, you may find a game that strikes your fancy on this page.

          Truth for Kids:  These are nice because you can download a PDF of each craft which can be used at home and in the classroom.  Most are pretty good, but generally stick with paper crafts.  I like paper crafts, but they do get old after a while and toddlers, especially, need some activity in their activities at times.  Overall this is a good resource.

Pinterest Boards
Many of my ideas for toddler Bible lessons are coming from Pinterest these days.  Well...most come out of the blue while I'm fixing dinner...but when I'm needing some inspiration I am more and more turning toward Pinterest rather than other online resources.  These boards a few that I've started following recently and have enjoyed.  And of course, there's my Bible board (which isn't much for now, but will hopefully keep growing as I use Pinterest for more than just recipes).

          Preschool Bible 
          Preschool-Bible Crafts 
          Preschool-Bible Activities 
          Preschool Bible Crafts 

And that about wraps up this week's Bible Basics How To Series.  I hope you've found some useful information that will help you as you teach the Bible to your toddler!


What are some of your favorite free resources for toddler Bible lessons?


 
           

          

Materials for Teaching the Bible to Your Toddler

Materials for Teaching the Bible to Your Toddler

Over the past few days we’ve been talking about how to teach the Bible to toddlers.  On Monday we looked at why it’s important to teach the Bible to toddlers.  On Tuesday we looked at 5 ways to memorize scripture with your toddler.  And yesterday I put together a rather lengthy post with some considerations about how to choose a Bible for your toddler.

As we move forward today, I thought it might be helpful to put together a list of materials for teaching the Bible to your toddler.  This list is not all-inclusive and just because I have an item indicated in this post, does not mean that it is necessary to have on hand.  I will include the three things that you MUST have in order to teach the Bible to your toddler.  But the rest are just suggestions of things that I use on a regular basis.

So, without further ado, here are my ideas about what is necessary and what is nice to have around the house when diving into some Bible teaching with your tot.

What You Really Need to

Teach the Bible to Your Toddler

A Bible of your choosing.

A toddler of your liking.

A little bit of your time and attention.

Throw in some creativity and you’re ready to go!

Other Useful Materials

These are the items that I use on a regular basis.  The ones I use almost daily are at the top of the list.  Everything else is in some random order that I thought of while sitting on the couch with a squirming three-year-old.  I limited my list to 20 items, but there are certainly others that can be substituted or added.

Construction paper

Washable crayons and/or markers

Washable glue sticks and/or school glue

Grown up scissors (child safe scissors optional for older children)

Banner paper

Recyclable plastic containers (yogurt, sour cream, etc.)

Toilet paper rolls/tubes

Egg cartons

Craft sticks

Cotton balls

Sand paper

Aluminum foil

Fabric scraps

Felt or foam pieces

Yarn or string

Brown paper bags, lunch bags, and/or old manila folders

Stickers

Washable paints and brushes

Dry beans, rice, and/or pasta

Coffee filters and/or paper muffin cups

Simple Storage Solutions

Generally I like to use storage containers that I have on hand.  I can use old cottage cheese containers (the big ones from Sam’s Club), which are nice and sturdy or some of the larger disposable plastic food storage containers (Glad, Rubbermaid, etc.).  I’ve also used cardboard shoe boxes (from the rare occasion when we’ve actually bought new shoes).

I’ve found the most compact way of storing craft supplies is to use plastic shoe boxes that are sold in packs of 4-5 at places like Target and Walmart.  I can catch them on sale for about $5 around the holidays and back-to-school time.

I also like to use plastic storage drawers.  I have them in two sizes for school, office, and craft supplies.  The medium size ones are good for smaller items like stickers, small paper items, and the like.  The wider drawers will hold stacks of paper, even the slightly larger construction paper, which is nice.

With the shoe boxes and the drawers I usually label each drawer/box so that it’s easy for me to quickly pull out what I need. I don’t like the “Misc” labels, but sometimes they happen.  Oh, well…leftover Easter grass, chalk, glittery pompoms, and marbles don’t always fit easily into other categories.

And that’s it.  The three things you’ll absolutely need and some ideas of other useful materials to start teaching the Bible to your toddler.

What about you?  What every day or unusual items have you used recently when teaching your toddler?

How to Choose a Bible for Your Toddler

Welcome back to the Bible Basics How To Series!

On Monday we started out by getting a big picture idea of why it’s important to teach the Bible to toddlers.  And yesterday we talked about 5 ways to memorize scripture with your toddler. 

Today we’ll be looking at some questions that will hopefully help you choose a Bible for your toddler that you feel is meeting the goals of your family and the needs of your child. 

One thing that drives me nuts about Bible materials for young children is that they are often of very poor quality and usually water down what’s important and emphasize what is not even a part of the biblical text.  For this reason, it’s hard to find a Bible that is written for toddlers and maintains some integrity in terms of content and production. 

In today’s post I’ll give you a few questions to consider as you choose a Bible for your toddler.  I will not make a recommendation because every family has different views and values from each other.  I will, however give a list of Bibles that are out there so that you have a place to start looking. 

Now that we have all the introductions out of the way, let’s jump in!

3 Considerations in Choosing a Bible for Your Toddler

Toddler Bible or Grown Up Bible?  That is the question.

This has to be the first consideration as you look into different options for reading and teaching the Bible to your toddler.  There are a lot of Toddler Bibles, but not one is necessary for introducing your child to the Bible.  I see there being three main options when it comes to a Bible for your young child.

                  1.       Straight Up Grown Up Bible

No illustrations.  No paraphrases.  Just your favorite Bible translation and your own ability to break it down into understandable pieces for your child.

Your child will be hearing the Bible as God inspired men to write it and then again to translate it.  They won’t miss out on anything (unless you choose not to read it to them).  When they are grown up, they will probably be very comfortable working with the translation they know best and possibly others.

This can, however, be a bit daunting when you are trying to keep the attention of a wriggly 2-year-old.  Some Bible narratives are very short while others are long and sometimes span over several chapters with other events interspersed (Abraham is a good example of this).  If you are not familiar and comfortable with the text, it can feel easiest to just skip over things…even important things. 

2.       The Toddler Story Book Bible

This would be on the other end of the spectrum from the “grown-up” route.  Lots of colorful pictures.  A spattering of different Bible stories.  All told from someone else’s theological viewpoint.

Toddler story Bibles are usually very engaging.  Kids generally like the illustrations.  The stories are short and to the point, for the most part.  And it is very easy to pick up one of these story Bibles, flip to the narrative you want to teach, and go for it.  Not much preparation required.

However, many of these story book Bibles are flawed.  Some only include a few of the most popular Bible stories for kids.  Some leave out important information that can lead to confusion or big gaps in a child’s early understanding of scripture.  If you take this path, as most people seem to, make sure you find a toddler Bible that doesn’t skip out on things like, say, the crucifixion? 

3.       Mix and Match

This is what our family does, and what I think can even out the scales.  In our family, we read from a few different “grown-up” translations each evening at dinner and during Family Bible Time.  Our children have grown up – even from the womb – hearing the Bible read in the very words that Dad and Mom study it on their own.

We also have an illustrated preschool Bible story book that has been so well-loved that we replace it at least once a year.  The kids really like to have a Bible that they can flip through, “read”, and recall as they review what they’ve learned in Family Bible Time.  And I like that they have their own Bible to read – it starts them out having an appetite for God’s Word and being able to soak it up in a way that is appropriate for their age and ability.

In the end, no matter how you do it, the point is that you are exposing your child to the scriptures.  And that’s the main point!

The rest of these questions assume that you are choosing a Toddler Bible for your child, whether that includes also reading the “grown-up” version or not.

Theological Interpretation or Direct Re-Telling?

This question is one that I find to be very important when choosing a toddler story Bible.  Some story Bibles tell the Bible stories very plainly without adding any explanation as to why something may be happening.  They do not move beyond what scripture already says.

These are nice because you get a no-nonsense version of the selected Bible stories.  It can also leave some parents hanging out to dry as they try to explain a concept that they can understand well enough on their own, but don’t have the simple, concise explanation to give to their inquisitive toddler.

On the other side, there are story Bibles that are chalk full of theological interpretation.  These will sometimes leave a parent with strong theological ideas cringing.  And some of them are quite poor interpretations with no real scriptural foundation.  These are good when the theology is accurate and is put plainly for little minds to understand.  They are bad when the theology is off and leave both the parent and child with a poor understanding of the scripture passages they address.

My suggestion is to find a balance.  Either way you go, you need to be ready to explain things to your child that are either inaccurate in the Bible story book or give nothing in terms of helpful explanation.

What Is Appropriate for My Child?

You know your toddler better than anyone else does.  I might suggest (and I actually do) that you don’t use a toddler board book since they are often oversimplified and incomplete in their selection of stories.  But, you may have a toddler who simply cannot sit still for a five page rendering of Noah’s Ark, no matter how big the font and illustrations may be.

Looking through several different options will help you to find a Bible story book that will be age-appropriate for your child.  You might consider the length of each story selection, the detail that is or isn’t including in the retelling, and the simplicity or complexity of the illustrations.

And while we’re talking about illustrations, does it matter to you if the characters look particularly “biblical” or not?  Do you want your child to see realistic illustrations or cartoonish characters?  Do you care if Queen Esther sits down in an armchair next to end table that is holding a vase and flower?  Or perhaps illustrations are not on your radar?

Also, important on this topic of appropriateness is the content found in each story and its delivery.  I will address this a bit more in the next section, but it’s important to mention here as well.  Many toddler Bibles err on the side of “caution” and tend to leave out pertinent information.  They don’t want to use words related to or associated with sin or death.  This to me is a big problem, but you need to find your own stance on this.  How much information do you want given in particular passages?  And how do you prefer that information be presented in the Bible story book you choose for your toddler?

Whatever your preferences, find something that will enable your child to build a solid foundation of biblical understanding.

My Personal Considerations

Now, for a few suggestions of my own.  Take this or leave it…I won’t be offended either way.

When Claude and I are looking for materials that support the Bible teaching we do at home, we are usually looking for three main things.  They are listed here in no particular order.

Does It Include the “Hard Stuff”?

With this, we are looking primarily at the heart of the gospel – Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection from the grave.  If a story Bible does not include this text, we will not read it with our children.  In fact, we won’t even keep it on our bookshelves.  Without the gospel, what good is any of God’s Word?  I can turn on Sesame Street or Barney to teach sharing and being kind, but the only place my children can go for eternal life and forgiveness of sin is to Jesus – and Jesus is revealed in God’s Word.

Some other books and Bible story collections that I’ve read also skip over other “hard stuff”.  Noah is a good example.  My kids were given a very cute and chubby board book with the story of Noah.  It talked about a man named Noah who, with some instruction from God, built a big boat that was eventually filled with animals.  The boat kept him and the animals safe during a flood, the whales splashed and played together happily when the rain stopped, and everything ended with a beautiful rainbow.

But why did Noah build an ark?  Why was there a flood?  Why was there a rainbow?  We miss the entire point of the flood account in so many toddler Bible stories because no one wants to tell little kids the truth.  God was angry with the people because they had become increasingly evil.  He wanted to wipe everyone out and start over.  And if you miss that part, then you really miss out on the significance of God’s covenant with Noah as symbolized in the rainbow.

The point of scripture is for us to know God through the study of it.  We can’t really know God if we use a bunch of euphemisms or blatantly cut out the things that are hard for us to wrap our minds around.

Does It Include Extra-Biblical Characters or Events?

This is also very important to us when we choose Bible resources for our children.  I want the Bible story books our toddlers read to include the people and events that are actually recorded in the Bible.  I don’t want teddy bears or modern-day preschoolers interjected in the text or the illustrations.

Along these lines, I also want to make sure that there aren’t a lot of metaphors or other extra-biblical explanations for Bible texts that are included in the story book Bible.  An example of this is taking the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection and likening it to a caterpillar in its cocoon.  A fellow nursery-aged Sunday School teacher had a student tell her the story of Jesus’ crucifixion like this: Jesus died on the cross and then He was buried.  Then He turned into a beautiful butterfly and flew up to heaven.  It’s nice imagery, but as far as I know there is no mention of a butterfly in scripture.

Overall, I feel strongly that extra-biblical imagery, characters, and events lead to confusion.  When teaching toddlers, simplicity is paramount.  Adding in extra people and concepts will only muddy the waters of understanding.  And isn’t it enough to keep the real Bible characters and events straight?  In my opinion it is best to leave butterflies and cuddly bears out of the picture.

Does It Include More than the “Bible’s Greatest Hits”?

For us, it’s important that the selection of stories in a toddler Bible collection be wide enough to cover a range of bases.  I’m not a fan of tiny Bibles with all of ten stories retold inside.  And some of the “Bible’s Greatest Hits” are a bit isolated in terms of using them to build a strong biblical foundation.  It’s all too easy for a compilation of “favorite Bible stories” to be disjointed – not making any sense as to how stories fit together in a bigger picture.

The more stories that are included, the better chance there is of them fitting together and making some sort of sense.  Of course, this is not a guarantee.  Some toddler Bibles do a better job than others when weaving together a string of sometimes unrelated accounts.

I’m generally looking for stories that contribute to developing an overview of biblical history.  You may be looking for something different.  But no matter what you’re looking for, I think that more is better in terms of what is included in a toddler Bible.  For one thing, you get more for your money!  ;)

Last, but not least, here is an informative link with a listof several toddler/preschool Bibles and a review for each one.  You may or may not agree with what the reviewer has to say (I didn’t always agree), but I felt he/she did a very good job and gave some information that would be helpful to anyone who is trying to wade through the choices of toddler Bibles.  The post also serves as a list of some of the common toddler Bibles that you can find – and it has links to each of them which is quite handy.

Now it’s your turn.  What things do you consider when choosing Bible-based resources for your toddler?  What is your favorite toddler Bible and why?