All your children shall be taught by the Lord,  
and great shall be the peace of your children!  
Isaiah 54:13 
 The workshop held at Christ, Blacksburg, last Saturday was an incredible opportunity for learning, sharing, and enjoying a fantastic lunch.

 
Dr. Amy Dyer has many credits to her name (click on her photo to read more about her), but on Saturday she was there to offer background and training on a curriculum she helped to create, the Episcopal Children's Curriculum (ECC).

The ECC is available for three age groups: Preschool/Kindergarten, Primary (grades 1-3), and Intermediate (grades 4-6). For each age, there are three years of material. During "Shell Year," Baptism is studied; in "Chalice Year," the Eucharist is studied; and in "Cross Year," the focus is Worship. The years of study may be done in any order. 

During each year, four units are included: Old Testament, New Testament, Sacraments, and the Church. Lessons on major events of the Church Year, such as All Saints and Pentecost, are also included. Each unit will have nine lessons, for a total of 36 possible lessons each year at each age level. 

For each curriculum year, there is a Teacher's Guide and age-appropriate supplementary material, such as symbol cards, learner's books, reproducible puzzle pads, and student newspapers. Classroom teachers are able to choose from a variety of materials and activities each week, matching materials to the needs and abilities of the class.

The truly amazing thing about this curriculum is that it is available online at absolutely no cost. You'll find it at Virginia Theological Seminary's Center for the Ministry of Teaching's website.

If you have questions or would like to learn how it's going for Christ, Blacksburg, Ann Stith would be glad to work with you. Email her at virginiaannstith@yahoo.com. 
 
While Dr. Dyer was with the group, she shared a remarkable group of resources that are also available to all through the Center for the Ministry of Teaching. 
  • Episcopal Teacher is a quarterly publication that is free for the asking. This would make a great gift for Sunday School teachers from their parishes! It can be sent by mail or by email. Episcopal Teacher features news, reviews, opinions, and other articles about faith formation in the Episcopal Church and beyond. You can download the Summer 2016 issue here.
  • Building Faith is a website which offers "Christian Formation inspiration," found at http://www.buildfaith.org. Here you'll find articles and suggestions for all ages--perhaps tying together your children's programming and adult offerings. Look for "Home Practices"--do-able, adaptable, fun, and meaningful.
  • Key Resources, another website, offers commentary and tutorials on a variety of parish-related topics. An example would be the helpful Vacation Bible School reviews found on the site.

Explore for yourself and see what you find! 
Nancy Kershner (Ascension, Amherst) has more resources to share with anyone who is interested:

Godly Play: An Imaginative Approach to Religious Education by Jerome W. Berryman, 1991
 
Teaching Godly Play: The Sunday Morning Handbookby Jerome W. Berryman, 1995
 
Developing Christian Education in the Smaller Church by Carolyn C. Brown, 1982  
 
Building Faith Brick by Brick: An Imaginative Way to Explore the Bible with Children by Emily Slichter Given, 2014.  
 
Resources are free to anyone in the diocese. Contact Nancy at nkershner54@gmail.com.
Kate Garcia
The Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia
540-342-6797