10 Ways to Make Your Lessons Interactive

I still remember my experience as a child sitting in a boys' Sunday School class.  I can't remember the content of the lessons.  But I can remember, how boring the class was.  It was like torture.  Sitting in the classroom for an hour.  Listening to the Sunday School teacher ramble on and on with a voice that reminded be of the teacher on the Charlie Brown show.

Now don't get me wrong. I look back now and I have the utmost appreciation for those teachers. They faithfully showed up.

But they had no clue about how to make the lessons come alive and engage us as children. All they knew how to do was lecture.  Read the verses from the Bible and then talk about the verses with a monotone voice.  

I also remember this. There were two teachers in one of my classrooms. One taught the lesson and the other teacher would sit quietly with us.  I can remember the teacher who was sitting with us going to sleep during the lesson.  The monotone lull of the teacher's presentation and content would cause the other teacher to go to sleep. It was that bad. One teacher droning away while the other teacher went to sleep. As kids, we endured the lesson while watching the other teacher slump into a deep sleep.

What was missing in the lesson?

What caused us as kids to disengage from the lesson?

What methods and techniques could the teachers have used to keep us engaged with the lesson?

What could have turned the worst hour of our week into the best hour of our week?

I can solve this with one word.  What is the word?

INTERACTIVE. 

If you want to make your lessons engaging, then you have to make them interactive. Here are 10 ways you can do this.

Play games. 

Kids obviously enjoy playing games.  Incorporate games into your lessons.  Not only review games, but games throughout the lesson.  One of favorite things kids love to hear at church is "who wants to play a game?" 

Interactive scripture reading. 

Instead of reading the verses yourself, have the kids read the verses. 

You can also make it fun by having kids use different voice variations while they are reading.  Have them read the verses with a low voice. Have them read the verses with a high-pitched voice. Have them read the verses with the voice of their favorite cartoon character. 

If you do want to read the verses as the teacher, then have the kids clap each time you say a certain word. 

Use motions when you are singing.  

Motions is a great way to get kids involved in worship.  One of my favorite worship leaders for kids is my friend Travis August.  We have 13 of his original worship songs available.  The song you see below is free and you can download it instantly. Here is the link to the songs.

Have kids act out the Bible lesson.

Telling them the story about the disciples in the boat with stormy weather?  Turn over a table and make it the boat. Have some of the kids get in the "boat" and act out the lesson while you are telling it.  

Have kids make sound effects.

Take the story I just mentioned.  Have some kids make the sound of the wind blowing.  Have some kids make the sound of thunder crashing. Have some kids make the sound of the tumultuous water.

Use hands-on activities.

Get kids up and involved. Provide hands-on activities that will allow them to use their creativity.  Instead of lecturing them, give them the opportunity to participate in active learning.  Here's an example. Have them use Legos to build a house with a hole in the roof.  Tie this into the story of the men who tore off part of a roof to lower their friend down to Jesus.

Have a scavenger hunt.

Kids love this.  Here's an example. Hide something that ties into the lesson. Give them clues they work through together to find it.

Use icebreakers.

Use icebreaker games and activities that will help kids get to know each other better.

Ask them questions.

Use open-ended questions that will get them talking and interacting with the kids around them.

Drawing.

Most kids love to draw. Have them draw objects or people from the Bible story.  

These are just a few ideas that will make your lessons interactive. Use these tools to move away from lecturing and I promise you that you will see kids much more engaged with your lessons.  

What are some other ideas you have to make lessons interactive?  Share them with us in the comment section below.