Categories
K! Magazine Magazine

Do your kids struggle with memorizing something?

Cartoon of a boy with a mechanical thinking cap on his head

 

Cartoon of a boy with an industrial-looking cap on his head. He says to a a woman, “Thanks to my thinking cap, I’m going to win this year’s memory verse challenge!”

We are always looking for an easy way to do something. It’s usually the way innovation happens. We are always looking for ways to make something easier. We want to buy the latest gadget to make something in our lives easier.

Do your kids struggle with memorizing something like a Bible verse, the presidents of the United States or prepositions? Instead of finding a steampunk-inspired thinking cap, have your kids try these tips.

  • Get some index cards and have kids make their own flash cards. The very act to making the cards will help with memory. You can get creative and use images as well as words. This works with visual as well as kinetic learners. If a child speaks it while he or she writes it, it also helps auditory learners.
  • Kids can walk or use hand motions to help them memorize. It helps kids who learn kinetically to move as they learn. It also helps emphasize important passages.
  • Make a song out of it. Auditory learners may grasp something when it it put to music or a rap.
  • Be an example. Find something you want to memorize and try these techniques. You may find something that works for you also works with your child.

Even though we live in an age where we can search the Internet for a fact, memorization is still an important skill. Encourage kids to memorize facts and passages.

I drew this cartoon for Kidzmatter Magazine.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Categories
Bible Proverbs webcomic

How a book can give wisdom

Cartoon of a dad and a boy with a broken window

Cartoon of a boy with a baseball bat and a broken window. An angry dad says, “That was NOT a wise choice, young man! Go inside and read Proverbs!”

I drew this old cartoon when I was thinking how I would need to discipline my newborn son. I believe he had to go to his rooms a few times, though I don’t remember if I specifically told him to read out of Proverbs!

When it comes to books in the Bible, Proverbs is unique.  There are no stories. It is a book of wise sayings that will keep you from big trouble if you follow its advice.

But reading Proverbs or any book does little good if you don’t put it into practice.  I have read many a book with great advice that I have never put into practice. The danger in that is you can feel you have accomplished something without really doing it. It’s all the satisfaction without the hard work!

My goal today is to actually put into practice what I’ve read today. Now where is that Bible?

Enhanced by Zemanta
Categories
books

Social Reading

Joe Wikert has a great post on the future of social reading. He states how many cynics believe reading will always be a solitary event, while he asserts great startups like ReadSocial and BookShout are making social reading attractive.

In many ways, this is a nod to the past when storytelling was a social event that would be held around a campfire. The storyteller would weave history and tall tales while the audience would give their approval. It was part history and part drama.

Until recently, literacy was only for the well-educated. If you wanted to hear God’s word, you went to church and heard the pastor or priest read from scripture. Even if you could read, Bibles were too large to be toted around. It was only when books became portable that reading could be a solitary event.

Technology is allowing us to become social readers again. We can be part of a larger community that shares our reading interests. It’s an interesting world we live in!

Categories
activities Adobe Illustrator Bible illustration Story figures The Gospels

Story Figures: Jesus Calms the Storm

Illustration for a curriculum activity. I drew these figures for the story of Jesus and the storm. Based on John 6:16-€“21; Matthew 14:22-€“36

I drew this activity a couple of years ago. It was fun working on this one. I imagined how the kids would act out the story as one child would “rock” the ocean and another child would add voices to the scared disciples. I’ve always admired Peter’s chutzpah in this story too!

Categories
Adobe Illustrator Bible Exodus word search

Word Search: Moses and the Plagues

Word Search puzzle for the Plagues of Exodus. The caption reads, “Pharaoh hardened his heart against the Israelites. God brought ten plagues onto the Egyptians to show His mighty power. Find the ten plagues in the word search above.Exodus 7—12”

This word search is available as a high quality pdf. Click on the image to get the Acrobat file.

You can use this file for home, school and ministry use. Do not use for publishing or resale without my permission.

Enjoy!