Tag: teaching

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books motivation teaching

Reinforce a Lesson by Teaching Someone

Cartoon of a teacher and a circle-shaped character

The other day, a coworker was asking me how I keep my notes organized. I responded that I have got a lot out of a web site and book about the Bullet Journal Method.

It reminded me of how valuable it is to reinforce a lesson by telling or teaching someone the same lesson. I have been using a variation of the method for some time and bought the book in the spring. I was reminded of how effective the method was when I told him how it helped me.

If you are a lifelong learner, I suggest you find a way to teach what you’ve learned to others. You don’t have to be an official, formal teacher. You can just share what you’ve learned to your friends or people at work.

If you have found a piece of knowledge to be useful for you, chances are another person can benefit from it. In turn, that helps you remember the lesson and reinforce it in your own mind.

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motivation

What About the Next Generation?

This morning, I get to teach kids about treating everyone as  VIP. The bottom line is that we need to honor others by putting them first.

I am so thankful I’ve had the priviledge to teach kids over the decades. Yesterday, my wife and I saw one of our former kids in children’s ministry that is now an adult. It’s so gratifying to see kids you once taught now having kids and teaching them life lessons.

Never forget the next generation. It can be frustrating to teach kids when you wonder if they are listening. It can be easy to write off a hyper seven-year old. But you never know how much they are listening. You never know if the lesson they hear today, could be the one thing they remember twenty years later when they are going through a tough time.

Always invest in the next generation!

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motivation

To Get Your Point Across, Get Silly!

The other day, I was leading a group of elementary kids in a lesson. That day’s game was to do a silly human trick. I demonstrated by doing a seal impression.

No, I wasn’t a Navy Seal. I honked like a sea lion while the elementary coordinator bounced a beach ball off my nose. Then the worship leader sprayed the kids with some water. You know how those seals splash around. How else are you going to show the monthly theme of courage? By doing something silly in front of a room full of kids, of course!

Seriously, too many times kids and adults get set in our ways. We think our current belief is the only option. during those times, it takes a creative presentation to make others think differently. Now I’m not suggesting you imitate a sea lion in the board room. Then again, maybe something absurd and silly like that is just the thing to get a group thinking in a different way.

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Business teaching

Teaching in Order to Learn

It amazes me whenever it happens. Whenever I teach, I learn just as much as the students. I have seen it when I lead kids in large group on a Sunday morning. And I have seen it in the workplace as well. 

For the last two weeks at work, I’ve had the opportunity to teach a person my duties. I’ve been in my role for under ten months and there are many things about my job that are still new to me. The person who taught me retired in late June. Since then, I have been applying what she taught me. Now I have the chance to do the same for another person.

As I have shown her the systems, the exceptions and the why behind the way we do things, I have been energized. Sure, I am not using the same words, and every experience is different. In fact, that is part of the teaching/learning process that thrills me. I can paraphrase what I was taught and see the results in a whole new way.

We have this tendency to believe once we are done with our formal schooling, we are done with education. This fallacy keeps us from growing. I have found it is much better to keep learning. And one of the best ways to learn is to teach others what we do.

Blogging is one way we can do that. And that is why I am going continue writing about my experiences and the lessons I’ve learned through being a writer, illustrator, and a graphics manager.

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children's ministry cartoons

Background Checks and Halos

Cartoon of a woman talking to a man with a halo. She says, "It's very nice. I still have to run all volunteers through background checks."
Copyright ©2015 Kevin H. Spear

If you are running any nonprofit or children’s program, it is imperative you run background checks on everyone.

I have heard too many stories where children were abused because everyone assumed a volunteer was trustworthy. When it comes to a child’s safety, never assume!

Continue reading “Background Checks and Halos”