...igniting powerful change in the lives of urban youth
Summer JAM 2014
Silas Group Responsibilities
Weekly Theme Center
Each week, the PreK-1st grade classroom has a theme that they spend the week learning about. Your week’s classroom theme is listed on page 1. The weekly theme is incorporated into many aspects of the daily schedule, but it is specifically taught during the Third Center, which your group is responsible for planning.
There are 15 minutes set aside on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for this center, so you will need to plan three 15-minute activities that teach or incorporate your weekly theme. For example, if your weekly theme is Weather, you might plan to create “tornado in a bottle” on Monday, a rainbow craft on Tuesday and an activity about the different types of clouds on Wednesdays.
Contact the Summer Director with questions or if you’d like help planning your weekly theme centers.
Bible Craft
Your group is responsible for preparing one Bible craft for the students to complete. This craft should reinforce one of the week’s four Bible stories. You must submit your craft idea for approval to the Summer Director by May 23.
Guidelines for Your Craft:
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Choose one of your week's four Bible stories and choose a craft that will reinforce that story.
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Please prepare one craft that will take up the entire 30 minutes of allotted time.
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Arrive with all of the necessary supplies.
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Think outside the box – let the kids create something they’d want to keep!
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Crafts should be appropriate for ages 4-6. Approximately 35 children will complete the craft.
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Please prepare specific instructions for putting the craft together, including a completed craft to use as an example.
What NOT to Bring:
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Foam stickers
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Coloring sheets
Shared Reading
Please choose an oversized story book to bring with you. The book should be understandable to 4-6 year old students and should take 5-10 minutes to read aloud. Your group will read your chosen book during Shared Reading every day from 11:10-11:20. This is a great opportunity for your youth group member’s to get involved directly in teaching the preschool- and kindergarten-aged students. Choose one reader for the whole week, or one volunteer each day. Bonus points if your shared reading book coordinates with the weekly theme!
Learn more about Shared Reading here!
Thursday's Party
On Thursday, we have an end-of-the-week party for the PreK-1st grade classroom. Your group is responsible for hosting this party from 11:40-1:45.
You will need to provide lunch and activities that reinforce your weekly theme. For example, if you are planning a party for World and Culture week, you might plan a “taste testing” lunch with foods from around the world, and follow that up with activities like multi-cultural dress-up, foreign language exploration, and a dance party to foreign music.
You are also encouraged to decorate the classroom to reflect the weekly theme. Depending on your weekly theme, you may have to get very creative! If your weekly theme is Weather, why not have a “rainy day” party outside with water guns and sprinklers?
Contact the Summer Director with questions or if you’d like help planning the Thursday Party.