Do you teach Sunday School, Primary, Relief Society, or any other class at church? It’s not always easy, especially when we, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are all volunteers! We’re doing the best we can, but that doesn’t meant we can’t teach a killer church lesson!
If you want to start teaching engaging lessons that your class will remember and help them feel the Spirit, here are a few things to consider.
Start in the manual
The Come Follow Me manual has so many tips and resources. Dive deep and see what nuggets you can uncover. There’s some really great stuff in there.
Don’t sleep on the scriptures
I’ve been in many a class where the scriptures aren’t even mentioned, let alone opened. It doesn’t matter the age or maturity of your class, we can all learn from the scriptures. That’s where truth can be revealed to our spirits.
Lead with an attention grabber
Whether it’s a game, object lesson, funny story, or simply a question that hooks the class, start your lesson with some kind of way to grab their attention. It will help with their engagement for the remainder of the class.
Encourage discussion
Skip the yes/no questions, and try to only ask open ended questions. Don’t be afraid to wait for a good, uncomfortable amount of time before moving on. This allows people to ponder about how they might answer, whether they decide to share or not.
Apply to real life
There’s really no point to the lesson if we can’t apply it to our real life situations. How can Abinidi’s example help us in our own missionary efforts? What can we learn from Abish staying silent all those years? This is how we learn.
Testify
Every lesson, every story, every discussion should always point back to Jesus Christ. Quickly review what your class discussed and share your testimony on those truths. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but it does need to be sincere.
If you want even more teaching help (without doing it for you, of course) here are some great resources:
Relief Society Conducting Sheet & Lesson Outline
Turn any General Conference talk into an amazing Relief Society lesson. This outline includes 5 tips for a killer lesson, and offers a template for creating an effective, memorable Relief Society class discussion. Encourage interaction and belonging in your group. Conducting sheet also included.
Help your youth plan out Young Women or Quorum lessons without doing it for them. This outline includes tips and prompts to create a doctrine-centered lesson with additional ideas for resources and activities to make the most out of each lesson. This download also includes a Conducting and Counsel Together sheet. Empower your youth to lead the meeting, guide meaningful discussions, foster connection, and act on inspiration.
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