Posts
by Eric B. Hare
Last
week: Streamlined
questions will provoke more class discussion and interaction. Choose to ask
questions that will stimulate your class to think. This week shows lots of really great examples!
Multiple Answers
Choose
the best answer:
Jonathan
loved David because—
a.
David could play the harp so well.
b.
David had killed Goliath and delivered
Israel.
c.
He knew David had been anointed to be
the next king.
Only
one answer may be correct; or all answers may be correct. The stimulation comes
in the discussion.
Clues
Put
your hand up when you recognize this person:
1.
I am thinking of a little boy whose name
means “beloved.”
2.
He lived in Bethlehem of the tribe of
Judah.
3.
His father thought him so unimportant
that he did not even call him in to worship.
4.
He was an expert marksman with a
slingshot.
5.
He killed a bear, a lion, and a giant.
6.
His name was ———.
One
great advantage to clues is the indirect way that the facts are taught. Because
of the undivided attention that these clues command, the fact that David means
“beloved” will be remembered much longer than if the same fact were mentioned
in a deductive statement.
Who Said? To Whom? When? Where?
“The
Lord be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed forever.” (1 Sam.
20:42; compare Gen. 31:49.)
Wherever
a lesson contains direct speech, the discussion of who made the statement, to
whom it was made, when it was made, and where it was made will always electrify
boys and girls.
Matching
Draw
lines between the name and what it is:
In
matching, the preparation is made before classtime on the blackboard or on a
sheet of paper. You can match people with actions, events with dates, verses
with references, prophetic symbols with their meaning, or the first half and
last half of verses, such as—
Write in the number of the beatitude to which the last half belongs:
True and False
Mark
T for True and F for False:
(T)
David was anointed by Samuel three times to be king. (1 Sam. 16:3; 2 Sam. 2:4;
2 Sam. 5:3.)
(T)
David was thirty-seven years old when he was anointed the third time, and he
reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem. (2 Sam. 5:4, 5. 7 1/2 Hebron, 33
Jerusalem. First, 20 years; second, 30 years; third, 37 years.)
(F)
David was made king of Israel because Abner, captain of Saul’s host, revolted
and went over to David.
(F)
The ark came into Jerusalem in a cart drawn by cows sent down by the
Philistines. (1 Sam. 6:10, 14; 2 Sam. 6:3, 10, 13.)
The
danger in a true-and-false quiz is that the false statement may linger in the
mind of the pupil. However, properly conducted, a true-and-false test is not
completed with merely answering “true” or “false” as the case may be. This is
only the beginning of a study of the facts, which must conclude with a clear statement of the truth.
Problems
Children
love to work out and discuss problems. Problems fit especially well into a
lesson that teaches right doing.
Two
men in a hiking party were bitten by venomous snakes. Antitoxin was carried by
one man in the group and was promptly administered to one who was bitten. He
lived. The other man refused the antitoxin treatment—said he didn’t believe in
it—and he died. Did he die because he was bitten by a snake?
What Does This Remind You Of?
1.
A rich man with many flocks, a poor man
with one lamb, and a stranger?
2.
Five small stones and a sling?
This
is especially good in a quarterly review when you have a variety of subjects
from which to choose.
An Alphabet
This
method is especially good for a review. Not all lessons are adaptable to an
alphabet, but if you see a number of names and places in the lesson, you are
almost sure to be able to work out one.
A is for the
captain of Saul’s 3,000 soldiers (Abner, 1 Sam. 26:7), and also for one of
David’s companions (Abishai).
B is for what
Saul’s head was resting on (bolster, 1 Sam. 26:7), and also for what Saul said
to David after his life was twice spared (“Blessed be thou, my son David.” 1
Sam. 26:25).
C is for the
place in Engedi where David hid (cave, 1 Sam. 24:3), and also for something
David took from Saul at Hachilah (cruse, 1 Sam. 26:11).
D is what the
Lord did for David (delivered), and also what David would not let Abishai do to
Saul (destroy, 1 Sam. 26:9).
E is for the
place where there was a wilderness and also a cave (Engedi, 1 Sam. 24:1).
F is for
something Saul said he played (fool, 1 Sam. 26:20, 21), and also for something
David said Saul was hunting (flea).
G is for the
place where Saul lived (Gibeah, 1 Sam. 26:1), and also for what a man would not
be if he killed the Lord’s anointed (guiltless, 1 Sam. 26:9).
H is for the
place where Saul slept (Hachilah, 1 Sam. 26:1), and also for where David stood
when he called to Saul (hill, 1 Sam. 26:13).
I is for what
David could not enjoy because of Saul (inheritance, 1 Sam. 26:19), and, of
course, for the name of the nation in which all this happened (Israel).
J is for
Jeshimon. (1 Sam. 26:1.) Is it a town, a river, a mountain, or a lake?
K is for what Saul
knew David would be (king), and also for what he knew David would have
(kingdom, 1 Sam. 24:20).
L is something
Saul had that David regarded (life), and something David had that the Lord
regarded (life, 1 Sam. 26:24).
M is for the
3,000 chosen ones Saul had (men, 1 Sam. 24:2). How many of the same did David
have (600 men, 1 Sam. 27:2) ?
N is the name of
Abner’s father (Ner, 1 Sam. 26:5), and also for the first word of 1 Samuel
26:19 (Now).
O is for what
Saul could have made to be forgiven (offering, 1 Sam. 26:19), and for the way
David addressed Saul (O king, 1 Sam. 26:17).
P Hunting for
David on the hills was like hunting for a ——— (partridge, 1 Sam. 26:20), and
for the way David regarded Saul’s life (precious, 1 Sam. 26:21).
Q is for the way
David took the spear and the cruse (quietly) so that Abner and his men would
not wake up.
R is what David
was, more than Saul (righteous, 1 Sam. 24:17). Why was he more r——— than Saul?
S is for what
David took from Saul in the cave (skirt), and also what he took from Saul in
Hachilah (spear).
T is for what God
delivered David from (tribulation, 1 Sam. 26:24), and for something not found
in David’s hand (transgression, 1 Sam. 24:11).
U is for the
unseen angels who caused the deep sleep to come upon Saul and his men.
V is for
something of David’s that Saul recognized (voice), and also for something that
Saul lifted up when he wept (voice, 1 Sam. 24:16).
W is for the
proverb David quoted (“Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked.” 1 Sam. 24:13).
X is for the way
Saul acknowledged he had erred (exceedingly, 1 Sam. 26:21).
Z is for the
wilderness where David hid (Ziph, 1 Sam. 26:1, 2), and the people who told Saul
where he was (Ziphites), and also the mother of Abishai (Zeruiah, 1 Sam. 26:6).
(You
notice we have omitted “Y.” One of the children is sure to notice this and ask
why. Then you can make this appealing application.)
Y is for someone
who should put his trust also in God so that he can be delivered in the time of
trouble (You).
(Next week: “Powerful Patterns,
Part 2.”)
Copyright
© 1973 by Eric B. Hare. Used by permission
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