Repost:: Godly Play Circle of the Church Year

This is from the very first weeks of my teaching Godly Play.  I had read most of the theory before this and had been implementing what I could at home.  It is fun to look back and see where we have come.  I'm told Godly Play is still happening at our church in St. Andrews and now we have brought it to St. Matthews.  

And look at that precious three-year-old Jonah at the end of the post.  Isaac is wearing those same trousers today (though they look a lot more worn three boys in!)  This was written three days before Rowan was born; he turned six earlier this month.

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Three weeks ago we began the preschool godly play worship center at church. So far it has gone well. I'm excited about this montessori based curriculum and have been really impressed with the theology of Jerome Berryman, who wrote the curriculum and the book "Godly Play" (in which he has chapters on a theology of childhood and imagination!)

 I've been eyeing up the beautiful wooden puzzles of the church year, but I can't afford them. So for our first week of Godly Play at the church I used two pieces of cardboard and made our own circle of the church year. I loved teaching the lesson on the 'great green growing sundays' (aka: ordinary time), the four purple weeks of advent - waiting for the mystery of Christmas, the six purple weeks of Lent - waiting for the greater mystery of Easter, Easter - which is so great it spills into six more white Sundays and then red hot Pentecost! The kids loved it and Jonah keeps talking about 'hot Pentecost' and has been noticing all the green at the front of the sanctuary for the first time.