While some teacher training can relate to teachers of all ages, there comes a point where we need to equip teachers for teaching the age of their group. They need age level training about the physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual characteristics of that age. Not to equip them with an age level developmental understanding is a disservice to your teachers and their students.
Why Age Level Training Is Important
If Bible teachers don’t understand traits typical to the age they teach, the will not know …
what to expect (normal behavior, attention span, skill levels, etc.).
Then, teachers might get frustrated or flustered by behavior that’s to be expected, by students’ lack of interest because something isn’t relevant to their lives, and when students won’t sit still because they can’t stay focused.
how to best reach their class (type & depth of content, slant, methods to use, etc.)
Then, students might get frustrated or flustered because they’re either bored, can’t understand, or are unable to do what the teacher expects.
Resources To Help Bible Teachers Learn More About Age Characteristics
Following are a few age characteristics resources available through Ministry Tools Resource Center:
In the Age Level Characteristics Resource you’ll find an article about each of the following age brackets that will help teachers understand that age group, as well a worksheet with characteristics and some implications. Teachers can assess their teaching in light of the suggested implications and determine steps for improvement.
Grade School (Primary: Grades 1-2, Junior: Grades 3-6)
Youth (Junior High, Senior High)
Adults (College & Career, Young Adult, Middle Adult, Older Adult)
The Age Level Characteristics Resource can be ordered for all ages or in modules that include only one of the above age brackets.
The Reaching All Age Levels Resource can be used for a group training session for teachers of all ages to come together for a short PowerPoint presentation spanning all ages. That presentation gets followed by breakout sessions based on the age being taught wherein they receive additional content through handouts on how developmental needs of that specific age affect the kind of environment students need, how they are motivated to learn, and best methods to use.
The three page Make Truths Relevant Worksheet gives teachers a broad perspective showing how the needs and interests of the different age levels changes the slant of the same truth for the various ages.
You’ll also find resource pages on the TrainBibleTeachers.com site that point to more articles and resources about age levels in general and the different age grouping. Click on the links below:
- General Age Level Development Characteristics
- Early Childhood as a Broad Group
- Infants
- Toddlers
- Pre-Primary
- Grade School as a Broad Group
- Grades 1-2 (Primary Age)
- Grades 3-6 (Junior Age)
- Preteens (Generally Grades 5-6)
- Youth/Teens as a Broad Group
- Junior High
- Senior High
- Adults as a Broad Group
- Young Adults, including College & Career
- Middle-Aged Adults
- Older Adults