1. Which of the Book Series
(numbers 1 to 12) should I use to start?
Because this series of lessons is not dated, as many lesson series are, there is great flexibility. Within limits you can use whatever Book you wish. You can also select or omit modules in whole or in part if you wish to do so for any reason, or you can re-arrange their order.
The advantage of this is its flexibility. The disadvantage, if you go that route, is that you will need a switched-on leader who can keep track of chopping and changing.
The only seasonal pressure is to use a “Christmas” book and an “Easter” book at the right times. Books 1, 4, 7, and 10 all contain a “Christmas” module and Books 2, 5, 8 and 11 all contain a module on an Easter theme. The rest of the modules in these books can be used at any time. Books 3, 6, 9 and 12 all contain a “Thanksgiving” or “Harvest Festival” theme for a family service which can be adapted for use at any time.
Each Book contains 16 or 17 lessons to cover a full four-month semester (not a three-month quarter, which is much more common). Most churches and Sunday Schools will find that they may have only 12 to 14 teaching sessions during a semester and so there is likely to be a complete spare module. The school will need to decide whether to follow the outline in the book, omit one module from time to time, or move an Easter or Christmas module forward.
In practice, this means that the nominal cost of books each year (currently 3 x R75 = R225 per class) is effectively reduced to about R175 a year if all the lessons are used.
Finally, if a church wishes to introduce its own denominational or liturgical themes from time to time, this can be done between modules and the effective cost of the SSalt books drops even further. But the cost reduction is always offset by extra input needed from the Sunday School leadership.
Your choice.
(Dec 2006, updated Nov 2008)
2. Should teachers follow the lesson plan
closely?
This depends on the training, experience and ability of the
teacher.
BUT . . .
The lesson plan as presented has a four fold aim which is emphasized
in the series name: Sharing and learning TOGETHER. It tries
to avoid the old teaching method recorded as:
Ram it in, slam it in, children's heads
are hollow;
Cram it in, jam it in, still there's
more to follow.
The four-fold pattern is:
a) The Bible Focus introduction is for the teacher’s PERSONAL benefit so that they are able to understand the lesson theme themselves and benefit from the teaching subject. The teacher needs to impart what God has taught them through their study of His word so the message is alive.
b) Jump Start is for participation, teacher and pupils interacting together. Also it does get the attention of the children in a pleasant and relevant way and introduces the lesson. Experience suggests that this part of the lesson is the first to be skipped or shortened. We think it is important to try it. Sitting round a table and talking at children does not easily generate attention and a learning atmosphere.
c) Jump into the Bible. This where children learn to discover what God is saying to their hearts and minds.
d) Jump into Life is intended to help the children respond practically to the previous section, seeing how it applies to their particular circumstances.
All this is set out in different words in the page headed “How SSalt Works” in the front of each Teachers Manual.
(Dec 2006, Nov 2008)
3. Are there restrictions on photocopying
the Activity Sheets in the Teacher's Books?
No. This is permitted as part of the purchase price of the
book.
SSalt can supply pads of Activity Sheets separately from the
Teachers Books.
The Activity Sheet section included in the Teacher's Book is
intended to be "double stapled", i.e. the activity
sheets are stapled together as a batch; the Teacher's Book pages
are stapled together as a book; and then the two sections are
stapled together with a single staple so that they can be separated
readily. This doesn't always happen as sometimes the printers
haven't got it right, but they are getting better and most of
the later books do get it right.
Experience suggests that the Activity Sheets can be used as
follows.
a) The teachers can photocopy whatever they want, single sided
if wanted. The sheets in the book and pad are printed double-sided,
on slightly heavier white paper. This is suitable for crayons,
but highlighter pens may bleed through to a certain extent.
b) The distributors recommend that teachers buy at least one
Activity Pad to go with their book so that they have spare sheets
available for photocopying without cannibalising the Teacher's
Book.
c) Purchasers can also buy a minimum number of Activity Pads
for the basic number of children in the class, and photocopy
extras and spares if the class grows or fluctuates.
d) Or purchasers can buy enough Pads to cover all their needs
if they do not have ready access to a photocopier. Some churches
ask the parents to buy the Activity Pad for their child; the
cost of the manuals being borne by the church.
(Dec 2006, Nov 2008)
4. In what way has this version of SSalt
been changed from the original New Salt published in the UK?
Firstly, while the overall syllabus covers substantially
the same ground as the original UK syllabus, it is presented
in a different order. This is mainly because the next UK book
was available "just in time" before it would be used.
This meant that the Southern African version had to run some
time behind the UK version to allow for receipt of the original
book; followed by modification and rewriting; then editing,
publishing and printing, and finally the distribution processes.
Secondly the material has been simplified from the alternative
teaching methods suggested, to generally one main lesson outline
with suggestions for different situations. Experience suggests
that there are many inexperienced teachers in Southern African
countries who are confused, rather than assisted by having alternative
lesson outlines to weigh up before they can prepare the lesson.
Thirdly, equipment suggested for the lessons has been kept
to those items that are readily available; one does not have
to go out to purchase special items. Rewards are kept to a reasonable
level: e.g. we don't say "give every child a packet of
sweets" (as some overseas teacher's books do), but rather
"give every child one or two sweets", etc.
In case you think we are exaggerating, the following is an extract from an American Junior SS teaching notes for one lesson
on Daniel:
· New! Provide giveaways to parents to encourage them
to "catch" their kids being responsible. Provide a
pad of "I Caught Ya!" sticky notes and some "Caught"
buttons for each child's parents. See "Caught Ya"
(from the Activity Pages on the Web site) for details. Make
a copy of "Caught Ya Letter to Parents" for each child's
parents.
· Provide 122 dirty pennies and one shiny penny. Note:
You can get a shiny penny by doing the experiment described
in "Standing out in a Crowd."
· Provide some newspaper or a drop cloth, a large container
of salt, a gallon of vinegar, a large container of baking soda,
measuring cups, a small Styrofoam® plate for each child,
a plastic spoon for each child, paper towels, and an empty baby
food jar for each child.
· Provide an aluminum pie pan for every two children
and two more pie pans to be used during Wrap Up.
· Print and cut apart "Caught Ya Cards" (from
the Activity Pages on the Web site).
· Provide a small paper bag.
· Provide Bibles.
· Provide a cassette recorder and cassette tape or some
other recording medium, a piece of paper, and a pencil.
· Provide the green, leafy tops from two carrots and
some water. Tip: Consider keeping just one set of carrot tops
for the classroom, rather than a set for each small group.
· Make copies on cardstock of this week's GodTime Cards
and Fridge Door cards. Tip: Choose a different color for each
week.
· Prepare to give .. . Packs
to parents, if your church has chosen to do so. ( Packs include good stuff for kids
and parents. They explain all about this month's (lesson) so
parents can continue the learning at home.
·
Editor's Choice: If you don't have time for all these activities,
be sure to do activity #1.
As you pour the vinegar on the salt-covered penny, explain
how this experiment shows that when we trust God and obey Him,
it changes us and we stand out as more responsible and trustworthy,
just like Daniel stood out to King Darius. When others see that
we can be trusted, that makes them trust us. Then place the
clean, shiny penny in the middle of the dirty pennies that are
in a pile on the table. Ask the kids which they'd choose. Point
out how brilliantly the shiny penny stands out.
Wow!
(Dec 2006, Nov 2008)
5. How does the colour -coding work?
Colour coding is primarily with respect to the level of the Books within each Series. It is as follows:
Preschool Level: Book covers have a blue background, and the text pages are on pale blue coloured paper. Activity pages are always on white
Lower Primary: Book covers have an orange background and the text pages are on a pale orange/yellow coloured paper. Again, Activity Pages are white.
Upper Primary: Book covers have a bright green background and the text pages are on a pale green coloured paper. Activity pages are white.
The colour coding of the covers has been consistent through the series: blue is Preschool; orange is Lower Primary and green is Upper Primary. All books printed in SA have the pastel coloured paper for the text. (Earlier books from Zimbabwe used white paper.)
A secondary colour coding has been introduced for books printed in SA. In these books the narrow vertical spinal band for the covers are as follows: Christmas books have a spinal band in a shade of blue; Easter Books have a shade of green; and midyear books a shade of red. This colour coding is aimed to assist the distributors more than the users. When books are stored vertically in a bookshelf the book and series number can be identified by the spine colour. The coding is there for anyone to use, even if individual users are unlikely to need it
(Dec 2006, updated Nov 2008)
6. How does one pay for the books?
An invoice is send with each consignment of books posted. If we remember when packing, this is usually in envelope no 1. Also included is a Deposit Slip for our ABSA bank account. This will advise the Account reference number and also a short identifying reference so that we know on the bank statement who is making the payment. Payment may be made by direct deposit or EFT to that ABSA account. If payments are usually made by cheque that is acceptable. Cheques should be made out and posted as instructed on the invoice. Payment is due on receipt. If the person ordering or receiving the books is not the one responsible for making payment we expect them to pass the invoice to the church treasurer or other official with a request to pay against this invoice.
As all our administrative work is done on a volunteer basis no monthly statements are sent out.
Our transactions are done on an honour basis and it is very gratifying to see how reliable Christians are in this respect.
(Nov 2008)
7. What if I am uncertain about Book series numbers to order?
If you telephone SSalt, we are usually able to help with suggestions, as our records contain information about previous book orders for each customer.
(Nov 2008)
8. What if my book order is not received?
If your order does not arrive within eight days (one day for us to post and seven days in transit) you should advise us by telephone. We maintain a post record book which may be able to help with enquiries at your Post Office. If necessary we will replace books lost in transit.
Books required urgently can be sent by Fastmail. This adds R10 (about 5%) to the cost of a single envelope, so may well be worthwhile for some purchasers.
(Nov 2008)
9. How long do orders take for delivery?
In general we post books from Somerset West in A4 envelopes
by domestic letter post. We try to post within 24 hours of order
(unless books are obviously ordered well ahead of requirements).
Experience suggests that postage usually takes about a week,
maybe a couple of days longer in rural areas. We do not usually
register as this extends delivery times each end and the small
amount of missing mail does not justify the extra cost.
Where we have cell phone numbers we try to send an SMS to confirm
posting date, address and packaging. Purchasers should advise
us by telephone if books are not received within 10 days so
that we can despatch a replacement order.
We will, if requested, despatch by Speed Courier, but this
means that delivery cost rises from R8 a kg to about R45 a kg,
counter-to-counter.
(Dec 2007)
