On Tuesday mornings during school term time our ‘Open the Book’ team are invited to present the assembly at Hillview Primary School to share Bible stories with the children. ‘Open the Book’ is a national project, currently run by the Bible Society. It was established in 1999 by a small group of churches in Bedford, as a result of concerns amongst Christians that many children are not aware of the stories contained in the Bible. The ‘Open the Book’ project was then introduced into schools in Gloucestershire, and a current member of our congregation played a key role in its development after being inspired at a Children’s Ministry Conference in Eastbourne. The project has since experienced huge growth nationally. Schools interested in linking up with ‘Open the Book’ can find out which churches are connected with an ‘Open the Book’ team on the Bible Society website.
Bible stories have influenced world history and literature. They are embedded in British culture and traditions and are therefore relevant to all children. ‘Open the Book’ helps schools to fulfil the requirement to have Christian input into their assemblies and provides the format and training for the story tellers. The Bible story is told in a relevant way so that the children can connect it with their own lives and experiences. This usually involves lots of fun props, costumes, audience participation and ‘I helped Open the Book’ stickers.
At a recent assembly a teacher was given the role of ‘Goliath’, the Philistine giant defeated by ‘David’, a small shepherd boy. The children thought it was very funny when ‘Goliath’ fell to the ground!