"The Fabulous Reinvention of Sunday School," Aaron Reynolds (Zondervan, paperback, March 2007)

Who wouldn’t want to sit in on a "how-to" session by a former Willow Creek Community Church staffer? Learning from someone else’s experience is exciting and ultimately practical. And Aaron Reynolds’ new book, "The Fabulous Reinvention of Sunday School," reads like a Willow Creek workshop.

For church leaders intent on making the most of the Sunday school hour for children, this book presents a step-by-step guide to bringing the style back to weekend kids programming. However, the book is probably most useable for teachers already in the trenches. And when Reynolds uses the word "teacher," he is referring to the person who stands in front of an audience of kids to tell a story or perform a drama.

Applying principles

While the author's principles—primarily dramatic and theatrical techniques—could be applied to any church performance, his megachurch bias is clear. His experience as a teacher and artistic director for Promiseland, the children’s ministry of Willow Creek, may be most helpful for others in similar positions.

That said, some of the basic teaching and performing principles he lists are applicable to nearly any Sunday school situation, whether it involves excellence, practice, evaluation, rotation or planning.

In addition, Reynolds gives a nod to learning styles, suggesting that those intent on reaching children do more than talk. In addition to auditory learners, Sunday school classrooms are full of visual and kinesthetic learners, Reynolds notes. Without becoming overly pedantic,  Reynolds suggests that Sunday school planning include the "Rule of Three."

"Simply put," Reynolds says, "use at least three different creative methods in every lesson. And talking doesn’t count as a creative method."

Creative ideas

For methods, Reynolds offers some 80 pages of ideas for creatively teaching the Bible to kids. Ideas are always good—and Reynolds' suggestions are great. From audience participation (kinesthetic), to video clips (visual), his ideas may provide a shot in the arm for many children’s programs in search of new life.

Those who stand to gain the most from a read of this book are leaders overseeing Sunday schools and volunteers themselves.

The book is heavy on drama coaching. Reynolds admits by page 36 that he comes from a theater background. All the talk about rehearsals, memorizing scripts, light and sound cues, and even stage directions will sound foreign to the Sunday school of smaller churches—where the power of transformation is not found in performances but in relationships with teachers. However, I can’t fault Reynolds for his direction, since his tips are tried and true in the theater world.

The question becomes the philosophy of children’s Sunday school. Is it really about great entertainment leading to lessons that change lives with transforming biblical application? For Reynolds, there is no other way. If your Sunday school aspires to performance and is looking for a great acting coach, Reynolds' book (and possibly his children’s ministry consult) may do your program a lot of good. However, if you have no Tony winners among your staff or volunteers, I’m hesitant to recommend this book as a way to revitalize a program that may not be centered on center stage.