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THE KINGDOM STORY – YEAR 1 

About the Curriculum

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW –
Year 1: THE KINGDOM STORY

(See FAQ section for more information)

The Kingdom Story Sunday school curriculum from Saint Matthew’s Anglican Church is Year 1 of a two-year curriculum. The Kingdom Story is inspired by the Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm.    The curriculum seeks to highlight the grand narrative of the Bible, and to show the children that the stories in the Bible are not isolated stories, but together they weave the rich tapestry of the history of God’s people and the unfolding of the Kingdom of God on earth. It includes both Old and New Testament stories that point to and reveal Christ as the Saviour and Promised Forever King.

Ages and Size of Group

5 to 10 years or Kindergarten to Grade 5.  Lesson plans can accommodate a small class of 2 children up to a group of 20 students.

Time

Approximately 45 minutes.  There is supplemental material to extend the time, if needed.

Anglicanism

The curriculum has liturgical components such as Lighting of the Candle and a modified Prayer of Confession.  However, the main body of the curriculum can be used by any Christian denomination that seeks to give the children the “bigger picture” of Scripture and God’s eternal plan in Christ. Each of the 28 lessons either point to Jesus as the Promised King, or reveal Jesus, his character, attributes and love.

Resources

  • The Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm.
  • Scripture references in the stories were taken from The Beginning Reader’s Bible, International Children’s Bible.
  • Anglican Church in North America, To Be A Christian, An Anglican Catechism

COMPONENTS OF THE CURRICULUM

Lesson Plan

Each of the 28 lessons have the following components:

  1. Teacher’s Notes (Objectives and Catechism connections)
  2. Lesson Outline (Overview of lesson time – 45 minutes)
  3. Poster Discussion (Poster Picture & Poster Summary)
  4. Story and Life Application
  5. Response Activities (Kingdom News and other activities) and Memory Verse

The Story (#4 above) is often a short drama which the children can spontaneously participate in, or they can choose to be an active observer. Easy, representational costumes for a few of the Bible characters can be quickly donned, and the lines or simple actions given to any child who volunteers. In this way, children are learning the stories by hearing, seeing, and doing!

Poster Picture & Summary

(Print as a double-sided document) Each lesson has a poster picture that depicts the Bible story. The lesson is introduced by looking at and talking about the poster picture. The poster summary on the back of the poster contains key elements of the lesson. We recommend reading this summary to the children as an introduction to the story. Alternatively, the summary can also serve as a condensed lesson without using the story in the full lesson plan.

Kingdom News

A take-home paper called the Kingdom News is available for each child to share with their family and to communicate the lesson. When printing, choose the double sided short edge and landscape formats.

Colouring Supplement

Colouring pages that relate to the lesson theme.

Bonus Lessons

These are supplementary lessons that can be used as ‘fillers’ if material is needed for additional Sundays. The bonus lessons are in the condensed lesson format only.

Curriculum Resources

This includes liturgical and prayer elements referred to in the Lesson Outline section of the Lesson Plan.

The Curriculum

Scroll down this page to find all the free download links to the Curriculum documents as well as the Supplementary documents!

CLICK HERE to download a sample schedule with a synopsis of each lesson.

FAQs

When is the best time to start using the Kingdom Story, and why are there only 28 lessons?

We recommend starting the curriculum in September, and time the Christmas and Easter lessons to occur within those seasons.  There are only 28 lessons to allow space for review Sundays. It is ideal to add a review lesson after 3-4 lessons have been taught. This helps give the children a better grasp of the grand narrative of the overarching story. The lessons can be reviewed using the posters with Q&A, art projects, peg dolls or review games. We also use the “Review Sunday” to pray together for any prayer requests the children may bring.

As the date for Easter varies, we have often filled in the extra Sundays with teachings on the four Foundations (The Lord’s Prayer, The Apostles’ Creed, The Ten Commandments and the Greatest Commandments). We have developed lessons for these in our Year 2 curriculum, but these lessons can also be taught in Year 1.

There are also some Year 1 bonus lessons available, which can be used as additional “filler” lessons. These are supplementary stories from the New Testament, that add additional depth to the Kingdom Story. The bonus lessons are only available in the condensed lesson format.

What is the best way to include the four Foundation documents into the lesson plan?

We usually introduce these gradually throughout the year in a way that relates well to the lessons. We often start the year by praying the Lord’s Prayer together, and then we start learning the 10 Commandments after the Moses & Pharaoh lesson. After that we learn the Apostles’ Creed in stages, starting with the first article leading up to Christmas, following on with the second article after Christmas, and bringing in the third article at Pentecost. The Greatest Commandment is used sometime during the spring. Using at least one of the Foundations each week, helps the children to become very familiar with them and perhaps even remember them by heart.

Please see Year 2 for full lesson plans that teach the four foundations (Lesson 8 and 16, and Spotlight on Prayer 7).

What is the best way to use and print the Poster, Poster Summary and Kingdom News?

The Poster and the Poster Summary should be printed together as a double-sided teaching aid. This allows the teacher to hold the poster and read the lesson summary at the same time. The poster is best printed on 11×17 card stock. When printing the Poster & Summary, choose the double-sided short edge and landscape format options. If you don’t have a colour printer available, the printing can be done at your local print centre.

The Kingdom News is a take-home paper that can also be used during the lesson time. It includes the story summary for parents and a space for children to make a response drawing. On the back side of the Kingdom News is a word search puzzle that develops the vocabulary that was introduced in the story. This is a double-sided document which folds in half (booklet style) with print on all four sides. When printing the Kingdom News, choose the double-sided short edge and landscape format options. Children enjoy decorating the cover, drawing, and doing the word search.

Do you have videos of the Kingdom Story lessons?

The video section contains videos based on the condensed version of the lessons with some additional material added in. These were created for the families to use at home during the Covid-19 pandemic. The visuals used in the videos are different from those in the actual lesson plans.

What is the difference between Year 1 and Year 2 in your curriculum?

In the Kingdom Story curriculum (Year 1) the Bible stories are taught chronologically, as we move through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It aims to give the children the grand narrative of the Bible rather than disconnected Bible stories. The visual focus of this year is our story posters. This curriculum is inspired by The Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm.

In the Kingdom Life curriculum (Year 2), the lessons are taught in themed units that cover all the main points in the ACNA catechism. The focus is on developing a Biblical worldview, where God is at the centre and all life and love flows out from him, through the Church, and into the world. The Kingdom Life curriculum contains more complex theological concepts than the Kingdom Story. The visual focus of this year is our storyboard.

What age group is your curriculum written for?

Our curriculum is specifically designed to work for a K – 5 group, but it can also be used in a multi-class setting.

If you have an all-in-one class with grades K – 5, we recommend alternating Year 1 and Year 2. Even though Year 2 is more advanced in content, the delivery methods are designed to keep the attention of the younger kids, with an abundance of visual aids for the non-readers. The younger kids may not yet fully grasp some of the content in the Kingdom Life curriculum but will gradually grow into these big truths as they hear them again every other year.

If you have classes with different age groups, we recommend teaching the Kingdom Story to grades K – 2, and Kingdom Life to grades 3 – 5.

Is there a cost for the curriculum?

No, the lesson plans and materials are free of cost for use in your Sunday School, Children’s Ministry, Home-schooling etc. If copying the materials for other uses, please acknowledge Saint Matthews Anglican Church.

Is the curriculum for Anglicans, or can other church denominations use it?

The lessons are linked to the new ACNA Catechism to ensure that the lessons are structured to include many of the truths of our faith.  However, the curriculum can be used by any Christian denomination that seeks to give the children the “bigger picture” of Scripture and God’s eternal plan in Christ.

VIDEOS

CURRICULUM DOCUMENTS

Use the links under the drop-down menu for each Lesson to open the Component .pdfs. Once the .pdfs have been opened, the documents can then be saved.
Lesson 1 – Creation
Lesson 2 – The Fall
Lesson 3 – Noah and the Flood
Lesson 4 – Abraham
Lesson 5 – Joseph and His Brothers
Lesson 6 – Moses and Pharaoh
Lesson 7 – Joshua and Jericho
Lesson 8 – David and Goliath
Lesson 9 – King David and King Solomon
Lesson 10 – Solomon and the Prophet
Lesson 11 – The Prophets and the Journey Home
Lesson 12 – God's Promised One is Born
Lesson 13 – The Wise Men
Lesson 14 – John the Baptist
Lesson 15 – Jesus and the Disciples
Lesson 16 – Jesus and the Temple
Lesson 17 – Jesus and Nicodemus
Lesson 18 – Jesus and the Blind Man
Lesson 19 – Jesus and Lazarus
Lesson 20 – Palm Sunday
Lesson 21 – The Lord's Supper
Lesson 22 – Jesus is Arrested
Lesson 23 – Jesus is Crucified
Lesson 24 – The Empty Tomb
Lesson 25 – The Road to Emmaus
Lesson 26 – The Holy Spirit Came
Lesson 27 – Letters to God's People
Lesson 28 – A Very Good Ending

BONUS LESSONS

(Condensed Lessons Only)

Bonus Lesson 1 – Simeon and Anna
Bonus Lesson 2 – Jesus Grows Up
Bonus Lesson 3 – Breakfast on the Beach
Bonus Lesson 4 – The Ascension
Bonus Lesson 5 – Peter and Cornelius

SUPPLEMENTARY RESOURCE DOCUMENTS

Click on the links to open the .pdfs. Once the .pdfs have been opened, the documents can then be saved.

Please see our Year 2 curriculum (Kingdom Life) for full lesson plans teaching the four Foundations (The 10 Commandments/The Greatest Commandments, The Apostles’ Creed, and The Lord’s Prayer). These lessons can also be used as ‘filler’ lessons for Year 1.