» Exploring Ideas of God

LESSONS

Section 1: Animism and Pre-Religion

• 7 IS THERE ANYBODY THERE? A poster design exercise to raise student awareness of the sense of awe that is felt for the orld in which we live and the need to understand it.
• 9 ANIMISM A painting activity helps students understand what Animism is and to appreciate that it is not only found in primitive communities.

Section 2: Monotheistic Faiths

• 11 CHRISTIANITY I - IMAGE? A picture and statement activity to help students consider the Christian understanding of the nature of God and how humankind is created in His image.
• 13 CHRISTIANITY II - THE CHOIR INVISIBLE Students consider what Christians believe about the first person of the Trinity, God the Father, using spider diagram and story-writing activities.
• 15 CHRISTIANITY III - THE THIRD PERSON Using drawing and writing activities, students consider the Christian belief of the Trinity and the work of the Holy Spirit.
• 17 ISLAM I - WHAT'S IN A NAME? Using chart construction and poster design activities, students consider the importance of names, in particular the names Muslims have for God, which they believe reveal His nature.
• 19 ISLAM II - JUDGEMENT DAY Using listing and argument-building activities students extend their understanding of one aspect of God - His role as judge.
• 21 ISLAM III - TAWHID Picture analysis and presentation activities are used by students to help explore the idea of Tawhid - that God is One.
• 23 JUDAISM I - KNOWING GOD Using a letter-writing activity, students consider the story of Abraham as the father of Judaism and how God might make Himself known to us.
• 25 JUDAISM II - THE TEN COMMANDMENTS A careful analysis helps students consider the importance of the Ten Commandments to the Jews and also to appreciate why society needs rules to live by.
• 27 JUDAISM III - THE HOLOCAUST Using diary entry and puzzle-solving activities students consider how the Holocaust has challenged and ultimately strengthened the Jewish faith.
• 29 SIGN LANGUAGE? Studying signs and symbols encourages students' understanding of religious symbolism and language in Christianity, Islam and Judaism.

Section 3: Eastern Faiths

• 31 HINDUISM I - GOOD GODS? Students write and draw in order to understand how Hindus worship many Gods and one God.
• 33 HINDUISM II - HERE TODAY, NOT GONE TOMORROW Students take part in a Snakes And Ladders game to help understand the Hindu view of salvation - Moksha, and how it might be achieved.
• 35 HINDUISM III - AVATARS An attempt to help students understand the Hindu concept of avatars using knowledge and information from previous study of religion and holy people.
• 37 SIKHISM I - CREEDS AND SYMBOLS Through devising a set of interview questions students become aware of the main Sikh beliefs about God as shown in the Sikh creed, symbols and practices.
• 39 SIKHISM II - GOD IS EVERYTHING A For and Against activity helps students consider the Sikh belief that God is to be found in all creation.
• 41 SIKHISM III - WORDS A wordsearch is used to help students study Sikh beliefs about God and the meanings of some of the words used about Him.
• 43 BUDDHISM I - TOTAL RESPECT Students study a Buddhist prayer wheel and complete a spider diagram to help them develop an understanding of how Buddhists live.
• 45 BUDDHISM II - NIRVANA A prayer-writing activity helps students understand the Buddhist view of Nirvana.

Section 4: God For The Next Millennium

• 47 NEW AGE I - MILLENNIUM Students consider the upsurge of spiritual awareness and the return-to-nature attitudes which characterise the new Millennium.
• 49 NEW AGE II - THE RAT RACE? A letter-writing activity allows students to reflect on what might be meant by and involved in a New Age lifestyle.
• 51 MATERIALISM I - GIVE ME MORE! An information gap activity allows students to reflect on the fact that wealth and possessions can be a positive or negative influence.
• 53 MATERIALISM II - RICH AND RELIGIOUS? Using poster design and spider diagram activities students consider how a materialistic society might affect people, in particular with regard to a religious response.
• 55 DEATH OF GOD? Using a collage-designing exercise, students consider how some people see God as active in the world.
• 57 HUMANISM Students undertake a poster design activity to help them consider the non-religious humanist belief that humankind and not God is the centre of creation.
• 59 THE AMISH In a letter-writing exercise students consider the Amish way of life and how it might be relevant to us today.
• 61 CULTS An analysis of the reasons people consider joining a cult allows students the opportunity to consider the appeal, or not, of modern cults.