God's Big Story (GBS) invites children to enter into the narrative of God's abounding faithfulness and love for all of his beloved children. Our aim is that children and their teachers might hear the gospel of Jesus Christ, know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour and experience the fullness of new life in Christ as part of His body, the church.
The curriculum is rooted in the incredible truth that God has come to rescue his children from their own sin through his Son Jesus Christ. It explores the biblical narrative from creation and the fall to Jesus' sacrificial victory on the cross to the promise of a new heaven and earth. GBS is taught in the context of worship through liturgy, song, scripture memory, story presentation, wondering questions, catechesis (teaching of doctrine and the faith), prayer, and many reflective and creative responses geared to a variety of age groups.
You can read more about the GBS core distinctives, pedagogy and curriculum Overview here:
Little Ones
Our Little Ones Curriculum is an introduction to Jesus for children ages 2-3. Each lesson follows a pattern of worship as we sing our praises to the Lord, hear His word and respond to Him in prayer. The same bible story is repeated over three weeks. The first week we read the story from a book, the second week we tell the story using wooden figures and the third week we encourage the children to engage in the story as we act it out together.
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Preschool
GBS Preschool Curriculum is for children ages 4-5. This one year curriculum was designed to transition children from the Little Ones program to the regular GBS elementary program with shorter stories, lots of review and plenty of play time.
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Elementary
GBS Years A-F are geared towards Elementary Kids. Each year of this 6-year curriculum covers Old Testament stories in the Fall, New Testament stories beginning in Advent through to Pentecost and Catechetical Topics in the spring and summer. Lesson are structured for worship with an opening liturgy, singing, hearing God’s word, response time and prayer.
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Junior Youth
GBS Years G-H are geared for Grade 5-6 kids with an increased emphasis on specific books of the Bible and doctrine. They are pedagogically different than Years A-F as kids read each story directly from the Biblical text and engage in more discussion, games and drama.
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We offer this curriculum to you free, in the context of a supportive relationship with people who use it regularly. Please contact us if you'd like access to the full materials and we will set up a Zoom call with you to walk you through the curriculum and answer all your questions. We want to support and encourage you in this very important ministry to children.
Testimonials
As an inexperienced Sunday School teacher, serving in a small church plant with very little resources, GBS has been of great help because I can just follow the detailed and thoughtfully written lesson plans, without worrying much about whether the materials are biblical enough and in line with our Anglican doctrines or not. I trust the contents of the curriculum because it is developed from faithful Anglicans within ANiC.
The children also love how they can visualize the scenes from the Bible with the wooden figures and props. The various stories that they learn from the Bible find their place in the timeline of God's Big Story, all pointing towards God's redemption through Christ. I wholeheartedly recommend this curriculum to all parishes who want to help the next generation fall in love with the Scriptures again.
Charis Ann
Good Shepherd Richmond, BC
Since the launch of St. Peter’s Fireside six years ago, we have been through a few different curriculums, all of which had challenges and involved a great deal of preparation. At the beginning of this year, we switched to God’s Big Story and have seen our kids start to absorb the Gospel message. Our volunteer team find the lessons fun and easy, our parents love the take-home activities, and our kids have fun learning God’s word through colouring, songs, and interactive stories. I appreciate God’s Big Story as a theologically robust curriculum that can be tailored to the needs of each churches unique mix of children.
Kate McGregor-Foxcroft
St. Peter's Fireside, Family Ministry Leader
Our church transitioned to God's Big Story last Advent after hearing about the program at Synod last year. I have been involved in Children's Ministry in some capacity for most of my husband's 23 years of ministry. I also have a teaching background and for a season worked writing curriculum to be used in the school systems. This curriculum is, easily, the best of it's kind I have seen (to purchase or for free) in the last 23 years and it easily rivals and exceeds the quality of many curriculum programs being used in secular systems. While it requires a bit of work to collect what is needed to start running, it's also very adaptable to whatever you have around and most of what is needed is inexpensive and easily accessible. From the stories themselves to the Catechism and Bible memory verses (which my kids LOVE) to simple hands on crafts that drive the point home...this curriculum allows kids to meet Jesus and understand His heart in a very special way. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Kathy Doering
Associate Pastor, Living Waters Anglican Fellowship, Kingston ON
Chaplain, St Lawrence
Campus Minister, Geneva House, Queen's University
I have so enjoyed reviewing the God’s Big Story Curriculum. The material is exceptional and so clearly laid out. I especially appreciate the sound theology, application of the liturgical calendar, and the use of ACNA Catechism. The use of memory work, music, art and creative movement make for a collection of educational tools that are effective but also enjoyable! Furthermore, the clear lesson plans make it a pleasure for teachers to utilize and prepare the materials without being overwhelmed.
Jane Roberts
Akron, Ohio