Getting closer

If you sit a 10 year old Robert down and start to explain how a atom works do you choose liken the orbit of the electrons to that of the solar system as we currently believe it, or to what is known as probability clouds?

Once you are done reading what a probability cloud is on wikipedia.org I would like to share with you the clever concept of Accessibility versus Accuracy as I heard it from "Made to Stick" by Dan and Chip Heath.

When you are sharing a concept you have to first make a decision, do you want them to get the idea, or get the idea?

Sharing with elementary students how the electrons of an atom revolve around the nucleus much like the solar system will get them close enough to understand. If your audience is comprised of Ph.D. candidates you might want to take the probability cloud approach, which would be more accurate.

Do you have a complex message that you are blessed to share. Consider the benefits of Accessibility versus Accuracy.

A piles of rocks

If you subscribe to the belief of Jesus Christ you are then inherently somewhere along the icon-idol continuum (I just coined this term).

Some congregations of believers rid anything whether it be relic or rubbish lest it be viewed a graven image. Whereas other groups of believers stockpile the the nooks and crannies of the sanctuary. Perhaps you stand somewhere in the middle of the two extremes, perhaps you don't stand at all and likely have stopped reading.

So what?

Well I wanted to retell an often overlooked story that would be wonderful for children's church. Joshua leads Israel (God's chosen people) through the desert and nevertheless another river runs across their path. Jehovah clears the way, and Joshua in his divine wisdom instructs the priest tribe to shoulder up a rock for each tribe and place it along the path.

If you have ever spent the afternoon with a 2 year old you would know that if it was up to them the letter Y would not be in 25th place. Joshua must have known that every 2 year old in every culture would go through that curious career of never-ending why.

Fundamentals for group work

Not too long ago a great man became a greater man when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and lived beyond the doctor's expectations. That man was Randy Pausch, among many things he was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University.

During his time there he conducted a lot of research and taught classes. At the start of each class term he would divide the class into groups and encourage them to work as a group. Below is a list of encouragements he would give them lest they made it this far and still weren't sure how to play together.

• Meet people properly - exchange contact information, make sure you can pronounce everyone's name
• Find things you have in common - sports, the weather
• Try for optimal meeting conditions - no one is hungry / cold / tired, a great time to meet is over a meal
• Let everyone speak - don't interrupt, don't finish other's sentences
• Check egos at the door - label ideas appropriately (the Bridge Story, not Jane's story)
• Praise each other - even the worst ideas still have silver linings
• Phrase alternatives as questions - Instead of: "I think we should do A and not B." Try: "What if we do A and not B?"
• Sit together

Of course this seems very basic and could be insulting to those in grad school. But I share it with you because often we don't need to be told anything new, just reminded of what we may already know.