Godly Play is a way of being in worship with children. While full of developmentally appropriate interactive learning, Godly Play is first and foremost a way for both adults and children to grow in love for God and one another. It provides a way for young children to bring their lived experiences into dialogue with God and for older children to deepen and express their faith. children do this by experiencing God in the Biblical stories and in the natural creative work of children, play.
A Godly Play session follows the flow of a worship service: the call to assemble in God’s name, to hear and respond to God’s Word, to give thanks, and to go forth in God’s name. But it does so in ways that enable and support a child’s experience of worship and introduces the child to the stories and language of his faith.
“Welcome, Julie. We are glad you are here. Are you ready?” Children are greeted by the doorperson and prepare to enter. They are welcomed and form a circle around the storyteller, who leads them into an attitude of “being-ready”-ready to attend to and experience the presence of God. A child needs to know how to find a quiet place within, which enables her to get ready to worship.
The storyteller carefully carries a box to the center of the circle. She unfolds the contents gently one by one. “I wonder what this is...And this…And this…” A green felt underlay frames the story. Other felt pieces offer definition of areas. There are some wooden sheep. She pauses. “Once there was someone who said such amazing things and did such wonderful things that people began to follow him. But they didn’t know who he was. So they simply had to ask him, and he said, ‘I am the Good Shepherd’…I know each of my sheep by name.” She touches each sheep gently. “And they know the sound of my voice…”
At the heart of most Godly Play sessions is the telling of the story. The storyteller focuses on the simple materials that visually work out the telling of the story and help children engage their imagination. In worship, God is central. We find meaning and order in relation to God. God’s Word is central in the telling of the story. Children hear the core stories of the Christian tradition (Biblical narrative, parables, and liturgical action presentations) several times over the pre-school and elementary years because as children grow and change so their understanding of these stories changes and deepens.
“I wonder what was your favorite part of the story?” “I wonder if you would like to make something that shows how you feel about this parable?” Each child chooses his or her work. One child plays with the figures. Another child draws a self-portrait. Another creates figures in clay. Appropriate freedom is offered for each child to respond. Children understand through “play” – play through coloring, acting out themes learned, and creating. They use various story and art materials.
At the end of the work time, the children put away their work and gather in a closing circle to give thanks in prayer, to share a simple “feast” (juice and crackers) which teaches table fellowship, and to be dismissed with a personal word of affirmation reminding them of God’s love for them and His blessings.
In Godly Play, children abide in God’s love as they experience the stories of God. They discover meaning in their own stories as they find them to be part of God’s story. And as they live their stories as God’s children, they become Christ’s ministers in the world.
