IN NEW CURRICULUM KIDS LEARN FROM PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS HOW TO STAND UP FOR THEIR FAITH
Voice of the Martyrs Korea announced the release of its new children’s curriculum, a 5-workbook series entitled “Kids of Courage”, at a training event for pastors, teachers, and parents at its Jeongneung office the day before Easter. According to Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley who led the training event, "Kids of Courage" was written and designed by Voice of the Martyrs to inspire children (ages K-6th grade) with real-life stories of Christians facing persecution.
“Our goal in creating the material was to educate children about persecuted Christians in a fun and interactive way in order to encourage them to pray and take action to support these believers,” says Representative Foley. She says the curriculum also teaches children how to stand up for their own faith. “We’re using stories, coloring pages, skits, puzzles, and games to teach kids valuable life lessons they can learn from bold Christian believers throughout history and today.”
Each of the five units in the series offers a teacher’s guide and a children’s workbook, suitable for use in church, home, or Vacation Bible School settings. The curriculum features real-life stories of children and adults facing persecution in North Korea, China, Egypt, Nigeria, and India.
Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley teaches attendees at the “Kids of Courage” curriculum launch and teachers training event in Jeongneung the day before Easter.
“The ‘Kids of Courage’ curriculum emphasizes God’s faithfulness to the Christians who have come before us, as well as God’s continued protection of His children today,” says Representative Foley. “Christian children in Korea are growing up at a time of increasing hostility toward the Christian faith—in school, in the culture, and among their friends. They need to hear stories of those who have remained faithful to God in the face of adversity. They need examples of obedience and loyalty to God. And they need to learn about these things in a way that is fun and also sensitive to the challenges they are facing.” She says the curriculum shows children how they can share their faith with their friends and others in environments where being a Christian is not easy.
Attendees at the 5-hour training event learned how to teach the material from the North Korean underground Christian workbook by participating in the activities themselves.
Attendees at the event learned about the life of underground Christians in North Korea through the “Kids of Courage” material for elementary school children.
Kim Samonim, who serves a church in Incheon, said, “Today’s session was a fresh shock! We talk about mission and martyrdom a lot at church and teach children about it, but I was surprised to see the materials and realize that we can teach children about the martyrs’ spirit and persecution through role play, game and food. Our children love role-play, they will enjoy a lot!”
Deacon Kim from a church in Kyunggi-do said, “Through this time, I learned about the stories of persecuted Christians in North Korea, and the parts that I vaguely knew came to me vividly! When I actually participated in various activities such as games, sharing, and making things, the parts that I didn’t understand became clear and I was able to think specifically about how to utilize the textbook to teach the children.”
Lee Jundosanim who serves at church in Seoul said, “It touched my heart to hear that NK is not a country but a brother. Through this training, children should be raised to pray and realize that NK is our brother’s country, not someone else’s country. This is very necessary training and teaching material.”
Ms. Park who participated with two students from an alternative school in Gwangju, said, “As an alternative school, I always felt like it was a homework to raise children as Christians who are different from the world, not better than the world, but I was grateful to find the answer by practicing the actual curriculum today. I was touched to see that the children who came with me listened with more concentration. I believe they will teach other children well with these materials”
Participants at the event included pastors, church educators, and parents. They learned to teach the material on North Korean underground Christians by doing the activities themselves.
Three of the five “Kids of Courage” teacher’s guides, on North Korea, China, and Egypt, are currently available for purchase at the organization’s website, www.vomkorea.com/store, for 12,000 KRW each. Student workbooks for those three countries are available at the same website for 7,000 KRW. Representative Foley says the teacher’s guide and student workbooks on Nigeria and India will be available in the next two months. The materials can also be ordered by phone by calling the Voice of the Martyrs Korea office at 02-2065-0703.
Voice of the Martyrs will be holding its next training event on the “Kids of Courage” curriculum on [Date] in Daejeon. Registration is 50,000 KRW and includes the North Korean underground Christian teacher’s guide. Individuals interested in registering can call the Voice of the Martyrs office at 02-2065-0703.
Attendees at Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s “Kids of Courage” teachers training event display the North Korean style “speed rice cakes” they made as part of learning about everyday life in North Korea.
Attendees at the Voice of the Martyrs Korea “Kids of Courage” teachers training event participate in taking apart and re-assembling a Bible in imitation of North Korean underground Christians.
Middle school students who came to the event to learn how to teach the “Kids of Courage” curriculum to elementary students look at a rare North Korean Bible and other North Korean books with Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley.