Enjoying the scenery on a recent vacation became a challenge as the traffic increased. “My goal is to be there by 3 p.m.,” my husband declared as he whizzed by another car. “And we’re going to do it one car at a time!” Goals can be important on vacation but they’re even more critical in the class­room. What goals do you have for your teaching? And how will you know when you’ve reached them?

We may assume children are made to feel important at home. But parents are often caught up in the shuffle of life and fail to recognize this need. Your students feel important when you remember their names.

Daily news items are a tre­mendous tool for Christian teaching. Use a variety of ways to show kids that God is here and personal!

Anyone who has worked with preteens knows they are subject to mood swings. The preteen years are “the best of times and the worst of times”. How do you relate to your students in the midst of their emotional turmoil?

Suppose you talked with Sarah a few weeks ago about salva­tion and she prayed to receive Christ as her Savior. Now you’re wondering, Did she make a true de­cision? God alone identifies every true be­liever (Matt. 7:23). But we need to know the spiritual condition of our students as much as we can to help meet their real heart needs. Consider the following evidences as possible ways to recognize true deci­sions.