THE IMPROVED UNIFORM LESSONS. The International Sunday School Lesson Committee prepared a provisional course for 1920, and sent it out for criticism to Sunday School editors and workers in various parts of the world. On the basis of the criticisms and suggestions thus sent in the course was revised before its final approval in December, 1917. As in the earlier courses of this cycle uniformity is maintained by the use of a common title for the whole school, a common brief text for printing, and a common Golden Text. In a few lessons it has been found necessary to surrender this uniformity in the lesson text in order to provide a suitable lesson for every grade; the change being usually in the Primary grade. The lesson so selected has been adapted so far as possible to every department of the school by special topics, special memory verses, and additional material where it could be used to make the lesson more helpful to the pupils, especially in the older classes. THE LESSON ADAPTED TO ALL GRADES. The greatest single point of improvement of the new Uniform Lessons over the older style is the greater adaptation of the lessons to the different age groups in the Sunday School. This adaptation consists in part in providing for each lesson, in addition to the general lesson title, Bible passage, and Golden Text, the following: 1. A separate Primary Topic, Memory Verse, and at times varying Bible material for little children. These topics will be seen to be in large measure such as would attract the children, like story titles, and the lesson will be found to consist mainly of story material, so that our youngest group may become familiar with the Bible stories so loved by children of the past generations; and learn how God has cared for his children in the past. 2. A separate Topic, Memory Verse, and at times Bible material for boys and girls of Junior age. Here, also, the work must remain largely in the story form. 3. A separate Topic and Additional Bible Material for scholars from twelve to seventeen years, the Intermediate and Senior grades. This is a new departmental grouping adopted by the Sunday School Council in 1917. The Topic in this grade will be seen to be less concerned with the story of the Scripture than with the personal lessons the pupil can gain from it to guide his daily life. They are strongly practical. 4. A separate Topic and Additional Material for young people and adults, ages eighteen and over. These topics are of great interest as they deal with the relations of daily life with other people; practical problems which must be solved by the people of our time, and solved soon; and such practical philosophy as is contained in such a topic as that for July 25: "True Success and How to Win It." THE BASIS FOR TEACHING ALL GRADES. This book is for the teachers of all grades in the Sunday School which use the uniform Bible material. Its purpose is to furnish the knowledge and practical applications which must underlie all good teaching of whatever grade. It gives the story of the lesson; interprets the words in the light of their original; reminds the student of the secular history of the times, and the Oriental customs which so often explain the story. It gives statements of principles, or legitimate inferences, on which the teacher may securely stand and adapt his instruction to the particular grade he is teaching. In addition there is in every lesson some teaching, or some story, anecdote, or poem, especially illustrating each different topic based on the uniform material. These are often useful to more than the grade to which they are especially attached. The definite limits of space in this book prevent a separate treatment of each lesson for each of the separate grades. It is, however, easily possible for the busiest teacher to cull from it those portions best adapted to the needs of his class, and to leave the remainder for the teachers of the other grades. REFERENCES TO LITERATURE. For several reasons we present as fully as possible lists of books not only in the following Bibliography on the general subjects of the lessons, but in each lesson on the particular topic under the discussion. These may remind the teacher of other familiar passages in literature, differing, perhaps, in the case of each one. This is partly that the limitations of space compel us to omit many illustrations, poems, etc., that would be helpful in illustrating the lesson. One of the most difficult parts of the preparation of the book is sometimes the choosing among the wealth of available material the one best thing for the place. While the result may not seem to all readers to be ideal, we venture to say that to write a book containing twice the material would have been less than half the work! AN APPRECIATION FROM MARION LAWRANCE. Especially pleasing in view of these difficulties was a note from Secretary Marion Lawrance: "I am just in receipt from your publishers of a copy of Select Notes for 1919. How this standard commentary on the Uniform Lessons has been able to maintain itself during all these years, growing annually stronger and richer in your riper years, is a marvel to the Sunday School world. Personally I do not see how any Sunday School teacher can do his best without the rich, full helps found in these Notes. Nineteen-nineteen is the top of the heap. I do not forget the days that are gone, and how much I owe to you. May the Lord bless you more and more is the wish of Your old friend, Marion Lawrance, General Secretary." PICTURES AS AN AID TO TEACHING. After obtaining a knowledge of the lesson material and its applications, few aids to teaching are more effective than pictures of various kinds, especially to the classes where the story is an important part of the lesson. One can obtain photographs of places or of great paintings; those that are colored often being even more attractive to the class. These colored pictures can be obtained from the Detroit Photographic Co. The inexpensive pictures in half tone, giving copies of famous paintings and of scenes from nature, are most excellent for individual work in the class, especially in the preparation of the Lesson Books by the younger classes. Those published by W. A. Wilde Co. are only a cent and one half each. A list of some of the pictures appropriate for the lessons of this year are given on page 12. If more are desired, send to W. A. Wilde Co. for a catalogue containing 800 subjects. Pictures for Adorning the Sunday School Room. Pictures of Bible scenes, whether views from nature or reproductions of good religious paintings, will be of great value if hung on the wall of the Sunday School room, or of the individual class rooms. They are an education and an inspiration. These can be procured of all sizes and at all prices. THE STUDY OF THE HOLY LAND ITSELF. The study of the geography, scenery, customs, etc., of the Holy Land is increasingly fascinating as the results of the great World War work out the changes which must come there, where no great change has been seen for hundreds if not thousands of years. During this year our lessons are confined geographically to Palestine proper, and include its history from the first settlement of the Israelites after their return from the Egyptian Exile to the end of the reign of Solomon, when it had reached the broadest boundaries and the greatest power of its entire history. And they also include the study of Palestine nearly a thousand years later, at the time of our Lord, and the first few years after his death. Those who have been familiar with Palestine have told us that in the Palestine of to-day we can see illustrated all the sayings of Jesus, all the customs of his time and earlier which are referred to in the Bible. For that reason it is well to become familiar with the Palestine of yesterday before it is changed into the Palestine of to-morrow. |