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Reply to "COMPUTER Workshop Lessons and Ideas for Good Samaritan"

The Good Samaritan

Computer Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Sunday Software's "Good Sam the Samaritan" program is now free to the supporting members of Rotation.org. Learn more.


Scripture Reference:

Luke 10:25-37

Key Points Taught by the Program:

  • "What good is a person's faith --if they don't do the right thing when it's the right time to do it." -the Good Samaritan, from his SamCam interview.
  • "Our God's love, it is so very strong, it leads me to see the need in you..." From the lyrics of the music video "Lend a Helping Hand" found in the software.

Leader Preparation:

  • Read the story ahead of time.
  • Download and install and preview the program.
  • Print the guide, included in download. (It lists all the questions posed during the program, and what's in each section.)

TIP: As you go along with your kids through this program, just listen to Bildad. He'll pose questions, and suggest what to do next. Pick up on what he says and run with it!

TIP: There's enough in the program for older children to use it over two class times



A LESSON PLAN

Opening

Welcome students and share what they'll be learning today and what they'll be doing to learn it!  Have students share situations where they've seen someone in need (in person or on TV or heard about). Ask "why do some people help and others not help?" (The software will help answer this question.)

Software!

1. Luke 10:25-37
Read/Hear from either NRSV, KJV or Bildad's version of the Samaritan story. Once one version is accessed, the TWIST BIBLE STUDY buttons can be activated and read. These are the Bible Study notes for the text. Note: The KJV version is spoken by an Englishman and has a dramatic and sonorific quality to it that should not be missed.

2. Sam Land Interactive Map
This interactive map of Israel has 'reveals' in it that teach "About Samaritans". Several of the location markers have questions pinned to them. Consult the program's outline and suggest which locations you especially don't want to miss. Don't forget to click the camel!

3. Sam Cam
View the "after the fact" interviews with the various characters. After each short clip, a question is revealed.  

Key comment:  Good Sam's interview sums up the Parable by saying this:

  "What good is a person's faith --if they don't do the right thing
when it's the right time to do it?"

Play the "Excuses, Excuses" Matching Game which lists excuses people use for not helping others to the Bible verses that challenge that kind of thinking!

4. Sam TV
Play and reflect on the music video "Lend a Helping Hand" by Christian recording artist, Steve Lindsley. If you have time, see the other presentations in Sam TV as well.  

Discuss the Key Lyric: "Our God's love, it is so very strong, -it helps me to see the need in You."

How does God's love help you see the need in others?

5. Finish by playing "Who Wants To Be A Samaritan!"
This gameshow is played against a camel. It includes questions on the content and meaning of the story, and has a lightning round Memory Verse Game. The Good Sam outline has a list of all the correct answers.

6. If you have time, CLOSE by listening to the bonus track hidden in the "About the Artist" page. The song is "Radiance" by Steve Lindsley, which sings what life is all about.



If you are looking for a DRAMA WORKSHOP, you could PREVIEW the Sam Cam interviews with your students and re-create or re-write them. They're ripe!


For Further Study.....
Does the Samaritan represent JESUS in the story?

Probably not(?) but think what it could mean if he was!

  • Jesus was the "unclean" one who the Priests and Pharisees didn't like.
  • Jesus was the one who broke Sabbath rules to help others.
  • Jesus was the one who touched the ritually unclean to help them.
  • Jesus was the one who gave his gifts to pay the man's bill at the inn.
  • Jesus is the one who said he'd "be back."
  • Who then is the "beaten man"? Israel? Those looked down upon by society? The Lost?
  • Who then is the Priest/Pharisee? Organized religion? Those who have been corrupted by power?
  • Who are the robbers?

The possibilities here are ripe for discussion.

Here's an Interpretation Mind-Blower for your older kids:

JESUS = The Good Samaritan ??

Is this a parable about Jesus coming to save the world left for dead and abandoned by the religious?

And when the Lawyer is told to "go and do likewise", are we being told to "be like Christ"?

Yep, could be. Churches typically MORALIZE this story so that it's just about "helping others", and it is that.  Jesus himself takes it deeper than "help" by using the parable in answer to a question about "righteousness" and making the religious leaders the heavies.

But unmistakably, Jesus could have been referring to HIMSELF.  Jesus told many parables where HE was the main characters:   The sower, the shepherd, the master on a journey, etc.  And in the Prodigal story, God is the father.

And especially because the hero in this story is DESPISED and REJECTED by the religious community, it is entirely legitimate to consider the OTHER meaning of this parable: Jesus = The Good Samaritan.  

These possibilities are what makes parables so powerful.

Closing:

End with a prayer for our eyes and attitudes to be OPEN to the needs of others.



Alternates: Oddly enough, Good Sam program is the only currently available software program covering this parable.
1)
You could illustrate it in Kid Pix 4 or the newer "3D" version, or
2) use Let's Talk (Sunday Software), which is FREE to supporting members, Learn more here! and play the "How Low Can You Go" game (condensing the story to keywords). This technique is described in the Let's Talk program's guide.

Last edited by Luanne Payne
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