Explore it

Children's Discipleship Material - for Small Groups

Session Guides for ages 7-12

Light Guides for younger children

Explore It is designed for children’s ministry leaders working with groups of children.

Each session includes:

• Start it (5 mins) A game, discussion or activity to introduce the theme, building on children's lived experience.
• Sing it (5 mins) A song suggestion to enhance your time of worship.
• Share it (10 mins) Different ideas for telling the story and sharing biblical truths.
• Action it (10-15 mins) An idea to help children reflect on this week's theme.
• Pray it (5 mins) A time of response and prayer for the group.

Explore It ideas

An additional resource to send home to families, to explore the theme further. 

Light Guides 

Ideas and resources to explore the theme with younger children.

Fruit of the Spirit 

Explore it equips leaders of young people to facilitate response to a wide variety of Bible stories and teaching. Although subjects may not follow chronologically, the three-year curriculum exists to promote a lived experience of day-to-day discipleship, expressing the fruit of the Spirit. 

Galatians 5:22-3 (ICB) says, 

‘But the Spirit gives love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. There is no law that says these things are wrong.’

Our discipleship of children is about experiencing the ‘who’, more than learning the ‘how’. Therefore one of these nine qualities features each week as children grow in their experience of who Jesus is.

August – Amazing Children of the Bible

August sees the re-start of the Explore it three-year curriculum. Some content has been refreshed and reorganised and some is new. But we hope that the content will still enrich your group's discipleship journey.

Session 1: To discover how a little girl helped God bring healing, and to be curious about how we can talk about God

Naaman is healed (2 Kings 5:1-14) 

Session 2: To explore how a boy helped Jesus, to consider his faith and willingness, and to think about how we can reflect God’s goodness

More than 5,000 people fed (John 6:1-15)

Session 3: To learn to listen for God and be curious about how we can ‘hear’ God

God calls Samuel (1 Samuel 1:26-28; 3:1-18)

Session 4: To explore the story of David and Goliath and see how God anointed David when he was a child

David and Goliath (1 Samuel 16:1-13; 17:4-16,32,38-40,48-51)

Session 5: To see how Miriam helped keep Moses safe by being brave

Baby Moses (Exodus 2:1-10)

July – Stories Jesus told

Sessions can be swapped around so that Session Four, The great banquet, can take place at the end of the school term.

Session 1: To better understand the reason for Jesus’ parables, and to know

A lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7)

Session 2: To better understand the reason for Jesus’ parables and think about how we love God and love others

The King will judge all people (Matthew 25:31-46)

Session 3: To better understand the reason for Jesus’ parables, and think about our priorities

Jesus warns against selfishness (Luke 12:13-21)

Session 4: To better understand the reason for Jesus’ parables, and think about sharing inclusion

A story about a big banquet (Luke 14:15-24)

Explore it Extra

Pentecost 2025 - bonus session

Session: To understand God as a perfect gift giver

John 20:19-23; Acts 2:1-12 The coming of the Holy Spirit

June – The Lord is my Shepherd

Session 1: To continue looking at Psalm 23, focusing on God’s provision

The Lord is my shepherd (Psalm 23:1)

Session 2: To explore the metaphor – what does it mean to be by still waters?

The Lord is my shepherd (Psalm 23:2-3)

Session 3: To remember that God is with us and cares for us 

The Lord is my shepherd (Psalm 23:4)

Session 4: To know that God will always love, welcome and walk with me

The Lord is my shepherd (Psalm 23:5-6)

May – Children of God’s Kingdom

Session 1: To explore Jesus’ command to love God and love each other

The most important command (Matthew 22:34-40)

Session 2: To explore the idea of unity and its importance in the world

The unity of the body (Ephesians 4:1-6,11-16)

Session 3: To explore Paul’s picture of the armour of God

Wear the full armour of God (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Session 4: To explore the fruit of Spirit

The Spirit and human nature (Galatians 5:13-18,22-26)

Session 5: To explore the book of Psalms and Psalm 23 ‘The Lord is my shepherd’

The Lord is my shepherd (Psalms; Psalm 23) 

This session also links with the June sessions.

April – A journey through a special week 

Session 1: To explore how and why we stay close to God

Jesus is like a vine (John 15:1-11)

Session 2: To respond to the events of Palm Sunday

Jesus enters Jerusalem as a king (Mark 11:1-11)

Session 3: To consider Jesus’ resurrection and the difference it makes to us

Jesus rises from death (Matthew 28:1-10)

Session 4: To explore Jesus’ command to love each other

Jesus is like a vine (John 15:12-17)

This session also links with May session one.

March – Peter and Paul

Session 1: To know we can be close to God in difficult times

Paul and Silas in jail (Acts 16:16-40)

Session 2: To explore what it means to have faith in God, even in difficult times

The storm (Acts 27:13-44)

Session 3: To learn that God uses people who aren’t perfect in the Church and in the world 

Peter says he doesn’t know Jesus (John 18:15-18, 25-27; 21:15-17; Matthew 26:33-35)

Session 4: To learn that God chooses gentleness over violence

Jesus is arrested (Luke 22:47-53, 66-71)

Session 5: To know that the Holy Spirit can help us with self-control in difficult situations

Governor Pilate questions Jesus (Luke 23:1-25)

February - There's lots to see for disciples

Session 1: To know what happened when Bartimaeus met Jesus

(Jesus heals a blind man Mark 10:46-52) 

Session 2: To discover that Jesus expects us to use our resources well

(A story about three servants Luke 19:11-27) 

Session 3: To listen to the challenging words of Jesus

(The Son of Man must suffer many things Mark 8:31-38)

Session 4: To know that Peter, James and John saw Jesus in a new way

(Jesus with Moses and Elijah Mark 9:2-10)

January - Waiting for Jesus

Session 1: To learn, just like the wise men did, that worship is an essential part of following God

Wise men come to visit Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12; James 1:17)

Session 2: To understand that God keeps his promises and is faithful

Jesus is presented in the Temple (Luke 2:22-40)

**Includes Covenant Sunday.**

Session 3: To learn about John the Baptist’s self-control and obedience

Jesus is baptised by John (Luke 1:5-17; Matthew 3:13-17)

Session 4: To understand how Jesus calls each one of us to share his love with others

Jesus chooses some followers (Matthew 4:1-11,18-22)