10-Minute Assemblies for 4-11s: 50 ready-to-use assemblies exploring values from a Christian perspective

What do you do when you're asked to lead an assembly with a moment's notice? Don't panic! Pick up your copy of 10-Minute Assemblies for 4-11s and all shall be well.

This collection of 50 straightforward assemblies is a must have for teachers or church visitors leading collective worship. Each assembly includes 10 minutes of material including a reflection, an optional Bible passage and a prayer.

• Organised by theme - easy to find the perfect assembly.
• Enough material for a full school year - plenty of ideas for you to use.
• Includes Christian and other calendar events - perfect for any occasion.

Order now and let assembly anxiety fade away!

Hampshire County RE Resource Centre - July 2016

This is a paperback book which contains ten minute assemblies, ready to deliver at short notice for teachers. The author has been a teacher, advisor and lecturer and the book contains 50 very easy to read assemblies on a wide range of topics, including:

• Values and PHSE themes, such as celebrations, being special, friendship, kindness, responsibility, rights and healthy eating
• Christian calendar events, such as Christmas, Lent, Easter and Pentecost
• Saints days and special events, such as Education Sunday, Harvest, Remembrance Day and World Book day.

This book is very easy to use and would be a good addition to the RE lead and/or Collective Worship lead's library of resources. It uses everyday items that are fairly easy to collect up before the assembly and often involves the children or staff in the presentation. There are optional Bible passages that you can add to the message of the story, making the assemblies useful for all types of primary schools. Many of the assemblies use a large variety of visual aids (such as decorations, drinks, toys and scales) which are linked to the theme of the assembly and which act as a stimulus for the children's imagination. Each assembly ends with a prayer, which may not be appropriate for some schools, but this could be adapted to suit each school's particular needs.

Church Times - 10 June 2016

IN SPITE of every attempt to refine it, or even get rid of it entirely, the requirement for a daily act of collective worship in schools will be around for some years yet. But the deluge of things needing a head teacher's attention often means that preparing a morning assembly falls to the bottom of the list.

As the same head teacher may well now be responsible for more than one school, you can imagine that dredging up something useful to say on a wet Monday morning in November may just be the final straw.

Thank heavens, then, for 10-minute assemblies for 4-11s by Rebecca Parkinson (Barnabas for Schools; GBP9.99). There are 50 of them - I reckon that's about 20p each.

The author occasionally gets a bit carried away, and her suggestions for props goes into overdrive. You know the kind of thing: a kettle, a mug, a tea bag, a bottle of milk (so far so good: a quick raid of the staff room will do the trick). It's when she adds a large toy car, a bottle of lemonade, and 'a selection of foods' that the project is doomed.

But, for the most part, the book has some brilliant 'off-the-shelf' assemblies, which need the minimum of preparation. I've owned it for less than a month and I've used three of them already. If Parkinson adds a companion volume for 11- 16- year-olds, she'll earn a fortune.

Dennis Richards

Methodist Recorder - 1 April 2016

HERE'S a book that I wish had been around when I was enduring school assemblies a long, long time ago. In 10-Minute Assemblies for 4-11s (Barnabas in Schools, GBP9.99), Rebecca Parkinson provides 50 assemblies that teachers and school visitors can 'confidently deliver' while exploring values from a Christian perspective. These include general themes such as 'Being special', 'Choices we make', 'Seeing the good' and 'Standing up for ourself', as well as those focused on Christian calendar events, national days and other special occasions.

Drama

Within the 10 minutes there are ideas for drama, a sketch or visual aid, setting the scene for a Bible exploration and a 'Pause for thought'. I can see it working well in a voluntary-aided church school, but a multifaith one might be a bit more challenging. In her introduction, however, the author says the inclusion of an 'optional Bible section' makes these assemblies suitable for use in any school. And also in church, I would say, for any preacher or worship leader who wants to make their all-age worship truly all age.

John Singleton

STAR News Diocese of Peterborough May 2016

This is a straightforward book that provides 50 ready-to-use assemblies for both church and non-church schools. Some of the themes are based around values and some on church festivals and some on occasions such as World Book Day or Remembrance. Each assembly includes a visual stimulus, an explanation of the theme, a 'what the Bible says' element (that could be omitted) and a simple prayer. The assemblies are simple to lead but you will need to prepare the visual material in advance.

Rona Orme

Religious Education Subject Leaders' Newsletter, Peterborough Diocese - Spring 2017

'10 - Minute Assemblies for 4 - 11s' is written by Rebecca Parkinson. Rebecca has worked as a teacher, teacher adviser for science, university lecturer and course tutor. At present Rebecca teaches part-time in a primary school while pursuing her career in writing.

The assemblies outlined are designed to capture pupils' imagination and provide a short but relevant message, exploring values from a Christian perspective.

Organised by general themes, Christian calendar events, national days and other annual events, each assembly provides ten minutes of material including a short drama, sketch or visual aid (which requires minimum preparation) to explore the theme. This is then followed up with reflection on a Biblical passage, a pause for thought and a closing prayer.

Lesley Pollard, RE and Collective Worship Adviser - Diocese of Peterborough