http://www.amazon.com/Ever-Tell-Lucky-Classic-Seuss/dp/0394827198/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1202128309&sr=1-1

It reminds kids of how lucky they are compared to others (even though it is silly things like losing your pants, of course…I mean, it’s still Dr. Seuss).

And here is one that I actually went and bought after reading it to one of my nanny-kids:

http://www.amazon.com/Could-Have-Been-Worse/dp/1584310065/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1202128483&sr=1-1

It’s called “It Could Have Been Worse” and is by A.H. Benjamin. It tells a series of mis-adventures of a little mouse who gets very out of sorts because of all of the bad things that happen to him this one day. But he does not know that every time the bad thing happened, it kept him from something worse, i.e., he fell in a hole, which kept him from being eaten by a fox, etc.

OK. I think I’m done now. :-)

http://www.amazon.com/Parables-Jesus-Told-Tell-Me-Stories/dp/0802471161/ref=pd_sim_b_img_1

I also remember a book series that I had as a kid. It told you a Bible story basically as it was written in the Bible (but in kid-friendly language), and then had a story with the fictional characters, Maxi and Mini Muffin, which gave a real-life application of the truth Jesus was teaching in the story. These books are by V. Gilbert Beers, and although when I looked just now, they seem to be out of print, I think you could find them on Amazon and such. Here is a link to one, and then from that one you can find more of the same under “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought….”

http://www.amazon.com/Tagalong-Gilbert-Muffin-Family-Picture/dp/0802490212/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1202127624&sr=8-1

I have been thinking about this concept of figuring out how to teach Biblical truths before there is reading, because at church I saw this thing about how a mission team ministers in Kathmandu where it is largely an oral tradition society with very little literacy. They actually write songs, narratives, dramas and choreograph dances in the style and culture of the people, so that it can become part of their current culture instead of waiting until they teach them to read and then handing them a pamphlet. I was thinking how in America, we have almost completely de-valued that type of learning because we take literacy as the answer to all education, but I think it leaves out a valuable un-tapped resource in teaching people to actually think about things instead of just see some words on a page. Plus it is a type of ministry that forces interaction rather than, as I said above, just handing someone a pamphlet. I wish that we could re-integrate it into our society. Literacy is wonderful and I love words, but I think we have let it limit our creativity. I wish we would extend this kind of learning beyond kids and other people who do not read.

The closest we’ve come is the Godly Play curriculum that our small church uses; it presents stories to kids without the canned “right” answers, but lets them think about it and react.