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Teaching The Book Of Ruth Through Storytelling

Thousands of years ago, before the internet, before television, before newspapers and books, stories were passed down orally, often by theatrical storytellers as a means of

entertainment. This was also true of certain books of the Bible, including but not limited to the Book of Ruth.

Last week Dr. Hauffe’s Old Testament class began their study on the book of Ruth and Dr. Hauffe took that moment to try something different. 

“I wanted the students to experience Ruth as the ancients would,” Hauffe explained. “It was a form of entertainment with theological significance, similar to our modern movies.”

Students were greeted by the smell of popcorn, and were informed they didn’t need to take notes (they would be going over the material the next day)! All they needed to do was simply listen and enjoy the adventure.

Hauffe started with an introduction to the characters, a bit of background, and some interesting facts. Did you know….

• There are only 2 books in the Bible named after women

• Ruth is a Moabitess, the only book of the Bible named after a Gentile woman

• This book was typically read during the Feast of Pentecost- or Harvest of the Wheat.

• This is a “love” story of faith 

• Each of the people’s names in the story means something in correlation with their role in the plot 

Through Dr. Hauffe's wisdom and storytelling, these students dug into Scripture, to discover more about Ruth's journey and God's faithfulness.

Eagle Bucks Store Supports Reading & Math Skills!

The Shop is open! The Eagle Bucks store was open for business last week as each of the third grade classes took turns being able to shop for trinkets with the “money” they earned from reading!

“They earn one cent for every minute they read per quarter,” said third grade teacher Heather Olson. “This is the store where they can spend the money. It is also part of a math lesson on adding and subtracting decimals.

PCA parents donate small trinkets such as Rubix cubes, pens and pencils, and squishy stress relievers for the students to purchase, and then help to run the store.

Students come up a handful at a time with their clipboards and pencils in hand. Each student is given a “check” for how much money they have earned from their reading. They are also given a sheet of paper where they put their total amount at the top and as they choose the items they wish to purchase, deduct that amount from their total until they have no more money left or don’t wish to spend any more (as balances can be rolled over into the next quarter).

"The Eagle Bucks store motivates students to read during their free time,” Olson explained.  “They get excited about making purchases each quarter at the store…and also practice important math skills about money in the process."