Using Come, Follow Me—For Sunday School

Preparing to Teach in Sunday School

Personal and family study at home should be the center of gospel learning. This is true for you and for those you teach. As you prepare to teach, start by having your own experiences in the scriptures. Your most important preparation will occur as you come unto Christ, search the scriptures, and seek the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families is an important part of both your personal study and your preparation to teach. It will help you gain a deeper understanding of the doctrinal principles found in the scriptures. It will also enable you to inspire and invite class members to use Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families to enhance their personal and family scripture study (for help doing this, see “Ideas for Encouraging Personal and Family Study” in this resource). As you do, remember to be sensitive to class members whose family circumstances may not support regular family scripture study and family home evening.

During your preparation, thoughts and impressions will come to you about the people you teach, how the principles in the scriptures will build their faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, and how you can inspire them to discover those principles as they study the scriptures for themselves.

Teaching Ideas

As you prepare to teach, you might gain additional inspiration by exploring the teaching outlines in this resource. Don’t think of these ideas as step-by-step instructions but rather as suggestions to spark your own inspiration. You know your class members, and you will get to know them even better as you learn together in class. The Lord knows them too, and He will inspire you with the best ways to help class members build on the gospel learning they are doing at home.

Many other resources are available for you to use as you prepare, including ideas in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families and Church magazines. For more information about these and other resources, see the section titled “Additional Resources” in this resource.

Some Things to Keep in Mind

• As a teacher, you have an important responsibility to support, encourage, and build on class members’ personal and family gospel learning. While some class members may not be consistently studying the gospel at home, you can make a big difference in encouraging and helping them make their homes the center of gospel learning.

• Class members’ conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ will deepen as they understand and apply true doctrine. Encourage them to record and act on the impressions they receive from the Holy Ghost.

• Teaching is more than lecturing, but it is also more than simply leading a discussion. Part of your role is to encourage participation that edifies and is based on the scriptures. You should also share the inspired insights you received as you studied the scriptures.

• Remember that many class members are having meaningful experiences studying the scriptures at home. You can support their gospel learning by providing them with frequent opportunities to share what they are learning at home and how it is influencing their lives.

• Heavenly Father wants you to succeed as a teacher. He has provided many resources to help you, including teacher council meetings. In these meetings you can counsel with other teachers about challenges you face. You can also discuss and practice principles of Christlike teaching.

• Some people learn better when they have opportunities to teach. On occasion, consider allowing class members, including youth, to teach a part of the lesson. Base this decision on the needs and abilities of class members. If you do invite a class member to teach, take the time to help him or her prepare in advance by using the ideas found in this resource and in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families. Remember that as the called teacher, you are ultimately responsible for what is taught in class.

• This resource includes teaching outlines for every week of the year. On Sundays when Sunday School is not held, families will continue reading the Doctrine and Covenants at home according to the schedule outlined in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families. You may choose to skip the lessons that fall on a week when Sunday School isn’t held, or you may teach from multiple lessons during a single class.