Did you ever think of using a small multimedia projectors in your Sunday School or Children’s Church? I’m not a very good geek. I’d like to be one, but alas know too little about technology and am dependent on the kindness of strangers when it comes down to it. If you’re like me (or especially if you’re not!) you’ll appreciate this information on a neat little piece of gadgetry that even a technology-challenged person like me can make use of in children’s ministry!
Portable projectors (small digital multimedia projectors) have been around for a few years, but I only discovered them a couple of years ago as I was searching around for a way to display images to help illustrate and punctuate Bible lessons. It’s a pretty neat concept and of course like all digital technology, these multimedia projectors will keep improving over time. What I was looking for was something cost-friendly that I could use with my laptop to throw a picture onto a wall or screen in any room. Enter portable projectors: smaller, more lightweight, not quite as powerful but less expensive and just as effective for small applications as the fancier ones. They are marketed as portable business projectors, but they are very hand for education too.
Ways To Use Portable LCD Projectors In Children’s Ministry
So how do you use the things? Simply plug the projector into your laptop or other device, point its lamp toward a wall and voila! there are your song lyrics, slide shows, Scripture passages and Jelly Telly videos displayed for all to see…no more need to have the kids crowd around your laptop. There’s more to it, of course, than that; these can range in price from $210-$750, depending on the size and specs you want, and there is more information about lumens, lcd versus dlp projector capabilities and such you’ll want to understand before you buy. These gadgets are a great idea for small rooms and modest needs. A portable projector can be used in virtually any room where the lighting can be dimmed or is not overly bright to begin with; they are completely portable, can be used with laptops, iPods or other devices, depending on the model, and can be gotten relatively inexpensively. Visit one of the online geek magazines like pcmag.com or geek.com to find the best portable lcd projector for your needs and budget.
Do You Really Need A Digital Projector For Your Children’s Ministry?
Such a gadget can be a good investment for a church with room and media issues. Of course we can do quite well without electronic media when we teach; I am, if anything, on the wary side when it comes to making technology a must-have tool for teaching our children about God. That said, however, there are definitely ways to use it that stop short of making it necessary, but do allow it to be helpful. For a generation of children who have grown up with electronic images and are accustomed to them, this kind of technology can be a handy resource. If you are interested in a useful and instructive way to incorporate media into your teaching, a little gadget like this could be just the thing for your church or family to consider.
Of course, I also remain a big fan of flannelgraph boards…
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Jeri,
Thanks for writing about this. I’ve used a Dell LCD projector in our children’s church for a few years. We run worship song video lyrics and power point for Bible lessons on it. It has been a major blessing and allows us to do some creative things.
The tech can never replace relationships, but it can be a tool to help kids learn about and love God. Plus we had the big donation to our Children’s Ministry that covered the whole set-up without squashing our church budget that year.
I think a few hundred dollars for a Sunday School teacher would be worth the investment. Especially if you want to use more media in your ministry.
Tony, visual props are helpful, and this kind of technology simply frees a teacher up to present them in all sorts of, as you said, creative ways. I think it’s worth the investment, too.
I agree with the need for technology as the visuals help learners to remember the Bible stories ( I have a few powerpoint stories).
I wish our church could get a projector,but low budget is the reason at this stage….I live by my name and who knows….
Faith, I know what you mean about low budgets! I’m thankful that there are so many other ways to use visuals in teaching… in his Sunday School lessons available free on this website, Tony gives great ideas for visual helps that cost little or nothing.