Hundreds of schoolchildren in the Vale of Pewsey and surrounding areas had the opportunity to learn about the Christian faith at a special interactive exhibition earlier this month.
The Life Exhibition is an educational multimedia exhibition, using the latest technology to engage young people with the person of Jesus Christ. It encourages young people to consider his impact on the world today and come to their own conclusions about his teachings. The exhibition was hosted by St John the Baptist, Pewsey, for a week, receiving visits from 17 different schools. The young people who attended were in Years 4, 5 and 6 (aged 8-11).
The Life Exhibition was developed by the charity Counties, which supports evangelists and evangelism. The Pewsey event was organised by the Revd Robert DeBerry, a retired vicar living in Pewsey, and the Revd Mark Windsor, a Team Vicar in the Vale of Pewsey Team.
Speaking after the event, Robert said, “We want to show how relevant and alive Christian faith can be and that was the aim of the exhibition.
“We had 635 children in 24 groups over the week. They were all very interested and appreciative and so were the teachers who were amazed at the technology.
“It was a lovely atmosphere and the kids were so exuberant. It opened the childrens’ minds up through a beautifully interactive way through cartoons, film clips and information.
“We really decided to do it because it fits in with the RE syllabus at school and it is a very interactive exhibition and helps them to learn about the Christian faith.
“At the end we told them, however, they could go and make up their own minds.”
Team Vicar Mark added, “The exhibition consisted of a number of zones. Firstly, an introduction zone which features an introductory video, then three coloured zones: the red zone, with historical information about Jesus; the blue zone, with information about his miracles; and the green zone, with information about his words. Finally, there is the life giver zone in which a video is shown about Jesus’ death and resurrection.
“The final part of the exhibition is the cafe area in which the children are given a drink and invited to respond to multiple choice questions about what they have learned using a keypad. In the three coloured zones the children are given their own tablet with videos, music, further information and questions (their answers to which are recorded via wifi). The key question they are invited to consider is: who do you say that Jesus is?
“We organised coaches to bring them and take them back to their schools. Local volunteers were recruited to welcome them, introduce each of the three coloured zones and serve refreshments.
“The children seemed to really enjoy it and we had very positive feedback from staff.
“We also held an open morning and evening to give others in the Deanery an opportunity to see what it is about and experience it.
“Personally I am thrilled that over 600 children have engaged in an interactive exhibition about the good news of the life of Jesus as a result!”
Learn more about The Life Exhibition at www.lifeexpo.co.uk. It is available for hire in other venues. It will be running just a few miles outside the Diocese at Lockerley Farm (near Whiteparish and Winterslow) from 4-8 July.