1. Curating Faith Formation
Several slides courtesy of
John Roberto & Kyle Oliver

2. Two Emerging Leadership Roles
Current Roles
NEW Roles
Developing religious content
Designing programming
Managing programming
Teaching/Facilitating programming
Learning Architects designing learning environments— architecture
Curating religious content and experiences

3. What is Content Curation (Beth Kanter)
Content curation is the process of sorting through the vast amounts of content on the web and presenting it in a meaningful and organized way around a specific theme.  
The work involves sifting, sorting, arranging, and publishing information.  
A content curator picks the best content that is important and relevant to share with their community. 
It isn’t unlike what a museum curator does to produce an exhibition: They identify the theme, they provide the context, they decide which paintings to hang on the wall, how they should be annotated, and how they should be displayed for the public.

4. Faith Formation Curators
A Faith Formation Curator: is someone who continually finds, groups, evaluates, organizes, and shares the best and most relevant content and experiences on a specific topic to match the needs of a specific audience.

5. Why Curation?
The increasing diversity of the religious and spiritual needs and practices of people today require personalized and customized content and experiences
An overwhelming abundance of high quality faith formation resources: print, audio, video, programs and activities, apps, e-books, websites, and more
The rise of online providers of religious content and experiences—“open repositories” of freely accessible faith formation and learning content hubs

6. Why Curation?
There is a growing demand for trusted guidance in finding and selecting quality religious content and experiences. People are looking for trusted guides to help them select quality faith formation experiences and curated learning paths and resources to explore and learn more deeply on a specific topic.
The tools are now available for finding and accessing the content, storing it (websites), delivering it to people 24x7x365 (computers, iPhones, tablets, etc.), and communicating & connecting people to the content (Facebook, Twitter, , text, etc.).

7. Evaluation Criteria Trusted Sources Biblical Content
Theological Content
Developmental Appropriateness
Ethnic-Cultural Appropriateness
Inclusivity
Ease-of-Use
Quality of Experience
Enriching, do-able, short, repeatable activities that weave into daily life
Enjoyable!

8. Choosing Content to Curate
Content – is it opinion or factual, is it correct?
Credibility/Credentials: Who is the author? Is it from a trustworthy source?
Commendation: Has the site been recommended by someone/organization you know and trust?
Contact and Communication: Can the author or web master be contacted with comments or questions?
Coverage: What is the scope? Is the topic covered in depth: Is it full and comprehensive or is it trivial?
Copyright: What is the copyright? Is this material current or dated? Authors credited?
Comprehension: At what level is the material? Is it too complicated or too long?

9. Critical Thinking: Can you treat this material the same way you would treat a published book? Does it drift from the main topic?
Current: Has the information been updated recently? Is there a date for "last updated?"
Continuity: Will the site continue to be updated? Can you rely on the site over time?
Connectivity: Does access to the site require special software or skills?
Clarity: Is the design appealing, with elegant simplicity, or is it fussy, crowded, or complicated? Does too many fancy or large graphics make it slow to load?
Cruise Control: Is there a site map, table of contents, or outline of topics? Is there a search function in a large site?
Compassion: Are people treated with fairness and tolerance? Or do you see bias, stereotyping, loaded language, racism, or other hurtful ideas?
Adapted from Elementary CC’s for Evaluating Internet Sites Maggie Roche, Adult Faith Formation Committee of NCCL
From GEMS newsletter – Great Endeavors Mined and Shared, Janet Schaeffler, OP

11. Developing Trusted Sources
Blogs Newsletters Websites
Denominations Curated Websites Religious Organizations
6-8 “Expert” Resource People

12. Subscribe to Newsletters or Blogs Aggregators who do the work for you!

13. Curating Family Prayer: An Example

14. Prayer Online
Fresh Ideas: (Prayer Online)

15. Faith at Home (Sharon Pearson)
Pinterest: Faith at Home (Sharon Pearson) and

16. Prayer & Worship (Sharon Pearson)

17. Faith Formation (Loyola Press)
Handout: Praying with Children (Loyola Press)

18. Ministry-to-Children
Make a Prayer Cube (Ministry to Children)
Ministry-to-Children

19. Episcopalprayer.org
Look at blogroll on this site; leads to many other sites!

20. Mylifemyfaith.org

21. pray-as-you-go.org/home/

24. D365.org

25. Sacredspace.ie

26. Online Resource Centers

41. Timeless wisdom, modern expression:
spiritual resources online
Slides:
bit.ly/SpirRsrc
Remaining slides are from Kyle Matthew Oliver
Center for the Ministry of Teaching
Virginia Theological Seminary

42. Kyle’s favorites

43. Meet G-dcast, a new media company for innovative Jewish education
How about a game? Check out Exodus or Leviticus!
Maybe a song? Break it down with “The Ten Comandments”
Psalm 42 by Jina Davidovich via G-dcast

44. Sadly, there’s no standout Christian equivalent
Sadly, there’s no standout Christian equivalent. But there’s lots to discover.

45. Prayer: Apps and other media can help create sacred space on the go
Kyle’s fav: Pray-as-you-go
What is it? Daily audio guided prayer with scripture
Who’s it for? Busy commuters, people new to prayer
Meditation timer: varied timer tones, soothing images
eCP: Book of Common Prayer in app form
Mission St. Clare: Daily office with embedded music
Sacred Space: Self-paced guided prayer

46. Bible: Websites and apps can open up the text in rich, interactive ways
Kyle’s fav:
Old & New Project
What is it? Intriguing visual interpretations
Who’s it for? Visual learners, art lovers
Big Bible Project: Scripture conversation & learning
YouVersion: Most popular BIble app; NIV, CEB free
Blue Letter Bible: Powerful exegesis tools

47. Learning: The Web is changing the way we teach & learn, including about faith
Kyle’s fav: New media instruction from SSJE
What is it? Monastic wisdom for everyday living
Who’s it for? Visual learners, art lovers
ChurchNext: An online school for your congregation
Intnt’l Arts Mov’t: Wrestling with Qs of art, faith, & humanity
New Tracts: Short Anglican teaching videos
Redeem the Commute: Xianity 101 video courses

48. Commentary: Leaders, learners reflect for faith growth, fun
Kyle’s fav: Nomad Podcast
What is it? Interviews about the future of faith
Who’s it for? Leaders, thinkers, emergent church geeks
Lent Madness: Celebrate the saints, NCAA-style
Mockingbird: Law and gospel in faith and culture
Easter People: Hopeful faith & culture conversations

49. Finding online resources
“Lord, to whom can we go?”

50. Avoid ‘blind’ searches; results often dated, theologically problematic
Especially true of generic searches. First hit for “Who is God?’ ...

51. Savvy searches will be specific, iterative, use ‘mainline’ language
narrows to specific topic
eliminates “creation care” brand
eliminates generic stewardship resources, zooms in to Episcopal resources
Bible study
Bible study resources
Bible study resources creation care
Bible study resources environmental stewardship
Bible study resources environment creation episcopal
** Activity **

52. Search curated collections to efficiently improve your chances of success
Center for Spiritual Resources: collaborative clearinghouse
Vibrant Faith at Home:
realistic family activity guides
Videos for Your Soul: engaging, embeddable reflection material

53. Search curated collections to efficiently improve your chances of success
Building Faith: accessible, practical ministry ideas
Resource Center for Churches: attractive browsing of traditional congregational resources
Storypath: children’s literature + faith themes

54. Collect new resources by subscribing to, liking, following trusted sources
Feed reader
Twitter lists
Pinterest!