A quarter century of Bible studies celebrated in Shannon

Closeup of wooden christian cross on a bible.

A programme teaching the Bible in Schools has reached its 25th anniversary in Shannon.

The organisation has been a part of Shannon Primary School for so long its organiser says she is now teaching children whose parents she also taught many years earlier.

Sylvia Van Echten said it is very rewarding when children from the Bible studies class she teaches at the school meet her outside of the classroom and call out a friendly greeting.

"I go for walks in Shannon. It's my home, my town, and children recognise me and call out to me," she said. "It's joyful."

Van Echten said that as a Christian, she was really keen to get involved in her community and in the local school, which is how she first became involved in the classes.

"Shannon hadn't had [Bible in Schools] for a long time," she said.

Van Echten said the classes run on an opt-out basis, meaning parents who don't want their children to participate have to actively opt out, rather than the other way around.

She said there had always been strong support for the programme in Shannon and she couldn't recall any negative feedback from the parents about religion being taught in the school.

The organisation also ran a Friday after-school programme which was popular, she said.

"It's really just about caring for each other," she said. "The school has those values already - it's reinforcing them."

While the stories behind Christian festivals such as Easter and Christmas were taught in a factual manner, concepts such as the existence of Hell weren't taught to children, although creationism was on the agenda.

Shannon School principal Murray Powell said the programme added a school link to the various Christian church groups in the local community.

"Most of the activities and lessons have a strong connection with the school values and the Virtues programme that the school uses," he said.

Powell said around 95 per cent of students at the school took part in the classes, which are taught during school time.

He said the school periodically canvasses parents and the community to see if they wanted the religious instruction to continue in the school, and they always did.

The school does not have any programmes that teach children about other faiths or religions specifically, unless it arises through learning inquiries, he said.

"Our Board of Trustees has always agreed to continue with the programme," he said.

"It is our local community people, who already have connections with our tamariki, who run the programme. It would be true to say that Christian churches are predominant in our community. The present instruction reflects our present community."

The group will celebrate its anniversary with a low-key morning tea and cake, Van Echten said.