The period is rapidly passing in which dramatics is looked upon by church members as being sinful and not in any way to be connected with the church. This view is a relic of a conception of religion in which all forms of freedom and pleasure were considered evil. People interested in religious education are now realizing that dramatization is not an activity foreign to children, but that it is an outgrowth of the play interest which is natural to all children. They are aware of the fact that dramatization becomes evident in the earliest stages of childhood through the desire of children to imitate in play the surrounding social activities. Many churches have already made use of these natural tendencies by incorporating organized play as one of their activities. Since dramatization is but a specialized form of organized play, and inasmuch as it can be used very effectively in vitalizing the religious training which all children should receive, it deserves a wider recognition and adoption. This book contains a description of a children's dramatic club which has been conducted as a part of the work of the Sunday school of the Hyde Park Church of Disciples, Chicago, Illinois, for the purpose of accomplishing the ends stated above. Before this dramatic club was organized a small amount of dramatization was attempted in certain of the classes during the Sunday-school period. The enthusiastic response from the children to this new phase of the work revealed the need for more of this kind of activity, and as a consequence it was decided to devote one hour each Sunday afternoon to the dramatization of Bible stories. The membership of the club included children ranging from six to fourteen years of age. The average attendance has been from twenty to thirty children each Sunday throughout these four years of the club's existence. This organization was attempted more or less as an experiment with the hope that definite results could be accomplished. The practical problems which have arisen, the details of method of procedure, and the results which have been secured will be discussed in the following chapters. Several of the stories are given in the dramatic form which the children have worked out. This is done for the sake of showing what kind of a result may be secured. It is hoped that these plays, as they are written here, will not be given to children to learn and act; such a procedure would be entirely contrary to the spirit and purpose in which this experiment is set forth. CHAPTER II THE METHOD OF DRAMATIZATION