Children and Family Ministry

Listening Session Feedback Summary 2005

Strategic Planning Committee

Saint Michael and All Angels

          We had three listening sessions for Children and Family Ministry. The overall feeling was that the ministry is doing well but that we are always seeking to do new and exciting things. These notes are divided into the different areas of the ministry. Sunday school needs work to make it more exciting and desirable to attend for children.

Catechesis:

•         We are working on improving numbers and revitalizing this program.

•         We need teachers who are excited about Catechesis and who really follow the program.

•         Create excitement and urgency in parents so that they want to have their children involved in the program. The program has become too teacher driven.

•         Parents felt that children 3 years to 6 years in one class was too much of a developmental difference. The three year olds made it difficult for the whole class. It was suggested that the minimum age be raised.

Sunday School:

•         The overriding concern is that children don’t want to go but want to go back to programs at other churches because they are more “rock and roll experiences” with “teachers that really connect and know the kids.”

•         We need to be pulling children through high energy and fun things.

•         There needs to be a better balance of the teaching parts with fun activities.

•         The same craft for everyone is not good. They are too complicated and time intensive for some and not age appropriately challenging for others.

•         Create more variety in the routine...currently it is play, story, snack, and craft

•         Time may be better spent on incorporating a music element than having crafts

•         All parts of the lesson need to relate and work together to teach the story.

•         Using theater to tell the story is more engaging than just listening to a story read.

•         Classes need to be a better mix of schools and gender because of cliques.

•         We need to ignite excitement in parents about going to their own Sunday School classes for adults because this will get the children more excited (they learn by example)....Too many parents leave and go to Starbuck’s for coffee while their children are in Sunday school.

•         The children need more opportunities to get to know each other as a whole grade, not just Sunday school classes and also within Sunday school classes.

          •         Use the gym on a rotational basis like with Make a Joyful Noise for time to play games together, have skits for the stories.

          •         Use icebreaker games sometimes instead of word finds.

          •         Play together for an hour to socialize and bond more.

          •         Can order pizza afterwards with parents.

          •         In nicer weather, have them outside.

•         The more forethought/planning put into the lessons by the teachers, the better they were.

          •         Teacher training needs to include training on how to teach rather than supervise...do more than go over the curriculum.

          •         Do more to spiritually feed our teachers once a month...when classes go to Make a Joyful Noise..recruit volunteers to cover that hour since it is mostly crowd control...give refresher pointers to the teachers, explain upcoming curriculum, bond, compare notes, appreciate them, etc.

          •         Some people need/want to be more spoon-fed ideas of games, crafts, story-telling, etc.

          •         Possibly have Sarah meet with Sunday school teachers for 5 minutes before or after Sunday school hour to talk about ideas for the next week’s lesson. Then email out the ideas too.

          •         A 2 hour training doesn’t get the ideas to help people be better teachers across and some people don’t learn as well with a long stretch one time a year.

          •         Sunday school teachers might meet quarterly to socialize by grade teach to swap ideas and get to know one another.

•         Younger children might need lessons repeated for a few weeks to really learn the ideas.

•         There is too much time after the Joy Mass before Sunday School starts so families leave.

•         Music is necessary for all age groups-really like Make a Joyful Noise for the younger children but need something for the older ones.

•         Curriculum is hard to teach from for the older ages because it is so dry and difficult to follow.

          •         Children (older ones) can be assistants and be treated more like adults to keep them interested in going to Sunday School.

          •         Have 4^th and 5^th graders help teach the lessons and songs as “young ministers.” The young kids really look up to the older ones and the older kids would better learn the lessons by having to actively teach.

          •         Snacks could be cut out for the older children possibly.

•         Sunday school could work more like VBS on a rotation model where the children move from activity to activity because the children love VBS but find Sunday school boring.

•         Need more of a mix between Bible lessons and Episcopal Church/Saint Michael and All Angels tradition lessons or could possibly have the older children doing more Bible based and the younger children doing more Episcopal Church/Saint Michael and All Angels tradition based.

          •         Need to include geography of the Bible, parts of the church, traditions.

•         Want children to learn parts that make us unique as Episcopalians-the Doxology, Lord’s Prayer, and other parts of the Episcopal service.

•         Use Catechesis method in traditional Sunday school.

          •         More hands on learning.

          •         Acting out the stories and traditions (ie. Communion)

•         Have small sized altars, etc. for children to play with.

•         Have each class do pictures the first three weeks of the individual children. Put them on a poster board with dates so they can see themselves and check in for attendance. Helps teachers and children to learn people better.

•         Have a reward for attendance or knowledge of the Episcopal church

          •         Children get a mark/star for learning the Lord’s Prayer, Doxology, Easter story, Christmas story.

          •         Have the awards carry over from year to year for attendance.

          •         If they have a certain number of things memorized or have attended for a certain number (100 classes over the years) of classes, they get a prayer book/Bible.

          •         Have a Sunday school wall. When they have attended 50 times, they get to sign the wall, then another 50, they get to circle their name. The whole class goes together for the children to sign the wall when they reach the amount to create excitement about attending Sunday school and the reward. University Park schools does it for reading program.

•         Phone calls and letters from the teachers to children in class.

          •         Letters of welcome at the beginning of the year.

•         Miss you notes if a child hasn’t been in a while

•         Create urgency and excitement.

          •         Have older children call one another (like a phone tree) about events and when miss a classmate who hasn’t been in a while.

          •         Have something the children have to do from week to week and reward them. For example, they must name a miracle of Jesus the next week and they get a candy bar.

The Edge

•         Music is necessary.

•         Have children call one another for events to create excitement about upcoming events.

•         Rent Hawaiian Falls (also could do for VBS) for a day to have an event there.

•         Need time to socialize outside of the hour of Sunday school and this is a good way to do it.

Family Ministry

•         Have a Family Getaway for a weekend.

          •         Have one-on-one time with children and time with other parents.

          •         Have teachings with whole family and with just parents and just children.

•         One hour a week is not enough time to forge friendships for children and for families. Need more time to socialize in a church setting.

•         Call people for help so they feel a part of it rather than just showing up to Sunday school or other events.

•         Have once a month on Wednesday nights time with music, socializing, and teachable moments.

          •         Like Mr. Willy to do music sometimes.

          •         Can tie it into the Church calendar so lessons are tied into learning the Church calendar and seasons.

•         Do seasonal programming or a 2 year rotation by family level so the same people are not hearing the same thing over and over again. They want to learn new things but keep pulling new people in and giving them the great knowledge others have already learned.

•         Need to get the parents involved too. Have things for them to get involved in the Church life with their families.

          •         Want activities can do together as a family throughout the school year.

          •         Want outreach projects that parents can do with their children that don’t include canned food drives. They want to take their children with them rather than dropping them off with childcare when they work at Jubilee Center or Austin Street Shelter.

•         Have a Life Skills program with seminars for children and adults that would address such issues as bullying, peer pressure, etc. The topics would make or break this program though so would need to be carefully chosen....possibly do with Wonderful Wednesdays with Adult Ministries.

Additional Comments

•         Missed High schoolers at VBS and in Sunday school.

          •         Possibly could help be teachers assistants for Sunday school if they are not interested in going to their own class (give them another option to stay involved with Church).