The Gospel Project is a new kids church curriculum I’m looking into. Looks sound as well as creative in approach.
The Gospel Project (Curriculum)
21 02 2012Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: curriculum, Gospel, gospel project, kids
Categories : Children's Ministry, Teacher/Leader Resources
Three Factors that Shape A Child’s Life
3 02 2012
Wikipedia Image
How a child develops is a complex wonder. There are so many variables like family history, environment, peers, location and more that play a special role in the formation of a child. Here are three factors you can zone in on and leverage as you train up children to be fantastic citizens and faithful followers of Jesus.
Motor Development
I was intrigued recently with the motor development section of Laura Berk’s book entitled, Development Across the Lifespan, as I am running a games event at my church over March break. It’s been a memorable event that uses a lot of gross-motor skills along with some fine-motor. A few quotes caught my attention:
“[Games with rules]…contribute greatly to emotional and social development.” (296)
“[Child invented games]…permit children to try out different styles of cooperating, competing, winning and losing with little personal risk.” (296)
“…these experiences help children construct more mature concepts of fairness and justice.” (296)
There seems to be a bit of a debate over competition and cooperation in games. I’ve particularly noticed two different approaches from the camps of Group Publishing (Thom and Joani Schultz) and Roger Fields (of Kidz Blitz). On one side, there seem to be the people that avoid competition saying it can hurt self-esteem or cause hurt feelings or create the undesirable feel of winners and losers. On the other side, I find people who would say competition is helpful for building up confidence and that positive attitudes and character development can be learned whether a winner or a loser. I would tend to lean towards a good mix of both. I think a child should not be crushed emotionally because they lost a game, but also that they ought to be taught how to handle difficulties with a right attitude. I also find the connection to justice very intriguing as it seems the evangelical world is talking a lot about social justice these days. I’m feeling some teaching points coming on for the games event! And not only that, but giving kids opportunities to use their bodies promotes healthy living.
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: kids, training, faith, justice, relationships, salvation, development, formation, motor skills, Laura Berk, Catherine Stonehouse, cooperation, competition, winners and losers
Categories : Children's Ministry, Parenting, Teacher/Leader Resources
6 Ways to Foster Early Language Development
21 01 2012
The following is from Development Through the Lifespan, by Laura E. Berk.
- Respond to coos and babbles with speech sounds and words.
- Establish joint attention and comment on what child sees.
- Play social games, such as pat-a-cake and peekaboo.
- Engage toddlers in joint make-believe play.
- Engage toddlers in frequent conversations.
- Read to toddlers often, engaging them in dialogue about picture books.
Put these into practice and your child will develop their language skills well. They will experiment “with sounds that can later be blended into first words.” They will learn turn-taking for conversation. Their vocabulary will develop faster. They will grow in their conversation ability, develop language earlier and likely enable greater academic success later. Reading “provides exposure to many aspects of language, including vocabulary, grammar, communication skills, and information about written symbols and story structure.”
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: books, conversation, development, development through the lifespan, infants, kids, language, Laura E. Berk, reading, toddlers
Categories : Children's Ministry, Family, Parenting, Teacher/Leader Resources
3 Quick Wins for Kids’ Ministry | The Resurgence
10 01 2012
Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: Chrissie Wright, kids, ministry, teaching
Categories : Children's Ministry, Teacher/Leader Resources
Doctrine for Kids Debuts This Sunday! | Pastor Mark
7 01 2012
Doctrine for Kids Debuts This Sunday! | Pastor Mark.
Gonna have to keep my eye on this. Looks real good. Check out the cool track on their site.
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: curriculum, doctrine, kids, mark driscoll, mars hill
Categories : Children's Ministry, Teacher/Leader Resources
A Philosophy of Children’s and Family Ministry (Part 2)
15 12 2011(For part 1 click here.)
Challenges
Of course there are many challenges when it comes to ministry with children and families. As mentioned in the rationale, people have sinned and are separated from God and therefore, need that relationship repaired. So sin is the number one challenge. Leaders, parents, extended families and children are tempted to go after the pleasures of this world while forsaking the eternal pleasures in the next world. This leaves the whole world and our local communities in one large mess. To attempt to minister to children and families and not prioritize countering this human problem is folly.
So I believe one of the greatest truths we can teach our families is repentance. The Bible, over and over, calls people to turn from their sin, back to their Creator. Children are no exception. In fact, if this habit of repentance can be instilled from infancy, it will take hold as a pattern for their life that will lead them to finding hope in God, to fostering healthy relationships, to establishing strong life skills and give them peace for their souls.
Another challenge is to be aware of each child holistically. Dr. Wess Stafford proposes a solid model for this. His perspective is from that of moving children out of extreme poverty, however, it is relevant for all children as well. We cannot be satisfied to only attend to one aspect of a family’s life. We must consider the whole person including economics, health, social, spiritual, learning as well as environment. To do this well we need to know a child’s story, become familiar with their history, their family, their location and their interests. This is critical for positive ministry. This is massive and one leader can’t possibly know all these things or be able to minister in all these areas. Therefore leadership training is essential.
Stafford gives his solution to the challenge of children in poverty. He writes, “I still say that the most loving and strategic thing that can be done for children in poverty is to bring them to their heavenly Father.” That this is true for all children is clear.
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: challenges, children's pastor, church, kids, ministry, roles, volunteers
Categories : Children's Ministry, Family, Teacher/Leader Resources
A Philosophy of Children’s and Family Ministry (Part 1)
15 12 2011
Rationale and Biblical Foundation
God loves people. In the beginning God created a universe to display his greatness. Then he created people to share and revel in it. When those people sinned, the intimacy they shared with God was forever broken. But God had an even bigger plan to show off even more greatness so people could share and revel in even more of it…if they would trust him.
When God created people, he said, “Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen 1:28). This imperative instituted families and stirred in them the desire to go into all the world exploring, creating and delighting in the Creator together. However, because of sin, families were also broken and children would grow up not having known of the original intimacy their parents had with the Creator. Parents would then have to pass on this firsthand knowledge which would become second hand and so on.
Even though the relationship people had with God was broken, God was still working and present and very active. His aim was and is to mend what was broken, to heal what was wounded and to restore what was ruined. He chose throughout history to speak and to share promises of redemption. Whenever he spoke or demonstrated his power it was intended to be shared. In fact, how could such powerful demonstrations not be made known? Inevitably, stories would be written and told in community and within families. Significant rituals and marker events would be instituted as powerful reminders of God’s faithfulness. People would hear portions of God’s greatness and glory again and again even though it could no longer be seen in all its fullness here on Earth.
Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: biblical foundation, children's and family ministry, church, kids, ministry, philosohpy, restoration
Categories : Children's Ministry, Family, Teacher/Leader Resources
Quest for Compassion | A free Christian educational game
8 12 2011Quest for Compassion | A free Christian educational game.
Get your children informed about the poor around the world. Inspire your family to get involved!
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: compassion, kids, poor, poverty
Categories : Children's Ministry, Family, Teacher/Leader Resources
Top Five Family Habits
2 12 2011
Wes Stafford, president of Compassion International is a huge advocate for children of all kinds poor or rich. Here are his five habits for families:
1. Make an unbending commitment to the magical moments of bedtime.
2. Arrange leisure time with a view to minimizing absence from kids.
3. Refuse to let media push kids aside.
4. Sponsor a child as a discipleship tool.
5. Establish a weekly family night.
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: compassion, family time, habits, kids, Wes Stafford
Categories : Family
What Are Kids Watching?
30 11 2011
I was checking out some kids tv over on YTV. There’s a new popular show called Victorious marketed to tweeners. A recent episode is called Ice Cream for Ke$ha. Tori basically is desperate to win a contest to have Ke$ha for a private concert. Ke$ha is a popular musical artist with a hit song called “Blow.” I don’t recommend your child view her music video on Youtube, however, as it is very sexually provocative. So how do you go about choosing what to watch or let your kids watch? Do you know or care what is being consumed? Media has a subtle influence. It can make sin appear fun and exciting. Yet it can also lead down a path of self-indulgence that leads us away from our selfless Jesus. Be careful little eyes what you see. What do you think? What are some of your kids favourite shows?
Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: kids, shows, sin, subtle influence, TV, Victorious, YTV
Categories : Children's Ministry, Family, Parenting, Teacher/Leader Resources
