Children’s Programs
at St. Andrew’s
Another Great Year for Peace Camp!
Love Can Change the World
Sunday, June 20 - Thursday, June 24
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Activities for Children Each Sunday at St. Andrew’s
On Sundays, we offer two distinct programs for children — Spiritual Formation (9:30-10:30am), and Children’s Church (during the 10:45 worship service).
Godly Play
Every Sunday from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., we offer Spiritual Formation utilizing Godly Play. Watch a video of Godly Play.
Godly Play is what Jerome Berryman calls his interpretation of Montessori’s approach to religious education. This approach uses an open classroom with selected, developmentally appropriate story materials. The ultimate goal of Godly Play is to teach children the art of using the language of our Christian tradition so that they may encounter God in a personal way and begin to find direction for their own lives.
Rather than give pat answers or teach doctrine, in Godly Play we support the child’s own spiritual quest and enable the child to develop a faith that is continually growing. Central to this way of teaching is the assumption that children do have encounters with the mystery of the presence of God. Godly Play helps them find the language to communicate about their experiences.
Godly Play takes two adults in the classroom. One adult — the doorkeeper — helps the children get ready to enter the classroom. The other adult — the storyteller — leads the circle in the story of the day. The story is followed by a time of wondering with the children. Children then choose an art response or to use a story previously heard, helped by the doorkeeper. Children clean up and then share a feast (snack) with the storyteller. Leave-taking means saying goodbye to the storyteller when parents arrive and children are ready.
Children love to hear and tell stories, a natural medium of childhood communication. Stories are where all of us, children and adults, find our identity, our family. Stories are where we challenge the deadly messages of the powers-that-be — whether greed and overwork or poverty and powerlessness — that would rob our lives of relationships and meaning. Stories are where we integrate the experiences of our lives into powerful acts of recognition, celebration, and meaning as we make our way through time and space. Through story we invite another to make meaning of our world and ultimately of our lives. —The Complete Guide to Godly Play, Vol. 1, p. 28
If you have any questions or would like to be involved with children's Spiritual Formation at St. Andrew’s, please contact the church office.
Children’s Church
Every Sunday, we offer a progressive Children’s Church during the 10:45 service. Here’s how it works:
- The age range is basically 4 to 10 years old, with some flexibility according to the individual needs of the child and parents.
- Children’s Church lasts about 30 minutes. The children leave the 10:45 service after the lesson with the puppets and return before the end of the service (for example, to have communion with their parents).
These are services for the children, as a group, incorporating elements such as:
- lighting of the candle
- prayer
- music
- other rituals that the children choose
The subject matter is connected to the puppet lesson and sermon. In other words, adults and children will be looking at the same themes together, on different levels.
We welcome you to be a part of Children’s Church, even if you’re not a parent. We would be glad to have your help. The more volunteers we have, the more we can do.
Want to help? Contact the church office.