K-5 Electives for Summer Curriculum

Early last year, i consulted with Vineyard Church on the Rockies in Fort Collins- they were looking to redesign their children's facilities to make it easier for families to feel safe and have a better overall experience while they were at church. while i was there, i attended a volunteer training meeting that the director was leading to give the volunteers a preview of the summer curriculum. i was instantly impressed with their innovative summer plans - it gave the children a fun break from the regular school year curriculum and was very volunteer friendly, also giving volunteers a break in the summer. since my visit - i've passed along this idea to many churches looking to do something just a bit different for the summer.

I'm sure your summer plans are already fully underway - but hopefully this will serve and inspire you if you are looking to change things up for the last month of summer, or as you are planning ahead to the fall.

K-5 Elective Curriculum Flow (75 Total Minutes):

2 Six Week Sessions: Summer Volunteers commit to entire session (6 weeks)

Kids’ Electives: First 35 Minutes

Kids choose to participate in any of the electives offered. 2-3 electives offered each Sunday, electives were determined based on when volunteers were able to serve and lead.

• Kickball


• Card Making/Stamping


• Cake Decorating


• Wings and Things (Making Airplanes)


• T-Ball


• Soccer


• Camping


• Rockets


• Science Projects


• Sign Language


• Hip Hop Dance

Large Group: Second 30 Minutes

Including Music, Teaching and Videos - Scaled back from the regular large group program during the school year.

Team Time: Final 10 Minutes

Short Team discussion activity in a medium size group.

innovative family ministry resources

Last week - several friends in children's ministry asked me to recommend, from my perspective, innovative churches who are pioneering new ideas for family ministry and resourcing parents. i thought others might be interested - so here are just a few that i find exciting:

1. Lakewood Church, Houston TX - They just finished a 3 day KidsLife Camp - in which parents and kids attended 3 nights in a row (Fri, Sat, Sun) - parents heard from a parenting expert while the kids participated in their own activities with similar themes. At the end of the camp - they had a family ceremony and created a family covenant. Fantastic!

2. Lake Pointe Church, Rockwall TX (what's with all the great Texas churches?) - They have a program called HomePointe which offers resources, training, and encouragement for families every Sunday.

3. Christ Church of Lake Forest, IL has developed an interactive Family Road Map - it's so clear and gives parents a vision for raising their kids. Fabulous!

4. Online social networks are a great place to connect with other churches who are experimenting with children's ministry, and these networks are increasingly becoming a place to send parents for additional resources.

• If you are on twitter, use the hashtag #fammin to connect with other churches and discover others who are posting thoughts/ideas on family ministry.


• Parent Connect - is a new online network (kind of like facebook) for parents, a great resource to direct parents in your church to for additional community.


• the Brand new D6 Conference being held in Dallas, TX, September 23-25, 2009 looks to be an exciting place for new conversations in family ministry. you can follow their updates ontwitteri'm hoping they will announce live streaming so that both parents and leaders can follow the event.

children's ministry in the urban context - friday

today concludes our weeklong conversation with darlene kelley and effective urban children's ministry - today's topic how the urban and suburban church can partner together.  i'm grateful for darlene and her contribution to children's ministry.

a complete pdf is available at the end of this post with darlene's full article.



urban – suburban partnerships

i often wonder how partnerships can evolve as we do ministry in distinctly different contexts. what would happen if we possessed more of a kingdom mentality which inspires us to reach beyond ourselves and our specific ministry contexts and work together recognizing the value, significance and contribution potential of each context. in saying partnership, i am not encouraging what i have seen in the past – a relationship where one group dominates the other or becomes the “savior” of the other, rather a true partnership where both parties recognizes the value and contribution of the other and develop a reciprocal relationship.

Distinctives of Ministry to Urban Children-Families_DKelley

Darlene R. Kelley has served as a leader of various ministry teams throughout the East Coast and Midwest teaching and shepherding children, parents and volunteers, hosting various community wide family events, and preaching to local congregations. She is a pastor and teacher with a heart for teaching the Bible and training others for ministry. She currently holds a Master of Arts in Educational Ministries from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and is currently studying full time as she pursues a Master of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL

my leadership style: the american red cross

yesterday i had a revelation about myself. when it comes to my leadership style, i'm like the red cross. the red cross describes themselves as "the nation's premier emergency response organization." that's me! i like to move in on a disaster area, clean up, reinvent and reimagine the area - and move on. i don't like maintaining a program that is running well, in fact sometimes i think i even do damage to a program when i stay in it too long. and the worse off the situation - the better! i'm at my best when i can help others make sense of the chaos, put new systems into place, establish functioning teams, and bring life and energy to an otherwise lifeless situation.

this is exciting. i'm like the red cross.

anyone have disaster areas they need help cleaning up?

children's ministry & the urban context - weds

we are continuing in the urban conversation with contributing thoughts from darlene kelley. darlene says that ministry to urban children and family ministry necessitates the inclusion of the following:

develop a holistic approach

the best urban kids' ministry is a ministry effort that embraces a holistic approach. a ministry that refuses to ignore the daily needs and social disparities encountered by urban children cultivates the ground of receptivity to the gospel message. jesus must be presented as one who is not only concerned about their salvation, but also about their daily situations. urban ministry at it's best will extend beyond sunday morning gatherings to include programs that address the social and educational needs of children in a particular area. in many urban areas children do not have access to arts, music, and dance classes due to financial challenges or inaccessibility. the urban church is a great place to provide these types of classes in the community at reduced costs.



help children see beyond today and develop a proper view of self

many urban children, particularly children of color, are constantly faced with societal messages that communicate to them that they are “less than."  whether it’s the texture of their hair, the style in which they wear it, the way they talk, or the manner in which they dress - receiving messages that one is less valuable can wear down self esteem and diminish self confidence. many consider themselves inferior and uncertain of what it means to be loved, and children feel the constant pressure of needing to prove themselves because of a lack of positive affirmations. in addition - issues of violence, insecurity, and poverty fuel a ‘live only for today’ mentality that smashes dreams to the ground. ministry in urban environments must find ways to inspire hope and confidence, and help children live for more than just today.

join us for thursday's conversation - creating environments of hope and solace.

Darlene R. Kelley has served as a leader of various ministry teams throughout the East Coast and Midwest teaching and shepherding children, parents and volunteers, hosting various community wide family events, and preaching to local congregations. She is a pastor and teacher with a heart for teaching the Bible and training others for ministry. She currently holds a Master of Arts in Educational Ministries from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and is currently studying full time as she pursues a Master of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL