 We offer Sunday School classes for grades K-8, and meet between the services from 9:40 - 10:20 a.m.
Sunday morning confirmation classes are available for youth pursuing the two-year program to be confirmed in the church (generally 9th and 10th graders, but open to anyone who will be 16 in the year that they are confirmed.) Our Sunday School and confirmation teachers are some of the heroes of our congregation. Their commitment and enthusiasm toward our children is generous and steadfast.
Nursery
The sounds children make are a "joyful noise." Children of all ages are always welcome in our worship service, which includes a storytime for the children. If, however, you desire to have your child outside the sanctuary during service, we offer a nursery facility. The nursery is available from 8:15 - 10:45 am every Sunday morning for children and infants 5 years and under. The nursery is staffed by an experienced and nurturing attendant who loves small children.
3-5 year-olds
Our program, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, is a Montessori-based spiritual program that fosters the religious imagination of the young child. The parable of the Good Shepherd is central to the process of preparing children for both life and worship. The program centers on the belief that young children can and do experience God. Concrete materials to help the child learn by means of a prepared environment containing things used in the Church's worship such as an altar, Eucharist, and baptism. A catechist trained in Scripture and Liturgy uses the materials to convey the essentials of faith to the child. The children are then inviited to work with the materials themselves, and in so doing, make their own discoveries of meaning.
6-9 year-olds
Godly Play, for 6-9 year olds The Godly Play classroom is in the beginning stages, assembling story materials for the classroom as each new Bible story is told. Godly Play is a Montessori-based program that uses storytelling and wondering questions to help the children learn the stories and traditions of our faith. In our Sunday morning session, we spend time creating sacred space and building community. With Godly Play, our time together is an opportunity for children to learn religious language and to use that language to create meaning for themselves in the context of our exploration together. In every session, there is an opportunity for the children to reflect and listen for God's presence through play with the story materials and other expressive arts.
Primary - Kaleidoscope (3rd - 5th Grades)
We use the Seasons of the Spirit curriculum which follows the church calendar and focuses on the main stories of the Bible and helping children learn how to use the Bible. Most often the lessons correspond with the Gospel reading for that Sunday to reinforce their learning. Each lesson has four sections: Gather for prayer and offering, Engage with story reading from the Bible and discussion, Respond with a craft lesson or other activity tied to the lesson, and Bless the children at dismissal time.
6th-8th Grades
The 6th to 8th grade class allows students to discuss topics that are relevant to middle schoolers. For example, stress, peer pressure, etc. They are guided on the Bible's view on such topics. The class participates in service projects for the church during the the year and fields trips for fun. This last year activiities included baking cookies for the Face-to-Face Christmas party, making pillows for the church nursery, and communion plates that are used at each service. Field trips were fun! Among the fun trips were, corn maze, renassiance festival, Caponi Art Park, and bowling. Please see the following link for a view of the class and activities. 6th-8th Grade Activities
|
