Articles: Children

Watch the archived webinar of Wes Bartel discussing the Acts 2 component of worship and what it looks like in the church.

Read this mother’s account of how her child’s knowledge of Scripture encouraged his whole family during a dark period of their lives.

Christian kids will encounter questions about their faith through peers, teachers, and even parents. As their spiritual mentor, you can help them develop apologetics for their faith—and also equip them to discover biblical answers for themselves in the future.

Young children love hearing “adventure” Bible stories like Noah’s ark and Moses and the burning bush. As children grow, however, they will want to delve more deeply into these Bible stories. They will need to develop a personal understanding of their faith.

An excerpt from Robert Lewis's Raising a Modern-Day Knight

By Patricia Brown and Ken Horn, Managing Editor of Today’s Pentecostal Evangel

The late Elton Trueblood, advocate for Christian learning and discipleship, once compared the state of the church to that of Rome in the moments when its empire began to wane...

"There’s a history in American television of people we love to hate . . ."

So says the writer of a recent report about new episodes in several TV series. The point is that some of the most popular stories are about the "good guys" winning over the "bad guys." But the "bad guy" characters are played with a quality that makes them popular—even "fun" the article says. Beating the bad guys is "fun" so children love to hate them. Parents and teachers have been quick to accept this popular trend because, it is supposed, children are learning to stand up for the good and resist the bad.

A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was too crowded. "I can’t go to Sunday School," she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by. Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday School class. The child was so touched that she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.

"What you believe by the time you are thirteen is what you will die believing."

What an amazing and frightening statement! It is a statement taken from a recent study published by the Barna Research Group. This study in reality challenges us to rethink the whole issue of our priorities within the church and within the home.

The Lord is my teacher; He knows all I need...

In Sunday School, we want to teach God’s Word in such a way that God’s Spirit can activate faith in the everyday lives of students. We are not trying to turn young children into "Sunday Christians" who know how to look and act in a church building. We want them to become seven-day-a-week disciples. When Bible lessons include active learning methods that match everyday activities, children find it easier to apply God’s ideas to everyday events.

Baudeville, a company that specializes in affirmation resources, has created a line of T.E.A.M. The letters stand for "Together Everyone Accomplishes More." Has that been your experience? Maybe we could adapt their acronym for Sunday School to, "T.E.A.M. Together Everyone Achieves Ministry."

Looking for ways to celebrate and support your church’s families?

Which is more important in your Sunday School–the curriculum or you?

Use the following quotes to help cast a vision for the potential life-long impact of ministry to young children during the first six years of life. Include Bible quotes in bulletins, newsletters, and other printed materials to remind Christian adults that God wants all children to love, trust, and obey Him all their lives from the beginning of their lives.

All of the positive learning elements teacher s want to provide for young children will be very difficult if not impossible, unless some basic guidelines are followed when organizing groups of children. Just because it is possible to cram a large number of youngsters into one room does not mean it is desirable. A church that truly cares about providing loving, quality nurture for little ones will put a high priority on organizing its ministries for this age group so that effective learning experiences really can be provided.

"I don’t want to play with you." "Don’t sit by me. I want to sit by Jeremy." Young children unintentionally hurt one another, because they are naturally self-centered. They see all their relationships and experiences from one perspective—their own.

As you minister to young children, have you also found ways to minister to their parents? Teaming up with parents can benefit the children’s spiritual growth in several ways. According to one parenting poll, 93 percent of parents expect to have a strong influence on their children’s values. Maybe that is why God gives parents the main responsibility for discipling children...

Children frequently memorize Romans 12:1, but how do they put the concept of sacrifice into practice? They need living examples to help them learn about sacrificial living. In the months since September 11, 2001, children have seen up-to-date examples of sacrificial living. Firemen, policemen, steelworkers, and even rescue dogs worked sacrificially at Ground Zero. The nation applauded their efforts, praised their courage, and admired their sacrifice.

Play dough - children love it, and you can use it to teach many lessons in Sunday School. Even after using play dough to teach for a month of Sundays, children will return to your class eager to use it again.

Tips for teaching and working with toddler age children

The Thinking Chair as a tool for discipline

Tips for teaching preschoolers

Baby learning styles

Tips for making your nursery toddler friendly

Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it” (NIV). Many Christians interpret this to mean if you train a child in spiritual things, that child will grow into a God-fearing adult, too. But how can you tell if the child is truly embracing the greater truths of the Bible as Jesus taught? How can you help strengthen children spiritually so when they are grown, they will live for the Lord?

Managing your time in the elementary classroom.

Music should be a vital part of your Sunday School class time! You should use music to welcome the early birds to class and to start every event. Students love to march, walk, and hop to the next part of class. Those wiggly kids need the time to get up and move! Plan time for that to happen as they rotate to the next learning center.

Children learn best and develop ministry skills when we help them put lessons into action. Here are some creative suggestions by and for children’s workers.

Ask children's pastors what are their greatest needs in children's ministry, and most will say getting enough qualified workers is among their top three concerns. Our hectic society puts time at a premium, and most people feel they are already stretched to the limit. Yet, despite busy schedules, many concerned Christians want to contribute time and resources to expand the kingdom of God. How can we help them be involved in Christian education? One answer is team teaching.

It’s Sunday morning in First Church, Anywhere, USA. The children’s church has just dismissed. In the back of the room parents meet their boys and girls spilling out into the hallway. Several boys are playing with today’s object lesson while a crew of sixth graders puts away the sound and video equipment. Children of all ages crowd around the children’s pastor at the front of the room. Each one has a story, joke, or question to share.

Children in our churches today represent the fourth and fifth generations of Pentecostals. It is important that they receive proper teaching concerning the Pentecostal distinctive. With the acceptance and popularity of the Pentecostal experienced, there have arisen teachings concerning the baptism in the Holy Spirit that are confusing and sometimes erroneous., These teachings can cause an erosion of the Holy Spirit’s ministry in the lives of our children and rob them of the fullness of the Spirit God intends for them.

Older children can adjust to larger groups better than younger children can. In some situations, these children even enjoy being part of a crowd. While it is sometimes possible to entertain and even instruct large groups of children, it is virtually impossible to build life-changing relationships with children without close personal contact.

Is humor appropriate in the Sunday School class or children’s church? Yes. Humor helps break down walls of fear or distrust. It can heal a child’s hurts and anger. It helps all of us forget about our troubles or see them in a different light.

Common Spiritual Characteristics of Junior Elementary Students

Effective teachers recognize the importance of teaching children at their developmental levels, using language they can understand...

"Eleven-year-old boy’s suicide a puzzling tragedy...more kids his age are killing themselves."A recent newspaper carried the sad details. The boy’s name was Greg. His single mother struggled with a drug problem. When he asked to stay with his sister, she sent him away. His grandfather, who seemed to be his best friend, had surgery that left him unable to speak.

Spiritual Characteristics chart of middle elementary students

Sunday School teachers play a vital role in the lives of Christian families. They provide an important link between the church and the home and are in a key position to encourage young families in regular Sunday School attendance.

Spiritual Characteristics Table

What is responsive discipline? It responds to misbehavior through (1) an ongoing process of retraining; (2) consistent reminders of the rules;(3) redirection of improper behavior to better responses;(4) time-out in the thinking chair (See the article for more information.); and (5) expressions of Christlike love, mercy, and forgiveness.

“I knew from the beginning that I was a great disappointment and trouble to my parents,” Brenda told me. I felt her pain as she said it. An infant can sense the parents' emotions. Although she spoke of them now with tenderness and understanding, she would never fully escape the effects of that first impression: Her parents were ashamed of her because she was not the perfectly formed child they had expected. She was inferior because she could not see...

Children who have had a genuine conversion experience want to share their faith with others but sometimes lack the understanding of where to begin. We can help by giving them practical experiences and training in the church setting. Here are some ideas to consider...

Recently, I came across a photo taken at Camp Pinecrest in southern California. Happy memories were triggered instantly as I recalled my childhood camping days. The commitments I made there to serve Christ were real and proved to be life changing.

We have made several moves during our married life. Each time we looked for a good church in the area before we made our move. We realized the important influence the church would have on our family. We knew that if our children were strong spiritually, they could handle the challenges of life and would choose the right path in whatever situation they found themselves.

Jesus was a storyteller.He taught deep spiritual truths through parables, referred to historic epics, and discussed the future in story form. Jesus realized the effectiveness of storytelling in teaching and set an example for us to follow.

The following material may be used in your parents’ newsletter, church bulletin, or a handout to be distributed as parents arrive at church with their children. The suggestions will help them enhance their children’s Sunday School experience.

by Billie Davis

A sad dark face seemed to accuse me as I opened my morning paper. "Tears rolled from the eyes of the African-American teen," the front-page story began. She had found ugly racial words scrawled on her art-class project. The article called black/white relations in the school a "racial divide," and asked, "What can we do to bridge it?"

Most parents want help. I felt newly convinced of this as I viewed the amazing array of materials on parenting themes in a large bookstore. I counted 31 different periodicals and 875 book titles! Such a market exists because parents feel uncertain and are reaching out for advice on how to raise their children.

How to Say “NO” to Your Kids is the title of the cover story in a late September, 2004 issue of Newsweek magazine. While I was reading it my morning paper arrived. Headlining the feature section in large colored type was Gimme, Gimme, Gimme, followed by Toddlers Are the Newest Marketing Target. The article was illustrated by a picture of a child in the cart at the grocery store reaching out toward the food, begging mother to buy a certain box of cereal.

War is declared. A child, with tears in his eyes and anger in his voice, screams, "You hate me! You had better not touch me! You never pick me! I’m going to tell my mom!"

Gen X is the least churched generation in America. According to George Barna, only 28 percent of Gen Xers (ages 20-37) attend church compared to 51 percent of Builders (58+). Even so, there is reason to hope that more Gen Xers will attend church soon.

Some know him as the legal counsel for the Assemblies of God. Others, as a graduate of Harvard Law School. Some know him as an expert on tax law or the author of 40 books. In Springfield, Missouri, a group of fourth-grade boys know him as their Sunday School teacher. Richard has made a long-term (read 17-year) commitment to discipling boys so they will know and live by God's Word. Each week via e-mail, Richard updates parents about their sons' Bible lesson. Enjoy this sample.

By Wes Haystead

Methods for teaching children

Methods for teaching young children

This four-part presentation is designed to help your members understand God's purposes for the Church, the structure and needs of the local church, and their calling to serve God by discovering their gifts and learning they can fulfill themselves through service in the local church.

a quick guide to becoming a good storyteller

What are learning centers and how do they work?

By Stefanie Reubell

Hands-on Bible learning can occur at one table or at interest centers positioned throughout a room. Teachers who want to use hands-on learning in interest centers can refer to the checklist below for possible ways to equip different centers. Resourceful teachers can equip Sunday school rooms for enjoyable hands-on Bible learning on almost any budget. The items with asterisks (*) can be brought from home or made inexpensively.

(PDF)

Permission Slip Template

By Billie Davis

by Billie Davis

author, former missionary, and longtime proponent of Christian education

Legal Counsel and Sunday School Teacher

A recent study conducted by the Barna Group provides new insights into the question, "What is the connection between childhood faith and adult religious commitment?