Program Highlights
Attendance - Our teaching staff is committed to providing each child with a meaningful Christian Education. Each team member dedicates a significant amount of time in preparing each lesson and to support this effort, we ask parents to make a concerted effort to regularly bring their child to church.
Bibles - We feel that it is important for children to have an age-appropriate Bible for their faith journey. In support of this philosophy, all children in the kindergarten class are presented with a Bible in May.. Our current selection for kindergarten students is The Spark Story Bible.
Fourth grade students will receive a Bible in worship on September 25th. The fourth grade selection is The Kid's NLT Bible.
We have an extensive collection of children's Bibles in the Children's Ministry library that are available for children and their families to borrow. Take some time to browse through our collection and see which Bible suits your needs.
Children's Message - Each week in the 9:30 worship service, children will be called forward for a short children's message by Pastor Phil or a lay person. It is generally an interactive time for the children and the topic is often tied to the adult sermon. On the first Sunday of the month, our Children's Church service will include a short message as well.
Church Conduct - It is our hope that children will behave appropriately both in worship and in their classroom settings. At the beginning of each school year, teachers will go over appropriate behavior in the sanctuary and discuss the importance of honoring this special building. We ask that parents reinforce our expectations for their child's conduct at church.
Should a behavior problem arise, teachers have been instructed to address the issue with the child directly. If the behavior is repeated, the teacher will ask the classroom volunteer to locate the Director of Children's Ministries for assistance. If necessary, we will locate the child's parent(s) in the sanctuary.
Classroom Volunteers - A key piece of our Safe Church Initiative is our policy requiring
two adults in every classroom. In our Children's Ministry classrooms, teachers will be accompanied each week with a teacher's aide or a parent volunteer. Please check the monthly Beacon for the list of monthly volunteers. E-mail reminders will be sent to each volunteer prior to their scheduled date. We ask that you switch with another parent if you are unable to make your assigned date in the classroom-we are counting on the presence of the second adult.
Communication - The church publishes a monthly newsletter called THE BEACON. It is mailed to all members and friends of the congregation. If you are not currently receiving one, please call Laury in the office. Each month, look for the Children's Ministry pages for news on upcoming events.
Communion - Our fifth grade students participate in a 5-week Sacrament curriculum during the season of Lent. We begin this curriculum with a special Sunday night dinner for parents and their children and then breakout into several groups. Parents are invited to attend the presentation by Pastor Phil on the Sacraments of Baptism and Communion.. Our fifth grade students meet with their teaching team and discuss the Sacrament of baptism. The following four weeks are focused on Communion and includes a presentation by a member of the Diaconate on their role in preparing and serving Communion.
We feel this 5 week program fully prepares our students to participate in the sacrament of Holy Communion. Students are required to make-up classes they missed during the 5 week program. After completion of this class, students participate in their first educated Communion on Maundy Thursday, the service that commemorates Jesus' last supper with his disciples.
Library/CM Center - The Children's Ministry Center/Library is found in the Upper Nelson hallway and is a fabulous space for us to showcase all our selections. Circulation of our books, tapes and DVD's continues to climb and we encourage children to sign out a book
each Sunday. Many CM team members use the library on a weekly basis for resources on games, crafts and reference materials for their Bible lessons. A major project is still underway to label and catalogue the entire Children's collection.
Music Program - The Cherub Choir is composed of pre-k and kindergarten students. We are pleased that one of our senior high students has taken on the leadership of the Cherubh Choir for the second year in a row. Emma Cree Gee is a member of the Chancel Choir at UCC Medfield and her enthusiasm for working with this age group is amazing. Each Sunday during class time, the children spend 10-15 minutes with Emma learning a variety of songs of praise for our God. Children at this age love to use simple hand movements, instruments and their voices to learn about God. The children participate several times a year in worship with a song. Check out the Music Ministry pages for information on opportunities for first graders and up to join a choral group.
Safe Church Ministry - The UCC in Medfield is committed to making our church a safe and secure place where people of all ages can come together for worship, study, and service in the name of Jesus Christ. The Safe Church Ministry team has outlined all the policies and procedures to ensure a worship and work community in which members, friends, staff, and volunteers can worship and work together in an atmosphere free of all forms of discrimination, harassment, exploitation, or intimidation. Please pickup a copy of our Safe Church Ministry brochure in the narthex for more detailed information.
Prior to participation in our ministry programs, all teachers and youth leaders must submit to a criminal background check.
Snack Policy - In the kindergarten through fifth grade classes, we do not offer snack as part of our regular Sunday School class time. Teachers have found snack to be a major distraction from the weekly lesson and therefore are not offered on a regular basis. However, from time to time, a snack may be offered in support of the weekly lesson. For example, if a class is studying The Last Supper, grapes and pita bread may be offered to highlight the message.
Stewardship - The Bible teaches us that every good thing is a gift from God-and that He trusts us to take care of all we have and all we are. It is an attitude of respect and responsibility that affects every area of life. It is whole-life stewardship.
Sunday School children learn the meaning of stewardship and commitment in their classes. They will learn to become good stewards of their time, talent, treasures, and even the earth's resources. Our goal is to give them a strong foundation for a lifetime of honoring God. We want to help the children understand that they have an important part in furthering the ministry of the church and in taking care of God's world.
Stewardship can be expressed in many ways - participating in worship, making monetary offerings, contributing one's talent or time, or sharing our goods with those in need. Everyone has different gifts to offer.
Each month, Children's Ministries will highlight a different stewardship project. We will begin in September with providing each child with their own offering envelopes. The front of each envelope has three lines on it....time, talent and treasure and we will encourage the children to fill this in each week. In each classroom, there will be a special time for receiving the offering followed by a prayer. Other monthly projects during the year will include The Living Gift Market for Heifer International, a collection for Cradles to Crayons, and participation in our church-wide service day in January called Mission Possible. Please check the Beacon and handouts from Sunday School for specifics on each project.
Teacher Training/Support - All members of the Children's Ministry teaching team attend a monthly teacher's meeting on the first Sunday of every month. Communion is celebrated during this time by Pastor Phil. In addition, several teacher-training events are offered throughout the year to support and encourage our dedicated staff of volunteers.
