children
At Redeemer Fellowship we love children and believe that families are a gift from God. We want to come alongside parents to help them disciple their kids. Here is our plan:
There will be a nursery available for children up to age 5 during both Sunday worship services. However, we invite parents whose children are old enough to sing and understand some of what is happening in the worship service to keep their kids with them during the song and prayer time at the beginning. This will allow moms and dads an opportunity to model and teach their young children about some of the ways we worship God. Before the sermon an announcement will be made that parents with Kindergarten and younger children, who want their kids to go into the children’s ministry, may take them to the south doors where children’s ministry workers will meet them and take them to their appropriate classes. During the 9:00 service, school age children (1st – 5th grade) will also have the opportunity at that point in the service to go to their Children’s Ministry classes.
Since the younger children will be going to their classes midway through worship, we ask parents to check in their children on the 2nd floor at the Redeemer Kids desk before the service begins and then take them into the sanctuary (or directly to their class if the parent prefers). At check-in, the child will get a nametag with a security number and a colored dot that indicates what room they are in. There will also be pagers available. After the service, parents may pick up their child in their room and will be asked to show a matching security number, which they will receive at check in. During the 9:00 service we will have six age groups of children:
- Birth up to 1 year olds – YELLOW ROOM – These little ones will be cared for by volunteers in an equipped nursery. If needed, there is a nursing room located adjacent to the room for mom’s convenience. Parents are welcome to take their kids to the classroom before the service starts. [offered at 9:00 and 11:00 service]
- 1 year olds – RED ROOM – These children will have plenty of toys to play with, friends to interact with and caring volunteers to love on them. A snack will be provided halfway through the service. Parents are welcome to take their kids to the classroom before the service starts. [offered at 9:00 and 11:00 services]
- 2 year olds - BLUE ROOM – With this age group, we will introduce them to a structured lesson time by reading through the “Jesus Storybook Bible.” Along with that, a simple craft will be available for those kids who are interested. A snack will be provided halfway through the service. This classroom will be open before the service starts. [offered ONLY at the 9:00 service]
- 3 year olds - GREEN ROOM- This group of kids will be going through a curriculum from Children Desiring God Ministries which offers an overview of the Old Testament. The lesson includes an application activity, a story presentation and some review questions. A coloring sheet or craft will be done to go along with the lesson. A snack will be provided halfway through the service. Our hope is that these children will stay with their parents through the singing portion of the worship service and will be dismissed during the offering from the service to go back to their classroom. [offered ONLY at the 9:00 service]
- 4-6 year olds - PURPLE ROOM- This group of kids will be going through a curriculum from Children Desiring God Ministries which offers an overview of the New Testament. The lesson includes an application activity, a story presentation and some review questions. A coloring sheet or craft will be done to go along with the lesson. A snack will be provided halfway through the service. Our hope is that these children will stay with their parents through the singing portion of the worship service and will be dismissed during the offering from the service to go back to their classroom. [offered ONLY at the 9:00 service]
- 1st through 5th Grade – ORANGE DOTS – These children are going through a curriculum created by Desiring God Ministries that takes them through all of God’s promises. The lesson includes activities, a lesson presentation, application questions, memory verses and games. Our hope is that these children will stay with their parents through the singing portion of the worship service and be dismissed during the offering from the service to go back to their classroom. [offered ONLY at the 9:00 service]
(During the 11:00 service, the RED ROOM will also receive children up through age 5.)
For your child’s safety and your peace of mind, we will:
- Do background checks on all volunteers
- Have allergy alert stickers available at check-in
- Ask that you fill out a registration form with emergency contact information and other important information that volunteers should know
- Have pagers at check-in so if you think your child may need you during worship, the volunteers will have a way to contact you
We hope this helps to explain our plan for how to care for the children God brings to Redeemer Fellowship. We know this may be new and different for some families, so we will all need to be patient as we begin incorporating our kids into the worship service.
If you have questions or would like to help serve in this valuable ministry, please contact Molly Miller.
