Children and Worship

Sunday Worship is a place for kids!  Join us in breaking down the myth that Sunday Worship Services are only for adults.  Help us spread the word that worship is not only for children “who are seen, but not heard.”  We want your children to attend both Worship and Sunday School.  We want you to attend both Worship and Sunday School.  We want to provide the support your family needs to worship together. 

Infants

Bringing an infant to worship can be a real challenge at times.  If your child begins to cry loudly, you have to leave worship and your worship experience is disrupted.  We always have staff and volunteers that will lovingly care for your young child if this is an issue.  It may seem that children this young do not benefit much from being in this kind of worship service.   Yet, it is not unusual to observe a young child enjoying the varied sights and sounds of worship.  Children get to hear their parents and others singing songs that are accompanied by a variety of instruments.   There is strong research data that indicates that infants and toddlers learn and grow when they are exposed to a variety of stimulating environments.  Sometimes, we are unaware of the remarkable ability of infants to take in information. For example, researchers set up an experiment in which they placed two video monitors in front of infants and placed a speaker between the two screens.  One screen displayed a person mouthing ah and the other screen displayed a person mouthing e.  The sound from the speaker was alternated between ah and e.  At only 20 weeks of age, infants displayed a pattern of looking at the screen displaying the mouth movement that matched the sound.  This occurred despite an absence of temporal cues, because the mouth movements were synchronized.  Other studies have found that by six months of age, children who have been exposed to one language show different perception abilities that children exposed to another language.  For example, Swedish language children were found to have significantly better ability to distinguish variants of the eu sound than English language children.  English language children were found to have significantly better ability to distinguish variants of the e sound than Swedish language children.  These finer perceptual skills correspond to sound differences in the two languages.   Infants may not be able to reproduce most speech sounds, but they are energetically absorbing speech and visual images!  Your child’s brain development is influenced by what they see and hear. 

Children with Disabilities

Some children have disabilities that impact their functioning in worship.  Sometimes a child benefits from worship, but the child places such increased demands on their parents that their parents’ worship experience is significantly disrupted.  We will gladly assist you in making special arrangements for older children who have special needs.  Sometimes, there are no easy answers, but we want to be full partners in working to meet your family’s needs.  This may require attempting a variety of strategies before we identify an effective one. 

Taking The Initial Steps

Most children function quite well in worship.  However, it may be unrealistic to expect your child to function well the first few times in worship.  Many children need explicit instruction and practice to learn how to get the most from worship and to act in a manner that does not interfere with the worship experiences of others.  Think about how you feel when you enter the sanctuary.  Talk to your child about the special feelings that you have for this room. 

Some children are aided by having something to do with their hands.  You might want to bring something from home like a stuffed animal or small toy.  You could bring a simple snack, like raisins, for your child to eat.  Worship bags for children are available on racks near the main entrance to the sanctuary.  They contain interesting bible worksheets, crayons, and lapboards. 

For young children and children with attention problems, it can be very helpful to quickly review the behavior expectations anytime that you enter a new setting.  As your child grows older, explain to him or her that there are different behavioral expectations during different parts of the service.  For example, singing loudly during hymns or energetically greeting another person at the beginning of the service is quite appropriate.  However, prayer time is a time when we are expected to be quiet. 

Sometimes, maintaining physical contact with children helps.  You may want to regularly pat your child on the back.  You may want to put a young child on your lap.  This provides physical contact and aids the child in seeing what is occurring in the service.  This close proximity can also be helpful if you want to whisper words to your child explaining what is occurring in the service. 

Encourage your child to come forward during Children’s Time at the 9:30am and 11:00am services.  Rev. Kathleen Baskin-Ball seeks to share the message of the sermon text creatively with our children.  She conveys the message while being responsive to the joyful thoughts and ideas of our children. 

If your child is initially resistant about coming forward for Children’s Time, walk forward with your child and sit near your child.  On the third or fourth time, try asking a sibling or another child your child knows well to hold your child’s hand and walk forward with your child. 

Children’s Time is not offered on Communion Sundays, which are typically the first Sundays of each month.  Communion presents another great opportunity for children to actively and concretely experience the love of God.  There are no rules about what age a child should start taking communion.  Without regard to whether a child takes communion, our ministers offer a verbal blessing like “God loves you very much.”  

Encourage your child to participate as a worship leader by singing in a children’s choir or serving as an acolyte.  Some opportunities are seasonal, like waving a palm on Palm Sunday.  Others relate to special Sundays, like when the Confirmation class presents a drama during worship. 

Arrive at the service early enough to get a seat toward the middle and in the first six rows.  This can help some children feel more part of the service rather than more like a spectator who is looking from afar.  

Provide your young child with some coins to place in the offering plate.  Explain to them where the money goes.  Ask older children to make an annual pledge to the church.  Teach them to put their pledge in an offering envelope with their name on it.  The amount of their pledge is not as important as the act of learning to pledge. 

Speak with your child about the objects and symbols that are in the sanctuary.  Explain the seasonal banners to your child.  Show your child the objects on the altar and the altar flowers and explain their meaning and function.  Talk to your child about the stained glass window images.  A brochure is available in the narthex that provides detailed information about the windows.  If you have questions about objects and symbols in the sanctuary, ask one of our ordained ministers. 

Worship can be a much more powerful experience for children (and adults) if they know the persons that are leading the service.  Take advantage of opportunities after a service and during the week to greet the worship leaders.  Be intentional about taking your child to greet worship leaders during events like all-church picnics. 

Take your child to talk with music leaders after worship services.  Ask if your child can gently play a note on the keyboard or touch the strings on a guitar.  Ask choir members to show your child their music.  Explain to them that the music includes both musical notes and words.  Ask if your child can try on the stole portion of a choir robe.  If you have a little musical talent, help your child learn some of the songs that are frequently sung in worship.  Teach your child the Lord’s Prayer and explain what the prayer means. 

Ask one of the ushers to explain their job to your child.  An extraverted child might be willing to stand next an usher and say ‘welcome” to each person that enters the sanctuary.  Show your child the worship bulletin and explain how the text informs the congregation.  Take your child to talk with the person operating the sound booth. 

After the service, talk with your child about the elements of the worship service.  For example, talk with your child about the pastoral prayer and some of the people that were prayed for during the service.  Ask your child to pray with you for specific persons.  Talk with older children about the children’s time and sermon topic.   

Help us spread the word that Sunday Worship services are for children.  If you see a parent struggling with a child, be supportive.  Let them know that you are glad they brought their child and encourage them to keep bringing their child to worship in the future.  Sometimes, children function better if several different persons care for them during a service.  Ask for a little help from the persons around you or offer to help other parents.  For example, “Good morning Ellen, Claire really enjoys being with you.  Can she sit next to you for the first 15 minutes or so of the service?”  In the spirit that Jesus Christ called children to come to him, let us invite children into our sanctuary for worship.