Confessions of a Kids' Worker: Reporting and Reflecting

I have to write an Annual Report - eek!
It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, it is in my contract after all, but it does raise some feelings of dread: have I really done enough with my time to justify the church spending it’s money on me rather than somewhere else? Are my priorities right? Did I just write a list of things I’ve done and not even mention God? How formal does this need to be?

I have now written a first draft; we’ll see if it needs to change much but I thought I would put my Reflections section (as it now stands) on here for general edification.

Reflections

One of the hardest things about children’s ministry is that you see the children for so little time, and there’s so much that could be done on those Sunday mornings but so little time to do it. It’s been particularly pleasant to have opportunities to see them outside of Sunday mornings; meals with families and some pleasing sync-ups with my volunteering with schools outreach – a familiar face watching me act for events in town and some John Newton lessons based in a primary school during Anti-Slavery week. It also means I really appreciate hearing from parents about the conversations they have and how they see their children growing in faith – it has been wonderful to see baptisms of so many teens this year who grew up in our church and learnt that they needed Jesus through the church as well as from their families.

The actual hardest thing, for me at least, would be putting together the rotas. Rotas are the worst. I have no idea how to get people to sign up in a timely manner; they take so much time and then I invariably have to change them because I made a mistake or there are unforeseen circumstances. I’m trying to get into a better mindset where each rota is a reminder that God does have it all in hand and that he is a master planner. Perhaps as the Spirit works to make me more Christ-like I’ll get better at this or at least find it less stressful.

Another challenge has been not being a youth worker, I love our youth group and I’m so happy to volunteer with them, but it can be hard sometimes to separate the two things and particularly to work out what counts as my hours. For example, I organised some youth activities for the days of prayer, and at the Weekend Away. It’s a hard balance of that being something I want to do, but it’s not my job and I’m not always sure everybody knows that.

Confessions of a Kid's Worker: Am I just treading water?

I hope and believe there will be times when there are more optimistic posts in this series. But I don’t think that’s going to be as the new school year starts, because there is sooooo much to do right now.

I wrote out another to-do list for this week and despite working last week some of the same things are still on there and all of these things are urgent and I still haven’t finished planning Exodus for this term and I don’t have a complete day to sit down and do that.

So what do I do when there’s too much to do? Blog it - even if no-one is reading these it seems to work at getting the problem out of spinning in my brain. Pray about it - which should be higher up this list but hopefully will become more of my instinctive go to as I keep doing this.

Dear God,
Heavenly Father I need you now, I’m struggling with the amount of things I need to do and how badly I seem to be getting on with things. I’m sorry for when I haven’t worked as well or as faithfully in the last weeks as I could have done and have therefore created this problem for myself. I’m sorry that, despite knowing your power and strength and love and willingness to help, turning to you is still not my first instinct. Please forgive me. Lord, would I be realistic in the future about what I am able to do and more reliant. Please give me the strength and motivation today to work hard for you - not to earn any favour (I know I have that because I am in Jesus who has all your favour) but to serve and to find the joy in working for you and with you in each of these tasks.
Amen.

Confessions of a Kids' Worker: The threefold problem of rotas

Are there people out there who enjoy making a rota? I hope so, but I am certainly not one of them. As I see it there are 3 enormous struggles with putting one together…

1. Timing it Right

   Rotas require bizarrely accurate timing. Too early and no-one has enough dates in their calendar to confidently fill it in. Too late and everyone is all booked up or you’re giving people no warning. Too many dates at a time and it becomes unwieldy and impossible to manage. Too few dates and you’ve barely sent out the finished rota before starting the next one. It’s a Goldilocks situation and I’ve yet to get it just right.

2. Minding the Gaps

   I don’t think we have an actual volunteer shortage at the moment… it’s just that there are some weeks when everybody who is willing to teach is otherwise engaged. Or the only available helper needs their DBS renewing. And when it comes to solving this problem my mind is as blank as those empty cells on the spreadsheet.

3. Watching the Changes

   The rota always changes. Often at the last minute. There is no rota immune to illness, sick kids, mistakes (mine mostly) or a simple change of plans. And like the Theseus’ proverbial ship there’s only so many changes you can make before there’s none of the original rota left and you wonder why you bothered in the first place.

Fortunately God doesn’t despair when faced with an empty rota. While I don’t have many organisational skills or find much joy in filling in the rotas I know God is an organiser. How could he not be? He had a plan for our salvation before the beginning of the world and he carried it out. That’s organised. The first task he sets Adam, as a symbol of him reigning over creation under God, is very much organisational one. Jesus is also an organiser; he successfully sends out the 72 (and I shudder to think of a rota that size), and his event planning at the last supper is meticulous.

So I need to remind myself that, as I do my job with as much grace and joy as I can muster, I’m displaying the character of God as I create, as I teach and yes, even as I organise the rotas.

Confessions of a Kids' Worker: There isn't enough time

Maybe it’s because I’m part time.

Maybe I’ve just taken on too much.

Maybe I’m just really, really terrible at managing my time.

Maybe I’m dreaming too big.

Maybe I have supremely unrealistic expectations.

Maybe I’m too easily distracted.

Maybe I should volunteer more of the rest of my time.

Maybe my priorities are badly out of whack.

But there isn’t enough time…

To plan. to pray. to praise, to prepare…

To answer emails, to choose songs, to read Exodus, to write material, to think through the leaflet for that event, to learn the memory verse, to make a rota, to organise that meeting, to think through all age services, to write that talk…

To get the job done…

Confessions of a Kids' Worker: A prayer for getting started

I’d say about 80% of the time I don’t want to get started. It’s really not that I hate my job I just haven’t worked out how to begin my work for today. Today I’m also facing the triple whammy of

• didn’t sleep well

• I’m having a flare up

• I listened to a really good podcast on suffering on the walk in and this is not the headspace I need to be in.

So I’m going to do what I ought to do more often, even on the days I know how to get started and pray.

---

Father in heaven,
it is so good to know that you are in control and that you have a plan, because I don’t. Forgive me for not being better prepared than I am and thank you than I can completely rely on you - in the big matters and these small day to day difficulties.

Holy Spirit,
please give me today the strength, joy and enthusiasm I need. Inspire me with good ideas and fill me with love for the church I’m serving. Help me to rely not on my own experience, or sugar, or a well thought out plan but on my trustworthy and reliable Father God.

Lord Jesus Christ,
As I work today I want to be working for you above anything else. Help me to put you above my to-do list, about the guilt of not-getting-things-done, above even the volunteers who need what I’ll produce. May my work today be full of your goodness and grace and glorifying to you both in what I produce, with you help, and in how I do it.

Amen and amen.

Confessions of a Kids' Worker: The necessity of dance breaks

Today is an email kinda day. As in my to-do list has six instructions that look like

• Email … about …

and one which says clear out emails, because I’ve been away and had visitors so I’ve just been dealing with the urgent stuff and not really sorting things out. I also have two instructions to print, one to edit and one to plan (although that one deserves it’s own to-do list).

This is not a particularly fun kinda day.

So what do you do when your job isn’t fun? Have a DANCE BREAK! At least that’s what I do (and also only when I’m on my own in the office).

The two bangers which absolutely get me moving, get me out of my head and give me an energy boost:

What do you do when you need an itsy-bitsy break?

My favourite books to point pre-schoolers to Jesus

As a nanny, babysitter and a friend of small children, I love an easy book with great pictures that the kids love to read. As a Sunday school teacher I love a book which contains the gospel message in a way that is easy to understand. As a book lover I really enjoy a book that’s clever in it’s simplicity, that I could read multiple times and is stunning to look at.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but if there is something below you haven’t read, then I suggest you give it a go.

The Big Picture Story Bible

This children’s Bible is fantastic for Playgroups as there’s very little writing on each page and it’s bigger size makes it easier to show the pictures to a group. I should admit my bias because I’m friends with the author and illustrator but Dave and Gail did such a great job of highlighting the common themes of the Bible and connecting the stories together.
Plus Gail wrote a book of crafts (designed for and used with 4-5 year olds) in which there are crafts for every story in the book.
Buy the Big Picture Story Bible and Big Picture Bible Crafts

The Jesus Storybook Bible

This is my favourite kids Bible. I love to read it to kids and it’s my go to for when I want to see how a story can point us to Jesus. Even when the story isn’t in the Bible it’s helpful to remind me of how that works.
It’s also beautifully written, simple and poetic at the same time. And the illustrations are gorgeous and a little bit whimsical. I only wish there were more stories in this.
There are so many ways to accompany this with a colouring book, an audio version and even Christmas tree decorations.
Buy the Jesus Storybook Bible

Tales that Tell the Truth

This is an ever increasing series of individual Bible stories all of which are suitable for the older end of the pre-school age range. I’ve highlighted the 4 stories which also have board book versions; perfect for small children with destructive tendencies! A lovely range of different perspectives on some familiar and some less familiar true stories.
There are even some Sunday School lesson plans making this series perfect for your book box at church.
You can see all the books in the Tales that Tell the Truth series here.

Love Came Down

John 3:16 is probably the most famous verse in the Bible. In this little book Bethan Lycett has explored the different aspects of it - from the world that God has made to the son he sent to rescue it - in a fun poem for kids. It’s a great introduction to the gospel and there’s an activity book and a board book version as well.
Buy the Love Came Down books

Baby Believer Primer

I have to be honest and admit I haven’t read these books… yet, (getting English language christian books here can be a bit of a nightmare.) But I really wanted to iclude this series because I love this idea of teaching the basics (shapes, numbers, letters, animals…) through the lens of Bible truths. These stunning books do exactly that.
Being able to peek inside on the @catechesisbooks instagram account has conviced me that they’re such high quality and theologically sound. The Holy Week book, for example, is dual purpose; helping kids recognise their emotions and connecting those emotions to the Easter story - one of the saddest, happiest and most surprising stories ever!
Go to the Catechesis Books website.

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

The name Disorganised Sunday School is becaue I’m disorganised - I’m not naturally a planner or organiser, I work well (actually better) under pressure - so I usually plan at the last minute, I lose things, I change my mind and it is only by the grace of God that anything happens at all! Over the years though I have learnt to start Christmassing sooner, especially as I’m never working alone.

All that to say:
It is only the 9th November and Christmas scripts and Outdoor Activities are already up!

• There’s plenty of time to adapt the scripts to your situation. Are you filming on line? How many actors and how able are they? What is your setting is?

• You also have time to find props and costumes. Do you have a stash that you use every year? What ordinary household objects can you use?

• There’s also time to think about how you can reach your community with this? Do you have an outdoor space at home or in the church in which you could run a few activites? Could church families in your area each have one activity in each garden? Do you have an online platform where you could share a nativity story with people outside your church?

• It’s a good time to start praying. Is there a family or a friend you specifically want to reach out to this year? Ask God to show you the opportunities to share the gospel with your neighbours? Thank God for the church family and ask how you can get everyone involved in some Christmassy evangelism?

Tips for Online Sunday School

It’s not an ideal situation to be in - where you can’t safely teach kids in Suday School face to face. You can’t see if they’re engaging with you, activities are tricky to organise and impossible to supervise and it’s hard to ask or answer questions - a staple for Sunday Schools!

I’ve written, prepared and filmed somewhere over thirty online Sunday School lessons now - including a few in German which I’m still not fluent in - and, through trial and error, I’ve worked out some important questions to ask myself as I prepare.

For the Story

• Where does this happen? Who is there? What has just happened? What is about to happen?

• What is the main point of the passage? (You can find more detail on this step in my ‘How to …’ guide)

• What apects of the Bble passage need to be focussed on to get this main point across? (And if it’s a long passage what can you leave out without altering the story while still supporting the point?)

• How can you best tell the story? Reading the text (from the Bible or a kids Bible), acting it out, with pictures, with playmobile or lego figures? Write with the best possible method in mind and then work out how to make it happen afterwards.

For the Talk

• Would the youngest child watching be able to hear and understand the main point?

• For older children how can you break the main point into smaller sections?

• Can you predict any problems or difficulties with this message? If so help them to deal with them now.

• What would you like them to change in their life as a result hearing this main point? Tell them and ask them about how it might look in their lives.

For Prayers, Songs and Activities.

• Do they relate to your text and support the main point?

• Can they be done without requiring special equipment?

• Do they need parents help? How can you support parents in this?

Many, many prayers for you in producing online teaching for kids - you can check out the Digital Sunday School lessons I’ve made here:
Series 1: Healing
Series 2: You Can Trust God because

Feel free to use them as they are, to watch them for inspiration before making your own, or to edit the sections you need into your own videos. Happy Teaching!

Important questions

Filming the first lesson in a new series of the Digital Sunday School this week had me rather distracted by the ‘how’ questions. How do I film my hands without a tripod? How do I make what I’m saying visually translate on to the screen? How can I make this homemade camera phone bipod stable and not casting an awkward shadow? How do I include a diverse representsion of who Christians are in this project? How will I be able to make more than one video a week? How have I lost [insert whatever I needed at that moment] again?!

To balance the self-centered and panic inducing ‘How’ questions I decided to write myself a list of important questions that I should focus on first when preparing a lesson. Yes, those how questions still need answering. But having a list like this puts them in their proper place; at the bottom of my to do list.

• Does what I’m preparing come from the Bible or from my own head?

• Is the gospel on display?

• What does God want to teach me in this?

• How can I say this in a way that a range of kids will understand?

• What are the challenges of this text?

• Am I glorifying God or myself?

• Will this build up the church, locally and worldwide?

These are probably not the only things I should be thinking about but it’s certainly a good place to start. I also have 10 steps to prepare a passage for teaching which I find helpful in prioritising these kinds of questions as well.