Children and Family Ministries
Sunday School: 9:45-10:45am
We offer classes for children birth through the 5th grade through which they can experience the love of God, hear Bible stories about Jesus, learn Biblical truths, and grow in their understanding of what it means to be a Christian. All of our Sunday school teachers are trained in Safe Sanctuaries and our paid nursery staff is trained in child/infant CPR and first aid.
Preschool Classes
Crib Nursery is for infants 6 weeks of age to walking with a staff ration of one adult to every three babies. One staff member present trained in CPR.
Toddlers (Room C214): Beginning walkers through two years of age
Two Year Olds (Room C211) Children born between 10/17/05 and 10/16/06
Three Year Olds (Room C215 )Children born between 10/17/04 and 10/16/05
Four Year Olds (Room C219 ) Children born between 10/17/03 and 10/16/04 and those being given and extra year to grow before entering Kindergarten
Elementary Classes
First Grade – Room A217
Second Grade- Room A219
Third Grade- Room A223
Fourth Grade- Room A222
Fifth Grade- A221
Children’s Celebration
A special program offered during the 11:00 worship service in which children in the Five-Year- Old Kindergarten and 1st Grade classes are dismissed following the doxology and meet in room A219. Children’s Celebration helps children grow as worshipers and equips them to participate in our Sunday worship service.
Special Programs and Events
How We Worship
This is a worship education class for second graders which emphasizes the diverse forms of worship in the United Methodist Church, the seasons of the church year, the sacraments (communion and baptism) and the Lord’s Prayer.
God and Me & God and Family
These are studies that are designed to help boys and girls grow spiritually by providing them an opportunity to explore both their relationship with and their family’s relationship with God. They also provide children an avenue by which they can begin to integrate their faith into their everyday life. God and Me is for children in the second and third grades and God and Family is for children in the fourth and fifth grades.
Third Grade Bibles
In the fall of each year on Super Sunday, children in the third grade receive a Bible from the Millis and Covington Families in celebration of their spiritual growth and in memory of J.Edward Millis, Jr. A “Learning to Use My Bible” retreat is held for the recipients on Saturday and the Bibles are presented during the 11:00 a.m. worship service on Sunday morning.
Human Sexuality Workshop...
This program is open to 5th grade boys and girls. They are taught Christian values based on Biblical references as well as biological information at an age appropriate level. This workshop also affirms parents as the primary teachers and role models by providing the basic knowledge needed to help children value their sexuality as one of God’s great and good gifts.
Fellowship Events
Several times throughout the year fellowship even are sponsored by the Children’s Council or the Family Life team that are of great interest to our families with children. Some of these events are for the children themselves and some are for the entire family. There are a few events for children, such as ice skating, where young children will need to be accompanied by a parent. These fellowship events include:
Easter Egg Hunt
Bowling
Fall Festival
Costume Carnival
Movie Under the Stars
Ice Skating/ Roller Skating
Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School is an annual week long summer event that uses music, missions, creative activities, drama, fun and fellowship to enable over 300 children to discover God’s Biblical truths. It is held in the morning, Monday- Thursday, from 9am to 12 noon. The 2010 dates for Vacation Bible School are June 22-25.
Registration forms will be available in February.
Parent’s Night Out
Sponsored by our Family Life Team, Parent’s Night Out provides an evening of fun, fellowship and Bible study for children once a month while mom and dad have the opportunity to nurture their relationship as parents. Families participating in the program agree to take turns staffing the program so that it can be offered at a minimal cost.
Questions about our ministry to children and their families? Please contact our Directors of Children and Families Ministres, Susan Sumpter (ext. 224, ssumpter@WesleyMemorial.org) or Susan Kelley (ext 222, skelley@WesleyMemorial.org) , at 884-2204.