CHILDREN, YOUTH & FAMILIES
Each Sunday at 10:30 am year round
Church School for Children & Youth
We at St. Andrew’s-Wesley are excited about our young and thriving Church School. There are four classrooms for different ages – our Nursery or “The Ark” for those 2 and under with Lauren Cryder and volunteers, “The Upper Room” for those 3 to grade 1 with Jen Cunnings (Minister with Children and Families) and volunteers, a new classroom for those grades 2 to 6 with Camille Noullet, Missy Taylor and volunteers and the “Youth Room” for our youth with Christine Coles and Nicole Morgan. In the Nursery children gather for free play and then are invited for a simple snack, story and song. “The Ark” or Nursery is a cheery place with toys, books, an incredible mural and creative materials! In the Upper Room the children are engaging in Godly Play©. In our new classroom for those grade 2 to 6 our teachers are using the Seasons of the Spirit Curriculum© (a lectionary based curriculum), along with using at times, Godly Play©. Our Youth Programme on Sunday mornings includes a bit of Godly Play, Seasons of the Spirit as well as leadership from the youth themselves helping to facilitate discussions on themes that they are interested and curious about – with the assistance of the teachers. Children and youth gather for worship with their families and the rest of the church family at 10:30am (10:20am for the hymn sing). We have Children’s Bulletins to help children follow along and engage (with simple explanations of what is happening) as well as Worship bags (that include a book and some creative materials). Each Sunday morning a child lights the candle marking the beginning of our worship together. Children and families are invited to the front soon after the service begins. This time in the service is spent with Rev. Gary Paterson and Jen and is exciting for the children as well as the adults. Following the time with Gary, the children leave for church school. During Church School, Parents are invited to stay with their children until they are comfortable but they are also welcome to return to worship. If you have any questions, or interested in volunteering, please contact Jen Cunnings, our Minister with Children #604-683-4574 local 226) or jen.staw@telus.net
Godly Play
St. Andrew’s-Wesley’s church school uses “Godly Play.” Godly Play is a Montessori based approach to spiritual formation and religious education. It was developed by Dr. Jerome Berryman, an Episcopal church educator. Inspired by Maria Montessori and Sofia Cavaletti, Jerome Berryman founded and developed Godly Play that is now used in churches all over the world.
In a Godly Play worship centre, containing beautifully crafted story materials, young children and their teachers play with the sacred stories, the parables, and the stories of the liturgy and traditions of the church. Their goal: learn to use the language of the Christian tradition to encounter God and find direction in their lives. Through Godly Play, the children gain an ability to use the parables, sacred stories, liturgical events to discover and speak of God. Playing with the Bible stories gives them the tools they need to create existential meaning.
Why do we call this important work, “play?”
“Play is pleasurable, it is spontaneous and voluntary, play involves deep and active engagement on the part of the players and play is related to things that are not play – like creativity, problem solving, language learning, development of social roles. . . . In Godly Play, we are invited to play with “the language of God and God’s people . . . Through this powerful language, through our wondering, through the community of players gathered together, we hear the deepest invitation of all: an invitation to come and play with God.” Dr. Jerome Berryman, Guide to Godly Play, Volume 1
We enjoy sharing the stories through Godly Play with the children and the rest of our church family. Below we have an outline of the stories we will be focusing on in Godly Play in our church school. Our hope is that knowing the stories we will be focusing on, will help to continue the discussion begun in church school.... in the home. If you have any questions, please contact Jen at jen.staw@telus.net. · ·
- February 19 Parable of the Mustard Seed
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- we have special bulletins for children, available from our ushers with an activity page on the front and special descriptions inside - our hope is that the children will follow along in worship and feel included. ·
- we have worship bags for children (simple books, crayons and colouring pages) on Sunday mornings. They can be found in the “narthex” (back of the church) or by the door nearest the baptismal font at the front of the church. ·
- each Sunday, a child opens our worship time together with the lighting of the Christ candle, if your child is interested, please speak with Jen. ·
- we have a Nursery at St. Andrew’s Wesley called “the Ark.” It is located by walking through the south door by the pulpit. Our Nursery Caregiver looks forward to welcoming children 2 and under, and their parents to this cheery, safe place with toys, books, an incredible mural and access to a washroom. It is important to us that we always have Lauren plus at least one adult in the space for safety. ·
- we have Offering Envelopes for children too!
Offerings collected in church school go to the Core Funding of St. Andrew’s Wesley &
support the overall mission & ministry of our church family. ·
Picnic Club for Children & their Families
Following worship join Jen and friends for a picnic in the salons for a time of sharing and fun with the purpose to build some community amongst our young families.
2012 - March 25, April 29, and June 10th (our picnic in Nelson Park with the whole church family!)
Parent and Tot Gatherings
Every Wednesdays from 10 to 11:30am we offer a time for Young Children with their Parents, Grandparents and Caregivers to gather for some fun. Newborns, toddlers and preschoolers gather for a time of free play, story (including puppet shows), snack, parachute games and singing with their caring adult. It is an opportunity to build some community, offer support and encouragement for parents and caregivers. At least once a month one of the public health nurses from Three Bridges joins us to offer valuable resources and support. We gather in the salons that are located at 1018 Nelson Street. And on the 3rd Wednesday of the month we gather in the Sanctuary. Look for our sign on Nelson Street. For a parking pass or more information please contact Jen Cunnings at jen.staw@telus.net.
All AGES EVENTS:- Pentecost Birthday Party:
Sunday, May 27, 2012 - our annual Pentecost celebration following church with lots of yummy cake!Free Parking
Parking under Wesley Place (entrance off the lane behind the church)is FREE from 9am to 2pm for those who are attending worship at St.Andrew's-Wesley on Sunday morning.
