This
is the start of the summer Sunday school season and many Churches are
transitioning to a different organization and schedule. And as usual this summer
I am hearing about the nightmares at some Churches concerning their summer
children’s programs. For various reasons, many Churches seek to reduce the
burden of staff, resources, and etc. As a result, children, leaders, and parents
all get short changed. It is almost inevitable that those Churches that reduce
staff in the summer end up combining classes of vastly different age needs, producing
oversized classes, stressed out leaders and the dread of summer - upset people who
pick up and leave for another Church.
Traditionally, the summer is the time
when people move and/or visit other Churches seeking to find
something better. If these migrants come to visit your Church, will they find unbalanced
children’s classes and overcrowded classrooms with stressed out leaders? Does this
sound familiar?
I just heard of a case where the 2-3 year old class was
combined with the 4-5 year old class, the result was that two leaders were
teaching 20+ children aged 2-5 years old with only one helper. What never ceases to amaze me is the lack
of knowledge of the age difference problem.
Children who are 2 years old do
not interact the same as a 3 three year old. A 2 year old is learning to
interact with other children and usually require a short one-on-one teaching
session. Sometime between 2 and 3 years old they progress enough to interact in
the class with each other.
There is a huge maturity progresses as the 2 year
old matures during the year. He or she moves from the nursery to a classroom
environment, from being held and playing in the nursery to individual play and
instruction to group play
and instruction.
If you are in the position to make
these kinds of decisions, I encourage you not to make this common mistake.
If you are in this situation in your
Church, it is not too late to change the organization. Make sure your
classrooms are sized correctly, leaders are trained, and the littlest in your Church
are taken care of. If the smallest are taken care of then people will notice
and God will be glorified.
-- Dr. John Pappas
