Welcome Children & Families!
At Manchester UMC, we offer many ways for children and families to grow in faith and knowledge of God. Our children and families are ALWAYS welcome, safe, and loved by our staff, volunteers, and of course by God. We hope you will join us as we continue to educate these wonderful ever-growing minds on their faith journeys.
Summer Sunday School
it's your turn
With the summer right around the corner, the Children & Families Ministry wants to celebrate the faithful teaching & admin volunteer staff who faithfully serve each Sunday and give them respite. However, this doesn’t mean we won’t have amazing things planned for the 9a Sunday school, and we need your help!
This summer we will be using a centers based approach with the children as they move from center to center focusing on a combination of learning through art, science, games, crafts, music and drama. Center will vary from week to week.
We are looking for Summer & Administrative Helpers this summer, and we will only have Summer Sunday School two Sundays in June, July, & August. Each of those designated Sundays, two Summer Helpers for Pre-K aged children and six for all other ages to lead the centers are needed. We will also require two-three adults to serve as Admin Helpers for each of those Sundays. Those Sundays are:
- June 18 & 25
- July 9, 23, & 30
- August 6, 13, & 20
If you haven’t already served with the smallest of God’s children, we invite you to take your turn this summer for what is sure to be a special experience for all. We are community at Manchester UMC, and through that community, we can all take turns serving and doing work for God’s kingdom. Below is a description of what each helper would do (and won’t do) during Summer Sunday School:
What you do and do NOT do as a Summer Helper
- Be present with the children as the Good Shepherd story is told
- Co-Lead a center
- Help tidy up the center when activity is done
- Prepare a lesson
- Gather Materials
- Tell a story
What you do as Administrative Help
- Staff the Desk
- Unlock doors for late arrivals
- Welcome children & parents
- Be a second pair of eyes as children move from place to place
Sign up to serve today!
Sunday School
During the 9a Sermon
Children 2 Years Old - 5th grade
Sunday school is a place for ALL children to learn the story of God’s love, connect their own experiences to the Biblical stories, and to find a place to belong. Our Sunday school team presents fun and engaging age appropriate curriculum for our 2 year old – 5th grade classes.
Our Sunday school team is excited to welcome back friends ages 2 years old – 5th grade to our lower level Children’s Area for Sunday school during the 9 am worship service. In order to keep everyone healthy and save, the Sunday school team encourages you to click here to view Manchester UMC’s COVID-19 info.
Due to limited volunteers, we have decided to combine our Sunday school classrooms until we continue growing! Here is our outline of age groups and rooms for Sunday morning:
Sunday School Children Age Groups | Room Assignment |
|---|---|
| 2 years old – 4 years old | Room 110 |
| Kindergarten | Room 109 |
| 1st and 2nd Grade | Room 111 |
| 3rd Grade | Room 118 |
| 4th and 5th Grade | Room 106 |
| *Large Group Gathering + Check-In | Old Fellowship Hall (Room 133) |
*4th and 5th graders will check-in at their designated classroom (room 106). Large Group Gathering and check-in in Old Fellowship Hall only applies to 2 year old’s – 3rd grade.
Sunday school classrooms will be using the Good Shepherd curriculum written by Rev. Brenda Stobbe. This curriculum helps children of all ages grow cognitively, emotionally, and spiritually in their relationship with God. Storytellers will travel between classes sharing Bible stories and wondering questions with all of our friends.
KINdom Kids
Manchester UMC’s Children & Families Ministry will start a new program this Sunday, April 16, during the 11a sermon! KINdom Kids invites children ages three years – 3rd grade to participate in activities and learning centered around the teachings in the book of James. The children will meet up with Pastor Brenda at PRAYground right before the sermon, move to the Nursery annex, and be brought back after the message. As the program develops, we ask for grace as we work to create a space for our children during the 11a service.
Worshiping with Children
Developmentally appropriate materials have been created to enhance children’s worship experience and to guide them in their understanding of the service.
On Sunday mornings, kids may stop by the Children & Family Ministries table in the Lobby to pick up a packet. Each packet is filled with activities and things to do during worship. Children can use these packets during worship and take them home.
Also, children can also participate in PRAYground during the 9 and 11a worship services.
PRAYground
PRAYground is available at the 9 and 11 am worship services. It is designed to allow children to participate in quiet play while still listening to the message during the sermon.
PRAYground is located near the front of the sanctuary so children can see and hear everything.
PRAYground offers activities geared towards 3 years old – 2nd grade. However, friends 3 years old – 5th grade are welcome to participate.
Family Worship Weekends
Family Worship Weekends provide an opportunity for families to worship together at either the 9 or 11am worship services. It is not only important for our friends to be in Sunday school, but to also understand how to worship and be in the sanctuary space. Learning together, families can discover more about the many different components of worship, liturgical seasons of the church, and share in their understanding and/or questions from the sermon.
To help encourage your child’s growth in worship, we have prepared Sunday morning worship materials for ages 2-years-old through 5th grade, and most Family Worship Weekends include PRAYground time during the sermon.
Family Worship Weekends:
2023
- Jan. 1, 2023, New Years, Winter break
- Jan. 8, Winter break
- Jan. 15, Martin Luther King Jr. weekend
- Feb. 19, Presidents’ Day weekend
- Mar. 19, Spring break
- Apr. 9, Easter Sunday
- May 28, Memorial Day weekend
- June 4 and 11
- July 2, Fourth of July weekend
- July 16
- Aug. 20 and 27
- Sept. 3, Labor Day weekend
- Nov. 26, Thanksgiving weekend
- Dec. 24, Christmas, Winter break
- Dec. 31, New Years, Winter break
2024
- Jan. 7, 2024, Winter break
- Jan. 14, Martin Luther King Jr. weekend
- Feb. 18, Presidents’ Day weekend
- Mar. 17, Spring break
- Mar. 31, Easter Sunday
- May 26, Memorial Day weekend
serving with children
The nursery is looking for compassionate, friendly, and caring adults to facilitate the growth of our youngest friends (6 weeks – 2 years old). If you enjoy playtime, snuggles, and storytime, then this is the place for you. We ask that you volunteer 1x per month.
Timing
First shift: 8:45 – 10:30 am.
Second shift: 10:30 am – 12:00 pm.
The lead Sunday school teachers are in charge of the lesson for the day. They will help with opening activities, guiding friends through the Good Shepherd story and 1-2 follow-up activities, as well as closing the session out for that particular Sunday.
The leadership team works very closely with lead Sunday school teachers and provides activity options for leads to choose. We ask that lead teachers volunteer 1-2x per month in order to keep consistency and help build relationships with our Sunday school children.
Just as the name says, you will be assisting our lead teachers and Good Shepherd Storytellers on Sunday mornings. This includes helping our students with listening, learning, and adventuring into the Bible story each week. We ask that assistant Sunday school teachers work 1x per month.
Good Shepherd is a very special wondering-based curriculum written by Rev. Brenda Stobbe. Our friends ages 2 – 5th grade (except Kindergarten) are using this curriculum to learn more about the stories of the Bible.
As a storyteller, you travel between 2 classrooms on a Sunday morning and share the message with our students. This includes not only telling the story, but wondering right alongside of our young friends. We ask that Good Shepherd Storytellers serve at least 1x per month.
Good Shepherd Training
There are Good Shepherd trainings scheduled on an as needed basis. This training will explain the history of this curriculum, as well as provide all of the support and tools needed to implement this program.
We are looking for those interested in volunteering with PRAYground at both the 9:00 and 11:00 worship services. PRAYground is a quite space for friends 3 years old – 5th grade to play during the sermon.
Serving in PRAYground includes helping our young friends find quiet activities, playing together, and making sure everyone respects the worship space. We ask that PRAYground volunteers serve 1x per month.
These young friends are amazing. Volunteers have expressed that their faith was fueled right along with these children as they learned more about these very special Bible stories.
All volunteers need to be 18+ and are required to complete Safe Gathering certification.
If you would like to serve in Children and Family Ministries, please fill out the volunteer form below. A member of our team will be in touch with you soon!
Please complete one for per person
