July 2018

Big Picture Mindset

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text el_id="brittany@deeperkidmin.com"]I love being married to a youth pastor. It makes our schedule a little crazy and we eat way too much pizza but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. One of my favorite things about it is that I get to see the big picture of spiritual development in a child’s life from preschool to high school graduation. (And it's awesome.)  Since I work primarily with kids in preschool-elementary but then also serve as a volunteer with the youth, I get to see how what we do in preschool affects elementary, which affects middle school, which affects high school and beyond. Just this summer included leading worship at VBS, serving with high schoolers in Chicago, worshiping with students at the beach, and watching middle schoolers experience their first mission trip. In just these 6...
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New Postcard Designs for Crew Cards!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We already know that kids are wired for relationships. One of the best ways to help kids connect with their leaders outside of Sunday mornings is through Crew Cards. (Not sure what I'm talking about? Learn more about Crew Cards here.) As you prepare for the fall, it's time to update the postcards you use for Crew Cards! Update the look of your Crew Card postcards using one (or all) of the 4 images below, then use a site like VistaPrint to print your postcards for the year![/vc_column_text][vc_btn title="I want the designs! " align="center" link="url:https%3A%2F%2Fdeeperkidmin.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F06%2FDKM-New-Designs-for-Crew-Cards.zip||target:%20_blank|"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width="1/2"][vc_single_image image="5104" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link"...
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Wired for Relationships

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]God wired us with a need for community as a reflection of his triune character, and the same holds true for children. Kids need relationships with their peers and with their leaders. Friendships are especially important in the preteen years. I have found that groups of 6th graders who enter the middle school youth group as friends tend to have an easier time transitioning than a group of students who don’t feel close. Especially as preteens experience “11-year-old atheism” – when children have a difficult time reconciling an unknowable God with their concrete way of thinking – they need leaders they trust and peers they can learn with. Creating a community in which to doubt, play, and grow provides the healthiest environment for engaging children. Learning is a social process in itself, so...
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Bible Story Trivia Video for Kids

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We're in the middle of a blog post series that focuses on engaging kids according to how they are wired, and we talked earlier in the week about how kids are wired for technology. In addition to the links and sites I shared in the previous post, today, I'm sharing a simple Bible Story Trivia Video for Kids! It has 12 questions, covers both the Old Testament and the New, and lasts about 6 minutes - perfect for a countdown or parent-pick-up time![/vc_column_text][vc_video link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQGdQ6TtQEs&t=21s" align="center"][vc_column_text] You can download this video to use in your ministry using a site like KeepVid or use it directly from the Deeper KidMin Youtube Channel. [/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="4658" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link"...
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Filed Under Blog, Free Weekly Downloads

Wired For Technology

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Technology often gets a bad rap, but it’s not going anywhere, and if we don’t work to leverage technology for our advancement of the gospel, we will grossly miss our targets. Today’s kids don’t know a world without the existence of technology and the internet, and the Barna Group has found that children spend an average of five hours on an electronic device (tablet, phone, computer, etc.) every day. As ministry leaders, we have to use technology in our ministries to engage kids in what we are teaching and how it can apply to their lives. If you aren’t using technology in your ministry in some way, you’ll lose kids (and their parents) because they’ll subconsciously view the church as outdated and irrelevant. Kids interact with technology on a daily basis anyway, so why not redirect some of...
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Wired for Learning: Developmental Stages KidMin Leaders Need to Know

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We learned earlier in the week how kids are wired uniquely and what we can do to engage them. Today is all about how kids are developmentally wired for learning. The speed at which their little brains absorb and process new information is unlike any other stage of life. This is great news for us! Their minds are already ready for the truths we want to teach them. But that doesn’t mean every child is developmentally ready for every truth. While children may progress through stages of learning at different rates, they tend to follow the same patterns of development from birth to the preteen years, and when we engage kids based on their developmental stage, we can take better aim at the dartboard. Use this week's download to gain a general overview of a child’s characteristics in each stage and what...
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A Game of Darts – Engaging Kids According to How They Are Wired

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Think of children’s ministry like a game of darts. We want what we are teaching (the darts) to stick with the children we are teaching (the dartboard). Engaging children according to how they are wired developmentally and relationally allows us to take better aim and hit the bulls-eye. Trying to teach a preschooler an abstract concept of faith would be like trying to throw the dart backward and hoping it sticks. It may leave an imprint, but will, for the most part, miss the mark completely. Knowing and understanding how children are uniquely wired for learning, technology, and relationships helps us be more effective in our presentation of Biblical truths and allows us to combine theology and scientific theory to create the most well-rounded approach to ministry and sharing the gospel. Over the next...
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Volunteer Handbook

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Whether your volunteer team includes 5 volunteers or 500, it can be difficult to make sure everyone is on the same page. While you can (and should) host a volunteer training each year, that one hour every 52 weeks just isn't enough to communicate everything you want your volunteers to know. Creating a volunteer handbook is a great way to share expectations, communicate details, and provide a little extra training for your volunteers to have all year long. I'm sharing my full 34-page volunteer handbook this week, and I hope it helps spark some ideas for creating your own. Feel free to use the wording and details found within it, and if you want a customizable copy so you don't have to start from scratch, it's available here or as part of the Put Me In Coach Volunteer Training...
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