Melissa in St Louis Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 I have a 6yo DS and a 3yo DD and they (praise the Lord!) have been doing pretty well in church lately. DS is happy to follow the words on the screen and look up verses and read library books. DD is generally occupied looking at the choir and candles and stringing beads. Don't get me wrong, I AM THRILLED that we have been having such good behavior, but I don't know if they are supposed to be doing something more "churchy" or not. At this age, is the goal just to sit quietly no matter what you are doing? Or should they be doing Bible-related activity pages or something? Just trying my best to do whatever I'm supposed to be doing, Melissa in St Louis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 I'm not real crazy about kids doing Bible-related worksheets and such during church, especially as they get older. I know others feel differently than I do, but I view that as busy-work and something that encourages non-participation. My kids participate as much as they are able. For them that means they join worship and prayer, and sit quietly for the other parts. Ds goes to Children's Church for the sermon, but dd stays with us. I do allow her to knit or do some sort of handiwork to keep her hands busy while she pays attention to the sermon. A friend of mine encourages her dd to take notes during the sermon. When she was 9yo my friend gave her dd a bag with a sketchbook, crayons, pencil, and ruler. Her dd draws pictures directly related to the sermon and writes just a sentence or two at the top of the page about the topic. FWIW our service is 2 hours long. A fabulous book about kids in church is Parenting in the Pew. http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=823409&netp_id=283936&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW&view=covers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebeccaS Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My kids are allowed a small notebook and two pencils, hymn book and Bible. They all participate in the singing of hymns and stand for prayers, to whatever degree they are able (for the littlest three that mostly means standing quietly and not bouncing around). I'll give my oldest something to listen for during the exhortation, usually a word or two and I'll write them on her paper. Then, she makes a hash mark for each time she hears the word. I try to pick Biblical words, not "the" or something of that nature. The other three will draw pictures or just sit quietly (mostly:tongue_smilie:). Our service lasts about an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes. Oh and just so you don't have to do the math, the kids are 6, 5, almost 4, 3 and 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confuzzled Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My 9-year-old daughter participates in worship and then I let her draw during the sermon. She usually draws something pertinent to the sermon or decorates her bulletin which she usually gives to the pastor on the way out. She listens better when her hands are busy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 Nothing, our children sit. They are not allowed to "play" or "draw" etc. We started this when they were about 2 and they know what our expectations are. Our pastors sermons average about 50 minutes. I am a believer that it doesn't hurt a child to sit for an hour a week. Phlox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 I allow my children to draw during the sermon if they wish. We've always allowed them to draw during read-alouds. It seems to help my son (6yo), especially, focus and retain better. I'm kinda the same way only I HAVE to take notes or I won't get anything out of the sermon. DD (9yo) tends to just sit and listen like her Dad. We expect them to participate in the singing time. We all share what we remember from the sermon at lunchtime. So the children try to remember at least one thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chanda7 Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My children are the same ages as yours, with birthdays coming up in a month. The oldest is required to participate in the singing and prayer portions of the service. During the sermon, she gets a small cereal snack and is allowed to read Bible story books or color. The youngest is encouraged to participate, but she can color or read books at any time. They are both required to sit in the pew and not talk. I hope to phase the "entertainment" out when the youngest is mature enough to do without. We attend both the morning and evening worship service, which are each an hour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 Our children could draw during church and gradually grew out of it as they were able to participate more and more in a service. I also let them read the Bible if they wanted. It's amazing what little ones pick up from a service and a sermon. They learned by 4 to sit well through a 1- 2 hour service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My kiddos are 3, 5, and 8, and all three kids get to color during the sermon, but they are expected to stand (the oldest is to sing) during the songs. All of my kids listen better when they are busy, and it is very hard for my 8 year old to sit while listening (she does alot of school work walking around and answers questions right on). It really depends on your kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riada Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 ..in that we allow our children (ages 9,5,3, and 9mos.) to do the "busy work". Our church provides a different busy bag each Sunday for the children. They pick out their bag and in it contains a pencil, crayons, and worksheets at different age ranges. The worksheets are directly related to the sermon being preached. They do the crosswords, color sheets, fill in the blanks, etc. during service. We do require them to stand when the rest of the congregation stands to show respect. I feel that even though they are doing busy work they are still absorbing what they are hearing. I am pleased that they remain quiet, show respect by standing when appropriate, and don't fuss over attending church. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 I'm not real crazy about kids doing Bible-related worksheets and such during church, especially as they get older. I know others feel differently than I do, but I view that as busy-work and something that encourages non-participation. My kids participate as much as they are able. For them that means they join worship and prayer, and sit quietly for the other parts. Ds goes to Children's Church for the sermon, but dd stays with us. I do allow her to knit or do some sort of handiwork to keep her hands busy while she pays attention to the sermon. A friend of mine encourages her dd to take notes during the sermon. When she was 9yo my friend gave her dd a bag with a sketchbook, crayons, pencil, and ruler. Her dd draws pictures directly related to the sermon and writes just a sentence or two at the top of the page about the topic. FWIW our service is 2 hours long. A fabulous book about kids in church is Parenting in the Pew. http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=823409&netp_id=283936&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW&view=covers :iagree::iagree: Knitting, cats cradle, note taking all allowed at various ages but nothing that would distract from listening to the sermon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in FL. Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My guys are 13, 11, 9 & 8. They've always been required to sit still, look at the preacher and listen. If they had something to "do" they would not only not be listening, but would be a distraction to others around them. They seem to be constantly making noise and dropping things! Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My kids have always been expected to sit with us, be quiet, stand when everyone stands, etc. When they were young, they were allowed to nap. After a certain age, they were not allowed to nap - unless there were exceptional circumstances (like I had to give one Benadryl for allegeries - no way could they stay awake!) Yes, I had to take them out several times when they were learning, but they were not allowed to play, they had to sit in my lap in a small room (with not much to look at) and be still and quiet. It took a lot of this for my youngest to finally get it. My 7yo writes down the Scripture references from the sermon. She started when she was 5 - I would flip to the appropriate page in the Bible so she could copy the proper spelling. She would use the chapter/verse reference from that page. When she turned 6, she graduated to using the chapter/verse reference given but still wanted to copy the exact spelling from the Bible. Sometime in her 7th year, she started writing the references without benefit of copying the exact spelling from the Bible. She is mostly right, but will check with some hard ones. My 10 yo notes the Scriptures references and note a few key words (KWO) for each one. She has started outlining the sermon as it goes as well. She was so impressed that someone else used outlines and it wasn't something her mother made up to torture her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in St Louis Posted December 7, 2008 Author Share Posted December 7, 2008 Thanks for all the great responses! :D I suppose it depends greatly on the length of service, type of church, etc, etc. I loved hearing how each family is unique! Melissa in St Louis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 My youngest goes to children's church. My oldest sits quietly and fills in an outline of the sermon. I also allow him to draw and he participates in all of the singing, prayers, Bible reading, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midwestbelle Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 the Pastor's outline is put on the screen in a Power Point type format. The girls copy it down as he goes through it along with the scripture references. They can also draw on the page if he stays on one particular point longer than it takes them to copy. I find that they are listening to him because they ask questions. My favorite week was when one of them leaned over and whispered, "I get it Mom, I know what he's saying" when the pastor was using a story to make a point. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 Well, it seems that we are different from all the responses so far. We attend a house church. Everyone from all the families sits together, eating, worshiping, studying, talking, and praying. Our children are allowed to play quietly or read. Sometimes if a brother is teaching on something, it is not necessarily understandable by a two year old. :) However, we (the group collectively) tend to require all children over the age of 5 or so to be able to sit quietly when someone is teaching, so as not to unnecessarily distract others. But this is, of course, up to each parent. I love our fellowship. It really does feel like a 'family'. I do not at all miss trying to quiet a fussy baby in a pew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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