Children Church

I actually prefer my child to stay with me through the whole service. At one church I went to I attended the children's service with my child and he was going to get NOTHING out of it. At this particular church they had any child come back, put them all in one room and expected them to sit with their legs criss cross and listen to 6-8th grade level readings of the exact same service. There was no explanation for the younger children, and most of them were younger children. It was larger church and therefore about 40 kids in this room. I think my child would get more learning of God in when he is with me. At the time he was only 4.

I personally prefer my child in the service with me. I fee; they get more our of hearing Gods word preached then they would in children church. They might not understand it, but they are hearing it and it is being planted in the hearts. I also think it is important for them to start early learning how to sit and behave throughout service!

well, I think Children's Church should be for those kids that have not made it to grade school yet! Once they are able to sit in school all day, they can sit in church for an hour or two!

I agree with you that our children should be in church with us :D We have always kept our kids with us for the most part... the church we belong to now, (the pastor's wife strongly suggested to us and many others) has a nursery... or junior church! I was slightly offended because she was saying that because our child was slightly disruptive that particular morning... the problem I have with that is that a lot of adults are more disruptive than my child was that morning!

In the summer, we used to have children's sermons and then the kids would go to their junior church (shaking the pastor's hand on the way out) - I miss that

The kids in our church are dismissed after singing and sit in the whole service one Sunday per month.
Our kids church program is AMAZING but it's still important for them to learn to sit in church.
So, in a nutshell.......I agree with you! :)

I think it is important for kids to be involved in the service and to understand that you must behave. So i would definately want them there for the beginning and if they can't sit then have somewhere for them to go during the sermon, our church says they have a "children's church" that is supposed to be an age appropriate "service" but from what my kids say, it's just a lecture with all the bad kids interrupting, fighting, running around and turning it all into chasos, I'd rather my kids sat with me and colored during the sermon than be exposed to those yahoos.

When my son was in the nursery (our nursery goes up to age 3) I'd often take him in after the singing, and I'd pick him up before the offering. Then when he went to the younger children's class, they have their own music so he does it there with him, and we started going to the first service so I just take him before and pick him up after. We only started going to this church when he was almost 2, so I know the nursery a bit better and have let my daughter stay in there the whole time, and don't have her come with me at all. We go to a fairly large church and we have 6 nursery rooms alone that are geared towards certain ages/developmental levels, and then our children's ministry has puppet time and music time where they go with several classes, and usually that time reinforces a lesson they've learned in their individual classes. Even in my daughter's 18-24mo class they had lessons and crafts, as well as songs they'll "learn." (The teachers play them several times like during snack and while the kids are playing after the lesson, and each lesson is repeated/built upon during each hour, so they have repetition.) If my church just let the kids play with no lesson/music, then I'd bring them with me, but since they do have the lesson/music, I enjoy letting them go and learn and then being able to really worship without having to worry about the kids.

Our church dismisses after singing right before the sermon!

My church would dismiss the children after singing and before the preaching starts. Now, the kids don't even step foot in the service. They go directly down stairs.
I think they should be in the service for the singing and then be dismissed.

Hello. Don't know if this helps, but out church has the children come in with the parents and sit and then they leave for the readings (children's liturgy) and then return after the priest says his gospel and are there for communion and the end of mass. It is a nice program and the children really like it. It puts the reading in their terms, so they can understand what is going on.

We start our Childrens church after worship and announcements....during the fellowship time between adults or (greeting time) the kids go down to class.....i'm one of the teachers and seems to work well that way! Although we are talking about having the kids church be full service and the kids have their own kids worship music downstairs with the teachers?????? Might be more interesting for the kids.

When I was little, we would all meet in the sanctuary for greeting/anouncements, a few songs, etc. Then be dismissed for Sunday School. After sunday school, we would go on to children's church and everyone else go back upstairs for service. Things happened in the church and we no longer have Children's church, but I would not mind at all if my daughters did as I used to.

Our church does the opening prayer, praise time, a few hymns, and the offering. The kids leave before the sermon begins. They are in Children's Church for roughly 30 mins.

You church does not have a childrens church, the children stay with the parents the whole time. There is a caretaker if someone wishes to use them BUT the kids just play no teaching. We do have Sunday school for about an hour before church while the adults have a Bible Class.

I am with you, I prefer the childrens church to begin after the singing, but before the sermon.