BASHAW-MIRROR PASTORAL CHARGE
Bashaw United Church + Mirror United Church
A Community Living God's Love, Sharing God's Love.
Children and Church School
Children are an important part of our congregation! Church School is provided during regular worship services at both Mirror and Bashaw.
We gather for worship as the Whole People of God. Our opening prayers, hymns and songs reflect the diversity of our ages and backgrounds - that "we who are many and come from many places" have gathered in worship. The children then come to the front for a participatory story or activity that introduces the theme and key scripture passage for the day. We call this time Learning Together because it is not just time for the children, but also for the children to be worship leaders who help the whole congregation to learn and experience God.
After a song or hymn, the children go to their church school class downstairs. In Mirror, this is a large and comfortable room with many toys, books and craft tables. In Bashaw, there are dedicated rooms for storytelling, play and crafts.
The children hear and discuss the scripture story and create a craft which is designed to connect with the theme of the story. In Mirror, this is often a craft to take home. In Bashaw, the children read from Ralph Milton's Lectionary Story Bible, a young and familiar re-telling of stories ordered according to the Lectionary, and do a craft which is added to their individual scrapbooks or taken home. Singing and prayer are also key components of the morning.
The children also do occasional special projects, create cards or crafts for the congregation and participate in intergenerational services, including annual pageants or dramas at Christmas and on Palm Sunday.
There are other special programs for children during the year, such as our one week summer program which features a bible theme, singing and crafts (it was called "Summer of Saints" in 2009), and workshop events like our drama-themed sleepover "A Night at the Theatre" (November 2009).
