Worshiping with Children

At St. John’s our mission is carved over the door to the sanctuary and reads, “Given to Hospitality”. We welcome all, and we encourage families to worship together. Some families like to sit in the front so they can see everything, while others prefer to stay in the back where they can move around quietly. We have a selection of children’s books, coloring materials, and quiet toys here. For families who need to change a diaper or move about a bit more, there are the parlors, located through a hallway

Our School Year
St. John’s offers Sunday School classes from mid-September to early June. We do not hold classes on Christmas Eve or Easter Sunday. There are many youth and family events throughout the year. Please check the calendar often!

Sing!
Prior to church, school children, their families, and other parishioners gather to sing with musicians from the congregation. It is a rousing start to our morning of worship!

Church School Programs

Godly Play
Godly Play is a Montessori-based church school curriculum. Children are encouraged to play through sacred stories, liturgical actions, parables, and silence.

Godly Play (PreK-Kindergarten, ages 3-6)
This class is an introduction to the core lessons in Godly Play. Children are presented with a lesson, spend time wondering about it and then, through self-directed play begin to absorb the materials. As they play they begin to learn the language of God and God’s people.

Godly Play (Grades 1-3)

The spiraling curriculum of Godly Play allows children to begin going deeper into the work as they continue to connect the Biblical narrative with their own lives. In this class core lessons of Godly Play are combined with enrichment activities to further look for how each child belongs to the sacred stories.

Godly Play (Grades 4-6)

Continuing the Godly Play ideals, the older students begin to synthesize the sacred stories together and layer the parables in a way that allows them to connect their present lives with those of the bible. This class also focuses on "Living in a Fragile World" and what we are to do as both Christians, and stewards of the Earth.

Youth Groups

Journey to Adulthood
A six-year program for teens and pre-teens, set in three phases of spiritual formation.

Rite 13 (Middle School)
The first two years of the J2A program is called Rite-13, a name that comes from a liturgical rite of passage we celebrate with the young people around their 13th birthday. This rite is loosely based on the bar/bat mitzvah tradition and is a way for the entire congregation to celebrate the unique gifts and abilities of our young men and women. During these two years, the community celebrates the amazing creative power and potential of our young people, and creates a safe haven in which to explore new ideas, new interests and new abilities.

J2A (Mid-High School)

The second two-year segment is J2A – an acronym for the Journey to Adulthood. It may seem a little confusing for this second phase to have the same name as the entire six-year program, but this section was the first piece developed. During the J2A phase, teens learn and practice six basic skills for adulthood: active listening, negotiation, assertion, research and information management, partnership, leadership.

YAC (Senior High School)
The last phase, Young Adults in Church (YAC), encourages older youth to take on more adult responsibilities – both in their church and in their community. They are challenged to become good stewards of their time, talent and treasure. They work on identifying their gifts and commit to a specific ministry that uses those gifts. They study some of the church’s ancient creeds and then write their own statement of beliefs. They look back on what they have studied, learned and experienced over the last six years and use that as a basis for their own growing spirituality.

Vacation Bible School

Christmas twice a year??? Why not?

This summer all area children are invited to celebrate Christmas all over again! From 9 am to 1 pm the week of August 8-12th we will join the Holy family on their journey to Bethlehem and give Glory to the newborn King through music, art, drama, and sports. Christmas in August is 40 dollars per child and includes a nut free snack. The form and tuition payment can be dropped off to the parish office Monday - Friday 9 am - 4 pm or given to Olivia Leone on Sundays. Tell your friends!!! Last year we reached capacity, so sign up early!

This is a one-week opportunity for children from area churches to gather and experience God’s grace. Held in the second week of August with a new festive theme each year, Vacation Bible School is designed for children ages 3-11, with leadership opportunities after age 12.

A Note on the Eucharist

Safety