Family & Children

Children Worship & Wonder

Children Worship & Wonder offers an exciting way to approach faith formation with children. The approach recognizes children as spiritual beings who already have a relationship with God.

Children Worship & Wonder Storyteller Trainers gather with Kaye Edwards, Director of Family and Children's Ministries, Sally Selzer of Worship Woodworks, and Sharon Warner, Professor of Christian Education at Lexington Theological Seminary for their forth annual retreat.     Front row, left to right:  Mandye Yates, and Jane Nettles.  Second row, left to right: Sally Selzer, Janice Walters, Michele Woods with son, Thomas, and Sharon Warner.  Third row, left to right: Aida Valladazes, Young Sook Kim, Sarah Taylor, and Susan Michal,  Back row, left to right: Kaye Edwards, Cindy James, Norma Jean Bosworth, and Gene Derryberry. View Children Worship & Wonder slide show. What is Children Worship & Wonder and Why Would My Church Want to Consider This Program? View the most current list of trainers. If you are a Disciples of Christ congregation, you can sponsor a Children Worship & Wonder Storyteller Training Event. Here's how (or download this document in PDF).

Through Children Worship & Wonder, children learn about God as they experience God. They hear Bible stories in a way that allows them to enter into the stories and form responses out of their own life experiences. Children Worship & Wonder can be used with children ranging in age from 3 to 13 and a wide age range can be grouped together in one class. It is a Montessori-based model and often works wonders with children who have attention deficit problems.

Training takes approximately 15 hours and costs $120 per person. If you wish to receive additional information on Children Worship & Wonder or if you have interest in sponsoring a Children Worship & Wonder Training event for your region, area, district or church, contact Kaye Edwards or Connie Metts.

Sonja Stewart and Jerome Berryman are co-authors of the book Young Children and worship which is the basic text for doing the Children Worship & Wonder. Each summer Professor Stewart offers a three-day workshop on children's worship at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Mich. Also offered is a workshop on her new book, Following Jesus. For additional details go to the following Web site: www.childrenandworship.org/.

There are a great many materials involved in setting up a Children's Worship Center. Many of the materials can be made by members of your congregation and getting the whole congregation involved in this way is what we recommend. However, if you do need to purchase materials, Worship Woodworks Inc. offers quality materials.