Starting Off Strong

The first day of club is like the first day of school: it’s absolutely essential to setting the tone for the year. In our online workshop for leaders earlier this month, we talked about the following tips for starting the year off strong in small groups.  1. Set a positive group culture. A few years…Continue reading Starting Off Strong

Behavior: Collaborative Problem Solving

Collaborative Problem Solving By Kim Kline, Director of Ministry Development At club, one of our biggest challenges is dealing with difficult behaviors of kids. In our last online workshop for leaders, we discussed this topic and presented some strategies for dealing with difficult behavior, including collaborative problem solving.  The idea behind collaborative problem solving is…Continue reading Behavior: Collaborative Problem Solving Continue reading Behavior: Collaborative Problem Solving

Principles for Managing Difficult Behavior

February 2018 This month, our leaders engaged in an online workshop on dealing with difficult behaviors in club. Check out some of the content from that discussion below. If you missed it, check our events page for upcoming online workshops. Here are some key principles we for managing difficult behaviors in club: Remind When a…Continue reading Principles for Managing Difficult Behavior Continue reading Principles for Managing Difficult Behavior

5 Keys for Making Your Ticket System Work (Coaching Sheet)

TEAM LEADERS ONLY! Coaching sheets are a tool for team leaders to train their team members. Click here for instructions on “How to Use Coaching Sheets.” 5 Keys for Making Your Ticket System Work 5 Keys for Making Your Ticket System Work (Leader’s Notes)   If you are interested to see other Coaching Sheet topics…Continue reading 5 Keys for Making Your Ticket System Work (Coaching Sheet) Continue reading 5 Keys for Making Your Ticket System Work (Coaching Sheet)

Why Kids Should NOT Sit Still at Church

  Thanks to Dale Hudson from Relevant Children’s Ministry for this article.  In many churches, you will hear this in the children’s ministry areas. “Ssssshhhhhh…” “Okay…everyone….let’s get quiet…” “Please stop squirming in your chair…” “Slow down…don’t run in the hallway…”  “Sit still…”   “I’m not going to continue until everyone gets their eyes up front and…Continue reading Why Kids Should NOT Sit Still at Church Continue reading Why Kids Should NOT Sit Still at Church

Top 10 Reasons Kids Misbehave in Children’s Ministry (And How to Fix It)

Thanks to Relevant Children’s Ministry for this re-post.   The easy thing to do is to quickly place the blame on a child when he or she is misbehaving in class.  While it is true, we all have a rebellious nature we acquired from the fall that can cause us to misbehave on our own…Continue reading Top 10 Reasons Kids Misbehave in Children’s Ministry (And How to Fix It) Continue reading Top 10 Reasons Kids Misbehave in Children’s Ministry (And How to Fix It)

How to Rock Your Small Group Discussion Time

1. Establish a safe environment. Early in the year, make sure that you talk with your group about what you expect small group discussion time to look like, and clarify the boundaries. Set ground rules regarding respecting one another’s turn to talk, listening to others, and being accepting of what others have to share. In…Continue reading How to Rock Your Small Group Discussion Time Continue reading How to Rock Your Small Group Discussion Time

6 Second Commercials . . . 6 Second Attention Span

Thanks to Relevant Children’s Ministry for this re-post.  The standard time for honoring children’s attention span when you are teaching has been 1 minute for every year with a max of 5 minutes.  An example would be when you are teaching 3-year-olds.  You would have 3 minutes to talk before you needed to switch and do…Continue reading 6 Second Commercials . . . 6 Second Attention Span Continue reading 6 Second Commercials . . . 6 Second Attention Span

Tickets 101

Tickets are one recommended tool for an easy to implement behavior reinforcement system in Kids Club. To get started you will need: A large roll of raffle tickets, with numbers printed on both ends (1,000 or more) A bag of assorted prizes/candy/toys Each leader should have an adequate supply of tickets on hand at ALL…Continue reading Tickets 101 Continue reading Tickets 101

Dealing with Challenging Behaviors

  Dealing with Challenging Behaviors One of the struggles we often hear from leaders is, “How do I effectively handle negative behaviors like disruption and disrespect from students?” There are tons of “behavior management” systems that you can use (our favorite is the ticket raffle), but ultimately there is no one-size-fits-all solution. These principles are…Continue reading Dealing with Challenging Behaviors Continue reading Dealing with Challenging Behaviors