NOVEMBER 2006
Welcome to WWM Talk, the e-newsletter for Walk With Me coordinators and teachers. If you have any questions about information in this issue (or anything else), give us a call at 1-800-333-8300 or e-mail us.
In This Issue
Beating the Christmas Program Blues
Question: What has a headache, glazed eyes, and a serious lack of joy?
Answer: A Sunday school coordinator in December.
Sound familiar? Sound like you last year? Trying to please parents, teachers, and the worship committee while conveying the true meaning of Christmas to kids and cooking a turkey for extended family is a sure way to zap the zest out of your Christmas celebration! Read on for a few ideas to help you balance Christmas program responsibilities and still experience the joy of Christmas.
Determine the Focus
What do you want kids to take away with them at the end of December? Do you want them to leave with a sense of awe about God’s gift of Jesus? Do you want to inspire in them the desire to share the good news of Jesus birth with others? Creating an elaborate Christmas program is wonderful if it enhances what you are trying to teach the kids—if it doesn’t, maybe it’s time to look for something else!
Keep It Simple
Choose what you can manage based on volunteer help, kids’ schedules, and parents’ support. Here are some resources and ideas to get you started:
Walk With Me Holiday Units contain complete Christmas programs with dramas, a variety of song suggestions, costume ideas and other helpful tips. Pick and choose the ideas that will work in your setting. (They also include plans for two lessons in the Christmas season.) Learn more about these holiday units here.
Quick and Easy Christmas Dramas. It doesn’t get much simpler than this! Older kids are assigned speaking parts and obtain the script one week before the program so they can read through their lines once a day while younger kids learn a few songs in the weeks leading up to the program. Meet for one rehearsal to help kids nail down details like where to stand and how to speak into a microphone—authors Bob and Laura Keeley hold one rehearsal on Sunday morning after church and put on the drama that evening! Click here to view a full list of children’s Christmas programs.
Make a Movie. During this summer’s WWM Conference several coordinators shared how they gathered all the kids one day in December and videotaped their Christmas play inside a local barn. Another church videotaped their kids singing carols and talking about the real meaning of Christmas. Although advance organization was required for both of these “programs,” everyone was able to sit back and relax on Christmas when the video was shown in church.
Tip: You’ll want a few extra copies on hand for parents to purchase!
Set the Stage. Invite kids to illustrate different parts of the Christmas story or to create pictures that go with the songs you’ll be singing. Use PowerPoint® to flash the images behind kids as they are singing or reading the story.
Tip: Be sure to show the kids the finished product before the church presentation or they’ll spend their time turning around to see it!
Celebrate Together. Have a Christ-centered Christmas program with your kids instead of for their parents. Shorten a Sunday school session and gather together for a time of celebration where kids can belt out some Christmas songs together, read the Christmas story, decorate some cookies, and make a card to tell someone else what’s so exciting about Christmas!
Divide and Conquer
Create a detailed list of what needs to be done to pull off your program, including everything from supplies to song leaders. Send the list around via e-mail or in person and ask folks to check off which opportunity looks like something they can do.
Breathe! Smile! And accept less than perfect results! After all, if we were perfect we wouldn’t need the gift of Christmas.
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