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Meetings that Matter

"Whaa-whaa-whaa-whaa." You’re sitting in a Sunday school leaders’ meeting, but your thoughts wander, yawns come and go, and the speaker keeps on talking! Instead of gleaning the latest teaching tips, you wish you had stayed home. But it doesn’t have to be that way! Read on to find out how leaders and coordinators can both help nix the snooze-or-skip syndrome at your next Church Ed meeting. 

Add Your Two Cents

Since leaders’ meetings are designed to benefit YOU and meet your needs as a teacher, YOUR input is valuable! Here’s how you can help your coordinator:

• Offer a list of questions or topics that would be helpful to cover in upcoming meetings.  
•  Bring your calendar and leave a copy of your “busy” days with the coordinator for future reference.
• Inspire other leaders by sharing how you see God working in the kids in your class. 
• Change the venue—offer to host a leaders’ meeting at your home.
• Give your coordinator post-meeting feedback (but be gentle!).

Schedule Creatively

Use the “catch ‘em while they’re here” principle for planning. Marcia Flooding, director of children’s ministries at Third RCA of Holland, MI tackles the calendar crunch by holding leaders’ meetings during the regular Sunday school hour. She recruits special substitutes for the day.    

• When choosing an “off” day for your leaders’ meeting, scan church school schedules for conflicts.
• If your Sunday school meets during the service, consider combining a leaders’ meeting with a morning breakfast or a post-service brunch.
• Eat while you meet, but don’t let the food take over. Busy teachers may prefer light snacks to a sit-down meal if it means shorter meetings.    

Promote the Purpose

Along with a personal invitation, use email, bulletin announcements, fliers, and mailers to broadcast the agenda and highlight the VITAL nature of your meeting. Consider these attendance incentives:

• Meet at a favorite restaurant in town.
• Reserve portions of the meeting for hearing leader’s celebrations and concerns.
• Invite a well-known speaker.
• Encourage some friendly competition with a game or challenge.  
• Provide an inspirational article to read in advance.
• Present awards or acknowledgements.      

Get to the Point

Every meeting you plan should be short and sweet. Poor Eutychus, “who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on” (Acts 20:9a) might have avoided a midnight fall had this principle been in place!  

• Plan an interactive meeting that gets the point across and incorporates a little laughter.
• Use a short team-building exercise as an opener to get people talking. 
• If the majority of the meeting applies only to preschool teachers, deal with other items first, then send everyone but the preschool leaders home early.  
• If your agenda is short and a simple e-mail, newsletter, or phone call will do the trick, then skip the meeting and click “send” instead.

Make It Practical

Give leaders something they can use RIGHT AWAY:

• session planning sheets (.pdf, 1 pp., .04 MB)
• helpful website links from the Walk With Me website
• a calendar with upcoming dates
• a team-building game to use as kids arrive to class. Note: this is a GREAT way to start your meeting with some fun!     
• tips for discipline from last month's issue of WWM Talk 
• an easy-reading but inspirational article for continued growth

These nuts-and-bolts solutions are what teachers need for weekly ministry.   

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