Sunday School

To quote Loretta Boland, Church School Director: “I believe the Christian education of young people is one of the most important things we do as a parish, but the only way it can be done is together, as a family: ‘It takes a village.’”

We are very pleased to say that with the cooperation, guidance, involvement and positive input of our entire congregation, our Church School is flourishing. Please read on … and if you are looking for a safe, welcoming church family for your children, please call us or come by for a visit.

The Church School Session

Labor Day weekend through the third Sunday in June

Drop off is at 9:20 a.m. upstairs in the library for all of the children attending Church School. This gives the children a chance to chat a little, put on their name tags, put a smiley sticker next to their name for attendance and basically transition.

At 9:30 a.m. sharp we begin our CIRCLE OF SONG AND PRAYER. We learn songs and prayers that are a part of the Sunday Service. Immediately following, the teachers lead the children into their classrooms for their lessons. At approximately 10:15 a.m., the teachers escort the children into the church where they sit together in the front pews for the remainder of the mass.

Registration
Registration forms are mailed out during the month of August. For those who are not on our mailing list, we have registration forms available on the main floor of the Parish House on the bulletin board across from the nursery.

• Please note that if children wish to participate in St. John’s beautiful annual Christmas Pageant directed by Claudia Nerreau, they must be registered in the Church School.

Babysitting: We offer babysitting in the downstairs nursery year-round for babies and toddlers starting at 9:15 a.m. Parents are encouraged to pick up their children promptly after the mass.

Preschoolers and Kindergarteners (ages 2 ½ – 6): Here at St. John’s the youngest children partake in an enriching program called “Godly Play.” Godly Play is a Montessori-based curriculum that teaches children Bible stories through storytelling with manipulatives. The children literally watch the stories unfold with tiny animals, people and other little objects. This is a fun way for youngsters to become more aware of God’s presence in their lives. The Godly Play teachers also teach the children about holidays we might be celebrating, etc.

Grades 1 – 6 : For Grades 1 through 6, we use the Spark curriculum which is a Bible curriculum that follows the religious calendar, teaching the Bible stories that coincide with the readings of the mass. Grades 1-3 study from beautiful age-appropriate picture Bibles that paraphrase the stories. Grades 4-6 study from their own working Bibles which they are given at the beginning of the Church School year. In June, all 6th graders take their Bibles home to keep.

Each year, every child in grades 1-6 is also provided with a binder. There are four sections: lessons, prayers, hymns and other. Each week the children file away their lessons and add prayers, hymns etc. over the course of the year. Their binders are kept on the shelves in their classrooms and are taken home to keep at the end of the Church School year.

During the summer months, children are encouraged to browse through their binders and to attend worship services with their family.