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Our Philosophy
Our Mission…
To encourage children and families to focus on the one most important thing in life: a growing relationship with Jesus!
Our Purpose…
Is to support parents in their role as primary nurturers of faith development in their children.
Our Method…
It is a partnership of the home and congregation in nurturing faith and passing on the faith. The home is the primary place to teach and nurture faith and the role of the congregation is to strengthen the home and equip the home to pass on the faith. This is in fulfillment of our baptismal promises.
Our Vision…
Is for every Child of God to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ that deepens with age and knows God’s boundless love and grace.
Objectives
To be a safe-place for children to belong. Children feel respected, valued, safe, loved, cared for and called by name. A place where trusted relationships are developed and Christian friendships are formed.
To create a faith community or faith family where children and families feel welcomed and connected. A faith community is a place to have fun, meet friends, help others and worship together.
To strengthen family relationships.
To share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the children and families of Our Savior’s and our extended community.
To provide a high-quality, faith-focused Christian learning environment that maintains a meaningful and personal experience.
To provide instruction in the Christian Faith through:
- Faith-focused Christian Education with the study of Holy Scripture with life application of Bible story truths and Lutheran traditions
- Using Bible-centered curriculum that is relational, experiential, applicable in developmentally appropriate ways, and learner-based
To equip the Christian home as the primary place where faith formation occurs.
We believe in the Four Keys for Nurturing Faith Life in the Home
1. Caring Conversations – Christian values and faith are passed on to the next generation through supportive conversation. Listening and responding to the daily concerns of our children makes it easier to have meaningful conversations regarding the love of God and is itself a way to express God’s love to others.
2. Family Devotions – To pass on the Christian faith to children and youth, adults need to learn the Christian message and biblical story as their own. Christianity shapes the whole of one’s life and therefore involves a lifetime of Christian study, reflection, and prayer.
3. Family Service – Children, youth and adults are more likely to be influenced by those who “walk the talk.” The Christian talk is expressed in the Good Samaritan story, the care of others, and especially the care of those in need. Service projects are best done with family members and other intergenerational groups.
4. Family Rituals and Traditions - Daily routines, celebrations, and other ways families choose to identify who they are and tell their family stories, speak volumes about what the family values, believes and promotes.
Worship
We strongly encourage families to worship together weekly. Worship is all of God's people coming together.
Name Tags
All children should make a name tag at the Children’s Ministry Welcome Areas before coming to your class. As our church family continues to grow we want to be able to call everyone by name. Our Children’s Ministry Team will wear their yellow name tags too so you can identify our staff!
Drop-off / Pick-up Policy
During the month of September or if you are new to the program (for 2 weeks) all kids 2 years -6th grade need to be checked-in and out of their class by a parent or guardian. This is so our teachers can get to know who our families are. As of October the following is our drop-off/ pick-up policy:
2 year olds- 1st grade: Drop-Off / Pick-Up by parent or guardian, not siblings, at the classroom.
2nd-6th grade: Kids arrive at parent’s discretion but must sign a waiver that it is okay for a child to leave the class without a parent or guardian, if they will not be picking them up on a regular basis. Please have an agreed upon meeting place. Please let the teacher know if a sibling will pick-up on a regular basis.
The safety of children is very important to us. Please notify our teachers if there is someone that we should not release your child to. We want all children to be accounted for and have record of that. Please pick children up promptly to avoid panic-stricken children and provide teachers with preparation time for the next session. Teachers will never leave a child unattended.
Snack Policy
 Due to food allergies it is our policy to not serve snack on a regular basis for a 1-hour class. However, food may be served for a special event or if it is included in the curriculum as part of the lesson. Teachers are notified of children with allergies, so please be sure to have indicated that on your enrollment form. If your child has a life-threatening allergy please verbally indicate that to your child’s teacher during the first week and make sure our teacher knows who your child is. Safety of children is important to us!
Class Size
We strive to maintain a 1 to 10 ratio. Classes average 20 children.
Staff
We staff our classes with a team of adult teachers working together cooperatively maintaing a one-to-ten ratio. Youth and adult assistants support teaching teams and offer children added attention, care and support. Teachers are provided with training, curriculum and on-going support. In addition to our teaching teams we have the Bucket Brigade that pulls supplies and prepares materials for our teachers. Beginning summer 2007, for the safety of all God's children, volunteers serving in direct contact with children must complete a backgound check.
Children with Special Needs
We welcome children with special needs. If your child has any special needs please indicate that on the Enrollment Form. You will receive a phone call from our Director to discuss how we can best serve your family. Any information that you can provide for our volunteer teaching staff would be greatly appreciated to make Children’s Ministry a positive experience for your child.
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