Children
Worship and Children’s Choirs: 09:45 am - 10:45am
Discipleship Hour/Sunday School: 11:00 am - 11:50am
Worship Schedule:
The North Avenue Session has decided to extend our one combined worship service through August 2023. We will have worship at 9:45 am and Sunday School at 11am.
All children in 1st through 5th grades will join their families for the beginning of worship and be excused during the announcements to either go to choir or special programming in The Sphere.
Preschool children are also welcomed to join the beginning of worship and will be excused to come The Lil Sphere for Cherub Choir with a parent/adult (to sign them in) during the announcement portion of the service.
Families can pick up All children from their Sunday School Classes in the Children’s area at 11:50am.
During the announcements in the service the Junior Choir 1st through 5th graders will go to the music suite with Ms. Sierra for practice and families can take their 3s to Kindergarten children to the Lil Sphere for Cherub Choir.
Families can pick up All children from the Children’s area after worship.
Mission Statement:
The Children and Family Ministries at North Avenue is all about RELATIONSHIPS:
- Our Relationship with God the Father, Jesus the Son, and The Holy Spirit
- Our Relationships with other children in our community
- Our Relationships with other adults in our community
- Our Relationship to what God is doing in our community and the world.
- These Relationships grow when we are in a safe space (physically, emotionally, spiritually, cognitively)
- These Relationships grow when we are engaged not entertained.
- These Relationships grow when we experience worship, scripture, prayer, generosity, service and life together in community.
- These Relationships grow when each child is empowered by the gospel to know WHO they are and WHOSE they are.
The Children and Family Ministries at North Avenue partners with families as they raise their children to become Christ followers who love God and neighbor.
The Lil Sphere and The Sphere
North Avenue’s Children and Family Ministries
COVID 19 Information
The Lil Sphere: Infants-Pre-K (including Kindergarten for Cherub Choir Practice)
What COVID-19 response safety protocols will be in effect?
In addition to the high standards that The Lil Sphere maintains on a regular basis, Sunday morning we will follow additional COVID response guidance.
- Limited access to children’s class area. Children will be checked in at The Sphere Welcome Desk and walked back to their classrooms by Lil Sphere Leaders. Children will be picked up at the Welcome Desk at the end of their morning experience.
- Face Masks are required for Lil Sphere Leaders, Caregivers and for all children over the age of 2 (unless a medical or developmental condition prohibits wearing a mask).
- Health Screenings upon arrival (children/staff/volunteers not admitted with fever of 100.4F or above) Remember to do a health check before you arrive!
- Regular handwashing and use of hand sanitizer enforced.
- Reduced toys in classrooms, individualized snacks, and social distancing during our learning circle time.
- Use of outdoor space as schedule & weather permits.
What do we do on Sunday morning?
- In-person Check-In opens at 8:50am on Sunday morning. Please use the entrance to The Sphere Children’s area only. Remember to do a health check before you arrive!
- You will bring your child to The Sphere Welcome desk to be checked-in. Your child will have a temp check, receive a nametag, and be brought to their classroom by The CFM leaders.
- Please bring any supplies (diaper, change of clothes, sippy cup) in a plastic bag. We will label it with your child’s name and return it to you when you pick-up your child
- If there are others waiting to be checked-in, please wait on one of our socially distanced markers in the welcome area.
- After your child is checked-in please leave through The Sphere doors to enter the sanctuary through the lower hospitality hall doors.
- Please pick-up your child in the Sphere welcome area directly after your morning experience. The CFM staff/volunteers will bring your children to you.
- We ask that you exit through the Sphere doors as soon as you have picked-up your child. We encourage you to fellowship outside with other families.
The Sphere: (Kindergarten through 5th Grade)
What COVID-19 response safety protocols will be in effect?
In addition to the high standards that The Sphere maintains on a regular basis, Sunday morning we will follow additional COVID response guidance.
- Limited access to children’s class area. Children will be checked in at The Sphere Welcome Desk and will go to The Sphere Chapel. Children will be picked up at the Welcome Desk at the end of their morning experience.
- Face Masks are required for The Sphere Leaders and for all children over the age of 2 (unless a medical or developmental condition prohibits wearing a mask).
- Health Screenings upon arrival (children/staff/volunteers not admitted with fever of 100.4F or above) Remember to do a health check before you arrive!
- Regular handwashing and use of hand sanitizer enforced.
What do we do on Sunday morning?
Elementary children are encouraged to attend the beginning of the worship services with their families. Following the announcements, children will be excused for children’s choirs. Children in grades 1st through 5th will be taken to the choir room for Junior Choir. (Kindergarten children and younger will need to have their families bring them to The Sphere welcome desk to be checked in to choir).
At the end of Junior Choir, the children will be brought to The Sphere Chapel for the fellowship time and the Discipleship Hour. Kindergartners will also be brough to The Sphere Chapel at that time.
Please pick-up your child in the Sphere welcome area directly after your morning experience. We ask that you wait in the Welcome area and your children will be dismissed to you.
We ask that you exit through the Sphere doors as soon as you have picked-up your child. We encourage you to fellowship outside with other families.
All families and Volunteers:
- We ask that all families and volunteers do a health check at home before arriving to church.
- We ask that all families and volunteers over the age of 2 are masked as they enter the children’s welcome area (unless a medical or developmental condition prohibits wearing a mask).
- We encourage that you use the hand sanitizer in the welcome area upon arrival and departure.
- We ask that all families and volunteers are mindful of being socially distance in the children’s area.
- We ask that if you or your child has tested positive for COVID after being in our programs that you contact Roxie Chess at roxie@napc.org
For more information please email Roxie Chess at roxie@napc.org
North Avenue’s Children and Family Ministries Overview
How do we want our children to be known? How do we model and instill a vibrant faith that is not only contagious but becomes the core of their identity? North Avenue’s Children and Family Ministries (CFM) are blessed to join our families as we cultivate our children’s spiritual foundation which rests in them knowing who they are and whose they are. We want our children to know that they are made uniquely in the image of God, and through the grace, everlasting love, and forgiveness we have in Jesus, know that they are called to love others and join God’s mission in the world. Through engaging God’s word, praying, singing, serving, playing, talking, laughing, and developing relationships with other adults, youth, and children who love God, we learn and grow together to be the followers of Christ that make a difference in our world. NAPC’s Children and Family Ministries meet each child where they are, knowing that through the power of the Holy Spirit, they will come to fully know that they are loved and can share that love with others.
We are excited to partner with you as we engage our children in a deeper relationship with Jesus. It is a joy and delight for each of us to walk with you as your children grow in their faith, knowledge, and relationship with Jesus.
Our Teaching Strategy
The Lil Sphere
Infants and Walkers: We want to help children learn about God and take their first steps in their relationship with Jesus right from the start! Our youngest children will listen to music about God and experience God’s love through their caregivers and church volunteers. Our Walkers engage every Sunday in God’s word by experiencing and participating in a lesson that incorporates Bible stories, singing, crafts, snacks, and prayer.
Two’s and Three’s and Pre-K: During the Discipleship hour, all preschool classes use Gospel Light curriculum focusing on God’s love for us all. Each session emphasizes both a Bible story and Bible verse. Children hear the Bible story from their Sunday School leader and then explore different ways of applying the story through play and projects. This is the time where we focus on developing relationships with our children. Our focus is to nurture our children’s relationship with Jesus, their relationship with their peers, and their relationship with adults in our church family who love and encourage them. We play to learn, listen to learn, and talk to learn.
Church - Home Connections
- Projects That Your Child Makes and Brings Home
- Weekly Take-Home Paper
- NAPC CFM Newsletter (that is e-mailed home monthly and can also be picked up at The Sphere Welcome Desk)
Yearly Preschool Registration Click Here
The Sphere
The Sphere is our Sunday morning program for kindergarten through fifth grade at the 10:15 a.m. Discipleship hour. During this time our kindergarten through fifth grade students will experience a large group time of creative Bible teaching that focuses on understanding and applying God’s word in our relationship with Him and others. This is followed by activities in small groups that build relationships between the children and Jesus, their peers and their leaders and applying God’s word to their lives. We intentionally focus on the faith skills of Hearing (listening to God’s word), Praying (having a dialogue with God), Talking (articulating our faith), and Living (worshipping God with our lives).
