PROGRAMMING DESIGNED FOR KIDS BIRTH-5TH GRADE
At ACC, we believe that our kids are valuable members of our congregation and that appropriate programming for all ages is critical to our kids’ growth.
We offer engaging experiences for kids from birth through the conclusion of 5th grade, including kid-specific events.
Our ACC Kids programing takes place on Sunday mornings. All classes are taught by dedicated and caring volunteers who have undergone an extensive background check and safety trainings. Volunteers are background checked by an outside service and have been interviewed by the director in order to volunteer.
BABIES AND TODDLERS
Our youngest friends, ages 0-18 months, are cared for upstairs in the nursery near the back of the sanctuary. There are toys and stories for this age group with loving caregivers to love your child while you are in service.
Our toddlers, aged 18 months to 36 months, who are not potty trained are also upstairs in our nursery for intentional play programming with a story time that aligns directly with our preschool and elementary program but brought to an age-appropriate level.
PRESCHOOL-5TH GRADE
On Sunday mornings, our kids experience a structured class time, large group experience with singing and dancing, snack, and crafts or activities.
Children are assigned a class by birthdate, with promotions at the end of the school year.
Preschool
Our preschoolers are ages 3-5 and should be potty trained to be downstairs. They will be in their class for the full hour! You will check them in upstairs in the Kids Wing (hallway labeled with check in signage) and bring them downstairs to their classroom labeled “Preschool.” From there, you will pick your preschooler up after the service has ended.
Elementary
All elementary aged kids start the service with their parents (or sitting with their leaders on the rug at the front of the sanctuary) and will stay through the worship. Our goal is to create intergenerational sacramental moments with the congregation, therefore, our children are invited to stay during sacraments and worship!
After the worship through singing is over, all kids, ages K-4th grade and Club 56 (5th and 6th grade) will meet on the rug for a sending. We will all say “The Lord be With You” and the congregation will respond, “and also with you.”
From there, our K-4th graders will go to their large group lesson followed by small groups. You can pick your child up from the Launch Pad.
CLUB 56
Starting August 25
We’ve created a brand new class for 5th and 6th graders called Club 56 that will meet every Sunday during service!
In Club 56, we are focusing on creating connections between Scripture stories, how one event leads to the next (and why we need Jesus after all of it!). This class is intended to build strong relationships: both between students so they all know each other when they go into youth group together, and between students and adults, where they will be closely known throughout the church.
Our students in Club 56 will also participate from the rug in the sanctuary for the sending, then head down to their classroom for their lesson and time for building community. You can pick your student up from room 112.
ACC KIDS COMMUNITY HOUR
During Community Hour on Sunday from 10:30-11:30 a.m. starting August 25, we will have programming for kids of all ages while their parents are in their classes or small groups. Our nursery will be open for those under three years old and we will have a class for our preschool through 5th graders! We will be using the curriculum, the Biggest Story to go through the Bible all together.
Our goal for our kids during Community Hour is to build relationships with adults and kids in the class, to create fun time for kids to connect as their parents are, and to have a second hour of discipleship for our youngest congregants.
IMPORTANT LOGISTICS!! Kids should not be dropped off without a caregiver in the building. A caregiver must remain in the building during our Community Hour to maintain safety for their children. Children should be checked in for service programming, checked out during coffee hour, and checked back in for Community Hour at the iPads in the upstairs kids hallway.
KIDS CURRICULUM
We are starting a new curriculum this year! We are using a few different versions of Sparkhouse’s curriculum that is narrative based, or goes through the Bible from start to finish as one complete story.
For our nursery and preschoolers, we are using a curriculum called Frolic. This curriculum lends itself well to the age and developmental stages of our youngest congregants! We double up each lesson and go through the story twice, while doing different activities each week in discussing the story. This way, we use repetition to our benefit to keep our kids interested and learning about the core Bible stories that are appropriate for this age.
For our elementary schoolers, we are using Holy Moly! Which is another narrative curriculum. This curriculum does a great job of going through major Bible stories and connecting them all back to Jesus and the need for a Savior. Holy Moly taps into the imaginative part of their brain to imagine how people in the Bible were feeling in a certain story or imagine how they might react if they were in the same situation.
Our Club 56 curriculum is called Connect and this is specifically designed for older elementary schoolers. This curriculum’s goal is to make learning fun and deep, so they spend a lot of time enjoying witty, creative videos while understanding larger Biblical themes.
CHECK-IN/CHECK-OUT PROCESS
Check in for all children, birth to 5th grade, is upstairs in the Kids Hallway. When you walk in the main doors, there are signs pointing you towards the iPads, where you will put in your phone number and add kids into their classrooms. If you are a first time guest or first time checking your kids in, someone will be by the iPads to create your account. You will receive one name tag and one security tag. The security tag matches the number on their name tag, which is how we will match you up to your child when you come to pick them up from their respective classrooms. When you set up your account, we will ask for basic information including: name, address, phone number, and birthdate of your child in case of emergency! The nursery aged kids will stay upstairs in their classroom. Preschool and elementary kids will start the service with their parents and will stay through the singing. After worship, all kids are invited to their classrooms downstairs for a time of stories, crafts, games, and more. Preschoolers will be picked up from the preschool room, and elementary kids will be picked up from the Launch Pad.
For Community Hour, caregivers will need to pick up their child from programming and go check them back into their class. While it may seem silly to bring your kids around the building, we have to know where your kids are at all times! This way, we can keep them safe, have them checked in for the proper classes, and have our safety team know exactly how many kids are downstairs at the proper times. Thanks for helping us keep our kids safe!
RECOMMENDED CHILDREN'S BIBLES
NIV Adventure Bible
As we have given out Bibles to our Kindergarteners through 5th graders this year, we have presented them with the NIV Adventure Bible. This Bible has very clear transitions and well-marked page numbers, chapter numbers, and verse numbers. In addition, they point out questions that kids might ask and give them some passages to reference to answer them. This specific Bible version has been a great tool for kids to make their faith their own.
Jesus Storybook Bible
For our youngest kids who may not be able to read and are looking for a great storybook Bible to learn from, we recommend the Jesus Storybook Bible. This is not a direct translation of the Bible but covers many stories throughout the Bible. In fact, our curriculum lines up well with this storybook Bible so our youngest kids read from it weekly. In addition, we appreciate the clear diversity in the pictures and way these stories bring up new emotions and thoughts for our kids.
VOLUNTEER FOR ACC KIDS
Our Children’s Team builds up and strengthens children and their families. They believe in investing in the next generation at each and every stage they walk through. Volunteers lead small groups of kids focused on relationships, teach large group gatherings, lead worship songs, gather supplies for crafts and object lessons, hold and care for infants, and build creative and exciting environments. We would love to have you join our exciting team. Contact Kayleigh Leonard, Children’s Director, if you are interested.
MEET THE ACC KIDS TEAM
Click the photos to read our bios and access our contact information.
Kayleigh Leonard
Children's Pastor