Altamaha / New Sunbury Baptist Association

1. Youth Sunday School Altamaha / New Sunbury Baptist Association COMPILED BY: JIM ELLIOTT

2. Relating to Youth… … Establish common ground. … Go where youth are and make contact. … Invite youth to your church & activities … Participate in youth activities. … Be a good listener.

3. Relating to Youth… … Practice affirmation. … Be sensitive to youth needs. … Develop trust. … Be a friend, // not a buddy. … Pray for youth, specifically & by name.

4. PLAN AN ATTENDANCE EMPHASIS Back-to-School Link this huge event in students’ lives to Sunday School. Since there is already a new school year, there needs to be a renewed emphasis on the new Sunday School year.

5. PLANAN ATTENDANCE EMPHASIS Attendance Competitions (Fall and Spring) There are two times a year that are ideal to do some kind of competition. Give points and rewards to folks who go all out in inviting members and prospects to come on attendance days. Be sure the rewards are for effort and not just for results. The event can be for one day or to build attendance for an entire month.

6. PLAN AN ATTENDANCE EMPHASIS Summer Mania Family vacations, sports and band camps, jobs, and so much more begin to fill up the live of students in the summer. This should be an emphasis focused on reminding students to be faithful in Bible study participation. Plan things that you can only do during the summer.

7. PLANANATTENDANCEEMPHASIS Christmas and Easter In some churches, this is an ideal time to challenge people to be faithful in attendance. Some students only show up at this time of the year. Do something extra special and remind students that this is the kind of experience they can have every week.

8. Effective Outreach • Record keeping is essential. Make sure you collect complete information about prospects at every opportunity. • Plan a calendar of ideas and activities for the whole year. Too often outreach doesn’t happen because we never plan for it. Also make sure your plans are not interfering with the overall Youth Ministry or church-wide plans. • Teach key students how to make others feel welcome. The key to outreach is your students. They need to realize the significant role they play in reaching unchurched people.

9. Effective Outreach • Don’t be afraid of failure. Not every event or strategy will bring untold masses of students into your ministry. • Set your expectations reasonably. God is holding you accountable for doing outreach, not the results of it. • Pray before, during, and after each event. God is the mover and shaker when it comes to His kingdom business.

10. ASSIMILATION • Every department, class, and ministry should have a plan, as well as scheduled activities and events to promote assimilation. • Too many students are lost due to the fact that we have not intentionally reached out to them and included them. • The key to assimilation is the student. Whatever plan you develop must revolve around the abilities and willingness of your students.

11. ASSIMILATION • Idea One … • Enlist Student Care Group Leaders. Assign three to six teenagers to each care group leader. Half of that number should be regular attendees and the other half prospects and chronic absentees. • Encourage care group leaders to make weekly contact. The focus of the contact should not be just to get them to attend. Instead, the student care group leader should focus on building the relationship. • Relationships are essential to building a sense of community among class members.

12. ASSIMILATION • Idea Two… • Another idea is to plan monthly or quarterly class fellowships. Make the focus of the event to build relationships. • Structure activities so as to allow students time to get to know each other. Play games where they have to do things with people they don’t know very well. • Prepare a get-to-know-you sheet which requires students to get information from other students.

13. ASSIMILATION • Idea Three… • Another idea might be to enlist a host or hostess for your class. • His or her responsibility would be to greet newcomers, enroll them, introduce them to others, and sit with them in class and in worship. They could also be responsible for making sure the newcomer is assigned to a care group leader. • The first few moments in the class or department time are some of the most important in assimilating guests into our ministry. • Who is the one person who would be perfect for this you are aware of now.?

14. Youth Sunday School Leadership Job Descriptions

15. Division Director: • Coordinate the work of the Youth Sunday School where there are two or more youth departments. • Discover training needs and plan training opportunities in conjunction with the Sunday School Director. • Participate in outreach efforts, planning meetings, and Bible study groups.

16. DepartmentDirector: • Discover and enlist other department leaders. • Monitor the process of assimilating new members. • Lead the large group time when planned for a Sunday morning. • Lead the planning period for the department at worker's meetings. • Work with youth leadership team and youth to plan fellowship opportunities.

17. Department Secretary: • Be responsible to the Department Director in all matters related to department records. • Process and maintain visitation records and maintain an up-to-date prospect file, and provide records for the caring ministry. • Determine ways information from records can be used to minister to people.

18. Teacher: • Be responsible to the Department Director or Sunday School Director for the total work of the class. • Teach youth the Bible by guiding discovery-learning activities. • Participate in planning sessions, outreach and visitation activities, and other special Sunday School functions.

19. Youth Class Leader: • Be selected by the teacher to serve for a three to six month period of time. • Assist the teacher in administering and evaluating the activities of the class. • Participate in training opportunities. • Be involved in Bible studies and encourage peers to be personally involved.

20. Youth Care Leader: • Be selected by the teacher to serve for a three to six month period of time. • Assist the teacher in administering and evaluating the activities of the class assist the teacher in leading class members to care for members, non-members and their families. • Participate in training opportunities.

21. How To Teach Youth

22. We teach Youth to bring about changes in . . . • Knowledge • Understanding • Attitude • Skill It’s a “vicious circle”

23. Building a base for learning by … • Processing new information. • Assimilating new information. • Reviewing that which is already known. * Skill Attitude Understanding Knowledge

24. People learn by ... Hearing Seeing Doing

25. Note: • No two people learn in exactly the same way. • Our teaching needs to address their learning styles.

26. Auditory Learners • Remember what they hear, including their own comments. • Remember by talking aloud and through verbalrepetition. • Desire to “talk through” concepts not understood. • Usually are good listeners.

27. Auditory Learners • Verballyexpress excitement about learning. • Remember verbal instructions without writing them down. • Enjoy class discussionsand talking with others. • Are easily distracted by sound, but also find silencedistracting.

28. Auditory Learners • Participate in debates, interviews, and panel discussions. • Advocate the use of storytelling to learn a moral lesson or truth. • Enjoy interesting lectures. • Find it difficult to work quietly for extended periods of time. • Enjoy musicactivities.

29. Visual Learners • Desire to see words written down. • Prefer to see a picture along with something being described. • Prefer a time line to remember historical events. • Prefer written instructions for assignments. • Observe all the physical elements of the classroom.

30. Visual Learners • Carefully organize their learning materials. • Enjoy visually stimulating learning environments. • Like to see pictures along with printed content. • Remember and understand through diagrams, charts, graphs, and maps.

31. Visual Learners • Appreciate multimedia presentations. • Enjoy creativewriting. • Prefer small-group study teams to discuss assignments. • Study material by reviewing notes and organizing information in outline form. • Enjoy visual art activities.

32. Kinesthetic Learners • Become physically involved with the subject being studied. • Enjoy acting out a situation through dramatic methods. • Volunteer to do role play and monologues. • Enjoy making something or completing a project.

33. Kinesthetic Learners • Prefer physically handling learning materials. • Remember and understand through doing. • Take study notesto keep busy, but often do not read them. • Enjoy using computers.

34. Kinesthetic Learners • Become physically active and enthusiastic about what they are doing. • Have a hard time sitting still for extended periods of time. • Like to complete crossword and other kinds of puzzles. • Enjoy hands-on art activities.

35. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher • GUIDE — The leader is the lesson. This idea is a critical thought for anyone who wants to teach in any age group. Your talent, skills, knowledge, giftedness, and experience will be meaningless if your life is not a compass pointing participants to “True North”—Jesus Christ Himself.

36. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher • CHANGE AGENT — Howard Hendricks has said, “Your task as a communicator is not to impress people, but to impact them; not just to convince them, but to change them.” All people need to change. You should be changing as you study God’s Word just as those you teach should change . . Be transformed. How can we know change is taking place? James 1:22-25 offers one way to measure change. We must become doers of the Word, not merely listeners.

37. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher - Do you emphasize further study of the lesson? . . - Do you emphasize developing a daily quiet time? . . - Do you ask for reports on what God has done based on a previous Bible study lesson? . . - Do you provide opportunities for learners to practice a Bible study lesson through ministry and outreach? . .

38. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher • Discipler — You also must be a discipler. Luke states, “A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). A disciple is a pupil or learner. To be someone’s disciple suggests a total commitment to stay close to, learn from, and obey the person chosen as one’s teacher.

39. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher • Mentor — Paul gave some clear instructions to his apprentice Timothy: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Tim. 2:2). Some members you will teach; others you may disciple. But a select few need you to mentor them into leadership roles. They could become teachers or might help your class birth a new class. Right now they are in your class and need on-the-job training. If you don’t mentor them, who will?

40. Roles that describe the Youth Teacher •Servant — John wrote: “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me” (John 12:26). We serve a risen Savior who has invited us to serve others on His behalf. He is with us in every class session, every leadership meeting and every ministry and outreach visit our members make!

41. FLAKES’ FORMULA • PREPARATION – This is a must ! • Connecting with – STUDENTS &PARENTS • COUNSELING – Listening as well as advising! Both parents & Students • CALENDARING – Checking School schedules, sports events, holiday schedules, even family.

42. FLAKES FORMULA • COMMUNICATING – Easier than ever before! YET? Many times it ends with FAILURE…… Teens are BUSYPublishing and Communicating involves repetition – Remind them over and over – IMPORTANT! • CONNECTING – Stay in touch – Make sure they KNOW that you are interested in them……….

43. INTRODUCTION • AVAILABILITY – You & Resources • ACCOUNTABILITY – Everyone! • RESPONSIBILITY – • Show personal responsibility and require itfrom the students.

44. KNOW THE POSSIBILITIES • Discovering prospects or possibilities is not an option – It is a command • Matthew 28:18-20 applies for Youth as well as Adult Sunday School Work. • This must become a joint effort between students and leaders. • Leaders should never be expected to do it all themselves.

45. ENLARGE THEORGANIZATION • As S S leaders, do you plan for who is coming or for who you EXPECT TO REACH? • Three Statements for discussion • 1. Students learn best in large groups / True or False • 2. Students should be allowed to choose which class they will attend / WHY? • 3. Students should be grouped by gender WHY?

46. PROVIDE SPACE AND EQUIPMENT • What difference does environment make? • Is your church open to “DIFFERENT” when it comes to the youth department? • How flexible is your church? • How flexible are your youth?

47. PROVIDE SPACE AND EQUIPMENT • What equipment would you suggest as needed in your youth ministry? • GAMES? RECREATION? POOL TABLES??GAME MACHINES? VIDEO EQUIPMENT? ETC • Does your church have a large youth area?

48. ENIST AND TRAIN WORKERS • How does your church enlist youth leaders? • Does your church have a job description and guidelines for your youth workers? • Do you consider “training” as essential?

49. ENIST AND TRAIN WORKERS • Does your church provide training events for youth workers and potential workers? • Who is in charge of these training events? • Does your church take advantage of the training events available through the local association and or GBC? WHY?

50. NOW ITS TIME TO GO AFTER THE STUDENTS • Who can do the best job of reaching students? YOU OR OTHER STUDENTS? WHY? • DOES THAT EXCUSE YOU? • Any questions – suggestions – etc • WHAT CAN THE ASSOCIATION DO TO ASSIST YOU IN YOUTH WORK?