Anyone want FREE access to CM+?

If you are a part of children’s ministry at all there is a good chance you are familiar with cmconnect.org. If you are not, I highly suggest you check it out. It is a great place to share ideas, and the networking aspect is awesome.

This past week, Michael Chanley (creator of cmconnect) and team rolled out a great new training tool called CM+.

CMConnect+ provides an enhanced training group designed to network you with of community of leaders.

Members receive the following:

• access to a growing list of archived trainings (current value over $20)
• a 10 to 15 minute exclusive monthly video from a thought leader in Children’s Ministry
• exclusive weekly discussions hosted by INCM
• bi-monthly MP3 uploads from INCM ($96 annual value)

This content is designed to give members access to exclusive content for developing as a leader in Children’s Ministry. You will not only enhance your CMConnect experience, you’ll also improve your ability to lead in our unique calling!

 

So far there are several audio sessions from last years Children’s Pastors Conference (CPC).  I am very excited since I have not yet been able to attend one of these great annual conferences.  I am looking forward to listening and learning from some great leaders through the audio sessions. I also can’t wait to start the content provided for CMConnect+ members to earn a certificate in “The Basics of Children’s Ministry: The Five Initiatives of INCM.”  I have been told that this is just the beginning of the resources to be added to this group.

I have the special opportunity to give away 10 ‘free one month trial memberships’.  Since I am able to share this learning opportunity with you, I would like you to share something with me.  The first 10 people to comment below and share about a favorite learning experience will win a free month access. It could be your favorite teaching technique.  Or maybe your favorite learning memory from when you were in school. Share something and win!

Top Thoughts this Year

I was checking though some stats, and realized something.  Several months ago I posted (what I thought would be) my last post here as I moved all of my posts to my new site.  The funny thing is, because of the way different search engines work, this site often gets more traffic than my new site.  I put links here to my new site, but it seems not everyone followed the links, so I lost some of you in the process. Please consider following/subscribing on my new site, since I update that much more than I do here.

Since you may have missed some of my recent posts, I thought I would take a few minutes to share a few of the top posts from this year, many of them coming after I moved.

By far. my most popular post was “how to talk to your kids when tragedy strikes”

I posted this recently in response to the Connecticut elementary school shooting. I shared a few of my own thoughts, as well as links to many other resources to help you talk to your kids after a tragedy. I was also privileged to interview Wayne Stocks and Linda Ranson Jacobs on a special podcast.  They are both very experienced when it comes to helping kids through tragic events.  You can listen here.

Some other popular posts:

Questions to ask when in Leadership

If Christians were birds

5 classroom and behavior management tips and tricks

Laying a spiritual foundation in our kids

What is Family Ministry

I am considering posting more here as well as my new self hosted blog, but I ask you to consider subscribing over there to make sure you dont miss anything.

As always, thanks for reading, and feel free share your thoughts with a comment!

If Christians were birds…..

If Christians were birds—-

Yesterday this was our pastor’s message at church.  There are some very good points, and lots of similarities between our characteristics and those of various birds.  The notes may not be complete, but they are complete enough for you to get the point.  We all share some of these characteristics with birds.  Which are you?
What kind of ‘christian’  bird would you be?
Chickens

• Never reach full potential
• They live and wait to die
• The do a lot of flapping, but never go anywhere
• Live within confinement someone else built…a box or pen
• When there is a storm they run together inside

Thoughts from CMLeaders conference

I just got back from the very first CMLeaders conference, put on by INCM (International Network of Children’s Ministry).  It was a GREAT experience.  As expected, the quality of speakers was top-notch.  I walk away challenged to not only be a better leader, but a better follower as well.  I have just started to review and begin to process my 25 pages of notes.

The structure of the conference was great.  There were no breakout sessions, only large group ‘TEDTalk’ style sessions.  This was nice because I did not have to worry about choosing the wrong session or wondering what I would miss out on in the break out group I didn’t go to.

4 steps to better teaching and storytelling

Speaking to children is much different than speaking to adults. An adult usually has the self-control to sit and listen, even when not interested. A child, no matter the age, does not possess that same skill. They may be able to sit for a few minutes, but if they aren’t interested, you will soon know it. If you find yourself presented with the opportunity to teach children, whether in a  classroom, a library, a small group, a ministry,  a Sunday School, or you name the setting, there are a few things I have learned over the years that could be beneficial.

It is important to remember that everyone learns  differently. The fact is most of us will teach the way that we learn best. The problem with that is there will always be kids you are dealing with who learn differently. If you are  not prepared to vary your methods, you can be sure you will lose many of them. And we all know what happens once a child is no longer interested. Let the discipline issues begin!

There are lots more tips and tricks you could employ, but here are 4 that will help take your teaching or story telling to a new level.

2 questions away from a ministry or classroom improvement

The dictionary says a consultation is a time of seeking advice, guidance or information. To consult means to consider or deliberate or to take counsel. We often consult with a doctor before special treatment. We consult with a lawyer before signing legal documents. A time of consulting is a time of informing yourself of the state of your current condition, or before a major decision.

So, what is the state of your current ministry or classroom? Are you getting ready to make a major decision? Who have you consulted with concerning either of these two situations?  It is wise to gather information, ask opinions, and seek counsel and advice no matter what stage you are at or how good you think things are going.

Often those that we ‘consult’ with are close to the situation. Those close to you
have similar views and opinions as you. It is nice to have the advice or opinion of
those outside of your circle to help you asses your situation. A fresh set of eyes
can help you see things you may take for granted, or things you may not even see at
all.

Dealing with Discipline: classroom and ministry ideas and tips

 

 

Discipline is a sensitive topic.  Everyone has their own ideas and procedures. ” How do you deal with kids when they are being disruptive?” is a question I have been asked a lot.  Some of you know that often what I write can apply to many different situations, and I often relate it to  ministry.  From 5 years experience in a classroom setting and quite a few years in a ministry setting, here are a few things we do:

 

1. The Look–  it is amazing how effective it can be just by giving ‘the look’.  Most of the time kids know that their behavior is not acceptable, and simply catching their eye is enough to let them know that you see what they are doing.  Knowing they ‘got caught’ will often cause them to stop.  Mothers are especially good at giving this look. (now that I think about it, so are wives, but that is another topic for another day)  And I am sure that you can all remember receiving the look at some point in your life.

5 classroom and behavior management tips and tricks

Classroom/Behavior Management tips

School is starting soon, so I thought I would share a little from my days as a teacher.  As you know, many of my thoughts have ministry applications, and this one is no different.  Whether you are a classroom teacher, a home school teacher, a Sunday School teacher,  kids ministry leader, or even a parent, this may be something that can help.  When I was teaching there was something we called ‘classroom management’. I know that you may be in a small group/classroom setting, or you may be in a large group setting, but either way, the principles are the same.

Classroom management (sometimes behavior management) is something that I learned over several years of trial and error. It was a skill that I often make use of in parenting and also in a ministry setting.   A key to remember is the more you are able to identify and reinforce positive behavior, the less you need to try to discourage negative behavior. Most of the time the kids will want to imitate the positive behavior you are rewarding, because they like the reward and affirmation.

In ministry settings I have often divided the group into 2 teams, usually boys against girls.  This may or may not work in your setting, and if it doesn’t you still should be able to find a way to adapt these ideas.

Zonk Board:

This is large felt board with large felt circles. On the back of the circles are various point values. When you want to reinforce a positive behavior you can allow the child to choose a circle. Add the points to that team’s total. On the back of two circles put a ZONK, which means no points are awarded. (see the photo)

What is Family Ministry?

“Dad, will Gilligan be in heaven?” my daughter recently asked as Gilligan was laying on his back and she was scratching his belly.  Gilligan is the family dachshund.  She loves him, and he tolerates her, though he is playing with her more as she is getting older.  She is a huge animal lover, and I would not be surprised if she is a veterinarian when she grows up.  It makes sense that she would be concerned with his eternal welfare.

“I’m not sure, that is something we will find out when we get there.”

That seemed to pacify her for a moment, but then she continued her thoughts.  “If he does go to heaven, I hope I am there to see him.”

3 reasons you should attend CM Leaders Conference

September 13-14, 2012 marks the beginning of something new.  It is the first ever CM Leaders Conference (CM=children’s ministry) .  For any of you involved in children’s ministry, you understand that your ministry is different from any other ministry in the church.  You face many difficulties and issues that are unique to children’s ministry.  While it would be great to attend a general ministry conference, CM Leaders Conference is not only designed specifically for those of us involved with children’s ministry, but will go a step further to discuss the leadership aspect within our ministry.

http://incm.org/cm-leaders/columbus-ohio/

Michael Chanley and his INCM team (International Network of Children’s Ministry) are behind the new conference.

“Everything INCM does stems from our purpose statement: serve | serve | serve. Simply put, we exist to serve God and to serve those called to serve His children. The CM Leaders Conference exists to serve the church by training those called to serve in Children’s Ministry in the arts of leadership specific to our calling.

This new event builds onto the Five Initiatives we launched at CPC:

1.   Impart God’s truth to this generation

2.   Provide a safe and relevant environment

3.   Communicate with families

4.   Network with a community of leaders

5.   Pray for the international children’s ministry community.”