Preschool ages 3-5: The Ark

Held from 9 am to 10 am before the 10:15 am service on Sunday mornings

Children will learn important Bible stories and church practices, as well as crafts and songs. They will explore the importance of prayer by learning the Lord’s Prayer.

K-3rd Grade: Godly Play

Held from 9 am to 10 am before the 10:15 am service on Sunday mornings

This type of class is interactive with the children. The storyteller will use objects that represent aspects of the story and make it easier to visualize for them. The teacher will end with “wondering” questions to help the children try to connect with the story in their own way and find their own way into their own faith.

4th-5th Grade: Welcome to the Bible Class

Held from 9 am to 10 am before the 10:15 am service on Sunday mornings

Each child will get their own Bible and as a class we will read sections of it. We will stop and let the children explore the stories they know in the way they were actually written and with more detail.

6th – 8th Grade: Faith in Action

Held from 9 am to 10 am before the 10:15 am service on Sunday mornings

This class allows youth to explore their questions about the Bible and Christianity. Youth study the words of Jesus and discuss how we can use those teaching to put our faith into action.

9th – 12th Grade: Hands, Feet, and Fun

Held each Sunday except the fourth Sunday of each month from 9 am to 10 am before the 10:15 am service

  • First Sunday – Youth will have their own table/space at our First Sunday Breakfast.
  • Second Sunday – Youth will help package meals in the Parish Hall for Joppa, an nonprofit organization serving the homeless community.
  • Third Sunday – Youth will gather to watch a short video and have a time of discussion.
  • When there is a fifth Sunday in the month, youth will go out to eat breakfast at a nearby restaurant.

Children Living the Word

Held during the 10:15 am worship service on Sunday mornings.

Intended for children who are not yet ready to sit through the worship service (4 years old through 4th grade), CLW is a mini-liturgical lesson combined with showing our children how we become the “hands and feet of Christ” in our everyday lives. Each month our church has a charity be a “2nd offering partner,” and we accept offerings for that charity. We try to incorporate this into CLW by discussing the charity’s mission and purpose and then read a children’s book that helps them understand. At the same time, if possible, we try to also incorporate a piece of the week’s liturgy. Finally, we have our “hands and feet” piece that is related to that Sunday’s partner. We have made casseroles for the Salvation Army, made scarves for the homeless, made cards for shut ins and those hospitalized, painted a painting for the Women at the Well, planted and harvested food in the garden, and more. We do everything with the intention of showing our children what it means to be a kind human.

For more information about Children’s Formation at St. Timothy’s, contact Heather Preston at formation@sttimothysiowa.org.