Communicating with parents in children’s ministry is always a challenge, but it is important. Here’s a few ideas to make communicating with parents easier.
Weekly Pages: Send home a weekly page or notice letting parents know what you’re teaching their children. Some parents will throw it away which is discouraging, but for parents who want to do devotions with their children, it will help them get on the same page with what their children are learning in church.
Monthly Newsletter: Send home a monthly newsletter to the parents letting them know about upcoming events in children’s ministry. In the newsletter, you can also include birthdays, bios of your children’s ministry teams, and memory verses for the coming month.
Visit Homes: Visitation is a great way to get to know parents and students. Why not set up a schedule of visitations so that you’ve visited every student’s home at least once a year? If you have a large children’s ministry, you can share the responsibility of visiting with your team.
Phone Calls: Phone calls are not as good as visitations but are still a great way to get to know parents. Make a list of what you’d like to discuss during the calls, and ask parents if they have any questions or concerns.
Open House: Send invitations out to parents inviting them to visit children’s church for an open house. This way they can see a little more of what your doing with their children.
Parent Meetings: It’s good to have parent meetings about once a quarter so you can share with them what’s coming up. It’s also a good time to get their ideas and feedback.
Parent Handbook: Make up a handbook to give to new parents to inform them a little more about the children’s ministry. In the handbook, you can include policies, your qualifications, vision, and your goals for the spiritual developement of their children.
I like the idea of visiting each child at least once per year. Any idea’s on what to do while visiting with the children?