In most cases, the neighborhood in which a family lives determines where the children go to school. This is why when parents look for a new house, they also check out the schools. They want their child to have the best education possible, so they try to live in an area with the best schools. Parents have this same mentality when looking for a new church. They want their kids to flourish spiritually, so they look for the church that offers the best kids programs.
Many people agree that children's ministries are the most important ones in church. According to the latest statistics, between 80 and 85 percent of Christians came to know Jesus between the ages of 4 and 14. According to the 2010 census, there are 74.2 million children under the age of 18 living in the United States. That's a lot of children who need to know Jesus!
One way to attract families to your church's children's ministry is to have a great Kids Page on your church website. When doing this, you'll need to communicate to parents that their children will be safe and well taken care of and that you will help their kids love church.
To help get you started, here are some things you’ll want to include on the kids page of your church website.
Core Values of Your Church
Your church website most likely has its core values and beliefs somewhere on the website. Because you want to make this information easy for parents to find, you might also want to include this on your kids page. Along with your core values and beliefs, the kids page should contain your mission statement specific to your children’s ministry.
You'll also want to reiterate how you plan to keep kids safe, as this is of utmost importance for parents in this day and age. Making all this information short and sweet will make things easier for parents who are quickly scanning the page.
Schedule of Events
For parents who want to know what kinds of events their children will be participating in during their involvement with the kids program, you should include a schedule of events.
Include easy buttons that enable parents to add these events to their Google calendar or iCal.
It would also be helpful to divide the calendar by age group, as this will make information easy to digest and allow parents to quickly find age-appropriate events for their children.
Pictures of Your Staff
In a time when parents can never be too careful about who to trust to look after their children, it can be a scary thing to send their child off with a perfect stranger. To help alleviate their fears, and reassure parents that they can trust whomever is spending time with their children, adding professional pictures of your church staff will help.
This way, parents will recognize those in charge of kids programs, and if they feel the need, they can introduce themselves before entrusting their child with them. It's a simple fact that knowing both the names and faces of staff members, helps people feel more comfortable.
Online Forms or Downloadable PDFs for Releases
If you require parents to register their children for kids programs or events, you should make the process as easy as possible. You can do this by adding online signups. If you're going to make them downloadable, make sure they are PDFs and not Word documents.
You will also want to ensure that the forms are easily accessible. If you make them difficult to access, you'll most likely get fewer signups.
Clear Segments Between Age Groups
Whether you are a small or large church, hopefully you have children of all ages who want to be involved in your kids programs. Because kids of different ages won't likely be participating in the same kinds of activities, or learning the same information, you'll need to make clear segments on your kids page between age groups. One way to do this is to break it down into preschool, kids, youth, teen, and special needs.
Resources for Parents
This section should include the answers to FAQs like:
- What does check in look like?
- What are the security procedures?
- When should my child be dedicated or baptized?
- Will there be snacks provided?
Providing the answers to these types of questions will give parents a better understanding of what they can expect when they enroll their child in your kids programs. You will also want to include a way for parents to contact the children's pastor if they have further questions.
Next Steps
Hopefully this information helps you create a great Kids Page on your church website. If you still need help, be sure to check out our ebook, Getting Your Church Website Back on Track.
