Families
Welcome to our Families Page!
We aim to be a church where people of all ages and backgrounds can encounter God and grow in faith. We are well aware of the busyness and pressures of family life, and of the challenges that parents face in bringing up children in today's world. This page tells you about activities for families at our Church, and includes resources for helping you to share faith at home.
You can also download our booklet "Families at St Michael's" by clicking below. It contains information about our church taken from various pages of this website in one place for families to refer to. There are printed copies available in the church.
We aim to be a church where people of all ages and backgrounds can encounter God and grow in faith. We are well aware of the busyness and pressures of family life, and of the challenges that parents face in bringing up children in today's world. This page tells you about activities for families at our Church, and includes resources for helping you to share faith at home.
You can also download our booklet "Families at St Michael's" by clicking below. It contains information about our church taken from various pages of this website in one place for families to refer to. There are printed copies available in the church.
| families_2021_10_web.pdf |
Family Worker
Our Family Worker is Sarah Bishop, who will be well known to those who attend the Family Service, and to parents of children from St Michael's School, where she previously worked as a Teaching Assistant. She is available to support families by listening to problems, giving advice on prayer and faith in the family and signposting people to other sources of help, including Crowthorne Foodbank.
Our Family Worker is Sarah Bishop, who will be well known to those who attend the Family Service, and to parents of children from St Michael's School, where she previously worked as a Teaching Assistant. She is available to support families by listening to problems, giving advice on prayer and faith in the family and signposting people to other sources of help, including Crowthorne Foodbank.
Families and Faith
With all the activities that are on offer for children, and with the pressures of working life as well, it's so easy for faith and church to take a back seat. And yet the Christian faith offers precisely the kind of guidance that we all need to cope with life, and discern the important values and beliefs that make for good relationships, and a fulfilled and meaningful life.
Our Family Service, Kidz Church, Baby and Toddler Time and youth meetings are regular activities that are geared to families and children of different ages. In addition, the Start and Moving On courses, house groups and Sunday sermons (most of which can be read or listened to on the monthly services page) help adults to explore the Christian faith, and grow closer to God. We also encourage people to attend external events run by Care for the Family, Spring Harvest, Big Church Day Out and other organisations.
With all the activities that are on offer for children, and with the pressures of working life as well, it's so easy for faith and church to take a back seat. And yet the Christian faith offers precisely the kind of guidance that we all need to cope with life, and discern the important values and beliefs that make for good relationships, and a fulfilled and meaningful life.
Our Family Service, Kidz Church, Baby and Toddler Time and youth meetings are regular activities that are geared to families and children of different ages. In addition, the Start and Moving On courses, house groups and Sunday sermons (most of which can be read or listened to on the monthly services page) help adults to explore the Christian faith, and grow closer to God. We also encourage people to attend external events run by Care for the Family, Spring Harvest, Big Church Day Out and other organisations.
Helpful Resources To Use At Home
Roots on the Web - teaching material designed for a Sunday School group, can be used at home.
Kitchen Table Project - advice on sharing faith at home. Includes an article on talking to your children about Coronavirus. This is part of Care for the Family, which has advice, runs courses and provides resources for families.
Got kids aged 8-11 who like computer games? Why not try Guardians of Ancora, a free game provided by Scripture Union.
World Vision has great resources for home learning for Early years up to age 11
Activities and games with free school closure packs to downloads and Daily child friendly news reports.
Diddy Disciples has worship and storytelling resources for babies, toddlers and young children. Free audio to lead you in short simple sustainable times of prayer
Illustrated Ministry create some wonderful resources for families to use at home. They have kindly provided free faith resources to download during the Coronavirus Epidemic.
Roots on the Web - teaching material designed for a Sunday School group, can be used at home.
Kitchen Table Project - advice on sharing faith at home. Includes an article on talking to your children about Coronavirus. This is part of Care for the Family, which has advice, runs courses and provides resources for families.
Got kids aged 8-11 who like computer games? Why not try Guardians of Ancora, a free game provided by Scripture Union.
World Vision has great resources for home learning for Early years up to age 11
Activities and games with free school closure packs to downloads and Daily child friendly news reports.
Diddy Disciples has worship and storytelling resources for babies, toddlers and young children. Free audio to lead you in short simple sustainable times of prayer
Illustrated Ministry create some wonderful resources for families to use at home. They have kindly provided free faith resources to download during the Coronavirus Epidemic.
Prayer At Home
Families can pray together more often than just before dinner, and it can be a life-changing and transformative experience that not only brings family members closer to God, but closer to one another!
Prayer Cube is a simple ministry craft idea that will help your children have fun whilst learning to pray. Watch the video for further instructions. Alternatively, you can just view and print out a basic paper template and create your own individual family prayers together or use the downloaded basic children's prayers.
Here are some prayers for children and families in either pdf format or doc format.
Prayer Cube is a simple ministry craft idea that will help your children have fun whilst learning to pray. Watch the video for further instructions. Alternatively, you can just view and print out a basic paper template and create your own individual family prayers together or use the downloaded basic children's prayers.
Here are some prayers for children and families in either pdf format or doc format.
How To Maintain Happy Family Relationships In Difficult Circumstances
The lockdown due to Coronavirus has brought a host of new pressures and challenges to our everyday life. You may have experienced increased stress while juggling home schooling and working from home. Or perhaps you have been living with extended family for the first time, or have moved back to the home you grew up in to care for older relatives. It may take some time for family relationships to return to "normal".
But even in difficult circumstances, there are things we can all do to help us get along with one another, maintain strong relationships and to try to avoid conflict and frustrations. Here are a few tips:
Be patient and avoid criticism and contempt and try to be patient and generous in your communication.
Ask what each other’s fears and worries are and sit down with whoever you are with in your home and ask them what their specific fears and worries are. Come up with plans to support each other.
Think about how others are feeling as others may also be feeling overwhelmed and disappointed in some way. Children will have missed their friends and aspects of school they loved, and they may still be experiencing a lot of uncertainty and unfamiliarity, even after return to school.
Find out each other’s triggers and ask your household what their ‘tipping point’ may be. For one person is might be that they need others to help with chores around the house.
Maintain as much routine and normality as possible with defined morning routines, meal times, a specific end point to the working day, a calming bedtime.
If working from home, keep work as separate as possible with a set area in which to work that you walk away from at the end of the day. If two or more of you are working from home, discuss how you can share childcare, chores or provide space for confidentiality. Take breaks during the day.
Be forgiving of yourself and others by being realistic about what to expect from yourself. The situation we find ourselves in is unprecedented. There is no right or wrong way to be. Work out the new normal.
You cannot expect to be a perfect parent, teacher, partner or worker. You are not a superhero, so be kind to yourself and others.
But even in difficult circumstances, there are things we can all do to help us get along with one another, maintain strong relationships and to try to avoid conflict and frustrations. Here are a few tips:
Be patient and avoid criticism and contempt and try to be patient and generous in your communication.
Ask what each other’s fears and worries are and sit down with whoever you are with in your home and ask them what their specific fears and worries are. Come up with plans to support each other.
Think about how others are feeling as others may also be feeling overwhelmed and disappointed in some way. Children will have missed their friends and aspects of school they loved, and they may still be experiencing a lot of uncertainty and unfamiliarity, even after return to school.
Find out each other’s triggers and ask your household what their ‘tipping point’ may be. For one person is might be that they need others to help with chores around the house.
Maintain as much routine and normality as possible with defined morning routines, meal times, a specific end point to the working day, a calming bedtime.
If working from home, keep work as separate as possible with a set area in which to work that you walk away from at the end of the day. If two or more of you are working from home, discuss how you can share childcare, chores or provide space for confidentiality. Take breaks during the day.
Be forgiving of yourself and others by being realistic about what to expect from yourself. The situation we find ourselves in is unprecedented. There is no right or wrong way to be. Work out the new normal.
You cannot expect to be a perfect parent, teacher, partner or worker. You are not a superhero, so be kind to yourself and others.
Talking To Your Child About Online Safety
Like it or not, we live in a digital age, and today’s children and teens have never known a world without smartphones, tablets, online gaming and social media. Children and young people are naturally inquisitive, learn quickly and are easily distracted by content that is designed to keep their attention. They are also inclined to be trusting, lack enough knowledge to distinguish truth from deception, and are willing to ignore potential risks.
It can be difficult to know how to start talking to your child about what they’re actually doing online or who they might be speaking to. But talking regularly, like you would usually about their day at school, will help your child feel relaxed and mean that when they do have any worries, they’re more likely to come and speak to you. See this NSPCC resource.
Care for the Family have lots of great practical advice and Katharine Hill has a book "Left To Their Own Devices?" which would help you with confident parenting in a world of screens. There is a copy available to borrow at the back of the church. Here is her video presentation on this subject in two halves: Left To Their Own Devices Part 1 and Left To Their Own Devices Part 2
Like it or not, we live in a digital age, and today’s children and teens have never known a world without smartphones, tablets, online gaming and social media. Children and young people are naturally inquisitive, learn quickly and are easily distracted by content that is designed to keep their attention. They are also inclined to be trusting, lack enough knowledge to distinguish truth from deception, and are willing to ignore potential risks.
It can be difficult to know how to start talking to your child about what they’re actually doing online or who they might be speaking to. But talking regularly, like you would usually about their day at school, will help your child feel relaxed and mean that when they do have any worries, they’re more likely to come and speak to you. See this NSPCC resource.
Care for the Family have lots of great practical advice and Katharine Hill has a book "Left To Their Own Devices?" which would help you with confident parenting in a world of screens. There is a copy available to borrow at the back of the church. Here is her video presentation on this subject in two halves: Left To Their Own Devices Part 1 and Left To Their Own Devices Part 2