CentriKid

Follow Up

Youth Development: Scaffolding

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Dr. Crompton started my last collegiate semester by telling me I was the producer of my own education. How much was he being paid for me to teach myself? Of course, what he said was 100% true. Dr. Crompton helped me learn my education was on me. I chose to study, I chose to work hard, I chose to come to class, I chose to learn, or I didn’t.

Dr. Crompton’s posture is what the youth development community calls scaffolding. Educators, for example, will give their students just as much support as he or she needs to equip their students to learn. You teach them the formula, you show them problem solving techniques, and you diagram a sentence with them. Students then may choose to solve the problem or write persuasively.

Just as scaffolding is built around a structure to help construction, so too, youth developers work to support youth in their development. Scaffolding is built, knowing it will not be there forever. Children ministry workers, parents, and the aunts and uncles in our world your goal is to support. The youth we love succeed when we accept our role as their support and not as their producer. Dr. Crompton was right, I needed him to guide me and not to provide me the answer.

As a youth development principle this has to be transferrable to a discussion in your kids ministry. Start with these ideas.

  • Pray for your kids’ growth and spiritual development. Simply said, our God does the growth, you do not. (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)
  • Focus on the process. Instead of saying our kids do not know enough scripture, ask yourself how can I help our kids learn scripture.
  • Foster mentor relationships. Scaffolding works best in one-on-one scenarios. Mentors can understand individual youth and tailor support to the youth’s specific needs.
  • Ask kids what they want. Youth voice is paramount. Scaffolding means you give the kids ownership of their growth, which is impossible without listening.
  • Learn from a scaffolding rockstar. You know someone who great at this. Learn from what they do. Ask this rockstar to help you help your kids.

Special thanks to Dr. Crompton, Odis Luper, Wade Graves, Scotty Voight, Dr. Edwards, Derek Sutt, David and Beth Spindle, and countless others who could fill this page as my scaffolding rockstars.

Communion and Children

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In the Bible, Jesus tells us that as disciples of Christ we are to take communion as a body to be unified under Him through the remembrance of His death on the cross and fact that He will return one day. As children come to know Christ, taking communion is an important part of following the example that Christ has left for us; but how do we show children that this is more than their morning snack of crackers and juice?

When introducing the Lord’s Supper to kids it is important to tell them exactly why we take time out of the service to do this as a church. Having a time set aside in your service is vital to eliminating distractions and helping children understand the importance of Communion.

1. Unify the church under one body
When we take the Lord’s Supper as a church body, it proclaims that we are one body under one leadership, the leadership of Jesus Christ and the words He has given us through the Bible.

2. Remember His death and resurrection
When we take the bread we are remembering that Jesus died on the cross for us. His body was broken, He felt pain, and He died a literal death so that we could forever be free to live with Him. We drink the juice to remember that Christ’s blood poured out for us and that it is only through His blood that we are made clean from our sins. It is only through Christ’s death that we are able to be free from sin, nothing we could ever do could ever save ourselves. Only through His death are we free.

3. To Proclaim that Jesus is coming back
When Jesus died on the Cross, the story was not over. It did not end when the stone was rolled in front of the tomb. Christ rose again three days later and we celebrate the fact that He beat sin and death. Kids need to know that Jesus is alive and wants to be a part of their lives. When taking communion, it is a physical reminder that Christ is alive in us and that He is coming back.

After explaining why we take communion, it is important to look at our roles as the body of Christ. Looking at 1 Corinthians 11:27-29, we see that we must look at our hearts before taking communion. Have kids take a moment to thank Jesus for His sacrifice and for the love He gives us every day.

As followers of Christ, children are to be a part of communion in our churches. As they train up in their faith, they will become more aware of the importance of communion and the impact that God’s amazing grace has on their lives.