Children’s Ministry of Taupo Baptist Church
Children are the church of tomorrow and they are also the church of today.  Taupo Baptist Children’s Ministry includes a vibrant Sunday morning programme for children between ages 3 and 10 and includes the following:

Intergenerational Community

1. Participating in the worship service and being together as church family is vital, so children spend the first half hour of the service in the auditorium singing and celebrating.  They then are invited to attend the children’s programme for the remainder of the service.
2. Four times per year we run full intergenerational services in the auditorium, where the aim is to achieve intergenerational worship and connection between the age groups.

Age-specific and structured

1. Our children’s programme intentionally mirrors the main auditorium sermon topics, facilitating family discussions.  Families that talk about faith tend to see their children grow and stay in the faith.
2. Our biblically based programme highlights the gospel, and a lifestyle that reflects new life in Christ with a focus on age and stage-specific discipleship.  Activities are led in groups based on age and/or stage:
   1. 3-4 year old group
   2. 5-7 year old group           (each group is determined by stage rather than by age in practice)
   3. 8-10 year old group
3. Children grow by being stretched, challenged, given leadership responsibilities, engaging in creative expression and having the best expected of them.  They need opportunities for guided discovery, rather than just being told.  A typical Sunday morning children’s programme might include:
   • 30 minutes of guided discovery including talk, video clips, age-specific activities, skits, art, etc.
   • 15 minutes of worship, experiencing God’s presence and learning to pray and connect with God.
   • 15 minutes of play at the end (in another room).

Creative and stimulating

1. Our children’s programme is interesting and stimulating, drawing on children’s innate curiosity and creativity.   Children look forward to attending and it runs through the school holidays as well as through the school terms.
2. Children can worship, hear from God, sense and respond to the leading of the Spirit, experience the gifts of the Spirit, and consider Scripture.  Our children’s team leads within this space in meaningful ways.

A Safe Space

1. Our leadership team takes Health and Safety, Privacy and Child Safety policies seriously.  Children attending our programme will be monitored with vigilance.
2. Our Ministry Leader heads up a team of volunteers.  There will always be 3 police-vetted adults with each Sunday programme. 
3. A sign-in process confirms the time a child enters our programme, after the first bracket of songs, and the sign-out process confirms the time they are collected by their parent(s) or caregiver at the end.

Interim measures

1. From October 2024 until a children’s ministry leader is appointed, we are using a team of passionate, mature, police-vetted, trusted volunteers on a rostered basis. 
2. The interim leader is Petra Corbett.

Other ages

1. We have a creche where babies and very young children can be supervised and where parents can still participate in the main service through speakers and the TV screen.
2. For intermediates and youth please see our youth programme.