Training Parents in Faith Formation Ministry Ideas
Visit The Networks to find contact information for each congregation if interested
in learning more about these ideas.
Ideas from the North Wisconsin Network

  • Trinity Lutheran plans to hold a Family Night once a quarter using Family Time
    resources.   (Trinity - Athens)

  • Read With Me Bible Event for 3-5 year olds and their parents/grandparents/aunts or
    uncles held every other year.  Over 30 Bibles given away and placed in homes the first two
    years! (Trinity – Athens, WI)

  • Hands On Bible Event for 2-4th graders and their parents/grandparents/aunts/ or uncles
    held every other year (Trinity – Athens, WI)

  • Family Advent Wreath Event – 32 families made their own Advent Wreath and received
    information on doing family devotions during Advent (Trinity – Athens, WI)

  • During midweek services in Lent 2010, families received items from Christ’s Passion that
    created a devotional centerpiece.  Over 140 families participated.  This Lent (2011), there
    will be a devotional handout to help families use these items from Christ’s Passion in
    their Lenten preparation. (Trinity -  Athens, WI)

  • Held a Resurrection Egg Event for families during Lent. (Trinity – Athens, WI)

  • Family Christmas Eve Service – Families had the opportunity to present the message
    during the Family Christmas Eve Service. (Trinity –Athens, WI)

  • Trinity equipped families with an Advent Wreath and Advent Devotional Materials.
    Materials were supplied for each family to make their own Advent wreath.  Families also
    received training on how to use the Advent wreath for Advent devotions. (Trinity - Athens)

  • Zion Lutheran has changed their Catechism instruction from child instruction to family
    (mom, dad, and child) instruction with the pastor and creatively learning about the various
    areas of our faith and life with Jesus. (Zion - Colby)

  • A children’s Bible is given to parents to give to their first grade child, also a Teen Bible is
    given to parents to give to their 5th grade child. (Zion – Colby)

  • In October and February, a day for families is planned, offering games with prizes and
    food all for 10 cents. (Zion – Colby)

  • A weekly prayer is published and distributed to families to post on their fridge or
    bathroom mirror.  Advent and Lenten devotion is given to each family to be used with
    their family. (Zion – Colby)


  • Zion Lutheran in rural Wausau is presenting Family Time to Sunday School staff and
    parents. (Zion - Aniwa)

  • We have “tweaked” Sunday morning activities and Catechism by layering the same Bible
    lesson on each activity, including Sunday school, Sunday morning studies, sermons, and
    Confirmation memory work. (Zion – Aniwa)

  • Increased parent involvement in Sunday school. (Zion – Aniwa)

  • Celebrated a “Family Christmas Ornament Blessing” (Zion – Aniwa)


  • Family Campout (Zion – Aniwa)

  • Outdoor ministry project with families working (Zion – Aniwa)

  • In a regular, cyclical manner, we are using Family Time training, deliberate Baptismal
    ministry, and preschool/3rd grade Bible give-away events  (Zion – Aniwa)

  • Faith Lutheran planned a "Do-votional" event after Wednesday services to let families
    experience "Do-votionals" with the Resurrection Eggs (from Family Life) as a way to
    excite them and open them to the possibilities of family time devotions. (Faith - Chippewa
    Falls)

  • Faith held a "Family Activity Time" meeting after a Wednesday service from 7-8pm to
    meet with parents and introduce them to Family Time through a DVD presentation. They
    went through an activity, provided atleast one activity for each family to take home and
    enlisted people to be part of a Family Time Team.  Child care was provided by
    confirmation students.  (Faith - Chippewa Falls)

  • Email weekly “Faith Talk Tips” to Sunday School parents.  These are questions for them
    to ask regarding the week’s Sunday School lesson. (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin
    Network)

  • Hold “Family Night” training sessions sporadically throughout the year. (Trinity –
    Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • Send home “A Devo To Go” after events like our family swimming party, family skating
    party Trunk-n-Treat, etc. (A “Devo to Go” is a Family Time devotion, photocopied out of
    the books Kurt Weaver gave us permission to copy from, stapled to a zip-loc bag
    containing all the items needed to do the devotion.) (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin
    Network)

  • Have “MAD Mondays” (Make a Difference Mondays) once a month where 3rd, 4th, and
    5th graders and their families come to church for a supper of frozen pizza (baked, of
    course!) and Kool-Aid, a devotion and a service project.  Projects have included: raking for
    our shut-ins, putting together “Operation Christmas Child” boxes, decorating Christmas
    cookies for our shut-ins, making cards of encouragement for our service personnel.
    (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • 2009 Rally Day pictures of whole families.  These were put on our Sunday School bulletin
    board in frames made by the families that said, “As for me and my house, we will serve
    the Lord.” (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • 2010 Rally Day – installed the parents along with the Sunday School teachers as “Teachers
    of the Faith.” (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • Parents are required to be more involved in the homework brought home by the
    Confirmation students. (Trinity- Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • 3rd, 4th, and 5th Graders were given the opportunity to read particular accounts in the
    Old Testament, share the stories with their parents and turn in a parent-signed
    acknowledgment for a prize. (Trinity – Ironwood, MI – Wisconsin Network)

  • In February 2010, St. Luke’s chose to do a Family Time Training event.  February is the
    month that they focus on Children’s Ministry.  They provided ongoing devotions for the
    families that participated in the first training.  Then they decided to tweak their summer
    education offerings to families by using the Family Time Training model.  They had three
    trainings on Sundays and weekdays over a two week period.  Fourteen families
    participated.  They created a bulletin board where families could pick up new activities and
    drop off their family activity report sheets throughout the summer.  Each family report
    was put into a drawing in August and the family whose name was drawn won four tickets
    to a local water park.  This gave families incentive to continue to do the Family Time
    devotions weekly so they would have a better chance to win the prize.  We plan to do this
    again in the summer of 2011. (St. Luke’s – Wisconsin Rapids, WI)

  • St. Luke’s uses Faith Stepping Stones based on the FaithInkubators model.  The steps
    they observe are: The Beginner’s Bibles is presented to 3 year olds with a family blessing
    service; a Bible Discovery Class is held four weeks with 3rd grade children and parents
    attending together to learn about their Faith Alive Bible which is presented with a blessing
    on the fourth Sunday; have a blessing and congregation commitment included in the
    service the weekend of First Communion on Reformation Sunday for our 8th graders and
    for the 9th grade Confirmation class on All Saints Sunday; they also do a blanket blessing
    in the worship service for high school graduates followed by a reception. (St. Luke’s –
    Wisconsin Rapids, WI)

  • In 2010, St. Luke’s added a class for parents on Baptism for those who are going to have a
    child Baptized and those who have recently had their child Baptized.  They have also
    looked into the Faith Legacy series and in February of 2011, they had their first three
    week Worship Kit class for parents of 4 year olds which was followed by a blessing service
    in March.  They hope to add a Beginner Bible class for parents of 2 year olds in the spring
    of 2011.  Eventually they will have classes for all the Faith Legacy steps.  (St. Luke’s –
    Wisconsin Rapids, WI)

  • Preaching and teaching parents as primary faith teachers through: Little Tykes and God’s
    Word (2 year old), Let’s Worship Together (3 and 4 year olds), Faith and Service (5 and 6
    year olds), Welcome to God’s Word (3rd Grade). (Immanuel – Wisconsin Rapids, WI)
The Family Friendly Partners Network