From September until June, during the 10:30 AM service, the Parish of St. Margaret offers learning programs for children from birth and up, including weekly Breakfast Club and Church School Programs as well as a Nursery .  The new Church School year begins on Sunday, September 12, 2010 at our temporary location at LAMP, 185 Fifth Street with registration and a special “Welcome” program for all ages, including movies, games and refreshments.  It is anticipated that we will be back in St. Margaret’s building at 156 Sixth Street by Thanksgiving weekend and we look forward with excitement to continuing the year in our new facilities.

Each Sunday, the Church School children develop their knowledge about their Christian faith through bible stories, activities, games and crafts, based on the lectionaries of the week that their parents listen to in their church service.  Weekly take-home papers provide an opportunity for children to follow up and discuss the week’s learning with their parents.  There is a dedicated group of teachers who prepare and provide the lessons for the students each week.  Groupings are usually as follows – Nursery (Birth to age 3), Primary (Kindergarten to Grade 2), Junior (Grade 4 to Grade 5) and Breakfast Club (Grade 6 and up with the youth worker)

The Church School children are encouraged to attend every week using a sticker incentive program.  Every child who attends receives a sticker for their chart each week and when they have completed their 5 week chart they are able to choose a special prize from the prize box.  At the end of the year each child’s charts are put into a booklet to take home so they can see how many Sundays they came to Church School.

At Christmastime each year, the Church School children work to present a Christmas pageant for the enjoyment of their family and friends at St. Margaret’s.  This is a much anticipated event and relies on the regular attendance of all the children to make this a success.  This year’s Christmas pageant will be presented on Sunday, December 19, 2010 at the 10:30 AM service.

During Lent the children take part in various Lenten themes to learn about the season of Lent as well as prepare for Easter.  In the past these themes have included titles such as - Backpacking to Faith, Moses in the Desert, Veggietales Lent, Narnia Lenten Journey, Harry Potter Lent, Lent with Dr. Seuss and  the Wizard of Oz Lent.  Watch for exciting news about our upcoming Lenten theme for 2011.

If you would like further information about the programs for children at St. Margaret's or would like to volunteer to help out please contact Jane Oliver or Cara Wigle through the church office.

Here's some fun for the young and young at heart on St. Margaret's web site!

• Colouring Page
• Songs
• David and Goliath
• Jonah and the Fish
• The Wayward Son