Why
should St. Cecilia's church have a Web page for children and youth?
 Because that’s where the kids are. According to a report commissioned by
the National School Board Foundation (www.nsbf.org),
half of all children ages 9 to 12 in the U.S. are getting online at
least once a week. The numbers jump at age 12, according
to a July 2005 report from Pew Internet Research. As kids become teens,
87 percent are "online regularly," 51 percent daily. A 2001 Department
of Commerce survey of 12,000 5- to 7-year-olds found a third of them
using the Internet, a number which has certainly gone up in recent years
as Internet use has exploded into our culture. To some, these numbers
might seem alarming. But surveys of parents indicate widespread support
for their children using the Internet. And to most young people in the
U.S., using the Internet seems quite normal. In the footsteps of Jesus,
the church is beginning to travel this new highway in order to reach a
new generation.
Young people
expect Web page content to be fresh, interactive and fun. It’s what they
experience elsewhere on the Web. They don’t want a static brochure-like
Web page (who does?). This means that if we’re building a Web page for
our church, fresh announcements and colorful graphics are not enough.
Today’s young people want to share, they want to play, and they want to
discover. A church Web site that facilitates these interests will
attract kids.
Kids love to surf great-looking Web pages, but that won’t necessarily
bring them to our page a second time. They need reminders as much as
they need a reason for being there that will help them "stick" on our
content. Fortunately the Web provides several free tools we can use to
bring kids to our Web site and help build content. They include e-mail
lists, "bookmarking" and message boards.
To remind kids to visit, we created a simple Web form on our page that
asks for an e-mail address. Then it’s simply a matter of broadcasting an
e-mail to our list once or twice a month that includes a link to our
site. And we won’t forget to print our Web address on small giveaways to
hand out.
Bookmarking, also known as "Add a Favorite" on some browsers, creates a
link on the user’s browser that’s easy to find next time he or she is
surfing. But rather than hoping visitors will do it, we created a Web
button for them to click that automatically lists our Web page on the
user’s Favorites list.
We added free games to our Web site. Kids love to play, and it will give
them a reason to return. We can add free games to our site either as a
link to a games page, or by copying a free game code into our Web site.
Creating fresh content is a big commitment, so we let our young people
help provide it. Many young people are "instant messaging" each other
every day. We'll create one of your own and remember to visit theirs often.
It’s a great way to learn what’s going on in their lives, leave messages
and show we care.
We can create this on our site by enabling the free message board
software that may have come with our Web site hosting package. Many
service hosts provide it, or will recommend a package and allow us to
install it. The message board can be password protected, and allow us
and our members to upload pictures, announcements and comments. And many
message board programs have an e-mail list function built right into
them. Whenever someone "registers" to become a member of our message
board, they must provide an e-mail address.
As the administrator of that board, we can broadcast to all members via
e-mail as often as we like. A similar type of service is a "blog"
program which we can install on our site to allow members to leave their
thoughts on a wide variety of subjects. Google "free blog software" to
explore our options.
Another innovative use is to steer our young people to other uplifting,
safe and helpful Web sites after they have visited our pages. There are
thousands of possible links. Google "Christian Web pages," "Christian
teens" or "Christian online games" and explore our options carefully.
Some are quite good, while others are little more than advertisements.
Check the theology of linked content. Include links to local info, such
as theaters and schools. Many young people use the Web to search for
local movie times or get homework help. And we won’t forget the links to
kid-friendly content elsewhere on our church’s site, such as the photos
page.
These are just a few of the ways we can make our site seen, used and
vital to our ministry, and their lives.
Games
will make our kids want to come to our church’s Web site again and
again. Sure, we wish they’d come for our scintillating "Verse of the
Day" and "Latest Calendar" postings, but with kids, games work.
Why do we want games on our church Web pages? Because games help them
"stick around" long enough to see the content we have to offer. The
church isn’t in the entertainment business. Creating links to other
Christian sites isn’t the priority here (and very few can hold a candle
to the widely available game Web sites our kids already visit, such as
DisneyOnline.com) We want them to visit our content, and see our
church site as a place to connect with. Having said that, you can’t go
wrong with a couple of links. The Veggie Tales game page at
bigideafun.com is a good one. The games aren’t going to teach
any great truths, but at least the products related to the site are good
ones.
Coloring Pages
As an easy first step, coloring pages have been added to our
Children’s Ministry Web page (Kids Zone Activity). These coloring pages are especially fun
for the younger kids and can be put on our site in just minutes.
"Free" Games to Bring Kids to Our Site
Of course, coloring pages won’t lure older children, but games will.
Googling "free Christian games" is an exercise in frustration. But
buried in the returns are reasonable sites such as:
http://www.freegamesforyourWebsite.com/icons.html.
We are careful when using anything from a free site, however, since the
reason these sites are free is that they often want to sell you
something. Some companies, such as CleverMedia at
homepagearcade.com/games.php,
offer a one-time fee ($99 and up) for putting their games on our Web
page and do not include ads. For the more advanced Webmaster, an option
is to visit a "coders" Web site such as
http://javascript.internet.com/games/. There we can copy game
javascript that doesn’t come with ads into our own pages.
Sometimes kids just like to goof around. QGoo is a free java game that
lets kids stretch and manipulate any picture you choose. We copied the
code to our Web page from
javaboutique.internet.com/QGoo/. Your browser does all the rest.
We can download more free java games at:
javaboutique.internet.com/games/arcade.html.
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Family Relations with Children
Good family relationships require good communication. When teenagers were asked to write down ways in which their parents could improve communication styles, here is what one group had to say:
- Don't pressure us to achieve all the time. Remind us from time to time to slow down or goof off.
- Praise us if we do OK. Sometimes, it seems like nothing we do is good enough.
- Tell us you love us, even if we act like we don't want to hear it.
- Be honest with us. Sooner or later we will find out the truth. It makes us feel dumb if our parents lied to us.
- Don't yell! Nothing makes us want to fight back more.
- Let us form our own opinions. Chances are, they'll be a lot like yours.
- If we have a major problem, help us to solve it, but don't feel you have to solve it for us. We'll never learn how to solve problems as adults if we aren't given the chance to try on our own.
- Give us the chance to disagree with you without telling us that we're "talking back."
- We love to hear about when we were little, and we like to hear stories about you when you were little, too. These stories don't have to teach a lesson - they can just be fun.
- Never stop talking to us. You are the only ones we can count on for reassurance and love.
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Liturgy of the Word for Children
School age children through 5th
grade are invited to participate in the Liturgy of the Word for
Children during the 9:30 a.m. Mass. The children will be dismissed
to Room 107 where volunteer liturgists will share the Sunday readings and
the Gospel at their educational level. They will return to the
congregation after the Prayers of the Faithful.
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Make the grade with 10 homework helpers
Published: September 27, 2005
By Marc Saltzman
 Today's students are far more likely to turn to the Internet for research and homework help than to visit the library.The problem is, there are so many Web sites in cyberspace that it can be difficult to find what you're looking for—and trust what you're reading. Here are 10 terrific sites that provide homework help, reference guides, and imaginative projects for a range of grades and subjects.
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