Sign me up! How to get more Volunteers for your KC* program.

**KC stands for Kids Church

I have a dream. This is a dream where all the volunteer positions have been filled and Sunday goes perfect. By now, you’re probably rolling your eyes because this dream is just that… a dream. But is there truly a way to turn this dream into a reality? Is there a way to get more volunteers signed up for kid’s church? The solution may be as simple as looking at a pizza: break down the KC into small slices and let the volunteer choose which slice they’d like to take. 

It takes a lot to get a KC program operating smoothly. This is a large task that’s too much for someone volunteering with their own free time. Let’s take a look at what might entail operating one classroom…

Operating ONE KC classroom:
1. The teacher/volunteer looks over the curriculum during the week. (30min-1hr) (1 teacher per classroom, 1-2 volunteers assisting the teacher)
2. Prepare craft, (1-4hrs) (1 person per 20 kids for prep)
3. Buy supplies, (30min-1hr) (1 person)
4. On Sunday, come early to prepare the classroom. (15-30mins) (1 person per class)
5. Go to the church pre-service prayer. (15-20mins)
6. Rush back to class and receive 5-25 kids with joy. (15mins)
7. Teach, keep order, execute a craft, and do a quick snack. (Duration of service 1hr-1½hrs)
8. Safely send the kids back to their parents. (10-20mins)
9. Clean up the classroom. (10-20mins)

That’s a lot of work! Looking at these tasks alone, how would we expect a full-time working family to occasionally volunteer to help when the work looks like 5+ hours of commitment?

Let’s take a look at this from an outside perspective. The pastor is normally not the one leading worship, passing out flyers, leading the hospitality booth, and cleaning up afterwards. Why then do we expect our KC volunteers to do all of this for kid’s church? Something must change. The work must be separated into small slices.

Divide your KC into slices

Are you ready to put in some work to get more volunteer sign ups? Get ready and bust-out your pen…

1. Write down all the tasks in operating your KC program. (i.e., Set up, preparation for crafts, cleaning, teaching, etc.)
2. Write down how many people are needed for each task. (i.e., if you have 5 classrooms, how many teachers/volunteers are needed?)
3. Write down how long it might take to complete each task (i.e., Setup on Sunday might take 15-20 minutes, check-in for kids might take 10 minutes, etc. I recommend rounding up to the nearest 5 minute increment to allow for slight time variations.

Categorize each task

1. Without Kids // Are some of these tasks done without kids? If so, give those tasks a special mark. (i.e., classroom setup, craft preparation, etc.)
2. With Kids // Same as before, give the tasks with kids a different mark than the one used for without kids. (i.e., Check-in time, class time, check-out, etc.)
3. Before, During, After Service // Make three different marks for the items that happen during the various times.
4. Take-home or on-location tasks // Give another mark for the items that can be take-home volunteer work.

Let the volunteer choose where they’d like to serve

Some volunteers only have 15 minutes to help, others will choose to be helpful in a way that doesn’t involve interacting with a kid and all of these are wonderful for the ministry! You’ll need to respect their boundaries in asking for help but you also need to make sure you give options for them to be a part of creating a KC that wins.

Be sure to Download the KC Task and Time Worksheet below.

This worksheet is going to be vital in asking someone to sign up to help in KC. It’s important to keep all of this information organized for your ultimate goal: to get more volunteer sign ups! Keep the list updated, organized and easy for a volunteer to look over and choose from an item on that list. Kids Church is a big responsibility with many moving pieces. No volunteer should have the pressure to shoulder hours of prep work and clean-up when the job can be done as a team. We are the body of Christ and we’re all needed in order to faithfully minister to these precious little sinners that come to church.

I hope this has helped you my friend! Keep on serving with joy and thank you for reading the KC Juice Box.
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Squeeze the SUNday

Written By Hannah Jacob, This I Know Curriculum, Copyright 2022