Resources

The purpose of this page is to provide resources and information to parents that will assist in relating to, connecting with and parenting our children.

If you’re visiting this site because you met us at the Region 2 Youth Event and would like a bit more information on how our church uses “Leadership Opportunities” as a way of connecting youth to the mission and ministry of our congregation, then please follow the link HERE.

Check out this Parents Guide to Cell Phones put out by the National Institute on Media and the Family. It helps to raise some question and prepares parents for the issues and conversations that will likely arise (if they haven’t already) surrounding their children and their cell phones. The guide discusses Cell Phones and music, movies, texting, sexting, texting while driving, cheating in school and other topics. This is likely most helpful for parents with younger children who haven’t yet confronted all of these issues.

We have kicked off our 2010-2011 year of Youth Ministry here at Hope with our Orientation meeting on Wednesday, August 25. This meeting served as an introduction to youth and families for all families with children in grades 4-12. A separate orientation meeting will be held for 9th grader, their parents and their Confirmation Mentors on Wednesday, September 8 at 6:30pm in the Community Center. Check out these helpful resources: Confirmation Calendar - Sunday School and Primetime Lessons & special Events.

Our church puts out a semi-monthly Newsletter titled the “Grapevine.” Once a month our youth Ministry includes a page insert, including a calendar, some articles and updates about past as well as upcoming events. You can see some of the most recent Youth Pages here with a Calendar for: October 2010, November 2010, December 2010 or February 2011.

As constant consumers of media, our young people are getting a regular dose of messages from an array of perspectives. What’s the message of the latest song? How does that movie depict morality? What are these advertisements trying to get us to “buy into” besides the product. Follow this link for an example of the Center for Parent Youth and Understanding’s “3 (D)” guide to reviewing culture with your kids. By following the steps: Discover, Discern and Decide, this tool gives you a practical way to talk through the message, the values and the implications of the media that your children are already consuming.

This January 2009 article from HarrisInteractive discusses the cultural/social impact of mobile technology on today’s teenage generation. Understanding the importance and role that cell phones play in teens’ lives and why, can help to open communication and understanding.

Here is a nice resource for parents whose youth daughters (or sons) are eagerly reading this Vampire Romance novel. It gives some views of the content of the story and suggestions for conversation. Check it out!

Parents these are minute long MP3 (audio) files that give food for thought on a variety of issues that you should be aware of as you continue to walk with your children through these ever-changing times. You can subscribe to the podcast and download them to your iTunes or just listen occasionally. It’s quick, easy and thought provoking.