Awanas

[eaglesprings]

Has anyone here had any kids involved in an AWANA program? How do/did they like it, and what details can you tell me about the program?

[FamilyGal]

We loved it. The twins were involved from Sparks to Cubbies to Varsity(or something like that). They were in it up until the 5th grade. My oldest daughter was in it from jr high until early high school.

It is a big commitment for the parents because it is all about memory verses. Every week, your child(ren) have verses to memorize and that is how they advance. As the child(ren) get older, the verses get longer. By the time my oldest was in high school, she was memorizing BOOKS. In addition to memory verses, they do physical games for part of the hour and a half. They have AWANA Olympics once a year for the kids to compete in and they have a blast.

It is an AWESOME program though and something I highly recommend. Oak Ridge Baptist near you has a great program that has been established for years.

I actually have a vest or two I think left if you decide to do it.

[FamilyGal]

Oh, and it is cheap to participate in. :)

[eaglesprings]

Yikes! Parent commitment? (LOL! Where are those rolling smilee thingees!)

We are really super interested in Oak Ridge Baptist again. The kids just finished up a week at a basketball camp. They had a great time! (And, WE had a great time watching them!) Oldest will go to another activity there tonight. I can't say enough good about THE PEOPLE at this church! They are friendly and awesome! I'm really hoping DH and I will decide we can get into a Baptist church again, as far as the services go. We already love it there, otherwise. We've just got to get out of our "mold" and venture out a little.

I'm not sure if I want to add AWANA study to the school year, but thanks for your input! I'll think about it....maybe see if the kids want to do it. If it is too much, they can stop. I don't want to push them, but I don't want to underestimate them, either. (How does that sound for a back off from the "parent commitment" thingee? LOL!)

[FamilyGal]

I love ORBC as well. We were attending it while they were meeting at Vogel. We just weren't ready to get back into a church that was starting all over again. And, I really liked the previous Pastor and knew he was leaving. Sometimes I really wish we did go there because it is SO close and now their building is done.

The people there ARE super nice. We have several friends that attend there. If you can get your husband interested, I think you will be very happy and did I mention CLOSE? LOL

AWANAS is a big commitment. Your two younger girls would have to have YOU sitting there going over their memory verses each week and it would get more and more as they went on. I don't remember which grade they are going into, but if I am correct it is 1st. First grade was surprisingly busier than I would have thought with my youngest. The work wasn't hard, but there was homework EVERY night. Busy work if you ask me, but it still had to be done and you will have two having to do it. I found a lot of times with my twins, we were cramming memory verses in the night before. (I know, bad mom...)

They do have a lot of fun. Try it and like you said, if it is too much, you can quit. First grade will only have them learning a few verses per week. Your oldest will have more, but she can do it on her own. I always referred to AWANAS as Christian scouts. Although you don't have camping or homework. Hmmm, not so much like scouts, lol...

Have you thought about Brownies for your girls?

[eaglesprings]

Hmmmm..... Family, the more you talk about it, the more I wonder if I even want them to get started. LOL! I'd do the same thing, cramming in lessons the night before, or worse....they wouldn't learn them at all! It's a struggle enough just to get them to do homework! I do think Bible lessons are important, though. And, I was never good at memorizing, so if the girls could, I'd support that. Still, I'm not sure I want them bringing homework home from church? Oldest is reading her Bible, but she is doing it because she wants to, not because she has to.

We may give it a try, though. They'll be in with kids from their school (like in BB camp) and might enjoy it.

I would love for the girls to get involved in Girl Scouts and Brownies! I was as a kid! But, husband has heard so much crap on the news, and he is against it. Geesh! Kids today have to deal with so many parent hangups!

[FamilyGal]

I must have missed this last post of yours. You rarely hear anything bad about GIRL Scouts since there are primarily women leaders. I haven't seen one male as a leader in the 14 years I have been involved in it. (I am currently NOT involved in Girl Scouts, but dd is wanting to start back up this fall.)

There are, at times, a dad at an event, but RARELY in leadership. And your kids are never alone with the leader or other dads. (Not to say a woman can't abuse a child. It just isn't as common.)

The more active you are with the troop, the safer they will be anyway.

All leaders have background checks run on them and they do actually check the references. (If that helps him feel better.)

[eaglesprings]

Hi, Family Gal: It isn't for safety reasons he's concerned about Scouting. He's worried about "moral" lessons they may learn. He's heard of Planned Parenthood advertising at Girl Scout functions and such as that.

Frankly, I think he is being silly. Girl Scouts aren't supposed to be "church." I think it would be wonderful for the girls to learn many of the things the Scouts teach. First aid, sewing, cooking, camping, just a few that come to mind right now. But, oh, well. It's not worth the conflict.

I guess I've decided to not do Awanas. They meet on Wednesday night at this particular church. I guess I'm either lazy or disorganized, but I really don't want a night time, school year activity. Mid-week activities really cut into the "supper/bath/homework/bed" routine. Something right after school would not be too bad, but anything after 6:00, I'd just as soon avoid on school nights. Pathetic, huh? LOL!

[FamilyGal]

Ah. I remember reading about all of that.

To be honest, none of that comes up in Girl Scouts. What the top dogs in an organization support rarely gets down to the individual troops. Neither of my daughters could tell you that Girl Scouts supports Planned Parenthood. Well, I guess my oldest one could NOW, but not while she was in scouts.

They learn the morals of the leaders and I find that "usually" when a mom takes the time to volunteer and puts in the hours to lead a troop, she is normally a good person (and I really don't care what religion as long as she is not pushing her views on the girls). We taught the girls good manners, leadership, community responsibility, etc.... We never pushed our religious values on ANY of them. We just taught old-fashioned kindess, manners, helping others and had FUN doing it. The topic of who the main organization supported NEVER came up.

[eaglesprings]

I know, Family Gal, and I don't think it is worth keeping the girls out of an organization because of what we hear on the news. And, the news rarely has "the whole story."

But, like anyone else, I've got to choose my battles. Whether the girls can be in Scouts is really not something I want to spend a lot of time pursuing with husband. It's kind of sad, though. I have so many fond memories of Scouts!

[FamilyGal]

Whether the girls can be in Scouts is really not something I want to spend a lot of time pursuing with husband.

I agree. If it is that important to your husband, it is important to honor that.

[cgwoolf]

Back to orig topic for a second, I'd like to ask a dumb question about the Bible memory thing. While the kids are in Awanas, do they learn/study the scripture to capture its meaning so that when they finish in several years, they have a thorough knowledge of Bible content? Or do they just memorize verses to recite them?

I was just wondering because memorizing by rote can and is easily done without having any content knowledge...that's how one can learn a song in a foreign language without ever knowing what the words mean. It would seem like a useless exercise if memorization only was what they did without actual Bible study. Just MHO of course.

[eaglesprings]

Good question. Maybe Family Gal knows the answer.

I kind of have the same theory about Bible verse memorization. One can memorize verses to recite, then not remember the context of the rest of the chapter. However, I do have a few Bible verses that I consider "favorites" and have to go look them up every time! I wish I knew them "by heart." But, I really dislike memorization. Always have.

[FamilyGal]

Personally, I feel it is just for memorization. But, I'm sure the "intent" is for the children to let it soak into their hearts and be able to pull the scripture out at a time of need. Whether it be for themselves or for another person at that time.

I am always in awe of people that know so much scripture by heart. In my experience, the older people that KNOW the scripture, actually know it and use it in the context when the situation arises. I don't think they memorized it as a young child or even a teen and are still able to quote it. I think that the people that know scripture now study it on a consistant basis.

Not that memorizing it as a child isn't a good start, but I think in a lot of instances, it is just for the need at the time to complete a section.

There will always be exceptions and there will be the child that will not only remember the scripture, but actually know what it means and be able to use it later. I think they are the minority though.

On another note, I think memorization is great for the brain and keeps it sharp. I use to have an awesome memory. I can still tell you account numbers, etc.. from the late 80's that I had. But, I can't remember a phone number today from the time information gives it to me, until I can dial it. It is sad and I need to sharpen my skills with practice again.

[eaglesprings]

Family Gal: I think that kids might not know and understand what they are learning by memorization, but what we sometimes fail to realize is that when we are adults, those things can be quite comforting. I'm leery of putting my kids on a "schedule" to memorize stuff. But, that memorization can come over time, and really be a great asset when they are older.

For example: I was raised in a church that every Sunday recited The Apostle's Creed and The Lord's Prayer, up until my freshman year of high school, when I started going to a different church. (That's a whole 'nuther story!) I could not tell you at what point I actually "knew" the Creed or the Lord's Prayer, and I'm fairly sure at the time I was learning them, they really didn't mean anything to me. But, now they do! They keep me focused when I tend to lose focus. I'm very glad that, over time, I learned those things. They weren't just memorized, but I recited them enough as a child that I think they really are "written on my heart."

I might not be making much sense! LOL!

Memorization is not a bad thing, even if kiddos don't fully understand the message at the time. But, I just hate trying to memorize something! Especially within a time frame. I guess, ultimately, that is why I'm not pushing Awanas too much. (That, and the fact this is a week night meeting during the school year).

I'm not cutting down Awanas by saying this. I wouldn't want anybody to think I disapprove of the program. But, for now, I'm just thrilled that oldest is actually reading her Bible! Of her own choosing!

[FamilyGal]

Not to mention children have an immense capacity to memorize. I do agree that later on down the road those scriptures will come up and then the child/adult will know what they mean. But, for now, you have to pick your battles as to whether or not you want to spend that much time having them memorize something.

The program is awesome! It is intense for a week night though. We actually went to the Crossroads one for awhile on Sunday afternoon. I loved that because we could catch up on Saturday and they were not out late on a school night. (We were home by 6:30.)

TimberLakes Baptist Church has the best AWANAS program in the area and are one of the VERY few that go all the way through high school. Most programs end around middle school.