Children In Worship - St. John's supports an atmosphere which includes children in the total life of the worship experience.  We encourage and invite our youngsters to serve in a variety of capacities, including music programs and special processionals.  Additionally, children are encouraged to participate in the following opportunities:

Vacation Bible School - Join us for a camping adventure!  Camp E.D.G.E.:  Experience and Discover God Everywhere.  At Camp E.D.G.E., your children join an extreme camp adventure where they will come to know that their strength and might come from God.

Extreme Bible treks will introduce them to Bible characters who have experienced and discovered God in many ways.  Your children will extend their learning through every activity:  creating memories at the Art Apex, singing new music at Music Max, participating in recreational activities at the Rec Plex, and enjoying tasty snacks at the Snack Express.

Registration:  (if possible, please register before the week of Vacation Bible School)

• Drop off or mail in registration form to the church office
• Register at church: there will be a table in the lobby and narthex
• Register at Vacation Bible School ( we prefer if you register ahead of time, so we can be prepared for the number of children)

You will be mailed or given a packet before VBS with a CD of music and games and a t-shirt iron on to make your own t-shirt.

Opportunities for children during the Church School hour:

For all ages and runs from 10:00 to 10:50 a.m. each Sunday

Classes are held September through May

(the first Sunday after Labor Day through the Sunday before Memorial Day weekend).

Weekly classes are provided for children of all ages.  Through a structured and progressive curriculum, children receive instruction beginning with captivating children's Bible stories through a more in-dept Confirmation (9th grade) and high school curriculm.  The following classes are now available:

• Newborn - Age 4 - Nursery Room - 1st floor

       St. John's nursery program offers youngsters an opportunity to spend time with children of the same age and to develop a positive routine of church school attendance.  Children will enjoy a variety of activities, with Bible stories being an emphasis. 

• Age 4 (as of Sept 1st) through Kindergarten - Room 1, 1st floor

     Travel back in time to visit the amazing people of the Bible!  Experience the magnificent creation, sail the flooded waters with Noah, travel with Moses across the wilderness, and fearlessly enter the lion's den with Daniel.  Learn of Jesus' birth, his childhood and adult life, his death, and his resurrection.  All of these stores and more are told and illustrated on a colorful flannel board.  The children will also enjoy a craft time, sing bible songs, and recit the Lord's Prayer weekly.

• Grades 1 & 2 - Room 2, 1st floor

     A two year curriculum is designed to give the children a firm foundation in the Old and New Testaments.  The first year focuses on themes of God's love and care for us and our response of thanks and obedience illustrated by stories from the Old Testament from Adam & Eve through David.  This year also sets the stage for God's promise of salvation, fulfilled in the New Testament.  The second year encompasses a fundamental understanding of the life of Jesus, learning about Jesus' birth and early years of his life, his miracles, ministry, and an overview of his saving work and a brief view of the emerging church.  Each quarter there are memory verse challenges and weekly take-home papers which illustrate and recap the session's Scripture story.

• Grades 3 & 4 - Room 11, 2nd floor

     This two year curriculum picks up where the 1st and 2nd graders left off.  Old Testament stories start with David and continue on through Elijah, Ahab, the fall of Jerusalem, Jonah, and the return from exile.  The second year focuses on Jesus, who as a premiere storyteller, used everyday illustrations (parables) to speak about a particular faith truth, touching people's lives in significant ways.  The class will look at some of the parables just as Jesus' early followers did.  Time will be spent studying how the church began and went about spreading the gospel message in the first century, especially looking at the missionary journeys of Paul which greatly expanded the church geographically.

• Grades 5 & 6 - Rom 14, 2nd floor

     Through an exciting combination of readings, discussions, games, and activities, the 5th & 6th grade class will be focusing on finding and maintaining faith and understanding salvation.  We will also begin a closer look at the first four commandments.

• Grades 7 & 8 - Room 10, 2nd floor

     Warning to 7th & 8th graders....Prepare yourselves to embark on a time warp to the beginning of time - before pizza and shopping malls.  Join this class for an exciting undercover story of the greatest events of all history, recorded in the most fantastic book ever written, the Bible.  Hold on to your Reeboks and Levis because you're going to discover some interesting and unbelievable plots from the Old and New Testament that could read as if they were in Newsweek and the Public Opinion.  So don't sit around scratching your head and wondering what this hype is all about.  Come and join the journey!  You won't want to miss even one action-packed discovery!!

• Grade 9 - Room 12, 2nd floor

     This year of intensified instruction in the Christian faith offers ninth graders an opportunity to grow in their faith, develop a deeper understanding of the Church, prepare themselves to be disciples of Jesus Christ, and become actively involved in the life of St. John's.  The Confirmands will visit St. Mary's Orthodox Church near Fayetteville, Temple Beth El in Harrisburg and experience a day trip to Washington D.C.  They will also work with an adult mentor during the year, and plan Youth Sunday in January.  They will be confirmed in the spring.

• Senior High / Post-Grads - Room 13, 2nd floor

     The curriculm we will be using for the Senior High Youth is from the Dare 2 Share website.  Here are some comments taken from their site to explain what it is about:  energizing and equipping teenagers to know, live, share and own their faith in Jesus, and raising the bar spiritually for teenagers, calling them to make a difference by taking Jesus Christ and the Great Commission seriously.  Dare 2 Share has crafted a powerful strategy that could turn the tide of youth ministry in America and capture their hearts!

• St. John's Camp - Perfect Attendance

     St. John's Church offers ummer camping experiences for youth in kindergarten through grade twelve.  Campers having "perfect" church school attendance the year prior to camp attend summer camp for half price.  To qualify for "perfect" attendance, campers are permitted to miss ONE Sunday per church school quarter. Registration information for each summer camp season is sually available in March.