Morning and Evening Course

Your name and church

Beth Cosgrove, New Life Church, Congleton

How did you use the Parenting for Faith materials?

As an eight week course, but meeting twice on one day.

Why did you choose to use the sessions like this?

We wanted to give the opportunity for as many people to come as possible, those working during the day and those available in the day. We also wanted couples to be able to both come (one in the morning and one in the evening) without needing a babysitter.

What day and time did you choose and how often?

Wednesdays 9.30- 11.30 am and 7.30-9.30 pm

Did you have to adapt the material to make it work for your sessions? If yes, can you tell us what you did?

We used the material pretty much as is.

What went well?

Everyone found it really accessible and the course gave us practical tips. Everyone valued taking time out to focus on helping their kids connect with God. We loved sharing stories of what worked and didn’t work with our kids as we met each week. Three couples were able to both come along – mum during the day and dad in the evening.

What didn’t go so well?

Nothing!

Would you use the material like this again?

Yes! Everyone is very keen that everyone who didn’t come this time can come. Even though the evening take up was smaller, it was very valuable for people to come who weren’t available during the day. The sessions are brilliant, easy to use and they gave us all simple yet powerful tools to help children navigate life in church, at home, with God.

Do you have any top tips for others who might want to use the sessions like this?

Because we were running both the morning and evening sessions on the same day I had different people to co-lead – one for the morning and one for the evening. This meant that I was able to oversee the whole course and provide continuity across both sessions, while my co-leaders were fresh and not exhausted from running two sessions in a day!