Hey parents, grandparents, guardians, youth and kids!

Welcome to St. Mark’s Kid’s Church! 

We have different programming for both children and youth!

Curious about what who we are and what we do? Scroll on through to find out. 

If you have any questions, need to let Kid’s Church know something, or your kid has an accommodation or unique need requirement to attend – please email: SMUC.kidschurch@gmail.com

Everyone is welcome here, always. 

Our Kid’s Church is led by Moira Robertson, our Children and Youth Program Leader. Moira is a Child and Youth worker and a current MSc student doing research about autism, mental health and disability. She is also a strong advocate for children and youth with neurodevelopmental disorders. Due to this, she is well versed in creative methods to meet the needs of each child and youth as she and the Kid’s Church team help each child or youth grow in their faith.

Moira is not alone! Our Kid’s Church is fully supported by an amazing group of adult volunteers; Erin, Steve, Tori, Lianne and Megan.

Every Sunday during the regular service upstairs, the kids will be invited downstairs to learn about that weeks topic or bible story.

A typical Sunday in Kid’s Church

1. It starts with Rev. Dr. Steven Davis inviting the kids in the early part of the service to participate in a section of the service. This is not mandatory for children or youth to participate in. Just a fun way to include them in the service before heading downstairs.
2. Then a Kid’s Church adult or child/ youth will light our lantern and head downstairs.
3. When downstairs, Moira will introduce the story or topic of the week and lead a discussion surrounding it. This is a relaxed environment where children and youth are free to express their opinions and thoughts without judgment. Children and youth are invited to join however they feel comfortable. This means that everyone is welcome to move around as much as they want, share openly and honestly, and disagree!
4. After the discussion there will then be an activity, craft, game etc. connected to the topic in some way.
5. At the end of Kid’s Church children and youth are welcome to free time, this could be more art, games, learning to play the ukulele or just chatting about life – depending on what each person or the group wishes to do.

Upcoming Kids Church

Kids Church Lessons

Date	Topic
October 12	The story of Baby Moses
October 19	The story of Exodus
October 26	Saul and the Witch
November 2	Fall of Jericho
November 9	Daniel and The Lions Den
November 16	David and Goliath
November 23
November 30	Advent!

Our youth program is co-created with the youth themselves. These evenings give them space, opportunity and guidance to explore their faith in a way tailored specifically to them. Youth meet together with the Kid’s Church team to play games, create art, discuss our faith and life, and generally provide a safe space for youth to hang out and have fun.

Second Tuesday of each month, 6-9 pm.

St. Mark’s Kids’ Church puts on occasional events for our children and youth. These are one-time events that occur outside of regular programming. Follow our Facebook page to keep up to date on what is going on!

St. Mark’s Kid’s Church puts on a week-long summer camp during the summer break! Our theme for summer 2025 was Space! We did science experiments, created art, played lots of fun games and learned about some stories from the bible and about our own personal relationship with God. Follow our Facebook or Instagram for updates for 2026!

Past Year’s Kid’s Church

Curious what it looks like at Kids Church? Check out what we have done in the past!

Past year’s topics covered: Advent, History of the Bible, Friendship, Anxiety, Bullying and Jealousy!

Curious about what we do? Take a scroll down through our past Kid’s Church Lessons! 

During the service upstairs each Sunday Kid’s Church participants will head downstairs to learn and have fun doing it! Below are examples of what we would do each week. You can come and join or follow along on the website where each weeks Bible verse we focus on and the activity we do will be uploaded!

Kids Church Lesson – Celebrations in the Church

Baptism

Peter Replied, “each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sings. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

– Acts 2: 38

The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit and we all share the same Spirit.

– 1 Corinthians 12: 12-14

This week we started off by playing some “birthday party” games to start off our celebrations lessons with a recognizable celebration. Then we sat down and discussed baptism and what it looks like in the United Church.

Below are some of the pieces we discussed.

What does The Bible say about baptism?

Well in the gospels, we see baptism as a public repentance of sin by immersion in a source of water such as the river Jordan. Jesus himself is baptized by the prophet John the Baptist. Although John suggests that it should be the other way around. Jesus then suggests that it should be the way it was in order for them to “fulfill all righteousness”. This could mean that Jesus saw it as a public demonstration that he was living in a right relationship with God. At Pentecost, with the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus gathered after his death and resurrection, Peter preaches a sermon, and links the practice of baptism with the name of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul, in the second passage see baptism as a sign of the unity of all Christians, listing the contrasting social divisions that the Corinthians recognized (Jew/Greek, slave/free, and he could have added men/women as he does elsewhere) all baptized in one body (the Church) and all sustained by one Spirit.

So how does the United Church view baptism?

For us, baptism represents that joining to the body of Christ. It is normally a decision that is made on behalf of a child by their parents, and a pledge by the parents and the church congregation that they will support the child’s faith journey and spiritual growth. Later, as the child approaches adulthood, they will have a chance to confirm that decision as their own.

But if it is just a pledge why does the minister put water on the baby?

The early church associated Jesus’s death and resurrection with the immersion and rising out of the water that happened with baptism. This is where that idea evolved from.

Confirmation

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. I’ve promised it once, and I’ll promise it again: I will obey your righteous regulations.

– Psalm 119 : 105-106

But I am not ashamed of it, for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return. Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me – a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.

– 2 Timothy 1: 12-14

This week we talked about what it means to follow Jesus and what that looked like to the Kid’s Church participants. We then discussed what confirmation looks like in the United Church. Lastly, we created “lamps” while discussing what it meant to have God’s word “guide us”.

Below are some of what we discussed.

What does the Bible say about Confirmation?

In the bible, the word(s) translated as “confirmed” often has a legal sense.  People would swear a vow (make a promise to do something that bound them to do it) and then confirm that vow to publicly demonstrate their steadfast intent to keep their promise.  In the verses from Psalm 119, the writer is stating their sworn obligation to follow God’s pathway for right living.  In the letter from Paul to Timothy, the verse (starting “But I am not ashamed”) is Paul’s advice to a younger friend and minister Timothy to hold fast to his faith in Jesus as Paul does.

But what is Confirmation?

In the process of confirmation, young people reflect on and explore their faith journey before deciding to confirm the decision made by their parents on their behalf when they were baptized as their own decision as well.  They then stand up in public before the entire church and confirm a series of promises about how they intend to live their lives with respect to God and the church.

But why is there Baptism and Confirmation?

This is because when you were a baby the decision was made for you to enter the church and follow God’s word. Now that you are getting older it is your choice to do so. That is why confirmation classes are a part of confirmation in the church. It allows young people to make an educated choice about their membership.

How to make the Paper Lamp Craft

What you will need:

• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue
• Marker (optional)

Directions:

1. Cut off one edge of a piece of paper, works best as the long side.
2. Fold the remaining piece in half.
3. Cut slits in the folded paper, through the fold, leaving a couple of centimeters of space before the edge.
4. Unfold the piece of paper.
5. Put glue on one edge vertical to the slits.
6. Roll the paper into a tube and stick the glued part down to hold it.
7. Glue the strip you cut earlier on as a handle.
8. Write on your lantern what it means to you to follow God’s word as a reminder. Such as “helping other people when I can,” “being kind and including everyone”.

Communion

For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people – an agreement confirmed with my blood Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

– 1 Corinthians 11: 23-26

This week we talked about what communion is. We discussed how it can be a way to bring together all members of the church despite our differences and divisions.

Below are some of what we discussed.

What does the Bible say about communion?

In the Bible there are some verses that Paul has in which he talks about the divisions in the church. People in the church at Corinth are losing focus on the deeper meaning of communion and behaving in ways that don’t reflect the significance of what Jesus has done for them or the unity that should be seen in the body of Christ, with it’s many different parts in one body. together

What is communion then?

The passage we talked about is a familiar passage that gets read at every communion service. During communion, we symbolically share a meal together and remember what Jesus did for us. Using the same metaphors that Jesus himself used at the last supper. It is a way to connect with each other in the church, not something that is done to show that we are holy and that we are right (and other people are wrong).

Other Celebrations Covered: Marriage and Funerals

Kids Church Lesson – Creation

Day One – Let There be Light

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and the darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 
Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day" and the darkness "night." 
And the evening passed and morning came, marking the first day. 
- Genesis 1: 1-5

This week we made flashlight crafts. Here are some great examples from the participants of Kids Church!

Day Five – Let there be Fish, Insects, Birds and Sea Monsters

Then God said, “Let the waters swarm with fish and other life. Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind.” So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that scurries and swarms in the water, and every sort of bird – each producing offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God blessed them, saying “Be fruitful and multiply. Let the fish fill the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the fifth day.

– Genesis 1: 20 – 23

This week we made “Aquariums” to talk about how we can take care of God’s creation!

How to make “Aquariums”:

You will need:

• A jar or container with a tight lid
• Hot water (but for little ones cold water still works, Hot just works better)
• A tube of glitter glue
• Lots of Glitter
• Tape (optional)
• Aquarium plants and rocks (optional)
• Hot glue (optional)

Directions

1. Make sure your container is clear and water tight or you might spill it later.
2. If you have aquarium plants or rocks glue them down with hot glue to the dry jar. This may be tricky and you might need help of an adult.
3. Squeeze entire tube of glitter glue into the jar.
4. Pour in hot water about a 1/4 to a 1/3 of the way full.
5. Dump in the glitter, there is not really too much that you can dump in here but the ideal amount is the height of your finger nail. But more or less it will still look cool!
6. Carefully fill the rest of the jar up to the top with water.
7. Put that lid on as tight as you can. Gluing it down with hot glue or using duct tape to close it will help avoid accidents.
8. Shake the container up well to mix in the glitter.
9. Congratulations you now have an “aquarium”!

Day Six – Let there be Animals and Humankind

Then God said, “Let the earth produce every sort of animal, each producing offspring of the same kind – livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground and wild animals. And that is what happened. God made all sort s of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And god saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.” Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground – everything that has life.” And that is what happened. Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good! And evening passed and morning came, marking the sixth day.

– Genesis 1: 24-31

This week we made different sugar and gingerbread cookies. We worked hard on each individual cookie making it unique and special in it’s own way. There were no mistakes made (even if we got sprinkles everywhere) – just like when God created each one of us to be unique and special in our own way.

I used my family recipe pre-measured on the phone with my mom. I did however discover, you can get exactly the right amount of dry ingredients for cookies for only six dollars at Bulk Barn! I brought in the pre-measured ingredients and the Kid’s church participants did the rest and then shared them with their family and the rest of St. Marks!

Day Seven – Rest and Appreciate Creation

So the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was completed. On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from his work of creation. This is the account of the creation of the heavens and the earth.

– Genesis 2: 1-4

This week we went on a nature walk outside. We collected leaves, walnuts, sticks ext. and went back inside and created some art from them. We took our time to rest and appreciate the beauty of creation around us and celebrated it through art.

Looking for more to do! Check out this Creation Activity pack!