Retreat content that doesn’t treat pre-teens like kids? Messages that engage them from start to finish? No one saying shhhh from stage? Small groups that anyone can facilitate, where they will actually talk? And flying pigs? That’s impossible. Or, at least, you’d think it was.
A few years ago we set out to totally redesign our Juniors Retreats at SpringHill Camps. What we had found, was that the old way of speaking to 4th, 5th and 6th graders, didn’t seem to be working. What they seemed to be asking for was a retreat that looked and felt more like our Winter Teen Retreats (for middle- and high-school students).
But we knew the developmental stage of this age group demanded a slightly different approach. So what we rolled out was a sort of hybrid. We engaged with regional touring worship bands that knew how to lead pre-teens (there aren’t many of them, by the way) and who knew how to let loose and have fun on stage. And we recruited a new crop of speakers, people who were just emerging in the retreats world who we knew could speak to these in-betweeners and bring the truth of the Scriptures to life in a way that engaged their developing minds.
In two years, we’ve made incredible leaps forward. Last season, we saw 80% of students make a first-time or renewed commitment to Christ. It’s just a measurement, but it was huge. That percentage was way higher than our Winter Teen Retreats, and more in line with our week-long summer camp programs. Clearly something was working.
Which brings us to this season: three weekends for pre-teens in November. And here are the four big leaps we’ve taken this year that are going to blow your mind.
- We’ve engaged with our speaking team—experts and practitioners in pre-teen ministry in real live churches—earlier than ever to help us craft the content we’ll be presenting from stage, in the interactive Prayer Labyrinth, and in small group times. Sean Sweet, founder of the Pre-teen Ministry Leaders’ Conference and a member of the four-five-six network, understands how to speak to these students like no one I’ve ever met. And Michael Bouchard, k-kids pastor at Kensington Church in Troy, MI, is one of the most creative writers and stage programmers I’ve ever met. Michael’s routinely on stage in front of one of the largest ministries to this age group in the Midwest.
- We’ve written a fun, funny, and compelling story which will come to life on stage and paint, in broad strokes, the backdrop for our speakers’ teaching times. The story line features a main character who kids will relate to—he’s their age—and root for. It typifies the biblical narrative of Saul, the Pharisee of Pharisees, and his transformation into Paul, leader of the early church. The story in each session addresses an impossibility that pre-teens face: that God exists, that God could be mad at me, that God could accept and love me after everything I’ve done, and that God can use me for His purposes (right now).
- We’ve found an innovative way to bridge the gap from the story to the message. I don’t want to give it all away, but as we’ve experimented with different ways to have the speaker interact with the characters in each session, I think this is the best. It makes use of a key object or prop, which drove the story line during that session. Rather than stepping into the story, the speaker picks up that defining item and builds an interactive lesson around it, not just telling the students what it means, but leading the pre-teens in an interaction around it. For instance, our first session centers around a paper airplane which the main character carefully folds and flies over the neighbor’s fence. Our speaker will pick up this unique airplane and deconstruct it, then have each student make one of their own. “The first fold,” he will say, “is like your fears. What are you afraid of?” You’d think chaos would result, 600 kids making paper airplanes… but what we’ve found is quite the opposite: when our speaker is doing something with his hands, the kids are more engaged; and when the kids are doing the same thing, the level of engagement only increases.
- Finally, we’ve made use of the first three to front-load students for a small group they can’t wait to share in. You know, there’s nothing worse than a small group of 9-year-old boys who don’t want to talk and a volunteer small group leader who doesn’t know what to say. So, now as the kids gather around in their small group, the leader doesn’t take out a list of 7 awkward questions, instead, he takes out his paper airplane. “You know what I’m afraid of?” he asks. “I’m afraid I’m not always going to have a job that will pay all my bills.” It’s genuine, and it opens up an opportunity for kids to share what they’ve already thought of, and associated with, the first fold on the airplane. And, when the sharing has died down, they don’t move on to question two, they move on to the next fold.
I guess the reality is that you’re just going to have to see it—and experience it alongside 1500 pre-teens—to totally grasp it. And if your mind isn’t blown by how an experiential retreat designed with pre-teens in mind works, maybe it will be when that pig comes flying over the audience.
For more information on Fall Pre-Teen Retreats at SpringHill Camps, visit http://springhillcamps.com/MI/retreats/preteen.aspx. Registration is still open for all three weekends in November.