Keeping Parents Involved

By Robin Olsen

One of the biggest struggles for Sunday school teachers is how to motivate parents to be involved in the teaching process. Do the parents of the kids in your class know what their children are being taught?

Deuteronomy 11:18-20 instructs us as followers of Christ to know God’s Word, meditate on it, then move into action. God’s Word instructs parents to teach their children throughout the day, every day, taking every opportunity there is. How can you as their children’s teacher help them in this process?

Well communication is key! Let the parents know what you’re doing in class and what they can do throughout the week to reinforce the teaching at home. Encourage the parents to memorize that week’s verse with their children. Encourage them to read the lesson’s Scripture passage with the kids then go over a few discussion questions. Your curriculum might include discussion questions you can send home with the kids. It might be a good idea to send them in an email as well because who knows what happens to those papers after class!

The goal here is to encourage parents to pray, read, and memorize Scripture with their child. When the children see it is important to their parents, they are more likely make it important in their life as well.

Another way to involve parents is to invite them into your Sunday school class. I think sometimes we as teachers are intimidated by parents in the classroom. Don’t let them scare you but instead look at it as an opportunity to encourage parents. You may find that they have gifts and abilities that, with a little encouragement, can empower them to more effectively teach their children at home.

As you come alongside your parents in your classroom you will be able to share the importance of their involvement at home.

Your curriculum might include discussion questions you can send home with the kids.

Involving parents in your Sunday school class is a great way to keep them connected with what you are doing but what happens to the kids whose parents are not Christians? 

I grew up in a home where my parents did not go to church. But by the grace of God, my brother and I were invited to a Vacation Bible School where we both trusted Jesus as our Savior. This could have been the end of the story, but it’s not. There was a lady in the church who got involved with our family. She contacted our parents and ask for permission to pick us up for church. Mrs. Schave took my brother and me to church every week for years. She had a tremendous impact on our family. She studied with us and taught us how to study the Bible for ourselves. I am thankful for the hours she invested in my life. As a result of her hard work, I was called into full time ministry. My parents started to come to church and recommitted their lives to Christ.

As you see kids who do not have parents who know the Lord perhaps someone in your church would sponsor them just as Mrs. Schave did for my family. What a privilege it is to invest in the lives of the kids and their families.