In cooperation with Ontario’s current province-wide shut down, in person Sunday School/Teen Troupe is currently on hold. However, throughout the duration of the shut-down, St. Paul will continue to offer Christian education supports to families at home:
Christian Education at-Home and in the Classroom
St Paul offers Christian educational resources (birth-teen) for use both at home during COVID-19 as well as on-site here at St. Paul in our modified Sunday School/Teen Troupe programming. Below are just a few of these resources.
- For Ages 2-6, Our Youth Coordinator can provide you with samples of our Early Childhood guidebooks "Enduring Faith" through Concordia Publishing House (would need to be ordered--$10/for 13 lessons) for at-home as well as additional At-Home COVID-19 supports to pair with it at www.discover.cph.org
- For Grades 1-6, our Youth Coordinator can provide you with samples of the Grade 1-6 Student Workbook, "Enduring Faith" through Concordia Publishing House that you can purchase ($10/for 13 lessons) for your child that also pairs with additional At Home COVID-19 supports at www.discover.cph.org
- For Parents who want the full teaching lesson plans like our teachers have for class, we can provide you with digital access to our Digital Resource Center through Concordia Publishing House
New Sunday School COVID-19 Routines FAQs
1. What time should we arrive on Sunday morning for children to have time to check-in prior to Sunday School?
St Paul staff will be outside by our Sunday School and Church doors starting at 8:45am and will be checking children in from 8:45 onward. Sunday School will begin at 9am, but we will keep a staff member available for check-in until 9:15am.
If your child arrives after 9:15am, there will be no one available to check them in, and they will not be able to attend Sunday School that day so please make sure to arrive prior to 9:15am.
2. If there is inclement weather, do we still need to check-in outside?
Yes, all of our check-in is currently in the open air. We recommend keeping a spare umbrella with you in case families need to wait outside.
3. If my kids are enrolled in Sunday School/Teen Troupe, do I still need to register for church?
Yes, please email Sue in our church office (stpaulwels@rogers.com) so that we can have an accurate count of how many to expect for church and to get you registered.
4. Can I go up and see my child's Sunday School room?
Unfortunately, this year parents are not allowed into our teaching spaces.
5. What time is my child dismissed from Sunday School?
You child's teacher will dismiss and walk them directly to the Fellowship Hall for pick-up. Dismissal times are staggered, starting at 10:05am and onward.
- Sunday School Building
- Kinder: 10:05
- Grade 1&2: 10:10
- Grade 3: 10:15
- Teen: 10:20
- Church Building
- Grade 4/5: 10:10
- Grade 6: 10:10
- Grade 7/8: 10:05
6. How can I keep my young child(ren) occupied during service or before service starts?
We have hidden colorful "St. Paul" rocks throughout our church block. If your child(ren) need to get out some energy before church, we recommend getting some fresh air and taking them on an "eyes only" rock hunt to see how many rocks they can find. New rocks will be added each week.
We will be providing "family bags" for each of our families with children enrolled in Sunday School. This bag will have your name on it and will be kept in the Fellowship Hall. We will be putting items in it for children 10 and under (e.g., crayons, coloring books, stickers, puzzles for older children, & hand sanitizer), and you are also welcome to keep special items in it for church (e.g., books, activities, water bottles, pre-packaged fruit snacks, etc). After you reconnect with your child(ren) after Sunday School, we recommend taking any necessary bathroom breaks and than heading directly up into church with your "family bag" (if you are not going on a rock hunt).
There will be a marked container at the back of church to drop-off your bag before exiting the building.
You are also free to take your child down the stairs to the Fellowship Hall for bathroom needs, etc. However, people may be watching the service from downstairs so children will not be able to be down there unless they are accompanied by a parent.
7. What happens if we arrive late and the church is already at capacity?
For Sunday morning service, ushers are first filling up our church pews with family units. After these are all full, additional attendees will be able to view the service at a table on the large projected screen in the Fellowship Hall. If your family is at a table downstairs, we request that children remain at the table with their family and are not roaming about throughout the Fellowship Hall.
8. Can we bring snacks into church?
Yes, snacks for children are still allowed.
9. If my child needs to disenroll from Sunday School/Teen Troupe, are there other learning options?
Yes!
- For Ages 2-6, Our Youth Coordinator can also provide you with samples of our Early Childhood guidebooks "Enduring Faith" through Concordia Publishing House (would need to be ordered--$10/for 13 lessons) for at-home as well as additional At-Home COVID-19 supports to pair with it at www.discover.cph.org
- For Grades 1-6, our Youth Coordinator can provide you with samples of the Grade 1-6 Student Workbook, "Enduring Faith" through Concordia Publishing House that you can purchase ($10/for 13 lessons) for your child that also pairs with additional At Home COVID-19 supports at www.discover.cph.org
- For Parents who want the full teaching lesson plans like our teachers have for class, we can provide you with digital access to our Digital Resource Center through Concordia Publishing House
Measures to Keep You, your Children, and our Many Volunteers Safe:
This Plan is based on
Ontario’s Guidelines for Re-opening Schools (June 2020 and July 30, 2020),
Ottawa’s Guidance for Childcare Centres (June 19, 2020), as well as multiple
phone conversations with Ottawa Public Health.
What will Sunday School/Teen Troupe look like this Fall?
- To ensure we can maintain the necessary distance between all kids and teachers in our classrooms, we have been moving classrooms and acquiring more space at St. Paul. We will also have Enrollment Caps on each of our Sunday School Classrooms. This will ensure small class sizes and limited interaction with other children outside of a few kids in each class. This year, all families need to enroll their children. Our current caps are as follows:
- Nursery—(Birth-Age 3): 6 people (parents and young children)
- Ages 4 &5: 4 students
- Grade 1 & 2: 5 students
- Grade 3: 5 students
- Grade 4-5: 5 students
- Grade 6: 4 students
- Grade 7/8: 4 students
- Teens: 10 students
- We will not be holding any group assemblies or music class. Students will enter directly into their classrooms, where they will have contact with only a few students and their teacher (or 1 substitute assigned to that class only)
- We will be requesting that all families complete a self-screening check prior to coming on Sunday morning. We will also be completing temperature checks prior to entering class. (We are asking parents to check children’s temperature prior to coming to church, but we will also have a trigger thermometer available to quickly check this, as necessary).
- We will be staggering our entry and dismissal times.
- We are following Ontario’s recommendations regarding mask-wearing for students and teachers while in school:
- All of our teachers will be wearing clear, lip-reading masks so that children can still see their faces
- Students in Grade 4-High School will be required to wear a mask for class
- Children in Grades 3 and under can but will not be required to wear a mask
- We are increasing cleaning protocols, including pre-assigning bathrooms and limiting shared supplies/toys (Young children will all have their own cubby of basic crafting supplies)
- We are maximizing spatial distance between children in classrooms, and putting up visual markers to assist children in knowing where to sit/stand, etc.
