Ministry is shifting. There’s simply no getting around it.
Attendance rates in churches look vastly different today than they did only decades ago. We know that attendance is important, but hardly anybody wants to take on this challenge.
Here are four things your church can start doing to improve attendance:
1. Track your numbers
Most children’s ministries now have check-in procedures, and most are computerized. This means that tracking frequency of attendance is already possible—it’s just that we don’t typically do it. When I ask children’s ministry leaders, “Why do you have check-in procedures?” their answer is almost always “child safety.” I think that is an appropriate first reason to do it, but there are also unrealized benefits that are just waiting for us to tap into; and attendance analysis is certainly one.
Here’s what tracking frequency of attendance will do:
- It will help you identify visitors. You are more likely to be doing this because this number—visitors—is connected to the first question we ask, “So—how many did we have?” If you are not identifying them and following up with them, now is time to start.
- It will give you real statistics to share with others. It will also get the attention of the parents. Children’s ministry leader, you need that ammunition, so—track your own numbers!
- It will inform your teaching. Before they looked at their frequency-of-attendance numbers, most of the children’s leaders I work with taught as if the children were there every week. They would say, “Remember, kids, that last week we talked about…” They don’t say that any more, because a majority of the kids weren’t there. Now they review frequently. They “loop back” more in their content coverage.
2. Inform the parents
I believe most parents don’t keep track of their own attendance pattern. One children’s director, upon examining her attendance lists, said, “This is really disappointing; one family, whom I considered a main family in our church, only brought their kids an average of once a month.” She went on to say that the parents consider themselves church regulars as well. But their kids’ attendance didn’t reveal that at all.
When parents aren’t informed, they don’t stop to think just how often they miss. Their intentions are to be regular, but life happens and absences occur more often than they are aware of.
Why not institute a system of “we missed you” notifications? Maybe by postcard (kids love that because they never get “real” mail anymore), or maybe by text or email—but we let them know they are missed. It would be a huge undertaking, but could have a wonderful, positive effect. You’ve probably tried it before, and it has probably fizzled—but now you know the numbers. It is time to bring “we missed you” back.
3. Recruit and structure for relationships
Why do kids like going to church? While exciting programming can be a factor, the number one factor is interpersonal: how close they feel to others. It is more worker-focused in preschool, but by the time they are in kindergarten, children come into the church classroom looking for their friends. It is even more accentuated as they get into middle elementary. That means…
- Recruit for relationships, more than recruit for teaching. A volunteer who will simply love some kids and develop a deep friendship with them is of great value. A volunteer with such a heart will also look to develop friendships between the children.
- Structure for relationships. There will be sufficient time allowed, in small enough groups, for good relationship building. Getting to know each other will be seen as a valid use of time.
- Plan and promote relationship-building events. Weekend camps can do wonders to build strong friendships. So can special service opportunities, or productions.
Do you get it? Kid-to-kid friendships are the number one factor, beyond parental commitment, in getting kids to be regular in attendance. So cultivate those.
4. Reinstitute incentives
Incentives have always worked well in Awana. We use them to encourage regular attendance, and we enjoy good results. Let’s face it—incentives just work with kids; we use them in our home to reinforce positive behavior for things like potty training and brushing teeth. Incentives aid in establishing good habits of behavior so that when the child outgrows the incentive, the habit will be in place.
So let’s reinstitute them in children’s ministry to recognize faithful attendance! Use buttons like Fellowship Church, or use anything from low-tech wall charts to high-tech phone apps. Organize outings for those who meet a certain standard, or create privileged roles of service within your ministry. Try boys vs. girls contests or divide them up into teams and let the teams compete. Challenge the small groups to compete against one another for the best percentage.
Whatever incentive you choose, it can have a positive effect if your leadership creates and maintains excitement around it.
These ideas are developed further in a book called “The Question Nobody Asks About Our Children.” To read more about how trends like those mentioned here are shaping the life of your church, click here.
