Erarbeiten eines Semester- oder Quartalprogrammes

Why a semester program?

• Meetings during the semester will be much shorter, because a part is already planned in advance. One therefore has more time for exchange, evaluation and other concerns.
• Variation in the program is guaranteed. In addition, a common thread can be drawn through the semester.
• Short-term planning requires improvisational skills. One carries out things which are already well known and cannot try out new things.
• Unit programs can be better realized because there is enough thinking time.

How to plan?

A semester program is best planned together as a whole team. This way, all leaders can contribute their ideas and the whole program is more varied as a result. Depending on the experience of the team, about half a day to a day can be allowed for the planning of a semester program

When to plan?

Try to schedule the planning session no later than before the second to last YS afternoon. This will give you enough time until the last afternoon to create your program and distribute it to the kids on the last afternoon of the semester.

Process of a Planning Session

The following are some steps that can help plan a semester program together.

1. Prayer

Start your session with prayer. Invite God to help you plan.

2. Site Assessment

A site assessment helps determine the next course of action. Evaluate the past semester. Did you achieve your set goals? What was difficult? What should be maintained?

3. Goals

Set goals. Having set goals motivates. Not having a goal, on the other hand, demotivates.

• Goals serve as orientation: goals should be set in such a way that they serve as orientation. Progress is always visible as a result.
• Goals are team goals: Everyone in the team must pull on the same rope and in the same direction. Who does not mtzieht is ballast. Being a bit part of it is not enough. Every leader must be able to identifize with the goals.
• Goals are communicated: If the church leadership or congregation also knows the goals, they will be more willing to provide support.
• Goals need people in charge: For every goal, there needs to be a responsible person who tries to implement the goal.
• Goals Drive Prayer: Those who have a goal in mind will pray more for it.

The goals you set may well influence the planning of the semester program (e.g., the spiritual concept)

4. Spiritual Concept

The most important core of YS programs is the Bible. For this reason, planning a semester program includes planning a corresponding spiritual concept. This means you determine in advance for each afternoon what you want to share with the YS that afternoon from the Bible (main message)

• Read the biblical book / another book (with spiritual background) and divide it into meaningful sections for each YS afternoon. Instead of a biblical book, themes can also be chosen (e.g. miracles of Jesus / parables / ...)
• Analyze each passage and work out a main message

The spiritual concept can also be well prepared before the actual planning session. To do this, determine the theme in a meeting before the planning session. Then one person (or more) can prepare the spiritual concept in advance.

<5. choice of topic

Based on your goals and the spiritual concept you now choose a suitable theme for your semester program. It is advantageous to choose a topic that fits the spiritual concept. It may also be that the main topic is the same as the spiritual concept. Topics can be:

• biblical stories, persons, books, ...
• Biographies
• Adventure themes such as knights, pirates, ...
• Life themes such as friendship, addiction prevention, ...
• Topics from the culture and history such as Eskimo, Roman Empire, Huguenots, ...
• Topics from the natural world, technology, ...
• ... actually there is no limit here.

Over time, you will find that some topics are more suitable for older children
and some are more suitable for younger children.

6. Gather program ideas

Gather all possible ideas about the theme and spiritual concept and record them. These can be:

• Program ideas for games, crafts, outdoor activities, ...
• Ideas for theater
• Materials, props
• Matching occasions such as museum, swimming, ...

7. fill out the planning sheet

After you have collected ideas, it is now time to roughly plan the afternoons. It is best to work with a planning sheet. On the planning sheet, the individual afternoons are listed.

What all belongs on a planning sheet?

• Dates: Most important and often the most time-consuming is setting the dates for the planned occasions. On the one hand, a regularity should be maintained, but on the other hand, all overlapping dates should be taken into account as much as possible. The dates are set with advantage even before the planning meeting by a person in consultation with the community.
• Absences: A record should be kept of which leaders will be absent on which occasion. Add to this list on an ongoing basis throughout the semester.
• Activity and Devotions: Along with the activity, the devotional belongs in semester program. Already at this stage, a person responsible for each item of the program is appointed. He is assigned his task according to gifts and experience. Young leaders are involved with the help of the demo-we-you principle.
• Information to the children: What to bring (Bible, waterproof clothing, bike, ...)? Where to meet? Is there a snack/snack? When is it over?
• Other:
• - Premises to be reserved
• - Materials (life jackets, tents, ropes, ...)
• - guest speakers and specialists to be requested
• - Birthdays of children and teens
• - Dates of neighboring youth groups, important events (which, at best, take place at the same time)

Not every detail listed above needs to be discussed directly at the semester program meeting. However, it must be clear who is responsible for clarification.
With the help of your preliminary thoughts and this planning sheet, you can now plan the semester.
The planning sheet should give an overview of the individual afternoons at a glance.

8. design invitation

After you have determined the dates, topics, etc., you design an appealing, informative and clear invitation.

File and image credits

• Title image: provided by Lukas Leuenberger / Jungschar Arth
• Planning sheet: provided by Lukas Leuenberger / Jungschar Arth