Baby Song Program The Salvation Army

Coco Lin

Introduction of Baby Song program The background and development Baby Song and the church Objectives of Baby Song Human resources needed A session plan Suggestions on music Facilities and Equipment Advertisement and Registration

Baby Song

An Salvation Army outreach program for babies, toddlers and their parents

Parents and their babies meet others in the same situation, build relationships and make music together.

It is about relationships and fellowships, and making a positive impact of Christ through music

What is Baby Song program?

babies to experience developmentally appropriate songs, activities and games;

parents to assist their babies in language development and interaction through music;

parents to build relationships with other parents;

parents to gain parenting tips and information; the church to reach out into the community.

An opportunity for:

Started with a scientific research about the experiences of fetus in the mother’s womb

Music has great impacts on a child’s development.

The Salvation Army in Sweden picked up the program in the early 90’s.

Quickly spread and has been successful in reaching un-churched families in many countries.

The background and development

Baby Song and the church

Churches have a broad music tradition.

Baby Song brings new people into the church.

Baby Song helps with family ministry.

Baby Song helps with the social fellowship in church.

Overall objective Meeting people’s needs-spiritually, socially and

physically Intermediate objectives Make contact with people in the local community Build relationships and trust Give opportunities for fellowship Create an atmosphere that leads to conversations

about life and God Attract families to church and know more about God

Objectives of Baby Song

Musical objectives Stimulate the child’s linguistic,

musical and motor skills development Develop the child’s concept of space

and time Stimulate positive contact between

parent and child. Give the family a treasury of songs

that they can use at home.

Objectives of Baby Song

Who is running the program?

A music leader: Set-up before the session Prepares music and

makes song sheets Leads the music time   Home league: Prepare and serve

food/snacks and drinks In charge of the fellowship

part with snacks as a host

Corps officer Make him/her known

and available Have him/her visit from

time to time Pray for these families

in the end of the music session

It is important that the whole church is involved in this program.

Who is running the program?

Helpers/ volunteers Look after and play with children Have conversations with parents Help to serve food and drinks

The rest of the corps Give the rest of corps as much ‘ownership’ as possible

by involving them, like giving them reports in weekly meetings.

It is important that the whole church is involved in this program.

60 minutes music 40 minutes fellowship

Planning a session (9:40am-11:20am) The Music Section:

1.Start with sharing parenting experiences. (common parenting questions, parenting tips)

2. Have a theme for each session, like animals, vegetables, flowers, etc. (enlarge child’s vocabulary)

3. Give each family a special name according to the theme. (engage and entertain families)

Give each family a prayer card, and we will pray for them.

Give each family a note to write down some recommendation songs.

(put them in an envelope)

The Music Section

Involve with games, performances and competition. (gain credits)

Give a small gift to the family that wins.

The Music Section

Prepare name tags for parents and children.

Set up the room in a circle with a mat for each family.

Prepare a basket for each child with instruments.

Always begin and end with the same few songs- Routine creates security and trust.

A guitar, piano, or CD music can be useful.

The Music Section

In the last day, give each family a gift as a memorial.

If you have a church going group, you can have many Christian songs. If your group is mostly strangers to church, you may just want to have a few.

Start with a Bible verse and end with a prayer.

Program sample

Welcome song Start with introduction/

sharing experiences (parenting questions and tips)

Read a Bible verse Introduce today’s

theme and decide each family’s name

Review the song that we learned yesterday

Rhymes & finger plays

2 brain teasers Family performance

Rhythm & instrument playing (marching)

2 brain teaser Family performance

Program sample

Action songs & dance- focus on the body

2 brain teaser Family performance

Spiritual songs 2 brain teaser Family performance

Lullaby (use scarves in movements to relax children)

2 brain teaser Family performance

Listen to music (write down the prayers and recommendation songs) Give a gift to the family

that wins Goodbye song Pray together

The Fellowship Section

Have snacks and drinks provided. Set up an area for the parents to talk and a

play area for the children. Invite friends and family for a special

celebration and do special refreshments.

After the program

New programs could be developed out of Baby Song.

For example: a choir for the adults or the kids.

  Invite the Baby Song

families to special community Sundays. Have them perform from time to time.

Can I ‘play’ with the words? Can I reinforce parts of the songs with instruments? Are there natural movements to the song? Can I visualize anything from the song? Is the song easy enough for parents to sing with

their children at home?

Choose well-known songs (traditional), as well as introduce new songs.

Choosing MusicQuestions to consider when choosing a song:

Facilities and Equipment

Facilities Make sure facilities are

clean. Be careful with what is

within children’s reach. Use two rooms if

possible. (the music session/the fellowship session)

Divide one room into two sections.

Equipment Mats Instruments CD player/speaker An envelope (a prayer

card, a note and a theme picture)

A file with song Toys Light scarves

Remember to get the following information: Name of parent Name of child Birthday of child Address & E-mail address Phone number (Home church)

Keep a waiting list, if overwhelming response. Communicate well with the parents following

registration.

Advertisement and Registration