Hamline Church is a congregation where children & youth engage in awe, wonder, and service to their neighbors. Children are guided in faith formation through Sunday School and Confirmation, and have ample service opportunities both within Hamline Church and outside our walls. We recognize that children need their own space to learn and grow, but also seek to provide intergenerational opportunities for our kids to grow in relationship with their elders.
Children at Hamline Church build supportive relationships with other children and adults, learn the stories and themes of the Bible, learn the practices of faith, and explore questions and issues of love, justice, service, community – and much, much more.
Sign up to receive our monthly children’s ministry email
Sunday Mornings
Worship begins at 10:00am! We welcome children in worship every week – in the sanctuary, we have worship materials available for all those who like to doodle while they listen. Childcare is available during worship with our nursery staff for children 5 and under.
Spiritual Formation
Sacred Studio is our spiritual formation time for children, prek-6th grade during the school year On Sundays (except for the 1st Sunday of each month) after the children’s moment in worship, children can go with staff and volunteers to explore a bible story through art, music, and games. This time is focused on making space for children to know God’s love!
- Godly Play: Prek-K children will explore bible stories by building a practice of listening, wondering, and responding through art with this Montessori-based curriculum. Families can decide with their 3 and 4 year-olds when you would like to transition from the Frolic room childcare into Sacred Studio.
- Mini Revolutions: 1st-4th graders will use Illustrated Ministry’s “Mini
Revolutions” to explore bible stories through discussion, connections to
the world, activities, and mini spiritual practices. This group may split
into two depending on numbers each week. - Tween Ducks : 5th and 6th graders will sit together in the worship service
along with adult leaders, then gather after the sermon in the youth
room to connect and reflect on worship together. - Childcare: Frolic Room Childcare is available during worship for children 5 and under in the Frolic Room with our amazing childcare specialists. This is a time for free play, stories, and building connections with church friends! Contact Katie Morris if you have questions about childcare at Hamline Church.
Seeking Adult Leaders!
Nurturing children in their faith journeys and helping to share with them the stories of God’s love are both part of our baptismal promises that we make as a community. We are always looking for caring adults (and youth!) to be part of our Sacred Studio team – contact Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org) if you would like to learn more.
Whole Family of God Service: First Sundays
The first Sunday of each month, we celebrate communion in our worship service. This is a special sacrament that we share together as a church, and we want children to be part of it! Children are always welcome to stay in the worship service with families, and on first Sundays we will not have Sacred Studio time together to allow time for this special worship.
Student Ministries Visioning Team
Learn more about our Student Ministers Visioning Team and the work they are doing based on recommendations from Ministry Architects. You can find the Ministry Architects report with their recommendations here.
Wednesday Connection
Join us for fellowship, music, and connection on Wednesday evenings! Find more info here.
Milestones
At Hamline Church, one of the ways we walk alongside our children and their families is through our Faith Milestone Program. Every year, we take a moment to celebrate a milestone in each child’s life. Just as throughout the Bible, God’s people mark the places where they encounter God with a stone, we present each child with a smooth, cross-embossed stone to mark the occasion. We usually recognize the milestone in the Sunday worship service, where we have a chance to share more about it!
Some milestones include a milestone exploration time, where the child and a parent/guardian can explore the topic together! You'll find links to exploration packets for some of the milestones, feel free to download to use at home. Contact Katie Morris if you have questions, and see the schedule for 2023-2024 below:
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September 17: Starting Kindergarten, Commission Confirmation Class
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September 24: Frolic Bibles – rising 3 year olds
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October 15: 3rd Grade Bibles
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November 19: 5th Grade Service
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January 7: Remembering Our Baptism - 1st Grade
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February 11: I Can Pray – Rising 4 and 5 year olds
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March 17: The Lord’s Prayer – 6th Grade
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March 24: Communion – 4th Grade
Baptism
This is a beautiful expression of being born into God’s love. Contact Pastor Mariah (mftollgaard@hamlinechurch.org) if you are interested in having your infant or child baptized at Hamline Church.
Christmas Pageant
Each year, Hamline kids have the opportunity to tell the incredible story of Jesus coming into the world on a special Sunday in December. We practice our songs during Sacred Studio for several weeks, and children can choose other ways to participate below. This year’s pageant is Sunday, December 17, we hope you can join! Questions to Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org).
Winter Family Retreat
Each January, we head up to Park Rapids to Northern Pines Camp for a weekend of outdoor winter fun and cozy indoor time. This fellowship weekend is open to families of all shapes and sizes! This year’s retreat is January 12-15, 2024. Register online here. Contact Katie with any questions (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org)
Summer in Sprout Garden
On Sunday mornings during the summer, we partner with our Hamline University SPROUT garden interns to work in the garden growing produce for our Hamline Midway Elder neighbors. We also explore what it means to be part of God’s creation and to care for it! Children prek-6th grade are welcome to join.
Just Like Me VBS at Hamline Church
June 17-21, 2024, 9am-12pm, with additional afternoon programming available until 4pm at Hamline Church United Methodist
Rising kindergarteners-rising 6th graders: join us for a week of exploring God's love through music, crafts, games, and more with this year's VBS, JUST Like Me! JUST Like Me is an inclusive VBS curriculum that will help kids celebrate their identity as God’s beloved creations just as they are! Through scripted lessons and extension activities, students will practice sharing, asking questions, using their voice, finding community, and speaking up for others.Cost is $45/child for morning programming for the week (9a-12p), add afternoon programming for $100/child for the week (12-4p). Follow this link to register by May 17! Contact Director of Student Ministries, Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org), with any questions.
Safety Policies
As part of our commitment to keeping children and youth safe, Hamline Church follows a Safe Sanctuaries policy(PDF). All staff, child-care workers, Spiritual Formation leaders, and other adults who work with children and youth have completed training and a background check through Safe Gatherings.
We also ask that you register your child each year, so that we have up-to-date emergency contact information. Find the link to register here
Connect with Children's Ministry
- Monthly Email Update
To receive monthly email updates with information about upcoming events and spiritual formation resources, please click here to sign up or contact Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org) - We use the Remind app and website, but you can receive texts directly to your phone without having the app!
- Download the Hamline Church Children 2023-2024 Calendar (PDF)
- Check out the church calendar!
Questions? Contact Katie Morris, Director of Student Ministries
Youth at Hamline Church are deeply involved in their church, their community, and their schools. They are musicians and readers, Sunday School assistants and budding theologians, dining hall servers and outreach ministry aficionados. Through formation classes, service, and social activities, there are abundant opportunities for young people to grow their faith and participate in the life of the congregation, both with their peers and inter-generationally.
Sign up to receive our monthly youth ministry email
Sunday Morning Worship
Youth and their families are invited to join us for worship on Sundays at 10:00am. We have opportunities for youth to serve as worship leaders in a variety of ways, contact Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org) to learn more!
Confirmation
Confirmation at Hamline is a two-year program for youth in 7th grade and older to explore what it means to be part of a faith community, then make a decision for themselves about joining the church. This year, confirmands will meet on Wednesday evenings. If you’d like to learn more, contact Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org)!
Student Ministries Visioning Team
Learn more about our Student Ministers Visioning Team and the work they are doing based on recommendations from Ministry Architects. You can find the Ministry Architects report with their recommendations here.
Winter Family Retreat
Each January, we head up to Park Rapids to Northern Pines Camp for a weekend of outdoor winter fun and cozy indoor time. This fellowship weekend is open to families of all shapes and sizes! This year’s retreat is January 12-15, 2024. Register online here. Contact Katie with any questions (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org)Contact Katie with any questions (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org)
Summer Trips
In the summers, Hamline Church youth go out into the world to serve, share God’s love, and explore their faith in a variety of ways. They have taken expeditions into the Boundary Waters, served with communities in Chicago, New Orleans, North Carolina, and Detroit, and bring all of those stories and experiences back to this community in Saint Paul. If you’re interested in summer trips, contact Katie Morris to learn more.
REGISTER FOR OUR SUMMER 2024 MISSION TRIPS TODAY!
Middle Schoolers (completed 6th-8th) will be going to Duluth, MN July 14-18, more info and register here
High Schoolers (completed 9th-12th) will be going to Washington, D.C. June 30-July 6, more info and register here
We’re excited to try something new this year by splitting into high school and middle school trips! We’re trying this out for several reasons –
1) We’ve had great interest in our trips the past few years, and want to make sure we can send enough adults to support all the youth attending.
2) We want to make these trips accessible for our middle schoolers, especially for our great group of current 6th graders.
3) We want to be intentional about the culture and community we nurture on these trips, and hope that building that starting with our 6th graders and working all the way up to high schoolers can accomplish that.
Register for middle school trip by February 14, high school by February 1!
Youth in 7th-12th grade, apply for YLP this summer! Craft an internship to serve in the Hamline Community, and build leadership skills together during the summer. Download an application here (PDF). Applications are due May 12. Contact Katie with questions!
Safety Policies
As part of our commitment to keeping children and youth safe, Hamline Church follows a Safe Sanctuaries policy (PDF). All staff, child-care workers, Spiritual Formation leaders, and other adults who work with children and youth have completed training and a background check through Safe Gatherings.
Connect with Youth Ministry
- Monthly Email Update
To receive monthly email updates with information about upcoming events and spiritual formation resources, please click here to sign up or contact Katie Morris (kmorris@hamlinechurch.org) - Check out the church calendar!
- Download the Hamline Church Youth Calendar(PDF)
Questions? Contact Katie Morris, Director of Student Ministries