Music and Motions...

I love music.  I was a music major in college.  I know how powerful it can be as a teaching tool.  And I love using motions in music.  Not everyone does and that's ok.  We must all lead worship the way that works best for us.  But I want to share why I feel motions are so important in children's worship.

Motions help memorization in young learners
When I lead worship, I have children as young as 3 and as old at 12 in the service.  That means that a large group of the children in the service either can not read yet, or can not read fast enough to follow the words on the screen.  Motions help them remember the words to the song.  I tend to use the same motion for certain words in nearly every song we do.  So, for example, if we do a motion for "Jesus" in one song, it will probably be the same motion in another song.  The same goes for words like "Mighty", "Strong", or a lot of other common phrases in music.  Those who can not read, can remember those motions and it helps them to learn the music.

Motions create more freedom in worship
How many times have you been sitting in an adult worship service and you don't feel like you can even lift your hands in praise because...well...no one else is lifting their hands.  We feel like we must fit a certain mold when we sing.  Motions encourage movement.  It's not just "dancing", it's freely using our bodies in worship.  Children NEED to move and using motions gives them that opportunity, but still in a somewhat structured way.

Motions teach leadership skills to older children
I know that probably sounds like an odd thing to say, but it's true.  As kids get older, sometimes they start to feel like they are "too old" for motions.  But this is an opportunity to teach them about being leaders.  It's not about "THEM".  The younger kids need the motions in order to learn and remember the songs (see above) and the older kids need to be involved so that the younger kids don't feel out of place or strange for enjoying the motions. Our older kids need opportunities to be examples of leadership and this is just such an opportunity.


I am a huge advocate of motions in music.  There is something special that happens when the right motions are put to a song.  All of the sudden that song is even more powerful, but "pointless" motions can have the opposite effect on a song.  I once did a musical where we had to redo nearly every motion in every song because they literally did not go with the words being sung.  In order for them to be helpful, they need to apply.  If you are trying to sing about being joyful, then making a frowning face is not going to be a good choice.  But neither is jumping up and down for "joy" appropriate if the song is slow.  Which motions you choose are as important as which song you choose.  So, when creating motions for your music, make sure they add to the worship experience and not just fill space in the song.

If done properly and prayerfully...motions in music can be a huge asset to your ministry.

Until next week!

Do you know what's popular?

One of the things kids face is a barrage of entertainment that is anything but positive.  Every year, I try to check the winners of the Teen Choice and Kid's Choice Award shows and many times I find myself shaking my head at what they are choosing as their favorites.  More often than not, the things that are winning are not kid friendly...especially where the Teen Choice Award winners are concerned.  And if the teens are watching or listening to it, their younger siblings are probably watching/listening as well.

Just like when you watch the Emmy's or the Oscars and the winner may not be your choice, it is the same way with kids and teen award shows.  Just because something wins doesn't mean all the kids in your department are watching or listening to the winner.  However, it is almost a given that they are aware of the winners and probably have friends who like that artist, television show, or movie even if they do not.  And that being the case, we need to be aware of them too.

It sounds easy...simply know what is popular in the world of children, but it's not.  It changes all the time.  What was popular last month may not be popular this month.  The band the kids couldn't get enough of  when they were in 4th grade may be uncool when they reach 5th grade. The toy that everyone had to have last Christmas is collecting dust on the shelves by February.  The game all the boys were playing on their phone in May might be deleted by August.  You could spend hours every week trying to keep up with it all and let's face it...we don't have that kind of time.  So, what do we do?

LISTEN
If the kids in your department are excited about something, they will talk about it...a lot.  What shows are they talking about watching?  What song in stuck in their head?  What books are they reading? What apps are they loving?  They may walk right up to you and say, "Do you watch __________?  I love that show!"  But we are often so busy before and after church services that we don't always hear what they are telling us.  Make a point to listen to what they are saying.  You might be surprised at what you will hear.

DO RESEARCH
A quick google search for "Teen Choice Award Winners" or "Kid's Choice Awards Winners" will bring up lots of articles about those shows.  Take a few minutes and look them over.  Take note of the artists or movies that win more than one award.  Maybe take a few minutes to look up the names of any winning artist, show, internet celebrity, or movie that you are not familiar with.  These shows also give awards for video games and social media personalities so it really is an overview of all the media that in coming at the kids.  This doesn't have to take a long time, but it can give you an idea of what is popular.

SEE WHAT THEY SEE
We may not have time to watch every television show or movie that comes out geared at kids, but we can do our best to see the ones that seem to be the most popular.  Is there a song that your kids are listening to repeatedly?  There is probably a video on YouTube of that song.  Take five minutes and watch it.  Catch at least one episode of that show they all love to watch.  The game they love to play on their phones may be a free download.  If so, try it out.  See what has made it so addictive. We may not see it all, but we can at least make an effort to know what they are seeing.  

You might not think this sort of thing is important, but here is what I've noticed over the years.  If what is important to the kids is not even on our radar, they will listen to us less.  Not because they don't like us, but because we do not seem to understand them.  If they talk to us about their favorite show and we know what it's about, or if we know who the new popular artist is on the radio, it shows them that we find their interests important...and by extension that they are important.  And if they know we find them important, they are more likely to listen to us on things that we find important...like our Bible lessons.  And they will also be willing to listen to us when we explain why we don't like the lyrics of a particular song or how the message of such and such a movie isn't appropriate.  As the old saying goes, "They have to know you care before they care what you know."

That's all for this week!