Making the connection: Six ways to engage your child at Mass
We always see it: The parent who is embarrassed because his or her child isn’t paying attention at Mass. Whether it’s a 2-year-old who won’t stop making noise or a teenager who won’t stop shaking his or her leg, parents always wonder how they can engage their children in the Mass. Here are six ways to help engage them, keep their focus, and create a love for attending Mass.
We always see it: The parent who is embarrassed because his or her child isn’t paying attention at Mass. Whether it’s a 2-year-old who won’t stop making noise or a teenager who won’t stop shaking his or her leg, parents always wonder how they can engage their children in the Mass. Here are six ways to help engage them, keep their focus, and create a love for attending Mass.
Play a Quiet Game: Ages 0-5 love to be entertained. You can create a quiet game where they have to find a color, a shape, or an object in the church. They will have fun trying to figure out what you are looking at, while being engaged with their surroundings.
Busy Bags: These are tried and true for the young ones in your family. Create a bag with quiet toys that can easily be put away when you are getting ready for Communion. You can also hide some small, quiet snacks in there. You know those kids are always hungry!
Mass Activity Books: You can do this with all ages. Younger kids can have coloring pages of priests in their vestments and pop-up books, while older kids can have crossword puzzles, word searches, and Biblical coloring pages.
Mass Journals: Older kids and teens can use journals to write down the readings of the day, their reflections of the homily, or what they saw that engaged them during Mass. You can find printable journals online for all age groups.
Create Discussion Topics: Before Mass, encourage your younger kids to look for something specific. For example, “Listen for when the bells are rung at Mass today. What is going on during that time?” For older kids and teenagers, you can ask them to listen to a specific reading carefully. Then, in the car or at breakfast, talk about these discussion questions with your kids. You’ll be surprised how much they pay attention and have to say!
Get Involved! I can never stress this enough: Get your kids involved! They can usher, be altar servers, or just help pass out bulletins before Mass. It gets them excited to come to Mass. I also encourage you to get your pre-teens and teens involved in your parish’s youth group. Once they make friends, they will want to come to Mass to worship together.
Kids will always be kids, and their behavior will never be perfect at Mass. Know that you are seen, your parish family loves you, and they want your kids to be there to learn and grow in their faith.
Jes McIlveen is a parent and Director of Religious Education St. Peter the Apostle Parish.
