May 2006

Dear Pioneer Clubs Leader,

Welcome to the latest edition of the Pioneer Clubs^® leader’s eNewsletter, where we provide resources to help you build your Pioneer Clubs ministry. This month we would like to remind you about the importance of evaluating the effectiveness of your club meetings on an ongoing basis.

Learning from the Past

Our society tends to focus on what will happen in the future, but what we do to shape the future needs to be based on what we know from our experience to date. This is just as true in a club setting as in any other part of life.

Evaluating how your club meeting went each week is a helpful discipline, whether you do it by yourself or with your coleader. You can assess, while the meeting is fresh in your mind, which kids seemed to “get” the Bible Exploration and which didn’t. You can note areas to follow up in the next meeting and areas to discuss further in the remainder of your current unit. You can use needs you see in your club members to choose the next unit you will do.

Spring and fall are good times to step back and take a bigger-picture look at your club. In the fall, you might want to concentrate on ways to apply what you know about returning club members to your meeting planning—and on how to get to know new members better. Make sure you and your coleader(s) agree on a club meeting routine and how discipline will be handled. By late spring, you’ll want to take a good, critical look at what has worked and how to improve your club, while the year is still fresh in your mind. This will help you start to plan for next year.

• Has inappropriate behavior from one or more club members been a problem? You might find help by reading The Discipline Guide for Children’s Ministry (catalog #2786) or watching the video Discipline: Guidance that Makes a Difference (catalog #2779).
• Which parts of the club meeting worked well? Where can you improve? The Pioneer Clubs curriculum is carefully developed to be appropriate for your club members’ physical, emotional, intellectual, and social development levels. However, because you choose the units and awards to do, you can select ones that address the issues you see your club members facing. Within meetings, you can plan to work in more discussion of those subjects that you recognize as immediate concerns for your kids. Consider also whether you should be recruiting extra adult help to streamline award activity times, at least on some projects.
• How well does the club year schedule work? You’ll probably want to talk about this with your club coordinator as well as your coleader. Here are a couple of sample questions to start the discussion: How many units do we want to finish in a year? Do we need an extra meeting at the end of each unit for kids to make up missed work, or would one every two units be enough?
• How have you seen your club members develop spiritually? This can be hard to assess—but make the attempt as part of your big-picture look at your club’s effectiveness. You are not judging club members, but trying to get a feel for where they are and how to help them continue to grow in faith.

What do you look for to see spiritual development? Perhaps some club members told you they committed their lives to Christ. For all club members, think back to how they acted last fall. Have attitudes or behaviors changed in ways that reflect growth of the fruit of the Spirit? Are kids more willing to join in praying aloud? Have they become more diligent about practicing memory verses? Do they participate fully in Bible Exploration discussions? All of these observable actions and attitudes reflect the spiritual maturing of your club members. You will undoubtedly see more growth in some areas, and in some club members, than in others. Let the progress you recognize through this review encourage you as you look toward next year.

To maximize the scope of your assessment process, consider contacting the parents of club members and asking them a few specific questions about how they think club has been helpful to their kids. Ask what suggestions they might have based on their own observations or on comments their kids have made.

Action Ideas for May

• Encourage club members to think about which friends they’d like to bring to club next year. If they start talking to their friends now about how much they enjoy club, their friends will have all summer to get interested and excited.
• If your club didn’t celebrate “half-birthdays” during the club year for kids with summer birthdays, consider having a group birthday celebration at your last meeting of the year.

Changed Lives

“As reported on national news, on November 6 a tornado swept through southern Indiana. Over 20 people were killed. One of these was a Scooter in our Pioneer Clubs. The following week our pastor visited each club group to tell about the boy and the importance of trusting Christ as Savior and being in his care. We bus in about 35 kids from remote neighborhoods. Few are from our church or churched at all. That evening two Pathfinders and at least two Trailblazers came to Christ.” — Ray Stein, Oak Hill Evangelical Free Church, Evansville, Indiana

We’d love to hear testimonies of how your club has seen God at work. Please e-mail Becky at ballenpowell@pioneerclubs.org with your name, church name, and how you’ve seen God at work in your club.

Today’s Kids...

... Today’s kids gain interest in assuming responsibilities as they grow. Help your club members develop a sense of accomplishment and pleasure in a job well done.

• When you assign a task to a club member, be sure to explain clearly what he or she should do and give plenty of time to prepare for the job.
• Model enjoying responsibilities yourself. Invite kids to join you in such tasks as setting out chairs and supplies and cleaning up after projects. Inject some fun and laughter into the process.

NEW! Pathfinder Curriculum

Our team at Pioneer Clubs is always working hard to provide the best for our churches. Part of this includes offering new and up-to-date club materials. This coming July we will be introducing the newest revision of our Pathfinder curriculum! With a fresh new look in member handbooks and leader plan books, this new curriculum also includes:

• Easy-to-use leader materials to decrease prep time.
• New and updated topics and activities to hold kids’ interest.
• Bible Exploration with life application to keep kids in the Word.
• More options! Skits, games, and role-plays keep kids actively learning!
• Suggested service projects to put faith into action.
• Parent Pages for better communication with kids’ families.

The new Pathfinder Curriculum will be available July 1, 2006. Visit www.shoppioneerclubs.org or call 800-694-2582 to order yours!

Kids for Kids Hike

Thanks to all who participated in the Kids for Kids Hike! Participating churches will be listed on the Kids for Kids Hike page at our Web site (www.pioneerclubs.org). Please remember to complete your hike report (downloadable at the Web site) and mail it with your check to Pioneer Clubs, PO Box 788, Wheaton, IL 60189-0788 so we can include you on the list! And be sure to enclose a photo we can post on our Web site. Photos we receive become the property of Pioneer Clubs. You can e-mail your photo to Connie at cpowers@pioneerclubs.org.

March Phonathon

We also want to thank all the club leaders and coordinators who responded so generously to our March Phonathon! Thank you for taking an extra step to spread the Good News of Jesus to children beyond your church and community!

Voyager Clubs—We need your feedback!

If you are a Voyager leader and haven’t already filled out our Voyager curriculum survey, please visit http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=837411933739 and take a few minutes to share your insight on the Voyager curriculum.

Join us for a Pioneer Clubs^® training teleconference!

You may participate in these sessions from any location that has a telephone for only $20 per telephone line. These teleconferences are scheduled throughout the year. Upcoming topics are:

• Basic Training
• Evaluating Your Club Program
• Leader Recruitment and Retention

Pioneer Clubs training teleconferences will benefit every club coordinator and leader—and it’s easy to register today! Visit http://www.pioneerclubs.org/trainingwork.htm for the complete schedule and online registration forms. We hope you can join us!

Reflections
Talk with your coordinator about what you’ve discovered in your evaluation process.

Lighter Side
A Sunday school teacher was telling his kindergarten class the story of Joseph and the coat of many colors. He said, “Then Joseph’s brothers got angry that their father gave Joseph the coat, so they sold him to some traders passing by in a caravan.” A five-year-old piped up. “They had the same kind of car we have! We have a Caravan!”

Featured Product

Becoming a Child of God (grades 1-6)

Only $0.30

This colorful pamphlet explains John 3:16 simply so young club members can understand what it means to trust Christ for salvation and begin living for him. Quantity discount pricing: $ .25 each for 10 or more.

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Daily Watch Devotionals

As children spend more time at home, or travel on vacation with their family, you want them to continue studying Scripture. These devotional guides include puzzles and creative games that help children develop lifelong habits of regular Bible reading. Take advantage of our quantity discount pricing and pay only $4.75 each for 12 or more of the same book. Order both Adventures With God and Exploring God’s Word and save, paying only $9.50 for the pair.

Order Now >>> http://www.shoppioneerclubs.org/store/product.asp?ItemID=968&CategoryID=68&HeaderCategoryId=45&returnUrl=&RandomSeed=T6EL10

The Big Book of Service Projects

As you are teaching your kids responsibility by letting them help in class, help them learn to serve others in response to God’s love for them! This resource is packed with ideas that will encourage kids toward a lifetime of Christian service. Many of these projects can be completed during your class time, and are adaptable for a wide range of ages. Reproducible, and appropriate for grades 1-6.

Order Now >>> http://www.shoppioneerclubs.org/store/product.asp?ItemID=1182&CategoryID=182&HeaderCategoryId=51&returnUrl=&RandomSeed=T6EL10

Pioneer Clubs^®—a weekly club ministry with a passion to evangelize and disciple today’s kids.

National Office
• www.pioneerclubs.org • 800-694-CLUB (2582) •
• PO Box 788, Wheaton, IL 60189-0788, USA •

Pioneer Clubs Canada
• www.pioneerclubs.ca • 800-465-5437 (in Canada only) •
• Box 5447, Burlington, Ontario L7R 4L2, Canada •

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