How to start your own parish Music Corner for kids
Resources & Research
“Some of my clearest early memories of church involve the songs I sung as a child, and music is such a fun and effective way to let God’s word ‘dwell richly’ in us. Therefore, as I started my internship at St Bart’s in 2023, I was excited that one of my areas of focus was to foster the growth of generational diversity in the music team — to get young people involved,” says Diana Wong from Resource Church St Bart’s, Toowoomba
The Mission Statement of the Music Corner at St Bart’s, Toowoomba is “To help younger people engage in music ministry.
The Vision Statement of the Music Corner at St Bart’s, Toowoomba is “To raise up passionate, confident and competent musicians, who are equipped for leading music in church.”
Some of my clearest early memories of church involve the songs I sung as a child, and music is such a fun and effective way to let God’s word “dwell richly” in us. Therefore, as I started my internship at St Bart’s in 2023, I was excited that one of my areas of focus was to foster the growth of generational diversity in the music team — to get young people involved!
To help me do this, “Music Corner” was started, and has gradually grown over the past year. Music Corner is a safe space for kids to come and sing-play worship songs together, just to “jam” and have some fun.
We started doing this weekly for about 30 minutes after the church service, cycling through a very small repertoire of about five to seven songs. Attendance could be pretty sporadic initially, but I would sit in the corner of the kids’ area, and tinkle away on the keyboard. This would often be enough to draw some kids in for a sing-along with a bit of morning tea in hand.
As we continued each week, I was able to identify kids who were ready to take the next step, and I invited them to help lead singing during Kids’ Church.
Recently, as Music Corner has continued to grow, we have moved out of the corner of the kids’ area (from which we derived our ministry’s name), and into the music space within the church auditorium, along with its microphones, drum kits and extra equipment to get used to. A few youths have started serving with the church band as singers.
One of the greatest benefits of Music Corner is that it is a fun and relaxed space to nurture young people who love Jesus and music. And all it takes to start is at least one musician who is willing to invest in the next generation.
Top 10 Tips to get your own Music Corner started:
- Keep it simple by repeating a small repertoire of songs — this will help kids who can’t read yet to learn the words.
- Be realistic in your expectations so children want to come back. The goal is for this to be fun. You are not seeking to give private music lessons here.
- Choose songs that are suitable for all-age worship. City Alight’s album Simple Songs For Young and Old has some great options.
- As numbers have grown, other musicians have very kindly stepped up to help mentor a group, such as the keys players and the guitarists. So build up your team this way.
- Keep sessions to 20 to 30 minutes. It’s hard to keep their concentration beyond this.
- All you need to start is a single instrument, a voice, and a corner to play in. We started with a keyboard only, but it depends on what you or others at your church play. For example, they can bring their own guitar. You might also need copies of music or lyrics and music stands. Microphones, sound systems, drum kits and projectors for lyrics are great, but not essential.
- We promote our Music Corner by simply inviting kids to join at the end of Kids’ Church. You can also promote Music Corner in the church newsletters and on social media channels.
- As your repertoire grows, notify parents/caregivers via email what songs you will play through that week (generally, two to three) in case some would like to practise beforehand.
- Identify kids who are ready to take the next step and invite them to help lead singing during Kids’ Church.
- Enjoy yourself! As much is “caught” as it is “taught”, and if you love singing praise to God, this can be infectious!
