You now know how many weeks you are meeting for the year, now it is time to fill in your calendar.
There are four items to consider:
- Handbook sections
- Theme Nights
- Special events
- Additional Events
First let’s look at handbook sections.
This is key for all clubs except for Sparks for most churches. Identify which section you will focus on the week. For some clubs, like Cubbies, you may need to add Special Days if your club year has more meetings than regular handbook sections. For other clubs, like T&T, Trek, and Journey, you may need to combine some sections if you club meets fewer times than there are sections in the handbook.
Personally for T&T, I prefer to combine the final review section of each unit with the last section before the review unit, usually combining sections 7 and 8, except for unit 1.
Sparks generally still move at their own pace. Some clubs focus on a particular section in the handbook for each week (called together we move). I have a pacing schedule that they should follow if they desire to complete their handbook during the club year. If you focus on a section per week for Sparks, then list that section on the calendar, otherwise, I would recommend providing a pacing schedule.
Theme nights are not required, but can enhance excitement for your club. You need to decide how often you will hold a theme night, whether it is every club night, once a month, once a quarter, etc. The frequency is up to you. We will talk about theme nights in another session.
Next are special events. These could be anything that you might do on a club night aside from themes or which handbook section to focus on. It might include missions, the grand prix, Awana store, parent night, or any other event that you might hold during the Awana meeting that is extra for that evening.
Finally there are additional events. These would be events that you hold for your Awana club that take place on other days and times than your usual club night. Events could include the Grand Prix if it is not held during your club, regional events like the Awana Ministry Conference, Quizzing, and Games. It could also include other special events like Trunk or Treat, or any other event you might hold that is Awana related. Including these helps your families know what to expect during the year.
Once you have your calendar full and approved, it is time to publish it and share it every where!
