Children's Ministry

We love having babies at church! Sunday morning child care is available at 8:30am, 9:45am, and 11:00am worship times for children from birth to 2 years. (Children who turn 2 by Sept. 1 each year are encouraged to attend Sunday school.) Advance reservations for Sunday morning child care are not required. Our professional child care staff is trained to care for all of your child’s need including any unlikely emergencies that may arise. The staff is assisted by parent volunteers that read to, play with and lovingly care for your child. When your child is dropped off, you will be given a pager. If your child needs you during the worship service, the pager will vibrate. At that time, the parent is asked to come to their child’s room. The pager must be returned in order to check your child out of his or her class. For the protection of your children, only a parent can check children in or out of classes. When leaving your child in our care, inform the child care providers of any dietary or other special needs your child may have, and label all personal items with your child’s name. Please bring only well children to Sunday school. Your child should be free of fever, vomiting, rashes, and/or diarrhea for a minimum of 24 hours before leaving him or her in our care. If your child becomes sick after being checked into our care, our staff will notify you. Our caregivers will not administer any prescription drugs or medicines of any kind. Thank you for your understanding. Please contact any of our staff below if you have any questions. We look forward to seeing you and your family!

Sunday School is offered at 8:30am, 9:45am, and 11am. for 2-, 3-, and 4-year olds. Your kids will love being in a fun, clean, safe environment! So what's the process? Check in at one of the check-in kiosks or, if it's your first visit, see the helpful attendant at the Children’s Ministry desk. Only parents or guardians may sign a child in and out of the nursery. Children get a name tag and the parents receive a slip that must be presented to pick up your child after church. When dropping off a child, parents may receive a vibrating pager at your child’s classroom. You will be paged if you need to return to the room. A snack may be served during these hours so parents should inform teachers of food-related allergies. Each class is staffed with at least two staff members or volunteers who will serve as your child’s teachers throughout the school year. Sunday School classroom placement is determined by the child’s age on Sept. 1. This is the cutoff date established by the State of Texas for school admission. We use the same date so that children will be aligned with their school grade. The Associate Director of Children’s Ministry must approve all placement exceptions in order to maintain safe student/teacher ratios.

Sunday School takes place at the 9:45 and 11:00 hours for grades kindergarten through fifth grade. We all meet together upstairs in Room 230 (see a map here) for a large group experience full of praise and worship before splitting up and going to our different classes. We want every child to learn to trust in Jesus in a way that transforms how they love God, love themselves, and love the world around them. CRKids will learn to make wise decisions, build stronger relationships, and develop a deeper faith through being connected to a small group of peers and trusted adults. Your kids will love being a part!

At Custer Road, we believe that reading and studying the Bible is central to growing in our faith as Christians. That's why we present Bibles to our new Kindergarten and Third Grade CR Kids on special Sundays twice a year.

Kindergarten Bibles: At the end of summer, we have a wonderful tradition where our outgoing seniors for the previous school year present a Bible to each of our new incoming Kindergartners. This takes place during our 11am worship service in our Sanctuary on Youth Sunday. The Bible the kindergartners receive is a story Bible geared towards their age group.

Third Grade Bibles: In the fall semester, our third grade students are presented with a third grade bible during our worship service. These Bibles are more traditional and are appropriate for the third grade reading level to help the students learn more about their faith as they continue their faith journey. They are all given a very precious gift of God’s word through our third grade Bible program.

Bible Donations: At Custer Road, we offer the opportunity for our Custer Road Family to participate in the presentation of the Bibles through gifting a donation towards the purchase of a Bible/Bibles. If you would like to help continue our Bible traditions, click on the button below and make a donation today. Select "Other" from the drop-down menu and then type Kindergarten Bibles or Third Grade Bibles in the description line to indicate where you would like your donation to be applied.

Click Here to Donate Bibles

During non-worship meetings and events, child care can usually be made available. You must have a reservation for each child you leave in our care. Please make reservations with your small group or leader at least four days in advance of your meeting or event. If you are organizing a gathering at the church and think you may need childcare, please contact our nursery coordinator as early as possible.

Did you know our church has a day school? Our preschool program and private Kindergarten in Plano is touted by parents as a wonderful preparation for today’s Plano Kindergarten expectations. The Day School fosters the intellectual, social/emotional, spiritual and physical development of preschool age children in a stimulating, secure and loving environment in Plano. In addition to academic preparation the children enjoy Music class, Spanish, Computer class, and Chapel Days. You can learn more at custerroadchristiandayschool.com.

Part of Custer Road Christian Day School, our private Kindergarten class is for children turning 5 before September 1st who can benefit from a smaller class setting in a Christian environment in the Plano area. The private Kindergarten class is based on TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) including but not limited to Language Arts, Reading, Math, Science and Social Studies. Children who complete private Kindergarten at Custer Road will be eligible to enter First Grade the following year. Learn more at custerroadchristiandayschool.com.

CR Kids on Mission is a hands on program that gives children the opportunity to be the hands and feet of Christ in our community and world. CR Kids will participate in special mission projects and programming as well as have the opportunity to serve with their families. We will share God's love while making an impact on the world around us in the name of Christ!

Register here.

CR Kids: Children 3 years of age by September 1st, 2018 through 5th grade are welcome to attend. The annual registration fee is $30.

Adults: Don't miss out on the opportunity to be a part of this life changing program. We need your help! We are currently recruiting for leadership positions as well as for volunteers to help the kids complete their projects during our meetings. Contact Heather Hammer via email here for more info!

Here’s some of what we have previously done:

• • • Socking Food Banks.
    • Making Gifts for Kids in Hospitals and Shelters.
    • Assisting with Disaster Relief.
    • Reaching Out to Kids in Orphanages and Refugee Centers.
    • Supporting US Troops Overseas.

It's Fun. It's Exciting. It's REAL!

Register here.

Questions? Contact:

This is a church that loves music, and that's certainly reflected in our amazing children's music programs! We have vocal choirs for kids (Gospel Gang), handbell choirs, and instrumental ensembles. Find out more on our Music Ministry page.

The congregation of Custer Road UMC is committed to providing a safe and secure environment for all children, youth and volunteers who participate in ministries and activities sponsored by the church. Church policy reflects our congregation’s commitment to preserving this church as a holy place of safety and protection for all who would enter and as a place in which all people can experience the love of God through relationships with others. No adult who has been convicted of child abuse (either sexual abuse, physical abuse or emotional abuse) should volunteer to work with children or youth in any church-sponsored activity.

Child Care Policies

1. Child care arrangements must be made through the director of child care.
2. Child care requests must be made through the EventU system 10 days prior to the beginning of classes, Bible studies or any other event by the staff liaison.
3. Reservations for child care must be turned in to the director of child care 4 days prior to the event. Reservations for child care must be taken by someone within the sponsoring group. Child care providers will be scheduled based on the number of children who have a reservation and/or if a minimum of three families are represented.
4. Child care providers will be given a list of children with reservations prior to the event. In the event the adult-to-child ratio becomes unsafe (due to sick child care providers and/or too many children without reservations), parents will be asked to stay in the rooms or children will be turned away.
5. Child care is not available for Sunday school class parties or outings, weddings, funerals, or other “non-meeting” type events.
6. In order to ensure privacy for our child care providers, no names and/or phone numbers of providers will be released by our staff or volunteers.
7. Parents using the child care facilities while at an off-site, church related location must have an up-to-date, notarized Medical Form on file with the director of child care prior to the off-site event. Forms may be obtained in the front office and a notary is usually on hand from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday.
8. Only parents/guardians may sign a child in and out, not brothers or sisters. This is for the child’s protection.
9. Child care providers will be paid for one hour if a group “no shows.”
10. Two or more child care providers will be required at all times during scheduled child care.
11. Child care is for children ages 10 years and under. The director of child care must review all exceptions (i.e. children between the ages of 10 and 13).

Medication Policy and Procedures

1. Any prescription or over the counter medication must be accompanied by a completed Medication Administration Request Form and turned in to the Director of Children’s Ministry. 2. Medications are considered to be any pills, liquids, inhalers, sprays, eye drops, ear drops, cough drops or topically applied creams or ointments that are expected to relieve symptoms. 3. Only medications that cannot be given at home will be given at church. 4. For the safety of all children, all medication should be delivered to the Director of Children’s Ministry by a parent/guardian and not stored in a child’s bag with the exception of insulin, asthma reliever inhalers, or emergency epinephrine. The Director of Children’s ministry must be made aware of life saving medication stored in a child’s bag and a Medication Administration Request Form in addition to an Action Plan must be completed and on file. 5. It is recommended that the first dose of any medication be given at home where the parent can monitor the effects. 6. Prescription medication must be in the original labeled pharmacy container and will be administered in compliance with the prescription instructions printed on the label. 7. Expired medications will not be given. 8. Custer Road UMC cannot and will not store any medication. All medication must be picked up by the parent/guardian at the conclusion of the event. **A current medical release must be on file for all children that may require medication while in our care due to allergies or other ongoing medical conditions. Click here to fill out the medical release.

Custer Road UMC welcomes children with special needs. We want to embrace and surround families with love and unique care. You can read more about our special needs ministries here.