More than 150 children attended a Whitley Bay church to explore the building, and learn how it is used in baptism and Eucharist services.
St Paul’s at Whitley Bay welcomed the Year 1 pupils from the town’s Marine Park First School and Horton Grange School, Cowpen, in November.
It was part of the church’s commitment to maintaining and building new links with schools in the community. Christianity is part of the Year 1 curriculum, and St Paul’s was an ideal place to see in real life the parts of Christianity which they had been learning about in class.
“It was a wonderful day and the children had a lot of fun in church,” said Mairi Howell, curate at St Paul’s (pictured, right). “They were very interested in the key features of the church, as well as finding out what happens inside. We had some fascinating discussions.”
Areas of the church, such as the font and the altar, were labelled as the children learned about their respective functions. They also went into the sanctuary to learn about the Eucharist, and took part in a role play of baptism, learning about the significance of the oil and water. The children designed baptism cards and talked about what makes the church special.
In December, St Paul’s will continue school’s outreach with pupils from Marine Park, Coquet Park and Woodlawn School, also in Whitley Bay, who will have their own Christingle or nativity service in the church as part of the Christmas Tree Festival, which is currently ongoing at St Paul's. The church is open to the public at the weekend, with events for schools running during this week. For more information visit the 'St Paul's Parish Church Whitley Bay' page on Facebook.
Mairi added: “It has been wonderful to welcome so many children into church. We aren’t attached to any church schools but it is important that we continue to develop links with our local schools.”