Parent Connection – April 2026
What to Encourage for April 2026:
We just began a new four-week series called “Fighting Fair,” in which we’ll take a deep dive into what it looks like for Christ-followers to handle conflict in a healthy, respectful way. One thing to encourage during this season is to identify areas of conflict that are normal to students (chores, responsibilities, respect, etc) and open a dialogue about how to improve those both at home and wherever your student has relationships.
Also, we are encouraging everyone to celebrate Easter by inviting someone to sit with them. Can you help us encourage your student to invite someone to come sit with your family during one of the Easter Services this Sunday?
Monthly Parent Tip: Weekly Calendaring/Scheduling
One of our rhythms is Sunday evening, I airplay my calendar to our family TV to talk through our weekly schedule together. We talk about who is making dinner, what plans we all have this week (arranging rides), and what we would like to see happen this week (something that needs to be fixed or a special activity or game a family member would like to see happen). If you don’t have one of these times, try scheduling one this month, sticking to it once a week, and let me know how it goes for your family!
How I’m using AI this Month: Planning activities & Road Trips
I love activities and trips! Last week, I took a vacation day, and I asked AI what would be fun to do around town, and it gave me some fun ideas. Then I began dreaming about a road trip I’d love to do to DC in 2027, and so I asked AI what route it would recommend for a road trip like that, stopping at various sites along the way. Such a fun way to brainstorm fun activities for the family, both locally and abroad.
Are you looking for fun things to do as a family? If you find an idea, share it, and maybe another family in the youth ministry will join you for double the fun!
What I’m Enjoying this Month!
Worship Initiative - This is such a wonderful resource for families who love to worship. Every song we sing in Middle School can be found in their worship library, and there are tutorials for every major instrument and vocal harmonies for all of them. If you are musical or want to be, check it out!
The Amazing Generation - Jonathan Haidt’s blockbuster book, The Anxious Generation, has sparked a global conversation about the effects of smartphones and social media on young people’s development, and has inspired millions of parents, teachers, and leaders to take action. Now, Haidt and Catherine Price, author of the bestselling How to Break Up with Your Phone, have teamed up to create a new book that speaks directly to kids. I haven’t finished it yet, but so far I really like it and plan to hand it to my teenager to read soon when I finish it.
Jon’s Game of the Month:
I’m a huge gamer and love playing computer games and board games, especially when they bring people together, as most games should. So here’s my game of the month:
Just One - Ok, this is another game that Amazon has told me I’ve purchased four times, just like last month. It is a cooperative game that really needs a minimum of 4 people for this to be fun, and I like it best with about 6 people. You win or lose together by trying to give one-word clues to get one in your group to guess a target word, but there is a clever catch where sometimes the guesser never hears your clue. So good!
My April question for Middle School Parents is this:
Currently, we end youth around 8:15 on Wednesdays. If I helped advertise it, would your family be interested in looking for a place to go after youth (say 8:30-9:30), like Braums after youth ends, or are you ready to head home and get ready for Thursday?
