Children’s Meetings and Church Schools
93
parents may be reached. At our camp meetings in Australia these
meetings have been the means of great good.
Following is a brief account of work done in this line at an Aus-
tralian camp meeting, as written out by one who had a part in the
work:
“On the first Sabbath the children were organized into departments
and classes, and the teachers began their work. At the beginning there
were six children in the primary department and about fifteen in the
kindergarten. As soon as the children living in the neighborhood
learned of the meetings being held for them, they began to attend, and
each day found many new ones added to the classes. The average daily
attendance from the outside was between eighty and one hundred, and
on Sundays there was a larger number present. Most of the children
were very regular in their attendance. The same spirit of earnestness,
attention, and order that characterized the services among the older
ones marked the children’s meetings. Both in the classwork and in the
general review exercises the work was so arranged that the children
had a part in doing as well as listening, and in this way they soon felt
at home, and their eagerness to bear some part in the work testified to
their interest.
“Each lesson opened with a general exercise, which was followed
by the class studies; and at the close all assembled for a brief review and
song. In the opening exercises, after the song and prayer, the motto and
all the memory verses previously learned were recited, either in concert
[107]
or individually, or both. A short, appropriate reading or recitation was
given by one of the children who had previously volunteered to prepare
it. The ‘Scripture alphabet’ was learned and recited by the children,
each choosing his own letter and verse. The selection and learning of
the verses were done at home, and these responsibilities placed upon
the children proved an additional incentive for them to be present the
following day and to be regular in attendance.
“The ready responses in the review exercises testified that the
interest in classwork had been marked, and that many valuable truths
had found their way into the minds and hearts of the children. As
the children returned to their homes, the parents were surprised and
pleased to hear them repeat the whole lesson. Many parents expressed,
in various ways, their appreciation of the work that had been done for
the children and regretted that the meetings must close so soon.