Find out what the Primary 6 students in City Harvest Church have been up to in the month of October.
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| PHOTO COURTESY OF VEIEN ONG |
October is usually a month of transition for Primary 6 students in Singapore. After sitting for their Primary School Leaving Examinations in the early part of that month, the 12-year-olds then prepare to enter into the next phase of their academic life—Secondary School. In City Harvest Church, Primary 6 students also experience another type of transition in church—“graduating” from the Children’s Church to the normal young adult weekend services.
As early as August each year, both the Children’s Church and pastoral departments facilitate the transfering of these youngsters which is based on two factors: First, the age of the cell group members have to be within the younger age range. Second, the location of the cell group meetings has to be relatively near their homes, for easy travel.
To better prepare them for the transition, the various zones in CHC will organize a graduation party to help with the smooth transfer of these members. More than an opportunity to integrate these younger members, the parties also give the graduating students a chance to invite their friends to these events as they form new friendships within the church. This year, some 200 Primary 6 students in CHC will make that transition.
During the third and fourth weekend of October, several such parties were held across the church involving many youth cell groups. To add to the fun factor of these events, there were special themes for these activities where participants had to come decked out in Hawaiian outfits or dress up as a famous celebrity.
In addition, the organizers of these parties introduced people-games such as “Double Whacko,” which was a hit (pun intended) with the attendees, and others that were geared toward the intellectual domain such as the Singaporean version of, Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader (which was renamed “Are You Smarter Than A 12-Year-Old?”).
In the latter, older members pitted their knowledge and wits against the new, younger members—and were sorely defeated by the intellectual prowess of the Primary 6 students. One of the students, Joy Tan, recalled, “The games were very fun and relevant. I enjoyed myself thoroughly.”
Nicolette Ng, 20, a cell group leader of two youth cell groups, spiced things up at her zone’s Primary 6 party by adding a magic show and a drama depicting a teenager’s life in Secondary School. She also organized a picnic party at Fort Canning Park where the members played rugby, Frisbee and other ball games. Both outreaches saw a total of over 50 new friends.
Ng shared, “It was a very fun experience for both us and the children. The [kids] showed a lot of enthusiasm and life through their involvement in the activities. The best part was that the turnout was better than expected.
Over the next few weeks, the Primary 6 students will be joining their new cell groups for their weekly house group meetings, weekend church services, and all other zone outreaches.
It marks the beginning of a new and exciting phase of life as they enter teen-hood.
