Kids

Shad­ow Moun­tain Kid’s pur­pose is to pro­claim the truth of God, to inspire love for God, and to empow­er life with God. We strive to be a place where kids love to learn and grow in Christ, where par­ents love to bring their kids, and where church mem­bers love to lead and serve. We pro­vide a safe and car­ing envi­ron­ment for kids where we can teach them about God in an age-appro­pri­ate way. We rec­og­nize that chil­dren learn best through play, which means learn­ing about God should be enjoyable.

Service Information:

Kid's at (Nurs­ery-5th grade avail­able at all three services) 

• Sat­ur­day at 5:00pm 

• Sun­day at 9:00am and 10:45am (Kids Blast/​Kids Blast Jr.)

  • Day, Time: Sunday, 10:45 am - 12:15 pm

Kids Blast

A high-energy kids church experience every Sunday at 10:45am.

Get ready to experience Shadow Mountain Kids like never before! Join us every Sunday for our over-the-top, exciting large-group programming with live worship, creative themes, fun games, super cool activities, and, best of all, amazing stories from the Bible that will encourage and inspire your kids throughout each week! It's like Summer Blast, but every single weekend! Don't miss out—come see all the excitement waiting for you at Shadow Mountain Kids! 

Kids Blast: 1st-5th grade in the Event Cen­ter
Kids Blast Jr.: Preschool/​Kinder in the Kids Build­ing Base­ment
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Weekend Services

How can we help kids fall in love with church? By making it safe, exciting, and unforgettable! Each weekend, we offer a vibrant and varied ministry program that includes both small group settings (like "Sunday school") and large group experiences to engage kids of all ages and personalities. Since children learn in different ways, we provide a range of options to ensure every child finds what resonates with them.

Click the tabs below for more details on our various programs!

 
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Leaving your little ones can be tough, so we want you to feel completely at ease! In our nursery, your child will enjoy a clean, safe, and nurturing environment designed just for them. Our caring and friendly volunteers provide loving attention as your babies (birth to 23 months) dance to music, listen to Bible stories, create fun crafts, and play with other little ones. We invite you to visit the nursery anytime to see the wonderful experiences we offer! You'll find us on the first floor of the Generations Building next to the Cafe, ready to welcome your family!

In preschool ministry, our goal is to partner with families to build strong spiritual foundations in little hearts and minds. It is our prayer that preschoolers will develop vibrant relationships with Jesus and know Him as their Maker, Savior, and Friend. Beginning at age 3, we use active, hands-on learning through personalized age-appropriate crafts, sensory play, activities, and creative storytelling strategies to teach foundational Biblical truths. Preschoolers will learn big truths from God’s word, such as who God is and what He is like, and concepts such as prayer, worship, and evangelism in engaging and developmentally appropriate ways.
 

We promote a “two-hour” program at Shadow Mountain, meaning kids are encouraged to attend Sunday School at one service and our large group experience at the other: 

  • During 5:00 pm Saturday and 9:00 am Sunday, we offer traditional “Sunday School” programming in intimate classroom settings, which includes Bible lessons, activities, and snacks.
  • The 10:45 am Sunday service provides a large group experience (Kids Blast Jr.) with live worship, Bible lessons, games, and activities that reinforce what they learn. 

Ministry to elementary-age kids is crucial for fostering their spiritual development and nurturing a lifelong faith. In 1st – 5th grade, we build on the biblical principles established in our preschool and nursery environments. Children are naturally curious and eager to learn at this age, making it an ideal time to engage with them in meaningful activities, stories, and discussions that will help them build a strong foundation for their faith. We encourage their understanding of God and His love and foster a sense of community and belonging within the church. Through supportive relationships with leaders and peers, elementary-age children learn to express their beliefs, ask questions, and develop a personal connection to their faith that can guide them throughout their lives.

We promote a “two-hour” program at Shadow Mountain, meaning kids are encouraged to attend Sunday School at one service and our large group experience at the other: 

  • During 5:00 pm Saturday and 9:00 am Sunday, we offer traditional “Sunday School” programming in classroom settings, which includes Bible lessons, activities, and games.
  • The 10:45 AM service in the Event Center provides a large group experience (Kids Blast) with live worship, Bible lessons, games, and activities. See Kids Blast tab for more details!

We partner with parents of children with special needs by creating a safe and caring environment designed just for them. Our class for kids with special needs, ELEVATE, meets every Sunday during the 10:45 a.m. service in the Kid's Building. For the comfort of your child, we highly encourage parents to attend one service in Elevate alongside their child(ren) before deciding to drop them off. 

Please visit the Children's Building lobby to fill out a form to join Elevate.

 

  • Day, Time: Wednesday, 6:15 pm - 8:00 pm

AWANA

AWANA (Approved Work­men Are Not Ashamed) offers a cur­ricu­lum that reach­es chil­dren, youth, and fam­i­lies with the gospel of Jesus Christ. AWANA meet­ings fea­ture var­i­ous activ­i­ties like game time, wor­ship, age-appro­pri­ate Bible lessons, and indi­vid­ual or group Scrip­ture mem­o­riza­tion. By using a com­bi­na­tion of fun and edu­ca­tion­al ele­ments, AWANA aims to cre­ate an excit­ing envi­ron­ment where chil­dren and youth can learn about the Chris­t­ian faith while build­ing strong moral char­ac­ter and per­son­al discipline.

Pug­gles® rec­og­nizes the learn­ing abil­i­ty of two and three year olds by intro­duc­ing bib­li­cal con­cepts at church and equip­ping fam­i­lies to teach them at home. This year-long preschool min­istry cur­ricu­lum fea­tures play­ful activ­i­ties, engag­ing songs and sim­ple crafts as well as take-home resources.

Cubbies® nurtures the budding faith of preschoolers and celebrates their desire to explore all that God has created. This two year preschool ministry curriculum features exciting games, storytelling, puppet shows, and biblical teaching as well as take-home activities and tools.

Sparks® ignites a child’s curiosity about the people and events of the Bible, building a foundation of wisdom for knowing Christ. This three year early elementary school ministry curriculum features exciting games, engaging activities, biblical teaching and media resources for kids and leaders.

T&T® explores the concept of grace by focusing on the character and nature of God, identity of Christ, as well as the structure and format of the Bible. This four year upper elementary school ministry curriculum is created to ensure that kids and leaders connect through God's Word.

Interested in serving as an AWANA Leader?

  • Day, Time: Sunday, 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Children's Choir

Your child will learn to sing faith based songs, par­tic­i­pate in rhythm and move­ment games, learn dra­ma, make mean­ing­ful crafts, estab­lish per­for­mance skills, and most impor­tant­ly, they will have a great time learn­ing new things about our Lord!

Your child will learn to sing faith based songs, participate in rhythm and movement games, learn drama, make meaningful crafts, establish performance skills, and most importantly, they will have a great time learning new things about our Lord!

Registration is now closed until after Christmas.  Registration for the Spring semester will open at a later date.

Children's Choir is designed for kids in 1st - 5th grade who love singing about Jesus. We rehearse every Sunday night from 5:00 - 6:15 p.m. in the Choir Room which can be found on the second floor of the Generations Building.

Registration is now closed until after Christmas. Registration for the Spring semester will open at a later date.

  • Director Tim Brown

Sports

We’re about the WIN. For us, the WIN is being a WIT­NESS for Jesus Christ to the com­mu­ni­ty, INTE­GRAT­ING peo­ple into the SMCC fam­i­ly and NOUR­ISH­ING the qual­i­ty of our pro­grams and leaders.

SPARC Youth Rec Basketball is a developmental basketball league designed to teach young athletes the fundamentals of basketball through practice and organized games. This league is open to boys and girls in grades K-8 of any skill level. From beginner to advanced, we are a rec league open to all stages of development. Kids will not be turned away because of their skill.

Different teams will practice either Monday, Tuesday or Thursday for one hour between 4pm-8pm depending on the coach and team. Starting the first week of December, teams will be able to practice once a week on the outdoor courts (Don Palmer courts) on the campus of SMCC. Games are scheduled for Saturdays between 8am-3pm starting in January. The season will include playoffs for grades 3-8 and will conclude by the first weekend in March. Each division will play at different times on Saturday mornings. The games will be played in the Ryan Athletic Center (RAC) on the campus of SMCC. A complete game schedule will be available prior to the start of the season.

SPARC Club Basketball is designed as a developmental program for kids looking to compete beyond rec level basketball.  For kids looking to improve in all aspects of their basketball ability and face tougher competition outside of the SPARC rec league, the club opportunity at Shadow Mountain is a great fit! Kids will grow in their understanding of offensive and defensive concepts, learn systems and plays as well as have the opportunity to compete against other club teams around San Diego County. 

This league is for boys ages 12-17; 6th grade thru 12th grade. We are open to all skill levels, from beginner to advanced, as we work each towards a competitive AAU club program. There are two possibilities for team placement.  The first will be by age and secondly, if they are able to compete at a high level, they could be moved up to an older team. 

The SPARC Ministry at SMCC is excited to offer Youth Soccer again this summer!  The program this season will consist of 4 sessions and is designed to introduce kids to the joy of soccer and develop their skills in a fun and encouraging environment. Each young athlete will learn the fundamentals of soccer through individual skill drills and organized team play. This league is open to boys and girls from ages 3-12 of any skill level.

Youth Soccer

Soccer program designed to introduce kids to the joy of soccer & develop their skills in a fun & encouraging environment.  For boys and girls ages 3-12.

Youth Basketball Camp 

Join Shadow Mountain Sports & Christian High Basketball coaches for a 4 day camp that includes skill development and live games for boys & girls ages 5-14. 

Power Sports Camp

Join us for a 4 day multi-sport camp (Basketball, Baseball, Volleyball, Football, Soccer, and more) for boys & girls ages 5-12.

FAQs

Kids Baptism

After salvation, the decision to be baptized is the next step of faith in the life of a believer. We love to see kids come to know Jesus as their Savior and then choose to get baptized! At SMCC, we provide every child the opportunity to share a short testimony and be baptized in the worship center during one of our main services. We recommend that kids are at least entering third grade before deciding to participate in baptism. If your child is younger than third grade, please contact Shadow Mountain Kids Ministry to discuss baptism. 

 
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Child Dedication

Child dedication is a symbolic ceremony undertaken by Christian parents declaring their desire and intention to raise their child to know and follow the Lord (Prov. 22:6). We desire to help you make this a meaningful life experience by partnering with you in prayer, fellowship, and providing resources as you begin this journey as a family. You will have the opportunity to participate by standing before friends and family to read a blessing for your child and receive prayer.

Upcoming Child Dedication Ceremony & Class Dates: 
February 23, 2025 @ 12:15 pm (Parent Information Class) 

March 22, 2025 @ 3:00 pm (Dedication) 
The required Parent/Child Dedication Class is designed to communicate more effectively what this step is all about in your parenting journey. 
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Join Our Team

Children's ministry is vital to our church, as it lays a solid spiritual foundation for the next generation. It is where faith comes alive through play, stories, and friendships! By engaging children in meaningful ways, we help them understand biblical truth, develop strong values, and build lasting relationships with their peers, mentors, and the Lord. By diving in, you get to be a part of their spiritual journey, helping kids discover the joy of their faith while having a blast. Join us in making church the best part of the week for our kids—your energy and enthusiasm can truly make a difference!

Come by the Kids Building Lobby during any of our weekend services to hear about the many opportunities to get involved in our ministry.

 
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Links For Current Volunteers

Links to curriculum are available below. Please see your area coordinator if you need the password.

Leadership

Jesse Abeel Children's Pastor