What is a Community Playgroup?
A community playgroup is a group of Moms with preschool age children that meet regularly for kids to play and for Moms to connect.
Where does it meet?
Different places every time. The park, the creek, the fire station, a church, someone’s house, McDonald’s playground, ice cream store, toy store (a cool one that lets your kids play),
How often does it meet?
You decide. We met every Tuesday morning at the park. You could do every other week if you wanted. Once a month is too hard to keep momentum. Work around other Mom’s groups like MOPS in picking a day for your playgroup.
How do you get the word out?
Word of mouth. Inviting Moms and their kids you see at the library or out grocery shopping. Your first 6-8 meetings should take place at a local park. Just tell people, “Hey, we’re starting up a community playgroup for Moms and kids. We’re meeting here Tuesday mornings at 10am. Bring your own snacks and join us for the fun.” Guess what? Moms are longing for this kind of connection. Our leader was a kid magnet one year and she would bring extra stuff to accommodate any kids at the park that day. Kids attract kids. So if you have a group of kids blowing bubbles together the other kids are going to come over and join in. Then you get to introduce yourself to their Mom and invite them to come out again next week at the same time for more fun.
What do you do once you’re there?
Well, we had an awesome coordinator one year who came prepared with a simple art project for the kids. We didn’t do that every time but many times we did. The kids would play on the playground and then we’d gather for a snack or project. It’s a laid back time. The more you show up the more your group will connect and really enjoy each other.
Where do I start if I want to lead a community playgroup?
Talk to one other Mom who would join you. Pray together that God will give you a heart and vision for other Moms in your community. Ask God to show you what your next steps are.
Colossians 4:5&6 “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so you may know how to answer everyone.” To this day I still have “community playgroup” written out in the margin next to that verse.
This verse reminded us to be strategic in our conversations. To not be satisfied with this just being another “Mom club” but to be ready to share and to look for opportunities to share Jesus with others.
When you pray for God to give you open doors he does. So keep your eyes opened. They will surely come.
We were surprised but so excited when God drew quite a few Moms in the community playgroup to our church – one ended up being our Children’s Ministry Leader for several years. She also took over the leadership of the playgroup. We saw other Moms become connected and re-enter church or start attending church for the first time. It really was amazing to see God use this. He will do it for you too!
Ideas for your playgroup once you’re established:
(I recommend keeping it simple to begin with and meet at a local park/playground 4-6 times. Get to know Moms and kids names and then move on to more field trip type outings and such.)
- Paint mini pumpkins at a local park – might need to ask for $2.00 from the Moms to cover expenses.
- Visit a pumpkin patch and take a hayride.
- Take a tour of the Fire Station – call ahead to schedule. The kids love this!
- Play indoors at a Mall playground or Fast Food playground.
- Make these adorable cars out of cardboard boxes. This was a favorite for our group.
- See if you can get a Kindermusik representative to do a music class for you. This benefits her because it gives her exposure to potential customers but it doesn’t cost your group anything.
- Have a Christmas party and have Santa come. Moms can donate $5 for a small gift if you choose to do that.
- Go to a dairy farm and then get ice cream.
- Have a dress up super hero/princess theme playgroup day
- Library story hour
Have questions? Feel free to shoot me an email. I’d love nothing more than to help someone start up a group.
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