The Differentiated Youth Group
There are many lenses through which I view the world- my Latina lens, my female lens, my daughter, sister, wife, and aunt lenses.
I also have my Christian lens and my teacher lens. When those two blend, it’s my favorite thing.
Recently I was reflecting on my days as a teenager in the youth group of my local church. I was new to church (but not new to faith or religion), and often felt like an outsider, like there was some sort of box or mold I was supposed to fit into that I didn’t.
Before moving on, I want to make it clear that I very much appreciate the church I went to at the time, especially the youth group and youth leaders. Looking back, though, I’ve come to realize how inferior I felt as a believer. I felt I wasn’t “Christian enough”. I didn’t grow up in the church. I didn’t have many Christians in my family. I hadn’t read much of the bible or heard many of the songs or knew many of the key vocabulary words (sacrament? gospel? good news?). I had never led anybody to Jesus, didn’t even know what that meant or how to do it or why that was a thing I was supposed to do. I didn’t have devotionals every day, didn’t have a big, dramatic, tearful testimony. I was…subpar. While I never felt overlooked at church, I definitely walked in the shadow of my best friend at the time, the “high flier Christian”. I was more than happy not to receive the attention she received, but I would have appreciated the attention I needed.
It was at this point in my reflection that I started to analyze my youth group experience through my teacher lens. What I needed in my youth group was what I now work so hard to give my students – differentiated and targeted instruction.
Can you imagine the impact a truly differentiated youth group would have on young people? Instead of a blanket approach where everybody sings the same songs and reads the same verses and listens to the same sermons, teenagers/preteenagers/elementary students would be given exactly what they need according to where they are in their faith journey. If you’re a more “advanced” Christian, here are some challenge activities and questions and outreach opportunities. For the “bubble” students, here are some verses and prompts to move you along to the next checkpoint. For those who need more support, here is an introductory lesson on what it means to even be part of a church body. Let’s answer all your questions before you’re asked to pray in front of a circle of strangers.
While I am sure my idea is not revolutionary to most people, it was to me. I thought about how Younger Crissy would have greatly appreciated someone recognizing what she needed, and meeting those needs. I would have loved to have been reassured that I wasn’t dumb because I didn’t know what to say back on a Sunday morning when the pastor said, “God is good”. I wasn’t lacking intelligence, but lacking key prior knowledge. With that understanding, I would have been able to fully grasp and understand the church and Christianity for all its beauty and wonder. I would have been able to engage and interact more. I wouldn’t have been intimidated into silence because, at times, I literally had no idea what was going on. It was as if the pastor or youth leader was speaking another language. If my learning there would have been more individualized, I would have been able to take more autonomy over my learning, something I haven’t really started to do until the last couple of years.
At the end of the day, kids in a youth group are students – they’re learning and exploring and questioning, wondering and listening and thinking and doubting. To fully empower them, they need to be considered as individuals with a multitude of distinct needs, and the beauty in that diversity should be seen, understood, and affirmed.
