And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”
Revelation chp 21 vs 5
An act of collective worship for the new school year and for Education Sunday (September 10th 2017)
Preparation
You need coloured crayons as per below (or pencils, but chunky crayons could be easier to see). However, if you want to use coloured something else, that works as well – crayons are suggested only because they link with the blessing of the new items below.
For the blessing children and adults could be invited to bring in something new to the assembly hall that they have started using this term – lunch box, backpack, pencil case, uniform etc.
If your vicar is leading, or sharing in, the worship then ask them if they can bring an aspergillum (a brush or ball on a stick used for sprinkling holy water) to use in the blessing.
Gathering
The Lord is here
Response: His spirit is with us
Introduction
A start of a new school year is a very exciting time for everyone. There are new people to meet, we are in different rooms, there are new routines and new work challenges. We may be starting to learn a new skill or taking on a new role in the school and some of us are actually new to the school. (You may wish to pause and greet all new staff and pupils here.) Sometimes new can be a bit scary too if we are uncertain about what to do or what will happen next, so we are going to start our new school year with special prayers so that we feel ready for the new school year.
Engaging
As you select each coloured crayon you may like to something more creative with it than just hold it up e.g. you could start to draw a rainbow or another interlocking symbol similar to the Olympic rings or a pie chart – these will show that there are many different facets to a school day and many different experiences over the year (and over a lifetime). You could ask the children how the different colours make them feel (although you may have to alter what you are going to say a little if someone comes up with a better idea than yours!). Or…. The colour suggestions below can each be an individual prayer, or gathered together as one prayer at the end. You may decide not to use all the colours or change them – adapt to your own situation.
We are going to build a picture of our school day and our school year by using special colours to remind us of all the different things which are important to us here:
GREEN is for growing times. We are always growing, our knowledge is growing, our skills are being nurtured, our personalities are changing, most of us are growing in height. We will all be different people at the end of the year from what we are today. We pray that God will be with us and help us to be “growing people”.
BROWN is the colour of the earth and so we pray for the school and for our families, because if we are going to grow then we need everyone at school and at home to support us and nourish us like the green plant draws its strength and nourishment from the earth. We pray for all our teachers that they will have energy, patience and endurance and create classrooms filled with care and respect.
YELLOW is a creative colour, it is like the light shining in our lives and lighting us up with excitement and joy. We ask God that our school will be a place full of light and happiness and creativity.
RED is a warning colour. It reminds us that there will be times when we feel confused or insecure or even unhappy, because everyone feels like that sometimes. We pray that when this happens to us we will know who to go to for help and will remember that God is still with us and loves us.
BLUE is the colour of peace. We pray that a school will be a peace filled place, that we will have peaceful classrooms where we can learn together, and that we will be peace-bringers in our schools, our homes and environment.
Responding
O God, today we gather to celebrate the beginning of a new school year. It is a day filled with joy and excitement as well as uncertainty and wonder. God of knowledge and wisdom, we pray to you for all schools that they may be lively centres for learning, new discovery, and the pursuit of goodness. AMEN
Today you have been asked to bring something new into the hall which you will be using for this year – it might be the new uniform you are wearing, or a new set of pencils, or new football boots. We are going to bless these now as a special way of blessing you for all the new things that lie ahead.
Ask the children (and adults) to hold up or point to what is going to be blessed. If your vicar is with you this is where they will use the aspergillum and bless the school. If you do not have a member of clergy with you, you may like to use the prayer below:
Lord we ask that you will bless these new pieces of equipment and the pupils and teachers who use them. May you grow each one of us in memory, reason and skill and bring us together as your family here in ++++.
Sending
Go out into our school to explore, discover and learn together
Response: We go in Jesus’ name. Amen