Mum attending Anglican church launches app for small children to learn about the Gospel.
New Bible-Based App for Kids and their Grown-Ups.
This Pancake Day, one south Yorkshire family are wrapping up an old message in a new way by launching their own app. Designed for parents who want to use the Lent period to teach their kids more about God, God for Kids is fun, interactive and educational.
“As a family we have helped kids and parents all over the world learn more about God, through preschool music groups, Sunday schools and festivals. My husband even published a children’s’ book in the Philippines once!” Says Joanne Gilchrist, 33 mother of 2 girls.
The family moved to South Yorkshire from New Zealand in 2014, where they worked as missionaries with YWAM and the local church. Due to oversubscribed local preschools, Joanne spent most of her time at home with her 3 year old and started to jot down ideas for a children’s book about God.
“My kids love being quizzed, doing puzzles and they love the iPad. What started as a book evolved into a kids app and on Pancake day the idea will become reality!” Says Joanne.
It became a project the whole family could get involved with. Gabriella, 7 years old, was the main ‘tester’ of her mum’s first efforts and is now officially involved as the voice of the main character, Rü. You find out what the name means in the fourth and final adventure of the app.
“My daughter has a beautiful voice for radio!” Says Johnny, Joanne’s husband who is Programme Manager at The Oakes Holiday Centre in Norton, Sheffield.
Her younger daughter Briony is now 5 and has become involved by testing the new content of the second adventure in the app, ‘God is Big’. She regularly asks Mum when she can do another ‘God for Kids’ before bedtime.
“It’s become part of our bedtime routine.” Says Johnny. “Brush teeth, do a God for Kids activity, then stories and bed. We have always used this time to read a Bible story but they’ve read them all at least twice now. This is something new. ”
The app is Bible-based but instead of telling a story, it looks at one Bible verse at a time to uncover a particular ‘personality trait’ of God, answering such questions as ‘Where does God Live?’ and ‘How old is God?’ along the way.
“You can even set an alarm within the app so you can do one activity a day, allowing time for your child to think through what they have discovered and for the parent to read up about it on my blog!” says Joanne.
The app will be released in the App Store on Pancake Day, and we will celebrate Pentecost with the Android version (15th May). For more information see www.GodforKidsapp.com or facebook.com/GodforKidsapp.
Joanne Gilchrist has been an evangelist/missionary all her adult life, with her local church and prior to that with Youth With A Mission in New Zealand. When not ‘project managing’ the lives of her 5 and 7 year old daughters, she is writing a book, a blog and the content for the 3rd and 4th adventures of ‘God for Kids’ app.
She and her family worship at St Thomas Crookes, in Sheffield.For more information contact: Joanne Gilchrist joannegilchrist@gmail.com
[Editor’s note: our publication of this Press Release does not entail endorsement of the product, but it sounds like a good initiative, and feedback would be welcome!]
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
