Online Training Zone

Watch this short introductory video from Karl Bastian about Kidology Leadership Labs. These online videos are designed to equip and encourage you with a topical approach.

The foundational Leadership Lab that looks at why the most important aspects of ministry have nothing to do with ministry. Put first things first and you will not just survive in children's ministry, you will thrive.

What are you doing to engage the curiosity of your kids?

What does it mean to have vision? How can a clear vision for ministry increase your effectiveness? How do you get your volunteer team working together toward a God-focused vision?

Let's take a serious look at the foundation of your children's ministry. At a time when creating a "fun ministry" has almost become the ultimate pursuit, its time to analyze where your focus should be.

Video training by Pastor Karl on the many ways to use the Wordless Book to share the Gospel with complete instructions.

If the very thought of 'family ministry' and 'partnering with parents' stirs up feelings of failure and discouragement, maybe it's time to change the way you think about ministering to kids and parents!

Are you exhausted? Stress robbing you of the joy of service? Let's learn how to evaluate your children's ministry, while also looking at keeping your life organized.

Karl explains what Fortnite is and how to use it to better connect with your kids.

A volunteer training video for check-in volunteers - helping them understand the importance of first impressions. 

A volunteer training video on the four keys to a nurturing nursery: is it Safe, Clean, Friendly and Purposeful?

Being a HERO is easy when you know what it takes! But make sure you aren't bringing the wrong "Super Powers" into the classroom when you serve! The Movie Star, the Secret Agent and the Wall Holder are just a few of the heros that you don't want to be. Learn the FOUR MAIN TRAITS of a SUPER HERO who serves in the kids ministry!

Our great joy and opporunity is to lead kids to Jesus!

Jesus said we are to be known by our love, but how do we share this love with children?

Learn the secrets of effective preteen ministry.

Questions are powerful, if used strategically. Learn the 3 types of questions and many secrets to guiding kids learning through questions.

The 3 Secrets to Having an AWESOME Classroom!

Making ministry to preschoolers a T.R.E.A.T. with this helpful volunteer training video!

Volunteer Training on how to be an Amazing Small Group Leader.

Get a "taste" of The Kids Church Cookbook via this introductory video from Karl Bastian, featuring an overview of the 7 installments that make up the series

The kick-off episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", first training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at how you can top things off by creatively using hats in your children's ministry.

The second episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at the many ways you can use puppets to enhance your teaching in children's church.

The third episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a BONUS LENGTH training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, which takes a look at the many ways you can use balloons to enhance your teaching in children's church.

The fourth episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at the many ways you can use magic to enhance your teaching in children's church.

In this video, Pastor Karl shares four areas that need addressing in order to maintain personal organization and practical tips to manage your schedule, your space, your stuff and your soul.

Part 10 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - Learn the Four Arenas of Marketing and the Top Four Methods for Messaging.

Part 2 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - Four powerful principles for managing a ministry team.  

Recruiting is only the beginning! Effective ministry managers must learn how to process new volunteers so that they are placed in the right place, with the right training and in a way that will keep them serving for years to come! You won't have to recruit as much if you retain volunteers God has already given you! In this video, veteran and full time Children's Pastor, Karl Bastian, shares his easy but comprehensive process for making sure no new volunteers slip through the cracks!

Part 4 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - 8 Principles that will make your meetings matter!

Part 5 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - The Why, What, Who, When and How of Ministry Communication.

Part 6 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - Secrets to Managing Your Documents, both Paper and Digital.

Part 7 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - Seven Principles that will help you turn Crises into Ministry Opportunities!

Part 8 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - The Truth, the Tools, the Tasks and the Techniques for keeping on top of your ministry.

Part 9 in Karl's Ministry Management Series - The Why, What, When, Where, Who and How of Event Management

The fifth episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at the many ways you can use storytelling to enhance your teaching in children's church.

The sixth episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at the many ways you can use games to enhance your teaching in children's church.

The seventh episode of "The Kids Church Cooking Show", a training video for The Kids Church Cookbook, takes a look at the many ways you can use object lessons to enhance your teaching in children's church.

A fast and easy game for connecting with kids that requires only a handful of pennies to have a bundle of fun!

A fast and easy magic trick anyone can do - make a handkerchief bow down at your very command! That is, when he chooses to obey!

Here is a fun, challenging but entertaining puzzle you can do with kids right at the table in a restaurant. It's so easy it's hard! But the kids will have a fun time as you connect with them through this handy game.

Amaze the kids the next time you eat out by making the restaurant's salt shaker pass right through a solid table! No secret props, use only materials at the table. It's a fun way to connect with kids the next time you eat out!

In this Kidology Lab, Karl shows you how to pass a quarter through a hole the size of a dime. It's impossible! (Unless you know the secret.) It's a great object lesson on how God can do the impossible!

In this Kidology Lab, Karl Bastian, the Kidologist - shows you an amazing trick you can do for your kids, with a bonus fun gag that always gets a laugh. Without cutting the edges of a normal piece of paper, Karl will show you how to cut a hole in the paper large enough for an entire person to pass through. Sounds impossible! It is, unless you know the secret.

Learn life lessons from a twenty year veteran of ministry who shares openly what he has learned about how to survive and thrive in ministry.

This was a volunteer training session in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin in 2014. The topic is ministry to kids of all ages - from nursery tips (how to quiet any crying baby) to preschool and grade school tips for relating to and teaching children.

10 Secrets of Effective Kid Communicators