Manhood Curriculum for Teenage Boys
I’m working on a Manhood Curriculum. While I’ve had a number of contacts from interested youth leaders, I’d like to get a feel for the interest and need for such a curriculum.
Squires Mentoring Group for Teenage Boys
When I started meeting with teen boys in a church mentoring group I called Squires, I discovered that there is very little in the way of resources for this program. I wanted to teach some general Bible study and I wanted to present and reinforce the Gospel, but my primary vision was to impart a vision of manhood - one that included commitment to marriage and family beyond what our current culture embraces (even the church).
So I began reading. I read a lot about manhood and teenage boys. I was able to plan monthly in-depth discussions with the boys. I adopted three Knighthood Verses. And I continued meeting with these boys for most of five years.
During that time, I discovered that many were very interested in what we were doing. Many were psyched about offering their sons and other boys a similar experience. But they wanted and needed resources. So I began to write.
While the Squires2Knights Devotional is useful in many venues, It falls short of the needed curriculum for church youth groups or school Bible clubs. So I’m back to writing again, but this time I’m going to do some video teaching with several other men.
Manhood Curriculum
We’re putting together four 6-week courses for teenage boys. They will be titled: Manhood 101, Manhood 201, Manhood 301 and Manhood 401. Each lesson will begin with a 15-20 minute video lesson. Each course will include a workbook for use in group discussions after each video. And each course will cover the 12 teaching topics from the three Knighthood Verses. The four courses can easily aline with the four years of highschool. Or they can be offered twice a year and be completed in two years. The boys attending are intended to be teenagers, but they could certainly start before age 13.
Please Comment or Email
I’m inviting comments and emails. I’d like to hear from those who could shed some light for me on the need and interest for this manhood curriculum. It’s going to take some time and money to complete this project and I’d like to know it would be put to good use. So again, please comment or email.
Jeff@Squire2Knights.com.
Posted on October 16th, 2008 by Jeff Purkiss
Filed under: Fathering/Mentoring
I would be very interested in this video course. I am working with a group of teenage boys right now but not really sure where to begin.
I am researching this exact topic. I am the youth director for 5th -8th graders. I want to discuss, choosing the right friends, respect for girls, hygiene, etc. Unfortunately, I can not wait until the video series is done. I am starting in January of 09. Any suggestions?
I am a youth group leader and father of two teen boys. I am interested in this curriculum. Too, I do national presentations on mentoring and am looking for new materials to teach foster/adoptive parents and others who work with teen boys and how to best deal with them. THANK YOU!!!
I’m a mom who desperately needs help raising my 4 boys; I’ve reached out for help with family and friends. But no one can give the amount of time, nor the amount of devotion it takes to love, guide, and show manhood approval to my boys. I have learned the hard way that teenage boys don’t need a mom; they need a dad who so much loves them and so much loves God. I’ve asked God please be their dad, please don’t leave them like this. He promised He would be a father to the fatherless. When they were little, they loved and respected me. I even got handmade cards saying how he appreciated me teaching him right, and keeping him on the right path, that I’m the only one who hasn’t let him down. But now I CAN’T BE what he needs; by my gender, I let him down. Please, God, help. I didn’t raise my boys to live like the men of the world.
JBSI
While I certainly can’t relate to your predicament by experience, I understand your concerns. I want to encourage you to trust in God the Father as He can provide for your needs and your sons’.
As you continue to pursue men as role models and mentors for your sons, you can still influence them toward the masculine traits that God has purposed for them. I recommend Rick Johnson’s That’s My Son - How Moms Can Influence Boys to Become Men of Character and Sharon Elliott’s Raising Boys to Be Like Jesus.
Also, if there is a man who may be available to your sons, consider giving him a copy of my book, Squires to Knights - Mentoring Our Teenage Boys. The book clearly explains the need for mentors for all young men and inspires men to step up to the plate in that role.
Finally, a copy of A Squire’s Devotional - Personal Devotions for Teenage Boys may be a great resource for you and your sons to spend some time talking together as you encourage and support their masculine maturity.
In His name,
Jeff Purkiss
My sister in Christ…prayers are going up even as I type this. I know that if something happened to me, my wife would be in the same boat. I hear this from single moms all across the country. Our fathers are not taking responsibility for raising their children and the burden goes to you as Mom. My heart goes out to you. While there may not be any men available right now, know that God will not leave nor forsake you and that Romans 8:28 is still in play. Too, I Cor. 15:58 is a verse I cling to EVERY DAY as a father, counselor, and youth group leader. I believe our time here is short…the signs are evident…God is moving. In the meantime, I am, by His grace alone, putting into practical application I Thes. 5:16-18. It is our only weapon against the ‘prowling lion’ as our world seems to crumble around us.
I want to thank you and encourage you for you desire to create something that is desperately needed in our churches across this country. I am a pastor for a small church in Central Texas (about 200), we have a growing youth group (from 5 to 30 this past year) and we are constantly struggling with this issue. I would absolutely be interested in checking out what you are developing and also am willing to share with you some of the resources that we have developed.
In His Grip,
Scott
I am really elated to see this and am interested in ascertaining when the series will become available. I need such a study URGENTLY. Please respond ASAP.
This would be a welcome addition to our youth program in our small Mississippi Delta town, and I am sure that this would be a useful program of study anywhere. Please advise of future developments. In the meantime, I am beginning a boys Bible Study later this summer and any help would be appreciated if anyone has any suggestions.
I am desperate for such a course. I work with high-risk 17-21 year old institutionalized boys. They are hungry for something to fill them, and they often choose drugs, violence, and sex. I have been meeting with them for just over six months, and I know they would be more receptive to my Bible studies if they were more pertinent to manhood issues. If you have anything already available, please email me to show me the right direction. And, thank you, for listening to His call.
What are the projected release dates for Manhood 201, 301, and 401? I recently ordered Manhood 101 and have completed the six lessons with Boys in our AWANA T& T Club.
The million dollar question. Manhood 201 - possibly the end of January 2010. I figure at least 3 - 4 months for each of Manhood 301 and 401 after that.
I am astounded at the lack of curriculum geared towards teenage boys. I have googled for resources for my son and have found nothing but studies devoted to puberty and sexual purity. While this is great to have on hand our young men need more substance. Our boys need a practical study guide that will teach them what it means to simply be a godly man; being that the examples are few. I am also a youth leader as well as a mother of two sons and am discouraged at the lack of attention given to the girls versus the boys. We are desperately in need of male leaders to step up and start leading the way. I believe this curriculum you are formulating may help men to do just that.