I have been reflecting on the Family Fun Day that I told you about two weeks ago, and I think I made some poor choices in how I followed up the training.

Before the event, I trained several people in how to have conversations with visitors. We practised moving naturally from casual conversations, to meaningful conversations, to spiritual conversations, to conversations about Jesus.

I think the classroom training itself went well. But at the Family Fun Day it became obvious that the classroom training was not enough.

Training gives people knowledge. But putting that training into action takes practice. Often people need to see it modelled first. They may also need someone to ask afterwards, “How did it go?” and then help them think through how they could be more effective next time.

At the Family Fun Day, some of the people I trained did not really get much opportunity to practise what we had talked about. One person was serving ice cream, so most of his conversations were limited to “chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry?” Another person was supervising children building things with Lego, so he was focused on managing that activity.

I chose to go as a clown, and I did have some good interactions with families. But I now realise that I should have taken someone with me so they could watch how I started conversations and interacted with people. That would have been much more helpful than simply telling people what to do in a training session.

I could have spent time alongside the person at the ice cream station, modelling how to turn a simple service role into a more relational interaction. Or I could have asked beforehand how each person planned to interact with visitors in their assigned role. If I had realised earlier that someone with good conversational ability was going to spend the whole time serving ice cream, I could have suggested a different assignment, arranged for him to be relieved halfway through, or found another way for him to engage more directly with people.

In hindsight, the ice cream station may have been a better role for a younger person, perhaps a high school student who was still growing in confidence and English ability. Saying “chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry?” is simple, clear, and safe. Paired with a friend, that person might have had a great experience and grown in confidence.

So my main learning is this: training by itself is not enough. We also need modelling, practice, and feedback.

Next time, I think I need to ask questions like:

• How will each person actually interact with visitors in their assigned role?
• Who will model good conversations for those who are still learning?
• How will we check in afterwards and help people reflect on what happened?
• What roles are best suited for people who are confident conversationally, and what roles are better for people who are still growing in confidence?

I am grateful for what God did through the Family Fun Day, and I am also grateful for what I am learning from the things that did not go as well as they could have.

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