Why More Women Than Men Serve in Children's Ministry

Go to a children's ministry conference and you will see a lot more women than men attending.  Attend any local church and you will see more women than men serving in children's ministry.  Take a look anywhere and you will see more women than men in children's ministry leadership roles.

Why is this?  Why do more women than men serve in children's ministry?  

Let's look at a few reasons.

Women are naturally more nurturing than men.  

Women's natural ability to provide comfort, care, and emotional support is greater than men.  This innate nurturing ability creates emotional connections and creates a sense of security and love. Children are drawn to this.

Women are generally more religious than men.  A survey by Pew Research revealed that 60% of women say religion is very important in their lives, compared to just 47% of men. 
 
Church attendance is higher among women than men.
  
The weekly gender gap is about 13 million (adult women = 48,000,000 compared to adult men = 35,000,000).  This would naturally bent toward more women serving than men in children's ministry.
 
Churches unintentionally portray children's ministry as a place where women primarily serve. 
 
They give tote bags to their volunteers.  They use feminine colors in their children's ministry communication pieces.  They create a feminine culture in children's ministry leadership.
 
Women are naturally more inclined to be involved at church.  
 
Look at these interesting stats:
 
Women are 100% more likely to be involved in discipleship.

Women are 57% more likely to participate in adult Sunday school.

Women are 54% more likely to participate in a small group.

Women are 46% more likely to disciple others.

Women are 39% more likely to have a devotional or quiet time.

Women are 33% more likely to volunteer for a church.

Women are 29% more likely to read the Bible.

Women are 29% more likely to attend church.

Women are 23% more likely to donate.

Women are 16% more likely to pray.
 
Take a look at your own children's ministry.  
 
Do you have a culture of men serving?
 
Do you have very many men serving? 

Are you providing male leadership for the boys in your ministry?  Especially for the boys who do not have a father figure in their life?

Concluding thoughts:

This is not meant to be a negative commentary about women serving in children's ministry. Women are a pillar in children's ministry.  They are the faithful leaders who make children's ministry happen week in and week out.  Children's ministry would be anemic without them.  
 
But we also need men to step up.  They are the role models that so many young men need.  They bring balance to the ministry through their unique gifts, personalities, and traits. 
 
Do you need more men serving in your children's ministry?  Here are a couple more articles I have written about this. 
 

 
You should also check out my book The Formula for Building Great Volunteer Teams. You can get it here.
 
Let's build a strong culture of men serving in our ministries.