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Head to the Heart + FAQs

If we use the Head to the Heart Home Journals, do we have to buy all three versions at once?

No. A church using H2H and the journals would typically buy only one version--the specific thirty-lesson book they would be covering that year. This would give you more than enough material for a year in confirmation, as well as extra summer material for parents at home.

Where are the old lessons now located?

In 2006, we reconfigured and added to our list of lessons, but have not taken any of our legacy lessons out of the line-up. If you’re looking for lessons that used to be in a three-lesson set, here’s a cheat sheet to help you locate their new paces of residence:

Baptism (Old Three Set)
1. Beginnings (now Luther & Sm. Cat. 9)
2. Newness of Life (now Lutheran Life 2)
3. Baptize and Teach (now Lutheran Life 1)

Communion (Old Three Set)
1. Last Supper (now Lutheran Life 3)
2. Body & Blood (now Lutheran Life 4)
3. Remembrance (now Luther & Sm. Cat. 10)

Bible Overview (Old Three Set)
1. OT Overview (now OT 1)
2. NT Overview (now NT 1)
3. Bible & My Life (now NT 10)

Apostles’ Creed Overview (Old Three Set)
1. God the Creator (now AC 1)
2. Jesus the Savior (now AC 4)
3. The Holy Spirit (now AC 7)

Confess, Confirm, Call (Old Three Set)
1. Confession (now AC 9)
2. Confirmation (now Lutheran Life 9)
3. Call (now Lutheran Life 10)

Basic Teaching (Old Three Set)
1. 10 Commandments Overview (now Luther & Sm. Cat. 6)
2. Apostles’ Creed Overview (Luther & Sm. Cat. 8)
3. Lord’s Prayer Overview (Luther & Sm. Cat. 7)

Old NT Set
1. Overview is now NT 1
2. Jesus the Prophet now makes up Life of Jesus 4-6
3. Jesus the Priest now makes up Life of Jesus 4-6
4. Jesus the King now makes up Life of Jesus 4-6
5. Acts and the Early Church is now NT 2 and 3
6. Letters of Paul is now NT 6
7. Hebrews is now NT 7
8. Catholic Letters is now NT 8
9. Revelation is now NT 9
10. Bible and My Life is now NT 10

Head to the Heart membership includes access to 90+ themes. How in the heck am I going to use all this stuff?

Good question. Get used to a world of abundance. Chances are very good that you won’t be able to use all of it. Access to all the great resources of Head to the Heart allows churches the maximum flexibility to teach what they want when they want.

There is no rule that says H2H must be used with Confirmation kids. With a little tweaking, make use of the materials for summer programming, retreats, sr. high ministry, and maybe even a little secret, remedial adult education!

If we use the Head to the Heart Home Journals, do I still need to print out the standard H2H Thought-Time sheets?

No. The journals cover several bases at once, but from a traditional H2H perspective, think of the journals as the Thought-Time sheets on steroids. In other words, users of the journals would no longer need to print out Thought-Time sheets each week. Each journal lesson contains all of the elements of the standard Thought-Time sheets plus extra materials for the parent-child discussion at home.

What comes with my standard H2H order?

Your Head to the Heart order comes with theme set CD-ROMs containing 90 lessons of material (master lessons, PowerPoint files, and MP3 theme music), a Support CD-ROM with documents getting you rolling with H2H (how-to articles, our Member Manual set-up guide, Tech Manual, Guide Training manual, and more). You’ll also receive a H2H binder to keep the materials you print together for future reference. Members new to H2H also receive a special DVD packed with almost two hours of tips and how-to’s from pastors and volunteers using the program. Please note: Audio CD’s are no longer supplied with H2H membership. However, all of the music is included as part of your PowerPoint files. H2H music is also now available for purchase from iTunes. Simply search for the name of your themeset in the iTunes store to buy music

Where are the “brain notes” in the PowerPoint files?

The brain notes are embedded in the PowerPoint files as a small colored rectangle in the upper left-hand corner of the slides while in normal view (small vertical slides on the left, bigger slide to the right).

What is available on the CD-ROMs and what is available online?

All of the files on your H2H CD-ROMs are nowbacked up and accessible online. In addition, you’ll find these additional files on the web:
• piano scores
• lead sheets
• Calvin and Wesley three-lesson sets

Why do you send out Head to the Heart on CD-ROMs?

Not everyone has high-speed access to the Internet or time to wait to download a bunch of stuff. Authoring our materials on CD-ROM effectively brings the Internet to you, allowing more time for ministry and less time for prep work. Of course, all of our materials are backed up on the web in case you need them.

Is it okay to combine themes?

Based on experience, we strongly advise against it. If you want to cover the information and make sure it sticks, you’re best served with a focused presentation twice a month. Special retreats, fifth Wednesdays, or summer camps can be planned each year to cover additional topics.

How many themes do I need to cover in a year?

Most churches run Head to the Heart from September through May. With nine months of events, that averages out to 18 themes a year during the confirmation schedule.

Do I need to prepare different topics for each confirmation grade?

Why would you want to do twice as much work? Because H2H takes multi-faceted brain-based learning theory into account, the same theme can be processed by kids at their own level. In H2H, the “rubber meets the road” when small groups care, share, and process the main teaching presentation together. Small groups allow kids to ask questions and explore the topic at their own pace.

How would I plan a one, two or three-year program?

With H2H now unlimited, you can plan whatever you want whenever you want.

The system looks pretty involved. Do I need a lot of training?

Short Answer: No. H2H is more than just a toolbox of resources for confirmation. If you realize this, are willing to recruit parents in the process, and generally are comfortable in giving ministry responsibility away (freeing yourself to do the things you do best) you’ll be fine.

Long Answer: If you want more, Faith Inkubators offers a variety of training opportunities to get you going and keep you fresh. We offer everything from three-day advanced courses for serious change agents to half-day special focus courses for presenters, musicians, Guides and senior high youth who want to excel in their volunteer roles.

Why don’t I cover a lesson each week?

Head to the Heart is more than curriculum. It is a ministry system designed for learning, service, and fellowship. If you don’t take the time to implement the other tried-and-true elements of the system (service events, fellowship events, and home devotions), you’re just cramming a square peg (H2H) into a round hole (traditional confirmation).

What are the computer system requirements?

Any computer with a CD-ROM drive can access the discs. If all you want to do is print out your themes from your CD-ROMs, you really don’t need a computer of recent vintage, just one that will play nice with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader® (we include a copy for you). If you are looking to run PowerPoint® presentations, you will need a more recent computer. Here are our minimum computer requirements:

PowerPoint® presentations:
• Windows® XP, XP Pro, Vista. Mac OS 10.3+
• Processor Minimum: Intel Pentium 4 / Celeron class 1.6 GHz, Pentium M / Celeron M 1.2 GHz or AMD Athlon 1600 Recommended: - Pentium 4 / Celeron: 2.4 GHz - Pentium M / Celeron M 1.7 GHz or - AMD Athlon 2400
• 512 MB RAM
• Graphics Processor Minimum: Any NVidia GeForce, ATI Radeon or Intel Extreme or better graphics processor with 32 MB of graphics memory Recommended: - ATI Radeon 9800 class or better - NVidia GeForce 6600 class or better - 64 MB of graphics memory
• CD-ROM drive
• 450 MB available hard drive space (Suggested Minimum)
• Microsoft PowerPoint 2002 (or newer)

Mac support is currently limited, as our Flash animations are not Macintosh compatible. However, we will have Mac-friendly versions of our karaoke music files in QuickTime format available for download by September 2008.

Adobe Acrobat:
• Intel® Pentium® processor
• Microsoft® Windows XP, Windows XP Pro, Vista
• 256MB RAM
• 800x600 screen resolution
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 6 or Adobe Acrobat 6 (or newer)

• Mac OS 10.3 or higher
• 256 MB RAM
• 800x600 screen resolution
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 6 or Adobe Acrobat 6 (or newer)

I have a membership-related question. How do I get it answered?

You should first refer to the Membership FAQ section of this website. You can also get personal service by dropping an e-mail message to info@faithink.com or calling our Director of Membership, Vanessa Beaudry, directly at 888-55FAITH.