A.C.T.S.

When Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6 (The Lord's Prayer) he begins, "Pray then like this…" As we teach our children how to pray, we can look at this model prayer and simplify portions of it. It is easy for children to become focused on only giving thanks or only asking for needs or desires, so the mnemonic A.C.T.S. is a great way to remember different things you can teach your child to talk to God about. You can begin by having your child repeat your words as you teach her to pray. Then you can move to having her finish the sentence. Eventually she will be praying on her own.

A - Adoration
This part of the prayer with your daughter might go like this:
Mom: Dear God,
Daughter: Dear God,
Mom: You are…
Daughter: God, You are good! You are kind! You are loving!

And with your son it might sound like this:
Mom: Dear God,
Son: Dear God,
Mom: You are…
Son: God, You are awesome! You are strong! You are fast! You are so fast if anyone challenged You to a race You would win!

C - Confession
Prompt your child to confess sin to a holy God. Prompt her then to thank God for His forgiveness.

T - Thanksgiving
Simply have your child tell God "Thank you" for specific people and/or things. If she needs prompting, you could direct her to places she regularly goes (thank you for my school, my church, the park) or people she often sees (thank you for my teachers, my friends, my parents) or things she likes (thank you or ice cream, basketball, warm coats).

S - Supplication
Encourage your child to pray for specific needs of people she knows. Everyday. "God, please help the baby in Mrs. Charity's tummy to grow strong and healthy." Try to direct her away from always praying about herself.