Frequently asked questions about the ROOTS website
Accessibility
I’m finding the text hard to read, can I do anything to help this?
Yes, you can change the size of the font using the buttons at the top left of the page.
I find the contrast of the colours on the page hard to read, can I change this?
Yes, you can change the colours of the page using the buttons at the top left of the page.
Login problems
What do I do if I’ve forgotten my login?
Click on the link ‘Forgotten your login details?’ on the login page and you will be taken to a form where you can give us your details and you will receive an email containing your login and password.
Please note that this is not an automated process and can only be actioned within office hours.
You can gain temporary access to the website using the login on page 1 of the magazines.
How do I get a password and where do I find it?
A username and password are printed on page 1 of the magazine, for those users who do not subscribe to the magazine. This login will give you access until the end of the magazine's cover date period.
If you subscribe to one or both magazines, you will be sent an individual username and password that will give you access to the site for the duration of your subscription, and will continue when you renew. You will find the username and password printed on the confirmation letter or invoice. The details are normally printed near your subscription reference number. You should keep this letter safe, so that you can refer to it if you forget your username and password.
I'm a subscriber but I have forgotten my password, or I have never been sent it.
Check the letter or invoice that was sent to you with your first magazine, or when you last renewed, the user name and password will be printed on it.
If you are the subscriber and do not have this, please contact rootssales@rootsontheweb.com or phone 0845 680 5317 to speak to our subscriptions management team (Monday to Friday, office hours). Please have the name and address to which your magazine is sent ready and if possible your reference or 'RR' number.
Why do I need a password?
www.rootsontheweb.com is only available to subscribers and readers of the two ROOTS for Churches magazines, ROOTS Adult & All Age and ROOTS Children & Young People.
The resources available on the website complement the magazines and are not intended to be used in isolation from them. The operation of the web site is only possible because it is funded by the sale of the magazines. For all these reasons, we need to limit access to the website to those people who have subscribed to or purchased the magazines.
Using the site
Where can I find help to use the website?
Please visit the How to use pages for useful tips and directions to the material you regularly look for.
Sometimes you publish helpful articles on ministry or using music. Are these available online?
Yes they are! Please browse through the Support section in the left hand side of the screen.
I subscribe to ROOTS Children & Young People. Why can’t I see material for Adults & All Ages?
The content you will see on the website reflects your subscription. Subscribers to CYP magazine will only see the content originated for them; subscribers to AAA magazine likewise will see the AAA content on the website. Combined subscriptions allow all the content to be viewed.
Please note that if you have a combined subscription but use the logins provided in the magazine you will only see items available for that magazine.
How do I find past material?
On the week by week page (blue tab) you’ll find links in the ‘From the resources bank’ section (blue box at the bottom of the page on the left) to the past material that uses the same Lectionary passages. Alternatively you could use the search to find specific weeks from the archive. You’ll need to scroll down to the bottom of the search page to see the drop down lists of lectionary weeks and years. All the materials are there, as you requested when we researched this, they are divided up into different activities.
We are still adding to the material that makes up the ROOTS Resources bank but you should find at least one alternative (where there is one) in the January and March issues.
Where are the PDFs of the old magazines?
Part of reasons we’ve moved to the new site was so that we were able to offer better search facilities. We’ve invested in these features by adding the content of the old PDFs onto the site as separate items and you’ll see these items collected together on weeks from the Resources bank.
We know that some of you would still prefer to use the PDFs so these are being made available. They are located in the 'Related items' section of the Resources bank week (right hand green box at the bottom of the page).
How is the past material organised?
The resources are organised to reflect the current structure of the ROOTS resources. The list of lectionary readings is given and an overview of the themes in the week’s material.
Adult & All Age
Gather
Prepare the space – was Set the scene
Call to worship
Prayers are on the right-hand side of the page
Word
Bible notes
Open the Word – was called Share the Word
Respond to the Word
Dramas are here.
Respond to the Word – was called Be creative
The hymns & songs list , further resources and pictures are on the right-hand side.
Children & Young People
In each section, the material for children comes at the top of the page, followed by the resources for young people.
Gather
Prepare the space – was called Set the scene
Gathering activities – was called Get started
Word
Bible notes – full Bible notes and Bible notes for CYP leaders on the focus reading
Open the Word – was called Use the Bible
Story – was called Contemporary story
Respond to the Word
Respond to the Word – was called Be active
Talk about – was called Make connections
Templates for activities are here.
Dramas are here
Prayers are on the right-hand side of the page and contain words of prayers to say and prayer activities which were called Pray it through.
The Children’s Sheet (was called Activity Sheet ), music, resources lists and pictures are on the right-hand side of the page.
Why can’t I access some items in my search results?
The search currently returns items from both the Adult and All Ages and Children and Young People magazines. If you have a subscription to just one of the magazines or are using the temporary logins from the magazine, there will be some items you aren’t able to see.
We are working on a solution to this issue as we realise it's very frustrating for users.
Where will I find text from the current magazine?
As a general rule we place magazine text onto the website when it's likely that someone other than the leader will need to see the text or you may need to customise the wording, so for example, prayers and drama scripts. These will be available on the Week by week page (Blue tab) for each week.
The website is designed to support the magazines so I’m afraid we don’t offer all of the magazine text online.
I'm looking for a list of all of the Lectionary passages you'll be focusing on this year.
You'll find a list of the Lectionary passages that ROOTS will take as the focus passage in the overview document in the Support section.
