Kids Ministry

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Games, Kids Ministry

More Back Pocket Ideas for Random Moments

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by Rhonda VanCleave

A few weeks ago I posted a blog with some “Back Pocket” Ideas for those moments when you unexpectedly need to “fill time” with a group of kids. Bible skills are my favorite things to use in a pinch and they are the “B” in my “Back Pocket Ideas.” But, I also have a few “A,” “C,” and “K” ideas – BACK Pocket!

A – Ask Review Questions. Repetition teaches! Ask questions about the Bible lesson you just had or maybe some you’ve had recently. One of my favorite “dollar type store” finds is a foam cube with dry erase dots on the side. You can print a question on each side. (Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?) A volunteer rolls the cube and you ask that type of question about the Bible study. Or, the volunteer rolls the cube and he must come up with the question to ask his friends. But what if you have no supplies? Turn a “Mother, May I” type game into a review game. Ask a volunteer a question. If they answer correctly, tell them what type of steps they may take (three baby steps, or two giant steps, etc.). Either way, asking the questions or involving the kids in creating their own questions helps drive the truth of the lesson home and redeems the time!

C – Create Conversations. Through the years I have been amazed at the return on investment I see when I just talk to the kids … about anything! I find out what they are interested in, what they like, or what is happening in their lives. If you’ve listened as they talked with each other, you can have some clues about topics to ask them about. I really believe kids are starving to have someone simply listen to them and take an interest. If you have a large group of kids, play a grouping game. Direct them to mill around until you call out a number, then they must get into groups of that number. Call out a topic and give them a designated time to share in their group. For example, thirty seconds for each person in the group to name his or her favorite movie or somewhere they would like to travel some day. These experiences can help kids learn about each other.

K – Kids Create. Never underestimate the ability of kids to make up their own fun games. Give some basic parameters or supplies and GO! They will often own the game and want to play again. I’ve seen kids do everything from design a putt putt golf hole made from (clean) trash to a Bible skills game using only craft sticks. Listen, guide, and most importantly, encourage while they work. A sense of accomplishment is a great thing.

Some things will work great the first time and you’ll use that idea again. Some may turn out to be “not so great,” but you never know until you try. Rest assured you accomplished more by trying than by letting chaos ensue. If nothing else, you’ve shown the kids that you value the time you have with them. So, challenge yourself to keep an idea or two in your “back pocket.”

Games, Kids Ministry

Back Pocket Ideas for Random Moments

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By Rhonda VanCleave

If you have taught kids at church longer than 30 minutes, you’ve probably had that “what do I do next” feeling. 

Can you relate to any of these?

  • Adult worship goes longer than you anticipated and experience has taught you to keep the kids engaged or risk chaos. What do you do?
  • Your well-planned lesson has gone great, EXCEPT it took those little geniuses only half as long to do the activity as you thought. What do you do?
  • For a variety of “who saw this coming” reasons, you are asked to “do something with the kids” for a bit while (fill-in this blank with lots of “adult” reasons). What do you do?

If you’ve worked with kids at church (or plan to) these times just happen. That’s why I’ve found it is helpful (and sanity saving) to always have a few ideas “in my back pocket.” Sometimes I have a couple of resources I can grab … and sometimes I have nothing but enthusiasm. I’d love to share some of what works for me with you.

I have a variety of categories of back-pocket ideas, but in a pinch, my go-to is Bible skills for some pretty basic reasons. Just like the drills that sports teams repeat daily to train their muscles, kids who get lots of practice knowing how their Bibles are organized are much better equipped to use their Bibles when it counts. Kids who become comfortable with their Bibles won’t become the adult who panics when the Bible teacher of their small group asks them to find Habakkuk (or be tricked into looking for the book of Hezekiah like some pastors I know try to pull).

I keep a couple of resources in my room for “emergencies.” I have a set of craft sticks with the names of the books of the Bible on them. I also have a set of disposable cups, each with the name of a Bible book. How I use them is determined by the abilities of the group at the time. Here are some examples:

Craft sticks

  • Draw a craft stick from the cup. Pronounce the name. (For non-readers, pronounce the name and ask the child to repeat.)
  • Draw a craft stick and name the book that comes before and after.
  • Form two teams. A player from each team draws a craft stick. Ask which Bible book comes first. The team with that stick keeps both. Each stick is worth a million points!

Plastic cups

  • Sort the cups by Old and New Testament (Use a Bible contents list or poster for assistance.)
  • Stack the cups by divisions
  • Try to stack all 66 cups (books) in order!

But what if you have NO resources at all? Here are a few quick ideas.

  • Designate one wall (direction) as Old Testament and the opposite as New Testament. Call out Bible book names and kids can point to the correct wall.
  • Form a circle. Beginning with one child, do “the wave” around the circle by throwing both hands in the air and saying the books of the Bible in order. As each child does the wave, that child says the next Bible book. If kids are new to this, the group can say the Bible book names together.
  • Call out different Bible stories. Kids can sit if the story is from the Old Testament or stand if it is from the New Testament. This is a good time to remind kids that the Old Testament contains stories that happened before Jesus came. The New Testament begins about the time of Jesus’ birth and beyond.
  • Kids can take turns naming Bible stories. Keep count of how many are Old Testament and how many are New Testament stories.

Keep a few ideas on your phone in a list app or on a sheet of paper taped to the wall. Add ideas you discover. Don’t panic when faced with a “What do I do?” moment. Grab a back pocket idea and redeem … make the most of … each precious moment you have with kids. (Ephesians 5:16)

Bible Skills, Games

Bible Story Scavenger Hunt

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by Shelly Harris

Many families are staying at home, but that doesn’t mean that Bible learning stops. In fact as kids’ ministry leaders, we can equip parents to engage their kids in Bible learning. Here is a fun game you can provide parents to help them lead their kids’ spiritual formation.

Game Supplies: basket, honey, water, plant, stuffed animal, cotton balls/wool item, something with wheels, candle, toy boat, bread/cracker, first aid kit, a rock, a Bible

Instructions: Allow kids to search for the needed items. You may want to assign each kid specific items to find to ensure that everyone is able to participate. Then challenge family members to name Bible stories that are related to the item. Keep a count as you play to see which item had the most Bible story connections. Family members can name a Bible story more than once as long as it connects to each item. 

Possible Stories

Basket: Baby Moses, Paul Escaped Damascus, The Sermon on the Mount, Amos’ Visions

Honey: Samson, John the Baptist

Water: The Red Sea, The Parting of the Jordan River, Jesus’ Baptism, Noah

Stuffed animal: Noah, Creation, Daniel and the Lion’s Den, The Triumphal Entry, Peter and Cornelius

Plant: Creation, Baby Moses, The New Creation

Cotton balls/Wool item: The Good Shepherd, David, The Shepherds Visited Baby Jesus

Something with Wheels: Philip and the Ethiopian, Elijah and the Whirlwind, The Red Sea

Candle: The Fiery Furnace, God Led the Israelites, Elijah on Mount Carmel

Toy boat: Jesus Calmed a Storm, Jesus and the Disciples Ate Breakfast

Bread/Cracker: Passover, Jesus Fed 5000, God Provided Manna, Elijah and the Widow’s Oil

First Aid Kit: Jesus Healed Ten Lepers, Jesus Healed Blind Bartimaeus, Elisha Raised the Widow’s Son, Namaan Was Healed

Rock: Water from a Rock, Crossing the Jordan, The Temptation of Jesus, Lazarus, Jesus’ Resurrection

Discussion: Conclude the game by reminding kids of these Bible truths: The Bible helps us know more about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Bible truths never change. The Bible teaches us how to live. The Bible tells that God sent Jesus to earth because He loves all people.

Game Option: You can also play this game by naming a Bible story and leading kids to search for an item that reminds them of the story.

Crafts, Family, Fun, Games, Parent Helps

5 Ideas for Indoor Fun

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Depending on where you live, the winter months can be brutal, with temperatures so low that taking the kids outside isn’t an option unless absolutely necessary. Even if you live near an indoor amusement park or an indoor swimming pool, those can get crowded during the winter months—which is also the height of flu season!—and the entry fees and/or costs to play can add up.

On days when you’re all stuck at home, what can you do to keep the kids—and yourself—from getting cabin-fever? While letting your children watch TV or play video games for a reasonable amount of time is fun for them and gives you some time to yourself, plopping your kids in front of screens all day isn’t good for them, can trigger waves of guilt in you, and does nothing to promote your family’s bond.

The benefits of family bonding are well-established and far-reaching. Making time to communicate positively with your children can boost their self-esteem and lower the incidences of childhood depression and anxiety. Moreover, making time to establish a close bond with your children can improve their school performance, problem-solving skills, and relationships with teachers and peers.   

There are many ways to spend quality time at home with our children that include bond-building communication and fun, and exclude reliance on screen time. Here are 5 fun (and cheap!) activities to do at home with your kids when it’s too cold to go outside.

At the end of the games, be sure to hand out prizes to each child whether the prizes be homemade medals or, if you can plan ahead, inexpensive pre-ordered gold medals.

  1. Set up an indoor campground. Bring the sleeping bags and tents up from the basement or down from the attic and turn your family room into an indoor campground. No sleeping bags or tents? No problem. Create a campground by arranging chairs in rows of two in the family room, draping a bedsheet over the chairs to create the tent, and piling pillows and blankets underneath to create a sleep area.

    You can make your indoor campground as elaborate as you’d like with items you already have in your home. String Christmas lights across the top of the tent to create a starry night scene. Enjoy the glow of a campground “fire” made with paper towel tubes, tissue paper, and LED candles. Set up lawn chairs outside the tent and serve hot dogs, chips, and trail mix; play cards and board games; or do an easy craft like making beaded necklaces or braided bracelets.

    Add to the camping aura by having the kids help you make indoor s’mores in the microwave, oven, skillet, or, for a more “outdoorsy” experience, over a well-ventilated sterno flame.
  2. Host indoor Olympic games. If you look in toy boxes and closets, you’ll probably find that you have enough games and activities at home to arrange back-to-back and create a challenging obstacle course for your kids to compete in, tantamount to a kiddie indoor Olympic course!

    You can kick off the indoor “Olympic games” with an opening ceremony in which each child gets to parade onto the course to a theme song of his or her choosing. Depending on your child’s age, he or she may want to grab a favorite teddy bear to serve as his or her Olympic mascot. At the close of the opening ceremonies, get your stopwatch and scorecard ready and time your little Olympians as they compete in consecutive games of skill and physical fitness such as: a ring or beanbag toss, a mini golf course competition (a broom, a Ping Pong® ball, and a plastic cup can be used in place of a golf club, golf ball, and hole), or a ball throwing  competition into boxes of decreasing sizes, with a point given per successful shot for each of these activities:
    • a sack race or a boiled egg and spoon race with a demarcated finish line and points given to the first person over the finish line;
    • a hula hoop competition with a point given for each second the competitors can hold up their hula hoop
    • a pyramid cup-stacking race with points given to the first person to successfully stack his or her cups into a stable pyramid;
    • a physical endurance competition where points are given for the number of jumping jacks, push-ups, and sit-ups the child can do in three 30-second intervals; and
    • a mad dash crabwalk to the final finish line of the indoor Olympic games.
  3. Send the kids off on a scavenger hunt. Staying indoors can be a blast when the kids are set off on a scavenger hunt to seek and collect common household items. The scavenger hunt can be subject to a time-limit where each child competes alone or are organized by teams to see which team collects the most items first. Print out a free indoor scavenger hunt checklist listing 40 everyday household items for seekers to find here. 
  4. Throw a costume party. Let your kids raid Mom and Dad’s room for hats, scarves, and costume jewelry to put on a costume party. Add snacks and a tea set to make it a tea party-themed costume party. For a quick and easy costume, take out several rolls of toilet paper and wrap your kids up like mummies (without covering the nose and mouth area). For a fun competition with several family members, split the group up into teams where one person volunteers to be the mummy while the other does the wrapping. The team that can wrap up their mummy the fastest and the neatest wins.
  5. Hold an art show. Grab smocks for your kids and spread out watercolors and brushes, crayons, markers, and colored pencils on a table along with poster board and construction paper. Provide glue sticks and safety scissors to allow for added artistic touches. Once your little artists have created their masterpieces, hang up the artwork and host an art show complete with glasses of apple juice “champagne” and hor d’oeuvres.

Make spending a cold day at home fun and educational for you and your child with these activities and remember that carving out quality time for your child is important at any time of year, in any weather!

Dolores Smyth writes about parenting and faith. A perfect day for her includes running, reading, and spending time with her husband and three kids. Follow her on Twitter @LolaWordSmyth.This article appears in the January 2020 issue of ParentLife. For more information or to order, visit www.lifeway.com/parentlife.

Family, Fun, Games, Parent Helps, Parenting

It’s Cold Outside: 3 Things to Do in Winter with Kids

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Winter is knocking on our doors. As you approach this season of long days stuck inside with bored kids, take some time now to prepare for a little fun. 

Box O’ Fun

Purchase a tub and fill it with tons of creative supplies. At our house this tub contains:

  • Construction Paper
  • Blank Paper
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Markers
  • Crayons
  • Colored Pencils
  • Coloring Books
  • Play Dough
  • Kinetic Sand
  • Washi Tape
  • Pipe Cleaners
  • Googly Eyes
  • Watercolors
  • Paintbrushes
  • Stamps
  • Ink Pads
  • Glitter
  • Glitter Glue

Make a visit to your local dollar store and load up on any craft supplies you can find. Keep the TV off for a few hours and encourage your kids to craft their hearts away! Make thank-you cards for Christmas gifts, use cardboard boxes to make robots, cars, or homes for stuffed animals. The possibilities are really endless and you will be amazed at the creations your kids will come up with. 

Living Room Slumber Party

Tell your kids to throw on a fresh pair of pajamas and bring their pillows and blankets to the living room. Pile everyone up on the floor and turn on your family’s favorite movie. Make sure to pop some popcorn and grab a sweet snack to share. When the movie is over, let each child pick a board game to play. Everyone gets a turn! Our favorites include Hedbanz®, SushiGo®, and Chutes and Ladders®. Looking to really surprise your kids? Pillow fight! The laughter is sure to ensue.

Indoor Snow Storm

Keep a spare ream of white copy paper and a large bag of cotton balls around the house just for days like this. Give the whole stack of paper to your kids and encourage them to make as many paper snowflakes as they can. When they’ve finished, tape them to the windows and anywhere else you want! Cover the house in snowflakes. You can even string them from light fixtures, stick them to bathroom mirrors, and attach them to your door frames. When the house looks like a snowstorm hit it, divvy up the bag of cotton balls and throw an indoor snowball fight! Let your inner child come out as you play along with your kids!

Nancy Cornwell is the content editor for ParentLife magazine and the mom of three kids. She is always looking for good ideas to keep them entertained at home.This article first appeared in the December 2019 issue of ParentLife.

Advent, Christmas, Family, Fun, Games, Kids Ministry, Parent Helps, Resources

Christmas Activities for Kids: Christmas Tree Bingo

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Looking for a fun activity for your Birthday Party for Jesus or Christmas session? How about Christmas Tree Bingo? This isn’t your normal sit-at-a-table Bingo game. This is more active and way more fun.

Download the Christmas Tree Bingo card here.

Object: Find every item and mark every square on your Christmas Bingo card.

Option if time is limited: Play traditional five-in-a-row or require two Bingos, one horizontal and one vertical.

Preparation and planning:

  • Print one copy of the Christmas Bingo card for each child. Printing two per sheet makes them roughly 5.5-by-8.5-inches and saves paper!
  • Choose 35-40 tree decorations to correspond with your Christmas Bingo card squares. 
  • Print icons or words on a sheet of address labels. Icons are best for younger kids but may be harder to find. Each word should correspond with an ornament on your tree. Using standard size address labels, printed two words on each label then cut them in half. This will be square stickers kids will use to create their Christmas Bingo cards. Click here to download a sample list of some ornaments you could include. 
  • Decorate a Christmas tree with your chosen Christmas Bingo ornaments. Add more ornaments, garland, lights, or other tree decorations for additional challenge and fun.

The last time I played this game, I set our Christmas tree in a place that the children could not touch it. This was for obvious reasons, like I didn’t want someone to knock the tree over, but also to add an additional challenge. Part of my instructions to the kids included “You may not get within reach of the Christmas tree.” Kids had to find the items from a short distance away without touching the tree. There are 24 empty squares on each Christmas Bingo card so my goal was to have 35-40 ornaments, some represented by stickers and some not, and have at least 30 different words/icons on stickers to add variety.

Instructions:

  • As kids arrive, guide them select one blank Christmas Bingo card. 
  • Kids select a different sticker (from the cut address labels) for each square and place it on his/her Christmas Bingo card. Stickers may not be on a card more than once. This allows each child’s Christmas Bingo card to be different, adding challenge and creativity.
  • After each square has a sticker, kids are guided the Christmas tree to look for each item on their Christmas Bingo card. When an item is found, kids should mark that item off on their card. You can use stamps, pencil, or marker to mark off found items.
  • If a kids finishes quickly, she can color her Christmas Bingo card to decorate a border or draw a picture on the back.
  • If desired, have a prize for the first child who gets a “bingo,” or a prize for each child as he completes a “bingo.”

Download the Christmas Tree Bingo card here.

Christmas, Family, Fun, Games, Kids Ministry, Large Group, Parent Helps, Resources, Teaching Kids

Happy Birthday Jesus! 3 Tips for Throwing a Birthday Party for Jesus.

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Kids love birthday parties. At least, every kid I have ever met does. 

Download the free Take the Fun Home card for parents.

Jesus’ birth into the world is one of the most important events in all of history. Even the way we number our years is related to Jesus’ birth. For example,  AD 2020 is “in the year of the Lord 2020.” Jesus’ birth is also, of course, one of the most important events in salvation history. With Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, all the history of the Old Testament would begin to come into focus. Jesus’ birth can also be seen as the launching pad for everything that followed this pivotal moment in time. If this isn’t enough reason to throw a party, I don’t know what would be!

So why not celebrate during the month of December with a birthday party for Jesus? Here are three tips for throwing a Birthday Party for Jesus.

Tip #1 – Make it a PARTY!

  • Celebrate with decorations. Inflate balloons, hang streamers, give out party hats, and so forth. Decorations can be elaborate without being a burden on your budget and will give your space an instant face-lift. 
  • Celebrate with a one-day schedule change. If your kids ministry typically meets in separate classrooms, explore the option to bring everyone together for the party. 
  • Celebrate with invitations. Mail postcard invitations to every child on your roll. Provide additional invitations to each child and challenge kids to invite a friend. Everyone loves being invited to a party!
  • Celebrate with singing. Not just “Happy Birthday,” though I would recommend singing this one too. Sing other Christmas carols that share the joy of Christmas.

Tip #2 – Make it FUN!

  • Make it delicious. Have cake or cupcakes and juice boxes. Few things will raise the fun factor the way passing out cake will. Don’t forget to post an allergy alert and have a quick standby option for those with food allergies. 
  • Make it engage. Wearing party hats and providing noise makers can be an instant hit.
  • Make it memorable. Give out party favors when kids leave. Have a small bag of goodies for each child to take with them. Bonus if each goodie bag item points kids to the gospel (i.e. glow-in-the-dark necklace for “Jesus is the Light of the World”)
  • Make it active. Playing games will likely be a bullseye on the fun target. 
    • Assign kids to teams and play for points.
    • Collect large scraps of paper or buy a pack of colored construction paper, mark a line down the center of your space dividing kids into two teams, and have a “snowball fight”
    • Minute-to-Win It type games are usually easy to prepare and can be a huge hit.
    • Check out Kid Min Toolbox: Great Games that Teach for a great source of quick games

Tip #3 – Make it about JESUS!

  • Don’t forget to tell the Christmas story. Keep it short. Read the Bible passages or show a video, but be sure to include the reason for the party.
  • Keep Jesus at the center. Don’t lose Him in the fun and games.
    • Debrief each game with a gospel connection.
    • Connect each party favor to a Bible truth.
  • When choosing songs to sing, choose songs about Jesus’ birth and other worship songs to focus kids voices and hearts on Jesus.

Bonus tip—Provide this Take the Fun Home card with some suggested ideas for parents to have a Birthday Party for Jesus in their home and invite other families to join together. 

With a little creativity and preparation, kids in your church and community will be engaged in a fresh way with the joy Jesus brings this Christmas season.

Games, Kids Ministry, Leadership

3 Ways to Make Your Games Count

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Love them or not, games always find a way into kids ministry programming. Most kids ministers have planned icebreakers, dodgeball, messy games, and every single version of tag imaginable.  

Playing games can make you more effective as a kids ministry leader, but games can also easily become disconnected from your ministry goals. How can we get the most out of our games and make them count?  Here are three suggestions:

  • Plan several days in advance for your games. This one may seem too obvious, but how many times have you found yourself trying to plan a game for your kids ministry an hour before kids arrive? Planning a couple of days in advance gives you the time to prep any supplies you need, and it takes away the stress of last minute planning. If you play a game that kids love, write down the rules and a supply list for your own future reference.
  • Include adults and kids in your games. Whenever you have the chance to include adults in a game, do it! This gives kids the chance to build connections with their adult leaders outside of small group times. When adults and kids sit down for a discussion later, kids will care more about what those adults have to say. This is one of my favorite parts of recreation at Student Life For Kids. We include your adult leaders in the games so they have the chance to connect with kids from your group.
  • Connect your games to the lesson you are teaching. Playing games gives you an opportunity to start teaching before the large group lesson even starts. Even if your game is only loosely connected to the big idea you’re teaching, making a connection can help grab the attention of kids for the lesson. 

Looking for more ideas about how to make your games count? Check out “Great Games That Teach” in the KidMin Toolbox. This brand new resource has more than 100 games for your kids ministry, and every game has a biblical application lesson.

Logan Meek leads the Student Life for Kids team. Logan joined the Student Life For Kids team in 2014 after spending two years as a Sixth Grade teacher with Teach For America. He believes in the importance of strong kids ministry to help kids build strong spiritual foundations.

Games, Kids Ministry, Leadership, Preschool, Preschoolers, Sunday School

Bible Teaching Activity: Bible Teaching Picture Puzzles

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Puzzles are a helpful teaching tool to keep preschoolers engaged in learning. Many children enjoy puzzles, especially reflective, visual, and logical learners. Use the activity below to teach and review any Bible story with preschoolers.

Supplies Needed:

  • Bible
  • 2 Matching Bible Teaching pictures (save teaching pictures from the leader pack each quarter)
  • Scissors
  • Glue or glue stick
  • File folder
  • A piece of Velcro®
  • Plastic zipper bag

Prepare:

  1. Open a file folder horizontally.
  2. Attach one teaching picture to the right side of the file folder with glue or a glue stick.
  3. Then, cut the matching teaching picture into the number of pieces developmentally appropriate for the children in your class.
  4. For storage of the puzzle pieces, attach a plastic storage bag with Velcro® inside the folder and left of the picture.
  5. For durability, consider laminating or covering the teaching picture puzzle.

Teach:

  1. Open a Bible to the Bible story and place the puzzle (folder open showing the Bible picture and the cut puzzle pieces beside it) on a table.
  2. Invite a child to put the puzzle together. Encourage him to place the pieces over the completed picture. (To make the activity more challenging, guide a child to put the puzzle together beside the teaching picture.)
  3. As the child works, share the Bible story.
  4. Review the Bible story with him, asking questions and referring to the picture in the puzzle.
  5.  Help him discover ways he can apply the Bible story to his life.

Delanee Williams serves as a Ministry Specialist with Lifeway Kids. She is a graduate of Baylor University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Delanee has served in kids ministry for over twenty years and is passionate about developing, equipping and encouraging leaders.

CentriKid, Games, Kids Ministry, Leadership

5 Ways to Make Your Games Phenomenally Fun

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At ETCH Family Ministry Conference, I’m leading a session with Micheal Walley from CentriKid Camps about how stage games we use at camp can be helpful in your ministry as well. We will talk through setup, preparation, and play some games too!

Here are 5 ways to make your games phenomenally fun—whether you play inside, outside, on a stage with a big room, or in a small group setting. Apply these principles and watch the fun-meter go up!

  1. Play more, talk less. Talking too much is the number 1 mistake leaders make with games at church, at school, even ball coaches at practice. The instructions are important, but spend more time playing than explaining the rules.
  2. Prepare variations. Some games require age-appropriate variations, but sometimes you don’t know how it will go until you play it. So anticipate potential challenges and have fun variations ready to extend the fun … but also feel the flexibility as a game leader make them up on the fly if you see an opportunity to make something more balanced or to simply make it more fun, or if a rule wasn’t clearly explained and the kids are having a hard time with something in the game.
  3. Make it memorable. Take advantage of the unique space or the specific group that you have playing games. When we are at CentriKid, we try to do things you can only do at CentriKid Camps … and there are unique things to the space where you will be, too.  When you experience something “you can only do at church” it’s memorable, and hopefully draws kids back to church for those types of experiences again.
  4. Kill it before it dies. This is a phrase we use in training our CentriKid staff leaders to end something at its peak rather than running it into the ground. When playing games and using variations, the game leader has to know when to move on from an activity so it can be fun again next time you bring it out.
  5. Get the adults involved. As a leader, you should go all in with the games that you lead. Your enthusiasm can help capture kids attention. Don’t let the volunteers or other adults sit or stand with their arms crossed at the back of the room. Get them involved, and train them to bring enthusiasm to the game …at appropriate levels … don’t let leader involvement take away from the kids experience playing the game.  

The adults should always engaged with the games you play because it makes the game more fun for kids—but more importantly, you want the adult leaders building relationships with the kids in your ministry. The informality of game-time can make the Bible lessons and spiritual applications connect when they are shared in other settings. That is why we do games at church in the first place: to introduce or reinforce the concepts we are teaching from Scripture.

For more game ideas and resources, we have two books available at CentriKid Camps and ETCH Family Ministry Conference in the on-site Event Store … Phenomenally Fun Stage Games and Recreation Rooted in Scripture.

I hope you can join us at ETCH Conference—we’ll host ministry teams from Preschool, Kids, Students, and Family ministries at the Music City Center in Nashville, TN.  Learn more at etchconference.com.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the Lifeway Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

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