Children's Minister Blog

I’ve just found a great website with Bible Stories  in Powerpoint format for children.

Check it out here.

My Grandson Jordan

Our church has been busy this week running our 13th consecutive children’s holiday program called “Going Bananas”. This year we have been blessed with a team of 75 leaders (teens and adults) and up to 160 children. It has been wonderful to see the “body of Christ” in action as children, teenagers, young adults and adults have interacted around the theme called “Question Mark” -stories from Mark’s gospel.  (This Scripture Union publication has provided the core of our program). What a great privilege it is to share the Good News with children eager to learn more about him and to respond to his invitation of new life. On this coming Sunday our team will be running the morning worship service and we pray that many of the parents and siblings of the children who have attended each day will come to worship with us.

Group Building Games

1. Boop - Form into hand-in-hand circles of 4-6 people. Toss a balloon into the centre of each group. The task is for the group to keep it off the ground without letting go hands. Try counting the number of hits before it drops and aiming for a high score.

2.  Touch the can – Divide into groups of 10-12 people. Give each group an empty soft drink can. Each member of the group must make contact with the can but without touching one another. At least one person must have their nose in contact with the can.

3. Blind Guide -In pairs seat the group back to back in a circle (one half facing in, the other half facing out). Give each person facing out a puzzle, tangram or Lego construction and give each person facing in the solution to the puzzle,tangram, or Lego structure. This person has to verbally explain to the other how to do the puzzle, etc. without either player turning their heads or looking at what someone else is doing (if the puzzles are the same).  The ages of your group will determine the difficulty of the puzzle.

I have developed a Bible Verse Calendar which can be used over one month or several months. Included on the back of the calendar is an explanation of different ways in which it might be used and also a number of activities for one or more children.

It is suggested you print the calendar on light cardboard so that it is more durable ( or cover in plastic). Permission is given by Don Stott to reproduce the calendar only for non-commercial uses – family, Sunday school class or Christian school.

Bible Verse Calendar PDF Download ( the printed pdf is much clearer than the Google preview)

Tags: Bible

Bible Buzz- Bible Reading Activity for Children

Make some enlargements of a Bible passage (e.g. the storm on Lake Galilee, Luke  using a photocopier and paste onto large sheets of paper or cardboard. Read the verses dramatically or get the children involved in drawing or dramatising it.

The children then use coloured pencils or crayons to do the following. (Adapt to each Bible passage)

> Circle everything Jesus did.

> In the margin beside each action, draw a think bubble ans write inside it (or draw a face to show)  how the disciples must  have been feeling at the time.

> Draw your picture of the boat from the story.

> Underline any words, sentences or ideas that you don’t really understand and put a question mark against them.

> Colour red all the words of Jesus in the story.

> Colour blue any words that remind you of any other sea story in the Bible. Write the names or draw a scene from these stories.

> If there’s a song that this story reminds you of, write its title and draw some notes around it. Sing it if you know the words.

> How does God want you to respond to this passage?  How should we think or  act? What should we do? Share your thoughts and then write a one sentence prayer on the bottom of your page.

Then Jesus took his disciples up to the mountain and gathering them around him, he taught them saying:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are the meek,

Blessed are they that mourn.

Blessed are the merciful.

Blessed are they that thirst for justice.

Blessed are you when you are persecuted.

Blessed are you when you suffer.

Be glad and rejoice for your reward is great in heaven.

Then Simon Peter said, “Are we supposed to know this?”

And Andrew said,”Do we have to write this down?”

And James said, “Will we have a test on this?”

And Phillip said, “I don’t have any paper.”

And John said, “The other disciples didn’t have to learn this.”

And Mathew said, “May I go to the toilet?”

Then one of the Pharisees who was present asked to see Jesus’

lesson plans and inquired of Jesus, ‘Where is your anticipatory set

and your objectives in the cognitive domain?”

And Jesus wept.

(author unknown)

A great website with loads of GamesKidsPlay.net

Well worth bookmarking for when you are in a hurry planning a program.

A little child in church for the first time watched as the ushers passed the offering plates. When they neared the pew where he sat, the youngster piped up so that everyone could hear, “Don’t pay for me Daddy, I’m under five.”

Here’s an idea for your Sunday School class or children’s group to help build self esteem. Everyone expects a little attention or their birthday, so surprise students in your class by recognizing them on their half birthdays. Find out each child’s birthday, add six months and you’ll have each child’s half birthday.

During your class closest to the person’s half birthday, have the class form a circle around him/her have a bit of fun, give them three cheers and sing “Happy Half Birthday to You!”

So you’ve found your puppets or made your puppets. You know that you’d like to use them with your group, but… what exactly are they going to say ? You’re not quite ready yet to launch into a full scale puppet play.

Why not begin by making an announcement or introduce someone to the children ? Your puppet can add interest or humour to a flat part of the program.

Practise your announcement using short sentences and appropriate language for the age-group of your hearers. Remember puppets need to move in the mood and the emotion of the words they are saying. Have a minimum of narration and a maximum of dialogue.
Try these ..

BEGINNINGS…. The puppet(s)

> Enter excitedly when they hear the leader mention a key word. e.g.

Leader: I know someone who is quite rude.

Puppet: Food, did I hear someone say food ??

> Enter shyly, disappearing when people call out.

> Introduce yourself.

> Ask for a riddle and give the answer ” toothpaste” to any riddle asked. It will set up an opportunity for some interesting dialogue.

> Enter looking for something, then look surprised when you find it. Look even more surprised when you notice the audience are there watching you!

> Come in complaining. you have a problem, or are looking for help.

MIDDLES… The puppet(s):

> Listen carefully to the leader and then ask dumb questions.

> Listen to one another.

> Make an announcement.

> Give directions to people to do things, look for something etc.,

> Make up a song (using a well known tune) , limerick or rap to advertise the event or person.

ENDS … The puppet(s)

> Excuse themselves to prepare for the announced event.

> Ask to be shown the direction to the toilet and excuse themselves with great embarrassment.

> Suggest that it’s time to go and look for another riddle, song, book etc..

>Suggest that it’s time to go and visit Grandma for afternoon tea or another food related activity (we all know how much puppets like to eat !).

Remember practise in front of a mirror or a friend to gain confidence with your movements and dialogue. Soon you’ll be improvising and ready for some simple scripts.

See also 20 ways to use a puppet.

20 ways to use a puppet to teach a memory verse.

“The babe, with a cry brief and dismal,

Fell into the water baptismal;

Ere they’d gathered its plight,

It had sunk out of sight,

For the depth of the font was abysmal.”

Edward Gorey, The Listing Attic,1954

“The baby wakes up in the wee wee hours of the morning.”

Robert Robbins, Reader’s Digest, 1949

Pentecost Rap by Nick Clarke

Pentecost Rap from 77 Talks for 21st Century Kids by Chris Chesterton

Breath and Spirit – children’s talk

What a Gift! – a puppet talk

Ideas for celebrating Pentecost.

Mother’s Day on Pentecost- Worship ideas

LaughingBird.net Paraphrase of Acts 2:1-21

Scripture Union “Xstream” LIGHT  Sunday  School downloads

Tags: Pentecost, Websites

Where God is Not – A story about Faith

A  boy named Eric was wandering home from the nearby Sunday School, and dawdling on the way.

He scuffed his shoes into the grass he stopped to pick up a dandelion, and blew hard until all the seeds where gone. He stopped to watch a small puppy playing in the front yard of nearby house. Eric then climbed a low rock wall and walked someways before jumping down.

A neighbour was watching his zigzag course, and called out to him, asking where he’d been that day and what was going on.

I’ve been to Sunday School” Eric said as he lifted up a leaf with a caterpillar on it. “I’ve learned a lot about God.”

This man did not believe in God so he wasn’t too impressed.

“M’m very fine way ” he said, “for a boy to spend his time. If you tell me where God is, I’ll give you a ten dollar note.”

Quick as a flash the answer came from Eric, “Ill give you a hundred dollars, if you can tell me where God is not.”

“God’s eternal power and character cannot be seen. But from the beginning of creation, God has shown what these are like by all that he has made. That’s why those people don’t have any excuse. Romans 1:20 (C.E.V.)

Favourite Night ( An all-age activity for a family night or small group with children)

1. Ask the children (or families) to bring along their favourite item/toy/piece of clothing etc. for showing and talking about.

2. Have sheets of paper hung around the walls of the room/hall with different heading on each. eg. “Your Favourite Food, Colour, TV show, Takeaway Food, Holiday Destination, Sport, Hobby, Singer/Actor etc… (the children give answers including their names) Sheets could then be read out during the evening.

3. Devotions- Jesus “Favourite disciples” Peter & John ?

Talk about how showing favouritism can be unfair. Does God have favourites?

We all have different favourite likes and dislikes. God made us all different. Just because someone else doesn’t like what we like doesn’t make them wrong.

Talk about having favourite places to spend time.Time to think and reflect.

Ask the children to share their favourite story from the Bible and perhaps draw or act it out.

4. Play – Charades- guess your favourite TV show, singer, Bible character…

Celebrity Hats- Place names on hats for three contestants. They wear the hat and can’t see who they are supposed to be. Contestants play 20 questions with the group. A correct answer means they get to ask another question until a contestant guesses what name is on their hat.

5. Ask the children ( or a family) to bring along their favourite food to share for supper.

Tags: Media

1. Table Tiggy Spread out round room. Leader asks a question. First child with their hand up is chosen. If an incorrect answer is given the child sits down. If correct the child takes a step (not leap) to try and touch another child (touch= out). The last one standing wins!

2. Round the World One child stands behind another child. The leader asks a question. The first to answer gets to continue round the room. Whenever the game needs to stop, the person who correctly answered the last question becomes the “champ” for the week.

3. Who am I? The teacher says “I am thinking of a Bible character, who am I?” The class asks questions only answerable with yes/no. You can count or limit the number of questions asked and have many a variation on this!

A variation: have several children out the front with a word on a headband (or hat, or held).  On each sign there is a word, title, occupation, object, food, place or Bible character. The  class can see it, the child with the sign, can’t. The child with the headband asks a question  and the class can only  reply yes/no. If  “yes” , they have another turn, if “no”, the next child gets to ask a question. First to guess their word wins.

For all those who attend vestry or church council meetings…

I’m on a committee,

Which means that

from morning to night

We attend, and amend,

And contend, and defend,

Without a conclusion in sight.

We confer and concur,

We defer and demur

And reiterate all our thoughts.

We revise the agenda

with frequent addenda

And consider a load of reports.

We compose and propose,

We suppose and oppose.

And the points of procedure

are fun!

But those various notions

Are brought up as motions-

There’s terribly little gets done.

We resolve and absolve,

But never dissolve

Since it’s out of the question

for us.

What a shattering pity

To end our committee

Where else could we make

such a fuss…

author unknown

Here’s a game that has been used by teachers for generations, but it still remains a favourite with children. The game is played with the classic elements of baseball. A baseball diamond can be drawn on a white-board, an overhead projector, a large piece of cardboard or chairs can be designated as bases in the classroom. The group is divided into two teams. The teacher is the pitcher and the questions are the pitches (pictures or photos may also be used as part of the questions) . The batter makes a hit by correctly answering a question. Three misses makes an out, and three outs retires the side. A scoreboard grid can be drawn on the chalkboard or white-board, and a score keeper may be appointed. Careful question preparation by the teacher is required. The game can be made more challenging (and account for individual differences) if the teacher prepares the questions in  four categories of increasing difficulty for single double, triple, or home run hits. In this case the batter chooses the level of the question to be “pitched” and so makes an adjustment for greater or lesser Bible knowledge. Once a player is ‘on base’ there is no way to put a player out. The player advances as the singles, doubles, triples,or home runs are made. If an overhead projector is used small circles of plastic with the players names or initials could be advanced on the screen or on a bulletin board small flags on pins could be used to move from base to base as players score runs.

This game is especially useful to revise a topic or unit of work and it is also good to reinforce the teaching of basic facts. Photos. sound clips,maps, charts and video footage may be used as a basis for questions if shown on a laptop or data projector.

Variation: With older children I have sometimes asked the children to write and grade the questions and then submit them to a question box with a 1-4 rating on the bottom and their name. The question writer is then not allowed to answer if their question is used.

I  was recently invited to review two worship  CD’s by Sovereign Grace Music, sovereigngracemusic.org.  Both of the CD’s have been produced for children over seven years old.  “Awesome God” aims to ‘help kids better comprehend and worship God for who he is.’  The songs focus on God’s character and nature in words that children can understand. The other CD “To Be Like Jesus” includes songs that teach about the fruit of the Spirit and how we can be like Jesus.There is a nice variety in worship styles and pace but each of the albums has lyrics which stay with you and are great to listen or sing along to. I think both of these CD’s would be a worthwhile addition for either a church children’s ministry  or for families to take in the car while driving. I’ll be using some of the tracks with my Sunday School groups shortly.

The website has sample tracks to listen to before you buy and  they also have  downloadable  MP3 versions for purchase.

Tags: Media, Music

Half of British parents never read their children a bed-time story, a survey has found.

Parents said they were too tired to read stories to their children or did not have time due to work commitments.

‘Parents spend more time watching TV than talking to their children’

The decline in the tradition is apparently because of a mixture of parents being too busy or too tired, or simply too embarrassed to try to bring a book to life.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-436438/Parents-tired-read-bedtime-stories-children.html#ixzz0kqd5oTce

One could wonder whether reading the Bible to children has the same kind of response from Christian parents?

I’ve just been reading this great collection of “Graces” which families or children’s groups might use before eating together. I’m keen to try out  the grace to the tune “We will,  we will Rock You“.  It’s also worth browsing the childrensministry.org.au site to read some of  the The Uniting Church in Australia’s (NSW and ACT Synod) other resources also.

Tags: Prayer

All-Age Worship Web Resources  (April 2010 updated)

MessyChurch (in the UK) is one church’s attempt to be church for families who might want to meet Jesus, belong to their local church and bring up their children as Christians but can’t cope with traditional Sunday morning church services. Lot’s of practical suggestions to try. messychurch blog.

Lucy Moore has written some excellent books which are helpful for those preparing an all-age worship service.

Messy Church: Fresh Ideas for Building a Christ-Centered Community by Lucy Moore

All-Age Worship , The Gospels Unplugged (Lucy Moore & Francis Blake)  The Lord’s Prayer Unplugged

familyworship.org.uk including a page of practical pointers for all-age worship.

resoundworship.org aims  to provide local churches with fresh worship songs containing strong, Biblical lyrics supported by singable, contemporary music

links to collective worship resources.

engageworship.org

music and worship foundation

imagebank – free images, backgrounds for use in worship

creativeMYK -free Christian graphics

burningwell.org public domain image source

christart.com/clipart

twelvebaskets.co.uk visual resources, photos, video, powerpoints

bluefishtv.com video illustrations at minimal cost

tangle.com (formerly godtube.com)  christian video resources

visualscripture.com

wingclips.com movie clip  illustrations

hollywoodjesus.com pop culture from  a Christian perspective

stockfootageforfree.com free video clips

heartlight.org free christian graphics and powerpoint slides

sundaygraphx.com free powerpoint backgrounds and photos

powerpoint resources

puppetresources.com hundreds of free Christian puppet scripts

eliab.com free puppet scripts, stories, chants and Easter and Christmas resources

easterplus.blogspot.com

christmasplus.blogspot

laughingbird liturgical resources paraphrase of the Bible and liturgical resources

gracethrufaith.com the bible through the eyes of its writers – narrative approach

max7.org free resources for children’s and family ministry

scriptureunion.org.uk LIGHT sunday school and all-age material

LightLive Scripture Union makes available hundreds of resources for all-age worship.

Any further suggestion to add to this list? Please email to donstott@gmail.com

Easter All-Age Worship Idea

On Good Friday the wood cross stands bare except for a piece of purple material draped around  the cross-bar. On Easter Sunday the cross has been covered in fine ‘chicken wire’ mesh and lights at the rear have been turned on. As people come forward for communion they place a flower they have brought, through the wire to cover the cross. Jesus resurrection brings new life and hope.  The risen Jesus meet Mary Magdalene in the tomb garden.

Easter Reflections

1. When a tree is cut through you see the ring pattern that runs right the way up and down the trunk. Good Friday is a slice through history that allows us to see the pattern of God’s love stretching forwards and backwards to infinity.

2. “Nails were not enough to hold God-and-man nailed and fastened to the cross, had love not held him there.” Catherine of Siena 1333-1380

3. A father shows his young daughter a bird’s egg:

“Use all your imagination! What do you think it will grow into? the little girl stares at the egg she cannot make up her mind whether it is beautiful or not. What might it become? She guesses. A rock? A football?

Her father smiles and points to the sky. A sparrow flutters into the garden right near where they are sitting.  The girl is open mouthed with wonder as only an small  child can be. How could there possibly be a relationship between the simple egg in her father’s hand and the bird in flight.. How could something with wings like that come from something as ordinary as an egg?  How could her father recognise that the bird in the air was born as the egg in his hand, when the two are so different?

She doesn’t question these things. Because her father told her, she accepts them as fact. Wondrous, yes, but true! One day she will understand the answers to all those questions, and they will seem just commonplace realities of existence. But for now, her curiosit is satisfied; she can’t understand but she can marvel.

And so we try to understand what it will mean to have a body transformed, but recognisable, in eternal life.

4. “Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf of springtime.’ Martin Luther

5. “Jesus has forced open a door that has been locked since the death of the first man. He has met, fought and beaten the King of Death. everything is different because it is so.”  C S Lewis

As Christianity spread, more familiar traditions. symbols and celebrations of spring were associated with Easter -Christ coming back to life after death. One of the oldest spring symbols is the egg. The oval shape of the egg was the same shape for a raindrop and a seed. These two were important life-giving elements. the egg itself promises new life as in spring, birds, and many other animals are hatched from eggs. In fact, the Persians, Hindus and Egyptians believed that the world began with a single egg. In ancient China, Rome, and Greece, eggs were given as springtime gifts. In Poland and Russia, hours are spent on drawing intricate designs on Easter eggs. In England, members of the royal families gave each other gold covered eggs as Easter gifts in the Middle Ages. The most famous Easter egg decorator was Peter Carl Faberge. He designed eggs from gold, silver and other precious gems for the kings of Europe and czars of Russia. These eggs are priceless now and can only be found in museums and private collections. in early America, children decorated their eggs by using dyes made from fruit and leaf colouring.

Easter Craft -Empty Tomb

This is a food craft to help us remember the victory of Jesus rising from death. Using chocolate Easter Eggs, biscuits and toothpicks. Simple, a bit messy and lots of fun, the empty tomb reminds us of that victory Jesus had over death.

Empty Tomb Craft

Other Easter resources at Max7.org

Tags: Craft

I recently put this memory verse to a well known tune.

(Sung to the tune “Row, row your boat” with appropriate actions and can be sung as a round)

Love, love, love the Lord

Love the Lord your God.

With all your heart

With all your soul

With all your mind and strength.

(Mark 12:30)

Don Stott

Tags: Bible, Music

Children’s Activity on the Resurrection.

Click to enlarge

At my other website at Eliab.com I have listed a page of links to original Easter puppet plays, stories chants and poems.

TeacherHelp.org has a wide range of links to Easter material ( craft, plays, worksheets) suitable for Sunday School, church or a school setting.

Max7.org has two short Easter videos which work well with children aged 7-12. See Episode 4 “Darkness” and  Episode 5 “Let’s Eat”

For something different try Bob Snooks drama/puppet script “The Easter Story is better than science fiction“

Tags: Craft