By: Patricia Meyers, founder of www.ChildrensChurchStuff.com 

 

Are you in the middle of VBS? Recovering from VBS? Putting the final touches on preparations for VBS? Regardless of which stage of VBS you are in, plans for a follow-up event cannot be delayed.

 

That might sound utterly exhausting to you right now, and perhaps, it is the very last thing you want think about. But, now is the best and decidedly single most important moment to strike. You have in your hand (or in your computer or on your desk) a list of names of children and families that just enjoyed being at an event hosted by your church. Some, hopefully, were first-time visitors. All are in need of spiritual development. All have friends and contacts who might not have not been to your church before, and maybe they have friends that haven’t heard the Gospel before. Now is the time to get them excited about another event. They are 85% more likely to come to a second event in the near future than one that is a season or two away.

 

Children are always ready to discuss the next thing on the calendar. And while it is tiring for the adults, it is necessary for the kids. Have you heard the phrase “What are we going to do after this?” They are ready! Give them a reason to come back to church.

 

You don’t have to do all the planning right this moment, you just have to put a date on the calendar and get some simple publicity ready to go. The final plans can be done in a few weeks. Getting an announcement out is all that really has to be done immediately.

 

“What should I do?” might be the next question on your mind. There many ideas, and certainly there is no wrong idea (except doing nothing). I think it is a good idea to include spiritual impact in your follow-up event. While offering a simple game night without a purpose might be tempting, go the extra mile and include a fun object lesson or mini-message as well.

 

There are plenty of ideas ready to make this task a breeze:

• www.ChildrensChurchStuff.com  has a line of products called “Extreme Party Plans.” They are delightful, create lasting memories, and are extremely cost effective. You won’t believe how easy you’ll pull one together. They are even easy on your volunteer team. Each one takes one theme, like Popcorn or Flip Flops, and centers an entire party on that theme. The kids will have a blast. Plus the Bible message is powerful and full of impact.
• Many of the publishers are now offering follow-up events that relate to their VBS theme. Check with your publisher to see if they have something. If not, encourage them to develop one for next year’s theme!
• Take advantage of the myriad of object lesson books available at every single curriculum publishing house. For example, choose 3-4 object lessons that have something to do with nature and plan a “Back to Nature” event before summer ends. Take a simple hike, have a picnic, play field games, and sprinkle the object lessons throughout your time with them.
• Back to School is a perfect time for a fun event. Have the kids each bring a “cool” school supply and use these items as prizes during the event. Put them in a container and simply draw one (or more) for each game or contest you hold. There are a host of messages perfect for back-to-school, but you could just stick with the “supply” theme and use the passage that reminds us that “God will supply all our needs.” This is a good time to provide pencils with the name of your children’s ministry on them or even a simple “Jesus Loves You” pencil is a great reminder for any of us while we are hard at work.
• Fall Festival packages are available from most of the publishers as well. While a Fall Festival is a little distance away, if you advertise it well and keep the excitement level high, you could be extremely successful in bringing your visitors back.  

Whatever you plan, be sure to send a postcard soon so the families that just visited your VBS have something tangible to remind them. Then publicize with announcements and flyers, and as with VBS, make publicity fun and memorable!

 

Keep those visitors - and regulars - coming back to church!!! 

 

Posted in Follow-Up, Planning ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

I was raised in a military family and the values of “God, Home and Country” were continuously instilled in me throughout my childhood.

I remember the day that my father was deployed to Desert Storm. My family stood together dressed in red, white and blue waving American flags in each hand as my Dad’s unit gathered together to head to Saudia Arabia. We were sad that Daddy was leaving and worried that he wouldn’t return, but we proudly stood together as a family. When he came home 9 months later, we were all there waiting - again dressed in red, white and blue and again waving American flags. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more proud to be an American or to be my Dad’s daughter.

Now as an adult, I look back on that time with amazement. How did Dad handle being away from his kids and wife? How did Mom handle raising three kids alone when she had been used to having a husband around? I now know that their faith got them through the difficult time. Faith in God, faith in each other and faith in our country. I’m so thankful of those most important values they passed on to me.

Have a wonderful 4th of July! See the free coloring page link at the top of the page for a coloring project celebrating love of God, Home and Country. Maybe have the kids in your church color it and write a message to a soldier - past or present! Speaking for my dad, they’ll appreciate being appreciated!

Posted in 4th of July ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

Our church goes all out with decorating for VBS as I’m sure a lot of your churches do. It is so fun to see a fellowship hall transformed into a beach boardwalk or a gymnasium transported to Africa. And what a great message this is for kids - learning about Jesus is fun!

While the decorating is exciting to see, it is a lot of work! Our church is trying something new this year, and I wanted to share this great tip with you. We’ve asked our adult Sunday School classes to take charge of an area of the church. Our hope is that this will get more of the church involved in VBS and generate a church-wide excitement for VBS. It will also be a great help to the VBS team who usually decorates the whole church. So far, we’ve heard so me really great ideas coming from the Sunday School classes!

Posted in Decorations ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

It’s that time of year! I love summer because I get to find out what great themes the publishers will be sending our way for the next year. Several of the 2009 themes have been announced. We’ll keep you up to date and provide links to the the publisher’s Web sites here: http://vbsblog.guildcraftinc.com/vbs-2009/

Posted in VBS Themes ~ 8 Comments

By Patricia Meyers

How many more days to VBS? How well is that number displayed? Is everyone excited?

Here are some thoughts about last minute details:

Prayer

Have you scheduled prayer partners leading up to and during your event? Don’t forget this important step. VBS is a lot of work, a ton of planning, and a load of fun; but it is first and foremost an outreach. Prayer affects impact.

Many churches schedule people to pray during VBS. It is a wonderful ministry for some folks in your church that might be unable to work with the children or for those that are housebound. Tell them how important this aspect of the ministry is. And don’t forget to give them feedback on the success of your VBS.

Bigger Crowds than Expected

What will you do if your promotional campaigns work extremely well and you are met with many new faces on day one? What will you do regarding crafts and snacks and chairs and prizes? Make a plan now. Be prepared for some extras, but you do not have to over-extend your budget now; just having a plan and knowing who will jump in and take care of those items if it is needed is all you need for now.

Final Schedule Review

The schedule can make or break your VBS. Starting with the oldest age group and working down to the youngest (one bracket at a time), mentally walk through the kids’ schedule.

When a schedule isn’t well planned and reviewed, the last activity of the day may suffer, and you will have a worker somewhere that gets unnecessarily offended because their time was eaten up.

Here are a few questions to ask as you go through the schedule. The stuff that gets missed here turns into stress for your core team. Eliminate as much as you can ahead of time (it’s a nice thing to do)

• How much time is allotted for each segment? How much time is allocated for moves in between segments? Is that enough time? Too much? Too little?
• Is there a bathroom break built into the schedule?
• Do the teachers know (for sure) how much time they have for each segment? Do they know how you feel about abiding by their time allotment and how it will affect the day if they go over?
• Do the workers know where the kids go when they are done with their segment and how the kids will get to the next location? Never assume they know – actually, assume they don’t and be extra clear.
• Does everyone know where supplies are kept?
• Does everyone know where the first aid kits are?
• Does everyone know who is responsible for snacks from preparation to serving to clean up?
• What do you have planned for the kids as they come in each day? We have covered this before, but it is critical. If you lose control at this moment, it might be very difficult to retrieve. Be extremely prepared.

Double checking the schedule flow will give you peace. Peace is a great thing to have; priceless really. It will free you up to enjoy and bless the children and workers during VBS.

Enjoy! Have the best VBS ever!

Posted in Planning, VBS ~ 2 Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

There is a “free coloring sheets” tab at the top of this page. Click it to see free coloring sheets for several of this year’s Vacation Bible School themes. You’ll also find free coloring sheets for several holidays.

Posted in Crafts, VBS ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

Father’s Day will be here soon! Here’s a free golf-themed coloring sheet for those par-fect fathers out there.

Click here for a PDF: Par-fect Father Day Coloring Sheet

Print it out for a quick coloring project in Sunday School on Father’s Day!

Posted in Father's Day ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

Tony Krummer just posted a great article called “How to Do a Vacation Bible School on a Tiny Budget.” See the article here:

http://ministry-to-children.com/vbs-budget/

A side comment from me: working with a budget is always tough, but it is very important to remember that each child may learn about Jesus in a different way. Some may pick up the point during crafts while others may really get it during story time. I find that going through each station in my mind and thinking about what that station will need to make the most of that time for the child is very helpful. Then I can make lists of what we have, what might be donated, and what needs to be bought. Planning before buying is crucial for maximizing a budget of any size!

Posted in Budget, Planning ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

We started recruiting volunteers for our July VBS last month. Making all those phone calls can be a chore, so we decided to start a VBS database. I gave our church all the names of past volunteers and they were able to give me e-mail addresses and phone numbers. With that information, I started our VBS Volunteer Database. It is just an Excel document, but at least we have contact information in one spot.

I was also able to export all the e-mail addresses so I could send out a recruitment e-mail. You will still have to follow-up with some phone calls as not everyone communicates with e-mail, but we were able to save a little time by cutting out a few phone calls with e-mail.

Posted in Recruiting ~ No Comments

Posted by: Kathryn Good

I became a Mom to Caleb in April 2007. The past year has been the best of my life thus far. As a mom, I not only have the joy of teaching and loving Caleb day in and day out, but by loving him, he teaches me! But between being a mom and a wife, serving at church, and working for Guildcraft, I’ve definitely experienced all these hats we moms have to wear. I find myself asking God to continue to help me prioritize - to recognize what is most important. (And I also thank him for the gift of multi-tasking!)

I have realized that some of the toughest hats to wear are the “mom hats,” and I now appreciate and respect of my own mom, my mother-in-law, my friends who are moms, and moms everywhere more than ever.

So in honor of all the moms out there, here is a free coloring sheet illustrating all the hats we must wear to take care of our children. It would be a great little card for kids to color in Sunday School this Sunday! Click here for a PDF: Tip My Hat to Mom

Posted in Mother's Day ~ No Comments