Five Ways To Create a Fun Kidmin Environment

Recently I had the opportunity to tour the children’s area at Wooddale Church located in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. One of our former employees, Zach, is now the Elementary Program Associate in the Wooddale Kids ministry.

Large pillows make chairs.

Fun colors for the pillows.

Reminders lettered on the walls.

All the classrooms had clear walls with animals painted on them.

Walls up close.

Small group elementary classroom.

The ceiling looked like a forest canopy.

Moveable furniture and walls created small group space.

Elementary area had outdoor themed pictures painted on the clear walls.

Floor in the large group area.

Fun simple stage for large groups.

View of elementary area.

Outside the entrance to the kid’s ministry area was a fun play area.

Of course our group had fun with the spinning chairs.

The circles in the floor had some type of colored liquid that would move when touched or stepped on. So fun!

I love to get inspiration from how other churches create a welcoming space for children. One of the things I learned from serving in small churches is how to create a fun environment similar to what a larger ministry would be able to financially afford. Many of the elements found at Wooddale could be recreated inexpensively. Large pillows can be sewn- recovered old pillows. Chairs similar to those pictured could be purchased from IKEA. A little paint on the walls can go a long way- especially when creating a themed area.

Five things I’ve learned about creating a fun, safe kidmin area:

1. Find someone in your church who is talented at building things. Almost every church has someone who gets excited as the prospect of using his/her power tools on the weekend.
2. Use materials that are cheap. Cardboard, PVC pipe and foam core are some examples.
3. Go to garage sales with an eye on what could be repurposed in your kid’s ministry.
4. Build a creative team. These people do not have to be good with kids- they just need to be able to build or sew or paint or decorate. It’s a great way to get people involved that wouldn’t normally think of kid’s ministry as a place to serve.
5. Many larger churches retire their sets after a few years. Be on the lookout for opportunities to reuse these sets. Also, many churches give away their VBS decorations.

 

We’d love to hear your ideas.

Top 5 Educational Summer Activities

With three months of summer to fill with activities, it can be challenging come up with answers when the kids state the inevitable “I’m bored”. It can be even more challenging to find enriching activities that engages kids minds, without boring them. Here are 5 ways to combat the “I’m bored” statement that are educational and fun.

1.  Nature Rubbings/Painting

This educational, yet fun activity will get your kids outside and exploring. Collect sticks, bark, flowers, leaves, etc. and bring them back home. Take a piece of paper and carefully place it over the item from nature. Take a crayon and rub it over the top of the piece of paper. The outline and texture of the item will appear. Taking this a step further, next has your students use the items from nature as their paintbrushes and create naturalistic images.

 

2. Visit the Library

Your local library may be your best source for activities. Most libraries have some activities set up for kids around the Children’s section, while many libraries offer extensive activities, book clubs, and projects for kids to sign up for. If your library does not offer any programming, take your child to the hobbies/How To section of the Children’s area and have kids pick out a book about cooking, cars, how to draw cartoons, or whatever their interest may be. Reading through these books and completing activities that go along with them keeps kids occupied for hours.

3. Check out your local Nature Center, History Museum, or Zoo

Even if your child doesn’t like bugs, or history, or science, they are bound to be engaged at these various locations. Nature centers and museums aim at helping their subject come alive in an exciting way to kids. Most nature centers are free and many museums and zoos have free days! For example, majority of Chicago’s Museums have at least one free day a month for residents to check out their exciting exhibits.

 

4. Take a trip to Barnes and Noble and get a free book

During the summer, Barnes and Noble has a kids reading program where they can earn a free book! Barnes and Noble’s reading program is kids grade 1st-6th and they must complete three out of four different reading challenges. When completed, just bring the completed sheet to your local Barnes and Noble and your child will be able to pick out a free book! Click here to print out the reading sheet from Barnes and Noble.

5. Photo Scavenger Hunt

Head to your local zoo or park with a list of distinguishing characteristics of animals, plants, and bugs and the kids must try and find each one and take a picture. Scavenger list ideas include: find a mammal with four legs, find a animal that is yellow, find an animal that is a bird, but can not fly. Kids will be
using their brains and sleuthing skills.

 

 

What are your favorite educational activities to do with kids in the summer?

Preschoolers and Nursery: Nativity and Christmas Tree Decorating

Day 14: 25 Days of Christmas Ideas

Make a manger scene or a Christmas tree out of felt. Attach to the wall. Kids will love decorating and redecorating the tree. They can also practice telling the Christmas story with the nativity scene.

 

We did this in our preschool classroom and the kids love it. I’ve also had many friends create these for their own kids at home, keeping the kids busy.