In both of these exercises, the kids are not trying to get meaning out of the scriptures they’re looking up. They’re simply practicing using their Bibles to get fluent at that skill. They’re also not competing against one another; they’re competing against themselves. All kids are engaged, and there’s not one child who wins every Bible drill competition.
Where’s the Beef? You remember that Wendy’s commercial. In fact, they’ve dug it out of the archives to use again this year. We’re going to use that catchy phrase in a game that exercises the kids’ sequencing skills. (We’re tapping into their math smart! Yeah!) Make 50 top hamburger buns and a matching 50 lower buns out of cream-colored card stock. Then, make 50 burgers on darker brown paper. After you’ve cut them out, laminate them. This takes a little time to do, but you’ll have it for years and years. And remember, getting someone to do the preparation is another way to get someone connected to children’s ministry who’s not interested in teaching or leading. Now, go through and write a book of the Bible on the top bun (John), the next book on a burger (Acts), and the next book on the bottom bun (Romans). You’ll group each top bun, burger, and lower bun by three consecutive books of the Bible. Post the matching buns on the wall and put all the burgers in a red burger basket. As the kids arrive, they will pull a burger out of the basket, identify the book of the Bible on the burger, and find the bun that it fits with. They will then say, “Where’s the beef?” and adhere the burger between the buns using poster tack. When the wall is full, you can take it down and start over, but it’s good to put it away for a little while, so you can bring it out fresh. Everybody likes fresh burgers!
Sequencing Board. Start with a scrap of 2” x 4” board about a foot long, but this doesn’t have to be exact. Now, ask one of those wonderful guys at the church who enjoys using his power tools, to cut nice thick slanted slits in the 4” side of the board, about an inch apart. You want these slits to be easy to slide index cards in and out of. Now, create sets of index cards. These can be books of the Bible or sentences that indicate what happened in a story. Give the kids a board and a set of index cards. If it’s a set of books of the Bible, then they will put the card that comes first in the Bible in the first slit. If it’s a New Testament book, then they’ll slide it in a slit towards the back. The nice thing is that these cards can be rearranged as the child works their way through the set. You can do the same thing to review a Bible story. Put sentences on the cards that describe different things that happen in the story. The child will then put the story in order from the front of the piece of board to the back.
Depict the Scripture. If you have a theme verse for the month, then a Scripture center is a good way to reinforce that passage. Post the scripture on a laminated card at the Scripture center. Each week, the kids will be challenged to depict that scripture in some way using the items available on the table. One week it could be through play dough, another week by creating a rebus, creating motions, and/or putting it to a rhythm or melody. You can also offer different art mediums to paint with (water colors, markers, colored pencils) or different utensils to paint with (toothbrushes, sponges, bingo markers).
My challenge to you is to think of ways that you can reclaim that arrival time—that first awkward 10 minutes. God has entrusted you with that hour to teach His Word to kids. Don’t give any of it away!
