Thanks for these great ideas. I'm in charge of VBS this year and it's been a minute since I've been "in charge"! I forgot how crazy expensive VBS decorations are through the publisher. Seeeeriously CRAZY! You've saved me from spending more money than I want to, and have done a super job of explaining things, and your energy is encouraging! Bravo!! P.S. We're doing Food Truck Party VBS, just in case you have any ideas on that theme!!
So glad you enjoyed this video, and thank you for helping out in your church! Off the top of my head, I wonder if you could use a plastic round table cloth and some other table cloth scraps to make a giant cheeseburger on the wall. For the bun, you could cut out semi circles from a tan colored table cloth, cut a "burger patty" slice from a dark brown table cloth, and use red and green for tomato and lettuce toppings. For an extra touch, you could even paint sesame seeds on the "bun". Not sure if it makes sense the way I described it. 😄 I don't have a video specifically on the Food Truck Party theme, but if you want to check out my other VBS videos, you might find some inspiration that can be adapted for a food theme - ua-cam.com/play/PL4vtl2v9reIHt_aX1VAEKDdjb90s9PNy2.html
Great video! I asked my church if we were doing vbs this year and they said no didn't have enough time to plan this year, plus were a very small church but growing and we need volunteers and someone to lead. I volunteered and said I would be willing to HELP lead. Help. I have never even been to VBS myself as a child. I helped once in the nursery at my old church as a teen. Anyways, my point is, I am now going to be leading it next year. 😬😬😬😬 I'm scared because I have no idea what its really about. I'm crafty, I can decorate but I have no idea how to lead it. I've never led anything or been in charge of anything. Do you have any tips or advice for me to find out what to do? I'm going to talk to other churches and my dads church VBS leader for advice and help. I'm already overwhelmed with the thought of it but I know its probably not as hard as I think its going to be. I could be wrong! But thanks for taking the time to read this and any advice is appreciated!!!
Hi, Caitlin! The nice thing about VBS is there is no one "right" way to run one, and they can be as intense or simple as makes sense for your church. I've attended as a kid and helped as an adult at several VBSes of different sizes. At a very large church, VBS might include things like complicated skits, a bounce house at the end of the week, and prizes for kids to win by memorizing the most Bible verses.At a smaller church, VBS could be as simple as meeting every Saturday in the evening one month for kids to hear Bible stories and play games outside. And there's a lot of options in between. 😄 The typical components of VBS are Bible lessons, Game time, and Crafts, as well as an opening and closing "ceremony" or event where everyone is gathered together. Kids are often divided into smaller groups by age or grade, and cycle through the different stations. For example, K5 & 1st grade would be listening to the Bible lesson, 2nd-3rd grade would be outside for game time, and 4th-6th grade would be at craft time. These activities often tie into a larger theme, both setting and Biblically. As an example, a VBS I helped at one year had trains as the decoration theme. This tied into the Bible stories for the week because they all dealt with the question, "Am I on the right track?" So the Bible lessons might include Daniel & the lion's den, because Daniel had to choose to stay on the right track and follow God even though it would risk his life. And then the next night the Bible lesson might be Depending on how many kids you expect to attend and how many volunteers are able to help, you could have someone be the game leader, someone be the craft leader, and someone be the Bible story teacher. Then, each age group could have a leader to guide the kids from station to station. And then if you have an opening and closing ceremony where everyone is all together, you could have someone lead that segment. And if you don't have enough volunteers to have that many leaders, you could have all the kids stay together as one group, or have the group leaders lead the games, Bible lesson, and crafts for their group. Some other ideas to include during a VBS are skits, singing songs, a snack time, or a memory verse time. These could be incorporated into other activities; skits and singing could be during opening or closing ceremony, memory verse could be included with the Bible lesson, etc. Snacks could be their own event, something handed to kids when they leave, or skipped altogether. 😄 Have fun with it, but don't stretch yourself too thin! Choose the activities that make the most sense for your church. There are also many VBS curriculums available for purchase that would include Bible lessons, skits, craft ideas, games, etc. They can sometimes be pricey, but they are also a great resource to take some of the planning out of the way. If you've never been to a VBS before, seeing one in person would probably be a big help. If it were me, I'd reach out to another church in the area that is having VBS this summer and ask if I could shadow a leader one night of VBS. That way, you could see how it all plays out. Of course, you don't have to do everything another church does for VBS and you don't have to do everything the way they do it, but it would be a great starting point to get ideas of what might work best for your church. Lastly, don't be afraid to delegate and ask for help! The church is the body of Christ, and we all need each other. Just do your best for God's glory, and I'm sure VBS will be a great ministry for your community!
Yes to all you mentioned!! Love this!
Thanks for these great ideas. I'm in charge of VBS this year and it's been a minute since I've been "in charge"! I forgot how crazy expensive VBS decorations are through the publisher. Seeeeriously CRAZY! You've saved me from spending more money than I want to, and have done a super job of explaining things, and your energy is encouraging! Bravo!!
P.S. We're doing Food Truck Party VBS, just in case you have any ideas on that theme!!
So glad you enjoyed this video, and thank you for helping out in your church!
Off the top of my head, I wonder if you could use a plastic round table cloth and some other table cloth scraps to make a giant cheeseburger on the wall. For the bun, you could cut out semi circles from a tan colored table cloth, cut a "burger patty" slice from a dark brown table cloth, and use red and green for tomato and lettuce toppings. For an extra touch, you could even paint sesame seeds on the "bun". Not sure if it makes sense the way I described it. 😄 I don't have a video specifically on the Food Truck Party theme, but if you want to check out my other VBS videos, you might find some inspiration that can be adapted for a food theme - ua-cam.com/play/PL4vtl2v9reIHt_aX1VAEKDdjb90s9PNy2.html
I really enjoyed this I like your points on all things
Glad you enjoyed!
Helpful tips!! Thanks!
Great video! I asked my church if we were doing vbs this year and they said no didn't have enough time to plan this year, plus were a very small church but growing and we need volunteers and someone to lead. I volunteered and said I would be willing to HELP lead. Help. I have never even been to VBS myself as a child. I helped once in the nursery at my old church as a teen.
Anyways, my point is, I am now going to be leading it next year. 😬😬😬😬
I'm scared because I have no idea what its really about. I'm crafty, I can decorate but I have no idea how to lead it. I've never led anything or been in charge of anything. Do you have any tips or advice for me to find out what to do? I'm going to talk to other churches and my dads church VBS leader for advice and help. I'm already overwhelmed with the thought of it but I know its probably not as hard as I think its going to be. I could be wrong! But thanks for taking the time to read this and any advice is appreciated!!!
Hi, Caitlin! The nice thing about VBS is there is no one "right" way to run one, and they can be as intense or simple as makes sense for your church. I've attended as a kid and helped as an adult at several VBSes of different sizes. At a very large church, VBS might include things like complicated skits, a bounce house at the end of the week, and prizes for kids to win by memorizing the most Bible verses.At a smaller church, VBS could be as simple as meeting every Saturday in the evening one month for kids to hear Bible stories and play games outside. And there's a lot of options in between. 😄
The typical components of VBS are Bible lessons, Game time, and Crafts, as well as an opening and closing "ceremony" or event where everyone is gathered together. Kids are often divided into smaller groups by age or grade, and cycle through the different stations. For example, K5 & 1st grade would be listening to the Bible lesson, 2nd-3rd grade would be outside for game time, and 4th-6th grade would be at craft time. These activities often tie into a larger theme, both setting and Biblically. As an example, a VBS I helped at one year had trains as the decoration theme. This tied into the Bible stories for the week because they all dealt with the question, "Am I on the right track?" So the Bible lessons might include Daniel & the lion's den, because Daniel had to choose to stay on the right track and follow God even though it would risk his life. And then the next night the Bible lesson might be
Depending on how many kids you expect to attend and how many volunteers are able to help, you could have someone be the game leader, someone be the craft leader, and someone be the Bible story teacher. Then, each age group could have a leader to guide the kids from station to station. And then if you have an opening and closing ceremony where everyone is all together, you could have someone lead that segment. And if you don't have enough volunteers to have that many leaders, you could have all the kids stay together as one group, or have the group leaders lead the games, Bible lesson, and crafts for their group.
Some other ideas to include during a VBS are skits, singing songs, a snack time, or a memory verse time. These could be incorporated into other activities; skits and singing could be during opening or closing ceremony, memory verse could be included with the Bible lesson, etc. Snacks could be their own event, something handed to kids when they leave, or skipped altogether. 😄 Have fun with it, but don't stretch yourself too thin! Choose the activities that make the most sense for your church.
There are also many VBS curriculums available for purchase that would include Bible lessons, skits, craft ideas, games, etc. They can sometimes be pricey, but they are also a great resource to take some of the planning out of the way.
If you've never been to a VBS before, seeing one in person would probably be a big help. If it were me, I'd reach out to another church in the area that is having VBS this summer and ask if I could shadow a leader one night of VBS. That way, you could see how it all plays out. Of course, you don't have to do everything another church does for VBS and you don't have to do everything the way they do it, but it would be a great starting point to get ideas of what might work best for your church.
Lastly, don't be afraid to delegate and ask for help! The church is the body of Christ, and we all need each other. Just do your best for God's glory, and I'm sure VBS will be a great ministry for your community!