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Happy Face, Happy Face…

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Happy Face Jingle:

“Happy Face, Happy Face what do you see?

I see a silly face looking at me! šŸ¤Ŗ

Silly face, silly face what do you see?

I see a sad face looking at me!šŸ˜¢

Sad face, sad face what do you see?

I see a mad face looking at me! šŸ˜”

Mad face, mad face what do you see?

I see a surprised face looking at me! šŸ˜³

Surprised face, surprised face what do you see?

I see a sleepy face looking at me!šŸ˜“

Sleepy face, sleepy face what do you see?

I see happy face looking at me! šŸ˜Š

Happy Face, Happy Face what do you see?

I see another happy face looking back at me!” šŸ˜ƒ

~author unknown

Items needed:

  • Construction paper cardstock
  • Markers
  • Scissors
  • Paint sticks
  • Packaging tape
  • Happy Face Jingle

Instructions:

  • Draw each of the faces mentioned in the Happy Face Jingle on a piece of construction paper cardstock
  • Cut face out into a large circle shape
  • Write words to each line of Jingle on back of corresponding face circles, as well as any songs, prompts or fingerplays you may like to sing when you are finished on the last circle
  • Begin w/ Happy Face #1…work through the corresponding faces individually & end with Happy Face #2 looking at Happy Face #1
  • Laminate circles to help them last longer!
  • Tape paint sticks to back of circles

Tips & Tricks:

  • Be as animated as possible!
  • As you say the Jingle, show the circle face that corresponds with each line
  • Make the faces yourself as shown on the circles & encourage the kids to show you their best “happy face, silly face, etc” along with you!
  • This is a great transition activity to get kids ready to sit & listen to a story!
  • I usually tell them how GLAD I am to see their sweet happy faces in my class!
  • We’ve made smaller versions w/ craft sticks instead of paint sticks for the kids to hold & they love that option too at times for small classes!
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My faves!

Posted on by lovebnamom10

If you have a large group setting (ie Children’s Church, VBS, etc) and tech capabilities, be sure to check out crowdcontrolgames.com!

I just returned from a kidsmin conference in Atlanta, GA. This was my 2nd year to attend the Crowd Control Games breakout session, and they are awesome!!

Their countdown timers and scorekeepers will add so much to our game time! …and their interactive games are FUN!

Check them out for yourself!

I’m a big fan!

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ā€œThis battle is the Lordā€™s!ā€

Posted on by lovebnamom10

1 Samuel 17

David & Goliath Game

Items Needed:

  • Darth Vader piƱata
  • Black Velcro tape
  • 5 small plastic balls (we used plastic golf balls)

Preparation:

  • Adhere approx 5 strips of Velcro tape to the helmet of the piƱata so that “Goliath’s” forehead is completely covered with Velcro
  • Adhere Velcro tape to the plastic balls so that they will stick to the Velcro area of the piƱata

Instructions:

  • Divide kids into 2 teams
  • Each child gets 5 attempts to hit “Goliath” in the forehead with a ball
  • Each team receives 1 point for each ball that sticks to “Goliath’s” forehead
  • Team with highest score wins

Tips & Tricks:

  • Make sure Goliath’s helmet has a wide area covered with Velcro! (It’s harder than it looks!)
  • Place Goliath on a top bookshelf or high cabinet where he is higher than the kids & stationary
  • If you want the game to move a little faster, tell kids their turn is over when they have 1 ball stick, or after their 5th failed attempt
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Quick Tip Tuesday

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Need an easy, no prep activity for a time filler or transition?

Play “Hangman” using a Bible Verse or phrase from your lesson!

Utilize a dry erase board or chalkboard to make it large enough for the whole class to participate. Allow the kids to take turns guessing letters.

Disclaimer: If the traditional “hangman” game would be offensive to use at your church…use the same premise, but see if they can guess the verse or phrase before you draw a regular stick figure with a silly face…it doesn’t have to be attached to a traditional hangman drawing to be fun!

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Bible Verse Puzzle Game

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Items Needed:

  • 1 colored poster board per team (each team should have a different color)
  • Write Bible verse on each poster
  • Cut into large puzzle pieces

Instructions:

  • Before class begins, hide puzzle pieces around room
  • Divide kids into teams
  • Tell each team what color puzzle pieces they will be hunting for
  • Remind kids that the “Red Team” can only get RED pieces…the “Yellow Team” can only get YELLOW, etc. If they see another teams’ puzzle pieces, just stay quiet & leave it alone!
  • On the sound of “GO!” the teams should hunt for their assigned color pieces & work together to put their puzzle together.

First team to find all their pieces & put their puzzle together wins!

Tips and Tricks:

  • Assign an adult helper or older child to each team to help aid in putting puzzle together, if needed (especially for preschoolers)
  • Tell the kids how many pieces they will be hunting for
  • Make each poster as similar as possible…especially having same number of pieces
  • For younger students, make sure puzzle pieces are not too hard to find!
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Bible Trivia-Catchphrase style!

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Items needed:

  • Catchphrase timer (or any type of countdown timer)
  • Cards with names & places from the Bible

Instructions:

  • Divide kids into 2 teams (we love to do boys against girls!)
  • Assign 1 adult helper to each team
  • Adult helper #1 presses timer to begin & tries to get his team to guess the person or place as quickly as possible without saying the name on the card, passes are permitted. Once a card is correctly guessed, he may move on to another card. Try to complete as many cards as possible before time runs out. Tally your score (1 point per card correctly guessed)
  • Play passes to next team. Adult helper #2 repeats the same process with her team.
  • Determine a set number of rounds & the team with the highest score at the end of the total rounds wins!
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A ā€œsouperā€ lesson on patience

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Genesis 25:24-34

Game: Soup’s On!

Items needed:

  • Construction paper cut into 8 vegetable shapes (or use clip art), each one lettered to spell “P-A-T-I-E-N-C-E” (see illustration at top of page); 8 vegetable shapes per team
  • Large soup pot
  • Writing utensils for each child

Instructions:

  • Divide kids into teams
  • Give each child a writing utensil and a strip with one coded puzzle on it
  • Give each team a copy of the code key
  • Explain these are the “noodles” for the soup
  • Each team should work together to decode the 8 puzzles given to their team
  • As each child completes their puzzle, they may run to the front of the room & place their strip of paper in the soup pot at the front of the room
  • When they have put all of their “noodles” (aka strips of paper w/ decoded puzzle) in the pot, each team member receives a vegetable with a letter on it. The team that can put the vegetables in the proper order to spell the “mystery” word first wins the game.
  • When a team places the vegetable letters in the right order, they may raise their hands. A teacher will come verify that they are correct. They may then put their vegetables in the pot.
  • Hint: The mystery word is something that Esau needed when he was hungry!

Tips and Tricks:

  • Assign an adult or older child to each team if possible
  • Tell the teams not to shout out their word when they get it in the right order, so that other teams may continue to work to find the correct answer
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Welcome!

Posted on by lovebnamom10

I love teaching kids about Jesus!

Kids can have fun AND learn about Him…church doesn’t have to be boring!

Join me as I share some of the lessons I’ve learned in over 25 years of teaching in preschool & children’s ministry.

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The least of these…

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Matthew 25:35-40

Game: Dress/Feed Relay

Items needed:

  • 2 sets oversized clothes (we used a pullover top & gym shorts)
  • 2 aprons
  • Pudding snack packs
  • Plastic spoons
  • Small table or bench
  • Plastic drop cloths

Set up:

  • Place clothes on one end of room
  • Place a long table on the opposite end of room laid out with aprons, puddings & plastic spoons
  • Protect area around & under table with drop cloths for potential messiness from pudding

Instructions:

  1. Divide kids into 2 equal teams (preferably boys against girls)
  2. Kids on each team form pairs
  3. Have kids decide before starting who wants to be dressed & who wants to be fed
  4. At the sound of “go,” one child has to help the other child place the oversized clothes over their existing clothes….then the pair runs to the other end & the child who was just helped getting clothed now has the responsibility of feeding the other child a pudding snack
  5. When the pudding has been emptied, the pair then run back to the other end & remove the oversized clothes for the next pair waiting in line
  6. First team to “dress” & “feed” all the kids on their team wins!

Tips & Tricks:

  • Keep the clothes selection simple! Avoid buttons, zippers, ties, etc
  • Make sure the clothes are large enough to easily slide over the clothes of your largest child
  • Pair boys with boys & girls with girls
  • Have a few different flavor options
  • Ck for food allergies
  • We had a jello option as well, but the pudding was the better choice when feeding…it was easier & less messy
  • Have adult helpers at the table to assist with getting the aprons on the children being fed & to help w/ opening snack packs
  • Tell the kids they may not start feeding their partner til the adult gets the apron secured (we don’t want ruined clothing!!)
  • We had a couple of pairs of teachers race & do it as well! The kids loved that & they were hilarious! If you have willing helpers…let them play too!
  • Laugh, take lots of pictures, & have fun
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Let the Little Children Come

Posted on by lovebnamom10

Over 25 years ago, my husband and I walked into our first assignment as newly appointed volunteers in the preschool ministry at our church.Ā  Parenting our then two year old firstborn and having a genuine love for kids were the only pluses on our resume.Ā  In other words, we had no idea what we were doing!

Our children’s director at the time offered me an opportunity to shadow a seasoned teacher who directed a thriving preschool ministry in the area. It was just for one morning, but this teacher was phenomenal.Ā  She had so many creative tips and ideas, and I soaked them all in!Ā  I also began recognizing the talent and skills of elementary school teachers, and started asking questions and purveying websites to brainstorm ways to utilize the creativity they used in their secular classrooms in my church classroom.

Simply put, I determined that I didn’t want to just be a “babysitter.”Ā  I loved Jesus andĀ  wanted the children I taught to know His great love for them.Ā  I knew that ifĀ  kids could watch a tv program and quote the catchy lyrics of a song word for word…certainly they could learn God’s Word!Ā  I knew that if crafts and activities at school could reinforce the lessons they were learning…certainly I could do the same thing to help them learn at church!Ā  I wanted our time together to be worthwhile.Ā  I wanted them to learn about my Savior…and I knew they could…if someone would just take the time to teach them!

Fast forward 25 years, and my husband & I have learned a lot about kids.Ā  We have 10 of our own, as well as 2 beautiful grandchildren.Ā  We have continued serving in various forms of preschool and kids ministry throughout all of those years.Ā  While I am constantly trying to add to my repertoire of games, songs, activities and object lessons…I realize that I have quite a collection!Ā  Just as people have so graciously shared their wisdom and creativity with me over the years, my hope with this blog is that I pay it forward! My greatest desire is to help you help your kids learn more about Jesus in a fun, creative, engaging way!

 

 

Christmas Gift