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Jesus, Water of Life Theme

9/5/2019

 
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Our sixth year of VBS we were able to branch outside of Alaska! We shared in Trout Creek, MT in May and then Bethel, AK in August.

Our theme this year was based off of the life of Jesus and all the things he did around water. We especially were aiming to connect with the kids in Alaska who are familiar with waterways, but the kids in Montana enjoyed it to.   We are excited to share this year's journey and theme. We hope you can find some inspiration and something that is useful for your VBS.


Lesson Inspiration

While there are many stories to chose from about Jesus, we narrowed our picks down to stories mostly related to Jesus using water. You will note some stories that don't fit that criteria, but we wanted to tell them so we added them as a segue into the story that is about water. We also didn't tell the stories entirely in order, again we did that for effect such as telling the Cana Wedding story at the end and inviting the kids to come celebrate with us. Finally, it helps to have a strong knowledge of the gospels in general, especially Matthew and John. 

Schedule- 5 day VBS

Songs- 10 min
Water of Life Video/Prayer- 5 min
Activity Time: (40 min)*
  1. Crafts
  2. Games
  3. Water Experiment
  4. Jesus Video & Snacks
Story Time- 15 min
Q&A- 5 min
Prize bag- 5 min
​
Total: 1. 5 hours
*Note- We ended up with the groups we had doing two small rotations instead of sending everyone to everything as written in order.

So it goes likes this... 
Rotation 1: (Switch between the two)
1. Craft 
2. Water Experiment

Rotation 2: (Switch between these two)
3. Games
4. Jesus Video & Snacks

Memory Verse

Tag Line... 

Picture
"Whoever is thirsty let him come! and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life." Revelation 22:17 b

By our second VBS, we got a little silly or creative and made up a song to this. You can hear it on our video here (starts around 4 min 30 sec)

This year's tag line:
We say: JESUS IS....
Kids say: WATER OF LIFE!
Don't forget if possible have an extra special prize for those who memorize the memory verse!

Lessons

Picture
This year, the creative juices were flowing plus we were down a couple of people so we changed a few things up. The story was told from the front with a character named "Darlane" who was a descendant of the woman at the well, but the kids don't find that out until the 4th night (and yes made up that character. Don't go looking for a Darlane in your Bibles.) Darlane is the keeper of the local well and one day two sisters (Sasha and Manna) show up looking for some water. The rest of the week progresses with Darlane telling them a story about Jesus each night. The girls get more and more excited about the real water of life: Jesus. It is always hard to tell what the VBS kids will like, but this year's idea really caught their attention. We as per usual wrote our own scripts and have posted a copy for your use for free below. 

Day 1: Jesus' Baptism and Temptation
Bible: Matthew 3:13- 17

Day 2: Healing at Bethesda
Bible: John 5:1-17

Day 3: Jesus Feeds the 5,000 and Walks on Water
Bible: Matthew 14: 13-33

Day 4: Jesus meets Zacchaeus and the  Women at the Well
Bible: Luke 19: 1:1-10, John 4:1-45

Day 5: Jesus Turns Water into Wine at the Cana Wedding
Bible: John 2:1-12
Another quick note: Per the request of our actor who played Darlane and also arranged our lessons, we downloaded some visuals for each lesson to play in the background while the story ran. You can access the slideshows here: https://freesundayschoolcurriculum.weebly.com/old-testament-lessons.html
Water Seekers Script​
water_seekers_script.pdf
File Size: 92 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Water of Life Videos

Something else new this year was we recorded a short segment that we called Water of Life Videos. These videos used people from our church that were willing to share about their answer to the question "What does Jesus, Water of Life mean to you?"  We encourage you to consider making your own videos to share, too. 
Day 1 video
Day 3 video
Day 5 video
Day 2 video
Day 4 video
For the tech savvy: I know that many of you could create a much nicer flow of a video. Our only excuse is that these got edited at the last minute when we had a  team emergency. The point though was we got them done.

For the less tech savvy: Give it a try with your basic software such as window movie maker or you can try an online option called animoto. It's fun and it adds variety. Trust me the kids don't mind. .

Registration

We have been trying to get church members to help the last couple of years in this area as they are the ones that will be seeing the kids regularly. We provided the registration forms, name tags, and end of the week booklet. The name tags we have used in the past have been stickers, but this year a team member had an idea for reusable tags. Some of us were skeptical at first, but it worked out fine. You can see them in the pictures on the left they are the cards with the orange yarn.
A few more notes on registration. We have posted our registration form as an example (forgive the typo, please), but we want to point out that it is a good idea to get parental consent for photos which we added at the last minute on the road. We don't post the pictures here on the blog for privacy sake though. And for the booklet, we didn't picture the whole thing here just the cover. Inside the book we had color pages for each days story, so we encourage you to use your imagination on what to put in your books. The kids then get something to take home with all the things they learned. 
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Registration form with consent for photos
Picture
Cover of give away book

Craft

This year we did a mix of foam crafts and original craft ideas. The foam crafts were bought at: oriental trading

Day 1: Jesus' Baptism foam craft
Supplies- all supplies came with the order

​Day 2: Well project
Supplies: popsicle sticks, construction paper, cardboard, scissors, hot glue gun with glue, toilet paper rolls

Day 3: Jesus Walks on Water foam craft
Supplies- all supplies came with the order

Day 4: Zacchaeus Tree
Supplies: construction paper, paper towel or toilet paper rolls, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, cardboard, scissors, glue or hot glue gun supplies

Day 5: Jesus, Living Water foam craft
Supplies- all supplies came with the order
For instruction on the two original up crafts:
Zacchaeus tree & Well project

Both are found on our Pinterest page under the VBS board.

Extra Craft idea: You can have a simple coloring page for the kids to write their memory verse and color. Good for kids who finish faster than the others.

Water Activity 

Picture
Day 1: Ice Fishing
Supplies: Ice, Ice tray, String, Sticks, Salt,
Cups
Instructions:
http://www.sciencefun.org/kidszone/experiments/ice-fishing/


Picture
Day 3: Tin Foil Boats
Supplies: Tin Foil, Pennies, Container for floating boats
Instructions: https://www.kids-fun-science.com/easy-science-experiment.html

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Day 2: Slime
Supplies: Glue, Baking soda, Food coloring, Borax, Containers,  Bowls or cups
Instructions: ​https://www.thoughtco.com/step-by-step-slime-instructions-604173

Picture
Day 4: Glitter Bottles
Supplies: Water bottles, Food coloring, Glitter,  Super Glue,  Stir Sticks,  Permanent marker,  Stickers
Instructions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=36&v=LVQSE82-c3Q

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Day 5: Water to Wine
Supplies: Water bottles, Kool-aid,  Construction paper,  Tape

Instructions: ​https://www.pinterest.com/pin/695172892464220831

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Extra activity: Bubbles
Supplies: Water, corn syrup, soap, bubble blowers, bowls

Instruction: https://www.homesciencetools.com/article/how-to-make-super-bubbles-science-project/


Games

Jesus Videos

For this rotation we showed the DVDs from the Nest DVDs called: The Miracles of Jesus and He is Risen. We showed them in 10-15 min segments, which left the kids wanting more!
Ideas:
T or F game running game
How to:  Name off some facts about the lesson of the day and the kids run to another spot with what they think the answer is. 

Musical game
How to: Similar to music chairs except standing in a circle. The person who gets out has to tell some thing about the lesson of the day. 

Package game
How to: Kids have to guess an item in a bag related to the lesson of the day. Then they also have to share another bible story that has this item or what it represents in it. Nothing gross, please. 

Guessing game
How to: Similar to charades, except that the game leader prepares a list of items that the kids will act out about the lesson. They draw these items from a hat or bucket or our case a stuffed animal whale. 

Music

PictureMusic team at Bethel, AK

Theme song: I've Got a River of Life

About 3 songs this year filled up the time. We made it a little shorter because we felt like the kids got bored with the longer set up.

Special music: There were only two On Fire for Him members that went to VBS this year so we kept it to a special at church. Here is a link to the song: here  (shown as performed for Easter not during VBS).


Goodies

Snacks: We tried out doing our snack time during game time instead of at the end. We were going to do it during the movie time but all our movie time was in the sanctuary so that was a no go. The biggest thing about snacks during games is that you give it out early during instructions, no choking please while running!

Goodie bag: We still use our brown paper sacks. The kids get anything you can think of that is small: pens, notepads, tops, etc. We tend to mark our bags boy or girl and sometimes small boy or girl if we have items specific to them.

Prize box: Prizes were larger items that kids earned for either answering questions during the Question and Answer time or when they had done their memory verse.   

Decorations

This year's inspiration, of course, was WATER! We decorated the front of the sanctuary with a water background, with boats, fishes and streamers to represent waves. The main attraction up front was the well that the Water Seekers met at each night to hear the story of the night. We got creative and made one with wrapping that looks like stone and covering the outside of a laundry hamper.  And we had some posters of various water scenes with kids on them that we put on the walls of the church. The registration table had the theme on the front "Jesus, Water of Life" as well as some boats and fishes.  We did streamers elsewhere per usual especially in the craft room at Bethel we had fish hanging from the ceiling. We posted the memory verse everywhere at kid height so that the kids could see it and learn. 

Ta-Dah! A Jesus, Water of Life DIY VBS

This was the most fun VBS that any of us could remember. The flow worked out really well with the double rotation. We had a lot of laughs. The kids got into all of it, but especially loved the water activities this year.  Anyways, we hope we have inspired you to try your hand at your own variation of a Jesus, Water of Life DIY VBS. And per usual all the materials we created are free to use. 
water_of_life_vbs_format.pdf
File Size: 190 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

For video diary of this year's trips to Troutcreek, MT and Bethel, AK, make sure to check out our Vlog link to the right.
VBS VLOGs 2019

Prayer Warriors Theme

8/26/2018

 
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Our fifth year of VBS included two full VBS weeks in Bethel,AK and later in Craig, AK. We also did a mini-VBS in Ketchikan, AK.

Our theme this year came from our classes’ Sabbath school study of David’s life. At first we knew that we want the theme on prayer. This came from our Pastor’s emphasis on having a prayer life. We started deciding what types of prayers we wanted to teach and were going to use different Bible characters to tell the story. Once we got into it, we thought of Prayer Warriors and because we had recently studied David, well… the rest is this VBS’ history. Read more below...


Lesson Inspiration

We recommend for you to read 1 Samuel 16-31, 2 Samuel as a whole, 1 Chronicles 28- 29:10-20, and then 1 Kings 1:28-3. This will give you the whole of David's life and beginning of Solomon's ruling, which you will understand why when you see the lessons. We think this helps to tell the story, knowing the background of what happens between each lesson.                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Schedule- 5 day VBS

Schedule- 2 day/Mini-VBS

​Games- 10-15 min
Songs- 10 min
Special Music- 3 min- 
Prayer Requests/Prayer Zone- 5 min
HQ Time- 5 min
Activity Time: (30 min)
  1. Craft
  2. Story Time w/ Memory Verse Review
  3. ASL Time
Mission Time- 15 min
Prayer Warrior Q&A- 5 min
Snack time/Prize bag- 5 min

​Total running time: 1.5 hours

Memory Verse

Picture
"I call on you, O God, for you will answer me, give ear to me and hear my prayer." Psalms 17:6

Tip: For mini-vbs, we only asked the kids to memorize where it was found. The thinking was that if they memorize that they can at least find it again.

Use same scheduling for Friday night and Sabbath School as to the left.
​
Alternate lesson option: (Mini- VBS edition)
Friday night: 
Lesson: David Anointed/David and Goliath
Craft: Use Day 2 craft (see below)
Emphasis: Prayer of Guidance/Prayer of Help and Safety

Sabbath School:
Lesson: King David and the Temple
Craft: Use Day 4 craft (see below)
Emphasis: Prayer of Praise/ Prayer of Forgiveness

Church:
Use prayer warrior script for lesson: David Prays for Solomon
No craft.
Emphasis: Prayer of Intercession
Sermon time: In our case our pastor preached a sermon on intercessory prayer after the final skit.

Lessons

Picture
This year we decided on continuing what we did last year in that we taught the story in two different formats. At the beginning of the VBS, we had two prayers warriors introduce the prayer topic of the day. One prayer warrior was in training. They got a video from HQ or Headquarters nightly that reinforced the mission of the VBS for the evening. After the kids came back from activity time, they would receive another video from HQ that featured "David" speaking one of his Psalms. We wrote and video taped all our own materials to use. Below is a copy of the scripts for the Prayers Warriors, HQ, and then David. They are free to use.

Day 1:
David Anointed/ David and Goliath
Emphasis: Prayer of Guidance
1 Samuel 16- 17

Day 2:
David on the Run
Emphasis: Prayer of Help and Safety
1 Samuel 21- 24

Day 3:
King David and the Temple
Emphasis: Prayer of Praise
2 Samuel 6

Day 4:
David and Bathsheba
Emphasis: Prayer of Forgiveness
2 Samuel 11-12

Day 5: 
David Prays for Solomon
Emphasis: Prayer of Intercession
1 Chronicles 28- 29:10-20, 1 Kings 1:28- 3


​
This year's tag line:
We say: GOD ANSWERS
Kids say: PRAYERS!

Prayer Warrior Videos

Day 1- Prayer of Guidance
Day 2- Prayer of Help and Safety
Day 3- Prayer of Praise
Day 4- Prayer of Forgiveness
Brief example of how prayer warrior script and HQ work together. Example is from Ketchikan, sound quality is poor (sorry!)

Scripts and Videos for Prayer Warriors
davids_prayers.pdf
File Size: 191 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

prayer_warrior_scripts.pdf
File Size: 366 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

vbs_2018_hq.pdf
File Size: 140 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

In order for this all to make sense you will have to open all the scripts. The Prayer Warrior Script has dialogue for "live" actors and then shows the cues for what video to play. The HQ script and David prayers scripts are meant to be video taped separately and then edited into their appropriate videos. See the videos for examples.  

Day 5- Prayer of Intercession
We hope you have enjoyed these as much as we did it. If you find them helpful you can use them as is with full permission. Below is a filming guide if you decide to create your own
vbs_filming_schedule.pdf
File Size: 181 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Story time

During story time which was during activity time our story tellers used resources from here:
https://freesundayschoolcurriculum.weebly.com/old-testament-lessons.html

These are the activity titles:
Day 1: Samuel Anoints David, David and Goliath
Day 2: David Spares Saul's Life
Day 3: The Ark is Brought Home
Day 4: Read straight out of 2 Samuel 11- 12, as you see fit to tell this sensitive story
Day 5: Solomon is a  Wise King

ASL Time

We added this year an additional activity, based off of the interest the previous year from the kids. We taught them Jesus Loves the Little Children in sign language. For the smaller ones we gave them some cutouts of kids to hold during the song. Then we shared the song during church time. It worked well in all formats, including during the mini-vbs.
Picture
At story time

Registration

Picture
Waiting at the Registration table
At the table this year we have a couple of things, our registration form (see below). And also our give away prayer warrior hand book. This booklet had all five prayers that the children learned over the week. 
registration.pdf
File Size: 361 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Crafts

Day 1: Door hanger prayer reminders
Supplies: Cardboard circles, stickers, ribbon, hole punch, scissors, colored paper, pen/crayons, glue

Day 2: Sheep faces
Supplies: Paper plates with middle cut out, cotton balls, glue, construction paper, scissors

Day 3: Ark of the Covenant
Supplies: Template, scissors, glue
Link to template here:
(https://craftingthewordofgod.com/2014/04/22/ark-of-the-covenant/)

​Day 4: Cross bookmarks
Supplies: Form crosses, foam letters and stickers, hole punch, yarn

Day 5: Prayer hands
Supplies: Construction paper, pens, colored papers with various things to pray for on them, stapler

Music

Theme song: Whisper a Prayer

About 4 songs and then a theme song usually fills up 10 -15 minutes. It depends on if you have singers or not among the kids.

We also did Special Music each night at the beginning with On Fire for Him. If you want to know more about this ministry click here: (OFFH)
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On Fire for Him performs- Jesus Loves Me at Craig
On Fire for Him performs Jesus Loves me at Ketchikan

Games

Picture
Day 1: Sling Shot Throw
How to: Put down three lines and a starting line. Have the kids make sling shots out of string, cups, and aluminum foil ball. See who can throw their foil ball the furthest

Day 2: True and False Game
How to: Put up signs between two objects, two walls or two chairs. One sign says "True" and the other "False". Then ask the child questions related to the topic of day or bible story of yesterday and have them run to where they think the answer is.

Day 3: Praise Game
How to: Put down lines on either end of the room. The kids line up at one end. The caller yells out something they are thankful for, if the kids are thankful for the same thing they run to the other side. The caller tries to tag them.

Day 4:  Balloon Popping Game
How to: Kids get a balloon with string to tie around their ankles. Then, they get to run around trying to pop each others balloons.  

Day 5: No game, because it was sabbath morning

Tip: After each game, have a debriefing about how the game fits the theme of the day. 


Goodies

PictureVBS team consulting on goodie bags
 Snacks: This year we requested for the church's to provide snacks. Some ideas from that were: Apples, cake, carrots, and animal crackers. And as always make sure you are aware of any food allergies.

Goodie bags: The usual brown paper bags, marked "G" for girls and "B" for boys. Inside each bag was some non-edible goodies such as a ball, small game, coloring pages, and other various items.

Prize box: Kids got prizes for learning the memory verse and for answering the nightly questions. These were usually larger items and not something found in the goodie bags. Kids got to pick what they wanted from a box. ​The things that work well here are larger items like bubbles , small games, and art supplies.


Decoration

Alas, as we look over the photos we took, we missed a very important decorated element and that was our mural of David's life. The idea was to show visually David from being a shepherd to becoming king. You'll have to use your own creativity to recreate that idea. We had a sign with it too that said Prayer Warrior: Life of David. Anyways, everything else is pretty much here. We were even shorter on VBS team members this year so our decorating was very simplified (except Ketchikan, who gracefully set us up with an elaborate Prayer Garden). We used poster showing kids praying. We had posters that said "Prayer Warrior" and also copies of the Memory Verse up. We used many prayer hands around the spaces. And, of course, streamers... what would our VBS be without them. We decided for the most part less twist and to make it look like "ribs" of a whale.  

Ta-Dah! A Prayer Warriors DIY VBS

 ​We learned a lot about prayer this year. One story from our Bethel VBS is this. A little boy’s mother told us that after he left VBS one night he told her that they had forgotten to pray in the car. This was after we had told a story about the importance of prayer. We hope we have inspired you to try your hand at your own Prayer Warrior Vacation Bible School. And as usual feel free to borrow/use material and make it your own. All our posted materials that we made are for use for free.
prayer_warrior_format.pdf
File Size: 118 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

prayer_warrior_format_mini.pdf
File Size: 109 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

As a side note: If you'd like to know more about how our VBS Trips went this year, we did a vlog each day of our travels. Click below if you'd like to watch them. 
VBS Vlogs Here

God Leads His People Theme

5/1/2017

 
PictureVBS team at Craig, AK
Our fourth year of VBS, included three locations: Bethel, Craig, and Ketchikan, AK. 

This year's theme was once again inspired by reading with our church's Bible study group which focused on Genesis. Originally the plan had included a night for Moses and Joshua (to extend our story into the promise land), but quickly it became apparent that our stars this year would be Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. This year also marked another creative inspiration that we called OT News. Want more? Read below

Lesson Inspiration

We recommend you read Genesis 12-50. Yes that is chapters not verses. This will help set up the background so that you can tell the story effectively. 

Schedule- 5-6 day VBS

​Games- 10-15 min
Songs- 10-15 min
Group time & Memory Verse- 5 min- 10 min
Craft- 15 min
(rotate for larger groups)
Activity-15 min
Lesson- 20 min
Q&A- 5 min
Snack time/Prize bag- 5 min
Total: 1. 5 hours

Lessons

PictureReporters Rebekah and Rachel at the station with roaming reporter Leah
This year we decide to present the story in two formats. The first way was in the activity where the kids got to listen to the story of the day while coloring. The second way was in the lesson time where we shared the lesson in a news story format. Each night we had three newscasters at our Old Testament News Channel (OT News) who reported on the story. The two in the studio, who set up the background for our story, and then a roaming reporter who met with the characters. Below is a copy of the scripts that we made. Feel free to use!

PictureReporter Leah interview Abraham and Sarah
Day 1: Abraham
Emphasis: God leads His people to trust
Genesis 18:1-15

This year's tag line:
We say: GOD LEADS...
Kids say: HIS PEOPLE!
PictureReporter Leah speaks with Abraham and Isaac
Day 2: Isaac
Emphasis: God leads His people to obedience
​Genesis 22:1-19

PictureJacob by the "Jacob's ladder" of his dream
Day 3: Jacob
Emphasis: God leads His people in determination
Genesis 27-28

PictureReport Leah talks to Joseph on his way to meet his brothers
Day 4: Joseph Pt. 1
Emphasis: God leads His people in faith
Genesis 37

PictureJoseph speaks from Jail to Reporter Leah
Day 5: Joseph Pt. 2
Emphasis: God leads His people to listen to His voice
Genesis 39-40

PictureJoseph leaving his palace to speak with Reporter Leah
Day 6: Joseph Pt. 3
Emphasis: God Leads His people to be strong
Genesis 41-50

Alternate scheduling option 1:
Day 1: Abraham
Day 2: Isaac
Day 3: Jacob
Day 4: Joseph Pt. 1
Sabbath School: Joseph Pt. 2
Church: Joseph Pt. 3
Alternate scheduling option 2:
Day 1: Abraham
Day 2: Isaac
Day 3: Jacob
Sabbath School: Joseph Pt. 1
Day 4: Joseph Pt. 2
Day 5: Joseph Pt. 3
We used alternate schedule 1 in Craig and Ketchikan where we didn't have six nights. At Bethel we used alternate schedule 2 as we had an extra night. This was because of our travel schedule.
vbs_scripts_2017.pdf
File Size: 228 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Small Group Time

Small group time was a way to get the kids ready for the lesson of the day. We split them into 2- 3 groups with a leader to go over questions and also the memory verse in a smaller setting. It worked well. 
small_group_lesson.pdf
File Size: 185 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Memory Verse

PictureMemory verse on display in the activity room








​"Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior" Psalms 25:5a - NIV

Tip: Post the memory verse in all areas so that readers can look at it in passing and also use it for memorizing the verse. 

<- Scripts for all the lesson written by the VBS team

Activity Time

PictureActivity time: Story and coloring
During the activity/lesson time our story teller borrow resources from here:
https://freesundayschoolcurriculum.weebly.com/old-testament-lessons.html
We used lesson titles: Abram Travels, Isaac, Jacob Tricks Isaac, Joseph's Brothers Sell Him, Joseph Interprets dreams, and Joseph Forgives His Brothers.
But you can also make up your own based on the story.


Registration

PicturePreparing registration
This year we had some exciting stuff such as a key ring full of characters for each night. Each key ring has the theme for the night as well as where the nightly story it can be found in the Bible. See below.

god_leads_his_people_vbs_2017__1_.pdf
File Size: 265 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

cards_for_printing__1_.pdf
File Size: 446 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


Crafts

Day 1: Memory Verse/Compass
Supplies: Paper plates, crayons, brads, arrows, stickers

Day 2: Altar
Supplies: Paper plates, tissue paper (orange and yellow), Popsicle sticks, glue

Day 3: Jacob's Ladder
Supplies: Ribbon, foam, glue (or self adhesive foam), scissors

Day 4: Coat of Many Colors
Supplies: Paper plates, cut out people, crayons, glue, construction paper pieces

Day 5: Joseph in Jail
Supplies: Construction paper, cutout or coloring page of Joseph in jail, glue, pipe cleaner, crayons
​
Day 6: Pharoah's Headdress
Supplies: Headdress cutout, crayons, scissors, staplers, strips of paper for the bands
PictureHeart string art
Bonus craft: String art
Supplies: Foam block, small nails, string, templates

Because we had extra time to fill at Bethel we threw in this extra craft rotation for fun. It was a huge hit with the kids. We used hearts and crosses for templates. We also did a little kid variation where we used a paper plate instead of foam and nails. 


Music

PictureMusic at Craig VBS
Theme song: Thy Word

And we used On Fire for Him to fill in after our main lesson time. If you'd like to know more about this ministry click here: (OFFH)

On Fire for Him performed during the week:

Games

Picture
Ball and Sheet
Day 1: Ball and Sheet
How to: Using a ball and sheet have the kids toss a rubber ball back and forth to each other
Picture
Isaac says
Day 2: Isaac says
How to: Similar to Simon says
Picture
Determination Stones
Day 3: Determination Stones
How to: Using rope build a course that the kids have to learn to jump from step to step
Day 4: Pick Joseph
How to: Similar to duck, duck, goose

Day 5: Jail Break
How to: Kids line up at one end and someone calls jail break and they try to run for the other side without getting caught. If caught they help the jailer. Last person standing is it next time.

​Day 6: Relay Race
How to: Create whatever team related relay you'd like.

Goodies

PictureFruit cups
Snacks: Fruit was the order of the day. Fruit cups worked well because then kids could pick out what they liked to eat. Apples and grapes are a hit. And of course we had some cookies. Word of caution: remember to check for food allergies.

Goodie  bags: Brown paper bags again. We decided on only putting in 3-4 items each especially at some of the locations where they had easier access to fun little items in their town.

Prize box: We used our prize box for both answering questions at the end of the night and memory verse memorizers. We had our highest number of participants this year for memorizing the memory verse.


Decoration

This year we were inspired by our studio set up for OT News. And we tried to keep everything else deserty since these stories were in the desert areas. So we decorated in the main room for the desert with a image for each night of story on the wall, except the jail which we put up the night of during the Joseph 2 story. We especially liked the "V" formation this year with the streamers. We had to get creative as we use them every year. We also like the decorative balls . We made signs for the different rooms as well such as "crafts" and "story." We made sure to post the memory verse all over and also have a couple of signs for our theme "God Leads His People."

Ta-Dah! A God Leads His People DIY VBS

We had tons of fun this year creating everything from the story lines and OT News, which was a big hit with the kids, to the activities and crafts which the kids really got into. We hope we have inspired you to try to your hand at your own variation of a God Leads His People DIY VBS.  And don't forget the materials that we have post are yours to use and make your own. 
1_god_leads_his_people_format.pdf
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2_god_leads_his_people_format.pdf
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Lost and Found Theme

5/1/2016

 
Picture2016 VBS team at Bethel, AK
Our third year of DIY VBS, was a special year as we expanded our VBS vision to include two locations: Bethel, AK and Ketchikan, AK. 

This year's theme was born out of inspiration from a program that our youth group, On Fire for Him, did at Easter time.

This included stories of lost and found sheep, coins, and people. We had a lot of fun expanding our time to include rotations between craft and a new activity time this year.

We hope you enjoy and get the chance to make your own Lost and Found VBS!

Lesson Inspiration

Luke Chapter 19 - The Parable of the Lost Sheep, Coin, and Son
Then we used parts of Jesus' story to explain how he came to find the lost (us!)

Schedule- 5-6 day VBS

​1. Games- 10 min 
2. Music – 10-15 min
3. Lost and Found Story time-5-10
4. Arts and crafts-10 min 
5. Lost and found treasure hunt- 10 min
6. Lesson 10-15 min 
7. Memory Verse- 5 min
8. Snack- 5 min (as leaving)

Lessons

For this year's lessons we decided on using a narrator and acting out the stories. The narrator read the story exactly as it is in the Bible with pauses at spots for characters to ad-lib something to the story. For example the Lost Coin is a short story in the narrative but with the narrator pausing the lady can talk about her coins. Surprisingly this was one of the favorites with the kids as our lady had them help her count the coins and then look for her lost coin. Some times it's the simple things that do the best.
Day #1: 
​Topic: Jesus as  baby
Emphasis: Magi’s search for Jesus
Matt 2: 1-12
 
Characters for reading: Narrator, 2 Magi, Herod, Mary

Day #3:
​Topic: The Lost Coin
Luke 15: 8-10

Characters for reading: Narrator, Lady

Day #5:
​Topic: Jesus' Life and Death
Emphasis: Peter’s Denial and Reinstatement (God searches for people)
Matt: 26: 31-35, Matt: 26: 69-75, John 21:15-19

​Characters for reading: Narrator, Peter, Jesus, 3 accusers 

Memory Verse

Luke 19:10- "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."- NIV

Just when we thought that the memory verses were too hard or that kids didn't memorize things anymore this year was the first rush of kids learned the memory verse.  Of course prizes never hurt!

Lost and Found Treasure Hunt

PictureSearching for items
This year one of the rotations was this activity: Lost and Found Treasure hunt.

Materials:
Objects to hide related to the story of the night
List of objects to look for

How it works:
Kids are given time to go around the room and look for the hidden objects. Readers can do it by a list and little ones can either have a buddy or be given verbal instructions.


Day #2:
​Topic : The Lost Sheep
Luke 15:1-7

Characters for reading: Narrator, Shepherd, Sheep

Day #4: ​Topic: The Lost Son
Luke 15: 11- 32

Characters for reading: Narrator, Son, Dad, Brother, 
Wild Friends

Optional Lesson:
​Topic: Jesus’ Life
Emphasis: The Good Samaritan
Luke 10:25- 37

Characters for reading: Narrator, Samaritian, Priest, 
Levite, Jew, Robbers, InnKeeper

This optional lesson came about in part because of the timing of our trip which this year we did five nights of VBS, a Sabbath School, and a church service. So we used this for our Sabbath School time.  Free feel to use or not use depending on your needs. 

Tagline:  We say: THE LOST ARE.... Kids say: FOUND!
A note on costuming: As you can see, because we are a traveling VBS our costuming is simple and easy to pack up and reusable throughout the nights. Think hats and simple props. Our most elaborate and space taking props was those sheep, yep we made those ourselves! 

Registration

PictureRegistration time
(Hint: Always use name tags!)

To make it more fun this year we had a booklet of the theme that the kids got to take home at the end of the VBS.

Below is the link to the documents. Free feel to print and use. (Tip: Print all four pages)

lost_and_found_p.1.pdf
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lost_and_found_p._2.pdf
File Size: 113 kb
File Type: pdf
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lost_and_found_p._3.pdf
File Size: 116 kb
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lost_and_found_p._4.pdf
File Size: 133 kb
File Type: pdf
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Lost and Found Story Time

Additional activity was a time where our pastor told a quick story related to the theme of the day.

Crafts

Day 1: Handprint Camels
Supplies: Construction paper, crayons 

Day 2: Sheep rolls
Supplies: Sheep cut outs, toilet paper rolls, glue, crayons

Day 3: Coin mobile
Supplies: Cardboard circles of all kinds, glue, glitter, paper plates, string, popsicle sticks
​
Day 4: Father's Arms
Supplies: Cutout hands and person, glue, crayons, memory verse, googly eyes                                                                                                                                                                                    Day 5: Binoculars
Supplies: 2 toilet paper rolls, string, stickers, crayons, stapler, hole punch

Optional: Good Samaritan 
Supplies: Construction paper, people cutouts, googly eyes, felt bandaids, glue, crayons

Music

Theme song: Seek Ye First

Hint: Also a great one to make up signs to.

The kids liked learning it to sing up front and we had them sing with us on sabbath during church.


And if you want to know more about the songs used by On Fire for Him (OFFH): click here

Games

We played  games at the other VBS' before just to kill some time. This year we had specific theme games. We found that letting the kids play at the beginning what they chose while we wait for others to come helped get other kids interested in coming. It gets the wiggles out. Then we'd introduce the theme game. This worked well at Bethel because they had outdoor space. It was a little harder to do at Ketchikan, so we modified the games to play indoors. ​
Day 1: Maze
 How to: Create a maze with ropes or chairs and lead kids through blind folded.




Picture
Guiding through the maze
Day 2:  Ocean Stormy
 How to: Kids lines up on a line and a person in the middle calls a color and those with that color run to the other side. Game continues as such.
Day 3: Coin search
 How to: Coins are hiding in an area and kids are given a time limit to find as many as they can. 

Day 4: Hide and Go Seek
 How to: Have the kids hide and then go seek them.

Day 5: Balloon game
 How to: Like volleyball but with a balloon
​
Optional:  Bandage the wounded
 How to: Have plenty of gauze and a volunteer (usually a VBS team member). Then time kids or teams of kids to see who can wrap the wound the fast. A leg or an arm is the best and easiest thing for kids to wrap up.



Goodies and Snacks

PictureTeam taking a break from filling goodie bags
 Goodie bags: This year we carried on the brown paper bag tradition. We found that we could use up goodies from previous years  or "leftovers" with the new stuff as we go. Anything on the small side goes (with exception of bags for the little ones). Coloring pages, bouncy balls, and glow sticks were some  of the goods this time.

Prize box: Also we had a prize box for those who answer questions at the end of the lesson and also those who memorized the memory verse. These goodies were things that didn't go into the regular bags: think bubbles, bigger balls, small games, etc.

Snacks: Cookies! Cookies! Cookies! We know healthy might be better, but these always go over well and we do mix it up with some fruit. 


Decoration

This year's decoration inspiration was lost and found beach, but as you will notice we didn't carry that all the way through. We ended up making our main room about Jesus and pointed the kids to that Jesus is looking for the lost people. In the hallway, we did our beach with found items that the kids could see while they passed by. In the craft room, we had colored pictures of the different stories. As usual with luggage space being an issue, we used streamers and deco balloons to round it all out.  The exception was Ketchikan where they were nice enough to decorate a beach scene for us so we didn't have to bring materials. 

Ta-Dah! A Lost and Found VBS

 We hope this has inspired you to try your own Lost and Found DIY Vacation Bible School. As always feel free to copy what you see here and make it your own.
lost_and_found_vbs_format.pdf
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Faithful God Theme

5/1/2015

 
Our second year of making aDIY VBS, we decided to be more creative and utilized an idea that we had done at church years before with our youth group. Faithful God was born out of this. Below is the information on how we did it.
Picture
2015 VBS Team on Sabbath at Bethel, AK

Lesson Inspiration

Old Testament Men and Women of Faith

More on where their stories are found is below...
Women:
Eve
Rebekah
Naomi
Rahab
Esther
Men:
Noah
Joseph
David
Daniel
Shadrach,Meshach,and Abednego

Schedule- 5 day VBS

  1. Music – 15 min
  2. Memory Verse- 5 min
  3. Arts and crafts-20 min
  4. Lesson part 1- 10-15 min
  5. Activity- 10 min
  6. Lesson part 2-10-15 min
  7. Snack- 5 min (as leaving)

Lessons

Day #1- Even when we make mistakes, God is faithful
Eve- Read Genesis 3 for ideas
​Noah- Read Genesis 6- 8 for ideas

Day #2- When our families aren't perfect, God is faithful
Rebekah- Read Genesis 24 for ideas
Joseph- Read Genesis 37, 39-42 for ideas

Day #3- When we seek God, God is faithful
Naomi- Read the book of Ruth for ideas
David- Read 1 Samuel 17 for ideas 

Day #4-No matter where we are, God is faithful
Rahab- Read Joshua 2 for ideas
Daniel- Read Daniel 6 for ideas

Day #5- When we are in trouble, God is faithful
Esther- Read the book of Esther for ideas
Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego- Read Daniel 3 for ideas

This year we started to add a daily tagline to learn within the theme. Each  tagline added to the theme for the week.

We also had the kids repeat back to us the tagline: "God is faithful". So by the end of the week we'd say "GOD IS....." and the kids would yell back, "FAITHFUL."

Church time: We added an additional lesson for sabbath school time this year. We did the story of the leper found in Luke 17:11-19. We improvised the script and then performed a song to music to emphasis the story. 

The lessons were done in two parts as shown in the schedule. We'd have the women go first each night and then the men would share. We shared the lesson in a first person monologue complete with costumes. Some examples below. The file below contains all the scripts for the women. Feel free to download and use.

women_of_the_bible.ot.program.pdf
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Memory Verse

Psalms 25:10 - "All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant." - NIV
 
or

Psalms 33:4 - "For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does."- NIV

Registration

Picture
Registration table
Registration: Name tags as usual. We add stamps for the tags for fun. We also make sure to leave all contact information with the hosting church to do follow up.  

Crafts

Day 1: Rainbow craft 
(from Noah's story)
Supplies needed: Construction paper(all colors), cottonballs, glue, stapler for putting together

Day 2: Rebekah's bucket for drawing from the well (from Rebekah's story)
Supplies needed: Paper cups, crayons, string, hole puncher, popsicle sticks, scissors

Day 3: Grain craft
(from Naomi's story)- link here
Supplies: Construction paper, glue, ribbon, scissors

​
Day 4: Lion cup
(from Daniel's story)- link here
Supplies needed: Paper cups, crayons, construction paper, googly eyes, glue, scissors

Day 5: Fiery furnace bag craft
​(from Shadrah, Meschach,and Abegnego)
Supplies needed: Paper bags, construction paper(yellow, red, orange for fire), crayons, glue, print out of Shadrah, Meschach, and Abegnego


Picture
Day 1: Rainbow craft
Picture
Day 2: Rebekah's bucket to draw water from the well
Picture
Day 5: Fiery Furnace bags

Music

Picture
Song practice
Theme song: God is so good

We had two madolins and a guitar player this year. It was tough to come up with a theme song, but this worked well. We taught the kids basic ASL to this song.

For more information our drama group On Fire for Him, click here:
Musical extras:
We are fortunate to have had many years of drama performing to music with our youth group. While not a requirement for you to do this VBS, we encourage you to use creativity and what you have on hand. So, the way we used our talents was to perform a specific song each night about the lesson. Below are some photos. 
On Fire for Him

Goodies and Snacks

Again, we chose to do a goodie bag this year. We used a wide array of items anything from the theme of the evening to generic toys like bouncy balls or crayons. We separate our bags into boys and girls bags for ease of passing them out at the end of the night.  It's also a great way to use up old kids lesson like the guide or primary treasure (which we happened to have had).

Snacks: This year we decided to go with baked goods at the suggestion of one of our team members after feedback from the children that they didn't like the crackers from the previous year. So, cookies and cupcakes it was! Feel free to try your own healthier version. 
Picture
In the kitchen

Activity Time

This year's activity time was led out by our pastor who play fun, creative games with the kids between lessons to get the kids thinking and give them a break before the next lesson.

Decoration

So right about now would be a good time to remind everyone that this is a traveling VBS team. That means not only are we limited by space but also when we fly we are restricted by baggage and weight. This is why you see lightweight items in the themes such as this year, balloons, streamers, and paper decorations. Those of you who have a stationary VBS, can afford the space to make bigger large cutouts and decorations, etc.  

Anyways, the inspiration for this year's theme was Old Testament characters so we created what we called an Old Testament marketplace. The main room was decorated with our theme saying: God is Faithful and each night we'd add a paper copy of the tagline for the night. This was a small way that we could add to decoration each night to make it different without having to add a lot more decoration like we did in a previous theme. Also we decorated the entrance with the mini-theme papers. Down the hallway we had water and boats going into the craft room. And into the craft room we happened to have had Daniel themed decorations that we hung in there. As usual, this is only limited by your imagination in how you decorate for this theme. 

Ta-Dah! A DIY Faithful God VBS

 We hope this has inspired you to try your own version of a DIY VBS Faithful God. We had alot of fun this year with the new stuff we tried. We all personally learned more about God's faithfulness to us which was timeless and invaluable. As always feel free to copy what you see here and enjoy!
faithful_god_vbs_format.pdf
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File Type: pdf
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God's Creation Theme

5/1/2014

 
Our first year of making our DIY VBS, we decided on creation. Below is information on how we did it.
Picture
2014 VBS team at Bethel, AK

Lesson Inspiration

Genesis 1- 2:3

Schedule- 5 day VBS

  1. Music – 15 min
  2. Arts and crafts-20-30 min
  3. Music- 5 min/Nature Nugget*
  4. Lesson- 30 min
  5. Snack- 5 min (as leaving)
Total Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes

*Nature Nugget was a short segment in which we shared about something God created on that day of creation, for example a lion on the day when we talked about animals.

Lessons

Day #1: Creation Day 1 &2- Light & Darkness/Water (Genesis 1:1-8)
Day #2: Creation Day 3- Plants/Land  (Genesis 1:9-13)
Day #3: Creation Day 4- Moon & Stars (Genesis 1:14-18)
Day #4: Creation Day 5&6- Birds& Fish/ Animals & Man (Genesis 1:20-31)
Day #5: Creation Day 7- Sabbath (Genesis 2:1-3)

We presented these straight from the bible text and explained what God created each day. After that we had the kids come up front and add a decoration for that. More that in decorations section below. 

Memory Verse

Genesis 1:1
​"In the beginning God created
​ the heavens and the earth." NIV

Registration

Picture
Registration Table
We kept it real simple this year at registration. We had name tags to give out. We took down names and emergency contact information. In later VBS' we added a better contact form. 

Crafts

PictureDay #1: Coloring Activity Plate wheel/representing light and darkness
We used supplies we had on hand from our children's department at church, with some exceptions like the popsicle stick animals.
​
These are just suggestion, creative minds will come up with endless possibilities to use. 

It goes to show you that even with basic crafts the kids still have lots of fun. 

Picture
Day #3- Moon plate cutouts
Picture
Day #2- Cotton ball flowers
Picture
Day #4- Popsicle stick animals or paper bag animals
Picture
Day #5- Bookmarks

Music

PictureSong Service

Theme song: This the day 

As you can see here, this particular year all we had was a mandolin player and one person to help with singing. But it was still fun!

Tip: Make up hand motions for the kids to the theme song.


Goodie bags and snacks

We found out the first year how helpful having a goodie bag can be. One of things we like to do at the end of our time at night is to ask questions about the lesson and any kid that answers gets a prize. Well, as you can imagine we sometimes have more kids than prizes and giving goodies bags is one way everyone goes home with something. 
The bags themselves aren't anything fancy, just paper bags sometimes decorated (in the picture we happened to have a fancy bag). We add in little things like pencils, erasers, small toys, and a kids reading activity.

​Snacks: 
For snacks this year we used fish shaped and bear shaped crackers. 
Picture
Sorting out trinkets for goodie bags

Decoration

We did progressive decoration this year. It was a lot more work than any of the other decoration we've done since. While not as extensive in decorating, it did require us to add decorations every night.  This meant that we had to have  decorations to represent each day of creation ready to be put up each evening for example: stars and planets for creation day 4.  The progressive decoration gave a nice effect in the end so that the kids could see the earth void at the beginning and after of our 7 creation days now full of life. We had the kids help us each night after the lesson put up something.
Day #1 Prior to kids adding decoration
Creation Day 1 &2: Light & Darkness/ Water
Creation Day 3- Plants/Land
Creation Day 4- Moon & Stars
Creation Day 7
Decoration for Creation day 7
Day #1- We used a black sheet to represent the empty earth.  Then we added at the end of the night "water"
Day #2- We added land and plants to the backdrop, note we did have the kids who wanted to share their craft cottonball flowers for decoration add them to the background
Day #3- We added planets to the background
Day #4- We had several cut out animals for the kids to put up
Day #5- We had mini crosses that went up to represent the Sabbath

Ta-Dah! A DIY Creation Themed VBS!

We hope this has inspired you to try your own version of a DIY Creation themed VBS. We had a lot fun and learned much about new things to try in other themes. Feel free to copy what you see here if you like and enjoy! 
creation_vbs_format.pdf
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File Type: pdf
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    DIY
    ​Vacation Bible School

    In 2014 the Wrangell VBS team was formed. What began as a mission trip to a remote location on a recommendation of  a friend, has become a yearly event. We have done a VBS in the following locations in Alaska: Bethel, Craig, Ketchikan, and Wrangell.

    This blog is intended to share some of the things that we have learned in creating our own VBS themes over the years. #1 it doesn't require a fancy package. #2 it is not a hard as you think #3 it can be a lot of fun.

    So we hope you enjoy our themes. You might even be inspired to DIY your own VBS. Feel free to use the materials/themes here to create you own VBS program.

    Brooke, Wrangell VBS Team Leader. 

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