VBS Missions Games & Activities
- Help kids understand the culture of another country by introducing them to indigenous games played there. Just about any game from "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" to "Simon Says" can be adapted to focus on missions. If you need game ideas, Web sites like Party Game Central have has directions for hundreds of games for all age groups and occasions.
- Worksheets, puzzles, songs and chants all fall into the activities category. Books like "52 Ways to Teach Missions" by Nancy Williamson contains reproducible activities that help teach kids the importance of missions. Using software like Puzzlemaker, you can create your own custom word search and crossword puzzles and print them for classroom use. Missions related songs are available through CD or download, but using classic songs like "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" are just as effective. You might also try writing your own missions song to a familiar tune.
- Crafts and snacks can focus on just about any aspect of missions you choose. You can help kids create something that represents a specific country or you can focus on the travel aspect of missions. Kids can create a passport and make their own stamps to place inside to remind them to pray for specific countries. They can also create snacks inspired by foods from around the world. Learning about different places can help kids understand what missionaries do and why.
- Help kids get involved in raising money to support missionaries around the world. Most church denominations have a missions department with helpful information to supply support, ideas and resources to encourage kids to give to missions. Websites like Boys and Girls Missions Challenge (BGMC) and "The Book of Giving" by Ellen Sabin provide lots of fun ways kids can get involved in giving projects. Getting involved is key, whether kids give money from their piggy banks, collect food and clothes, or raise money through a program.