Helping children learn about Jesus
“I’m afraid Dad is going to die,” He sobbed as he poured out his worries about the crisis that had invaded his childhood. This kid was scared, confused, and hurting. This kid is also my own son. In more than a decade of children’s ministry, I’ve worked with many kids experiencing a crisis in their…
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Kids love dinosaurs and I like using dinosaur facts, toys, pictures, and activities in Sunday School, Good News Club, AWANA, and at home to teach kids about God, the Creator. I’ve put together some FREE tips and tools to help you do it too! Kids regularly bound into church decked out in dinosaur t-shirts, backpacks,…
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Kids love Bible games! I played “WILD ZERO” with my AWANA Cubbies recently. They loved acting like dinosaurs, hissing like snakes, and forming a giant ZERO with their arms. In my previous article, I explained why ZERO is one of my very favorite Bible games for kids because it’s so easy and so adaptable. It’s…
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Sunday morning can be a busy time for families. In all the hubbub of making sure everyone has their shoes on (not to mention pants!), listening to the sermon, chatting with friends, loading back in the car, and feeding everyone lunch afterward, it can be easy to totally lose touch with what kids are experiencing…
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When I was a kid, missionaries were my heroes. I loved it when they visited our church or when we’d get their newsletters in the mail. As soon as I was old enough for my own email address, I kept in touch with several missionary families. Now that I’m a missionary myself I see how…
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My smartphone is one of my favorite tools for teaching kids. I recently decided to ask some other parents, missionaries, and Sunday School teachers how they use their phones to enhance their teaching and I got some pretty great feedback. “Sound effects! I was teaching with a friend and she found a sound effect the…
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What’s the best Bible game for kids? It’s difficult to choose just one because so much depends on where, when, and with whom you are playing. But after years of inventing and writing Bible game ideas for the largest children’s ministry on earth; I’ve noticed one game that stands out above the rest. One game…
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Snakes are really cool so you can imagine how excited my kiddos were to discover this one in our own backyard. (The snake was initially slightly less enthusiastic about their chance encounter, but once assured that we had no intention of eating him, he became much more compliant and even rather photogenic.) I’m really thankful…
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How many different kinds of dinosaurs can you name? Do you know what kinds of dinosaurs these are? If you’ve got some kids nearby, call them over to join you in guessing the names of each dinosaur in this picture. (No fair using Google!) I’ll reveal the correct answers at the end of this article.…
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What do slimy snails, crunchy leaves, rough tree bark, fragile flowers, and deceptively innocent looking poison ivy have in common? TREASURE HUNTS!!! Kids love treasure hunts! My kids are no exception and they thoroughly enjoyed finding these things during our “Touch & Feel Treasure Hunt” in the park. (Btw, we didn’t let them touch the…
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