Share The Good News: Ideas for Announcing Your VBS

Your Vacation Bible School is planned, supplies are ready, volunteers recruited and everyone’s excited to grow in faith while having fun, too! But how do you encourage students to attend? Here are a few tips to promote and generate excitement about your VBS.

•    Does your church have a marquee sign outside? Use one or both sides to announce the VBS dates, theme and the dates for registration. This is a great (and free!) way to inform both church members and passing motorists of your upcoming event.

•    Hang a personalized vinyl banner in your VBS theme to announce the dates! Once Bible School has kicked off, you can still use the banner as part of your decorations.

•    A colorful bulletin board display in your fellowship or other common area can spark excitement and keep your congregation informed.

•    Announce VBS to the neighbors! Make yard signs that parents, volunteers and other church members can display outside their homes. You could put a few on the church lawn, too!

•    Try Save the Date magnets! Much like wedding save the date magnets, these handy items are a fun reminder for parents and students that VBS is coming up soon. Distribute them at Sunday School, youth group or Bible study to get the word out.

•    Sometimes a colorful mailed invitation can make VBS extra special for students. Be sure to include the dates, times, location, any registration dates and, if you’re planning them, any information about a kickoff rally and graduation event.

•    Kids love characters! Have volunteers dress up in your theme. Try an explorer for an outback theme, a crocodile for a swamp theme or a mad scientist for a science theme. Have your dressed up characters visit Sunday School classes to promote your VBS.

Vacation Bible School Rewards & Recognition

Sometimes, a little recognition can go a long way. As well as being really fun, special awards boost confidence, encourage spiritual growth and make Vacation Bible School truly memorable. Here are a few tips and ideas to make sure your students get the special recognition they deserve.

Reasons to Give Awards

•    Memorization: If your Bible School curriculum involves memorizing Bible verses, prayers or the books of the Bible, give a special award to students who know their stuff!

•    Awesome Art Projects: Some kids just love to create!  Hand out special awards for art projects and crafts with that special flair.

•    Super Student: Vacation Bible School is all about sharing and showing faith! Give a “super student” award to kids who display good citizenship, helpfulness and respect.

Depending on the structure of your VBS, you may want to divide your awards up by gender, age group or grade to ensure everyone feels included. For example: Awesome First Grade Art Project, Super 10-year-old Student.

Every Student Is Excellent!
If you’re not a fan of competition and have a smaller VBS, try this fun idea. Throughout the week, have your teachers, group leaders or helpers keep track of every student’s unique traits and personalities. Then, sometime before the final day, have leaders meet to assign winners to “The Biggest Smile”, “The Comedian”, “The Future Picasso” (someone who loves art projects), “The Songbird” (someone who loves music time), “The Best Attitude” and any other awards you can dream up. Just remember to keep the awards positive and make sure every student receives one.

Another idea is to create a Peer Award and let students give recognition to each other as a way to encourage fellowship.

What To Give?
From shiny medals to colorful ribbons, it’s easy to find the right awards for your VBS students.

•    Cross-shaped trophies are a great way to both recognize achievement and share the spirit.

•    For special awards, try personalized medals with a faith-filled cross and Bible theme.

•    Make simple paper certificates even more fun by attaching an inspirational key chain, small novelty toy or piece of candy.

Simple Step-By-Step VBS Planning Guide

Planning this year’s Vacation Bible School celebrations? Let us help! Follow this easy timeline to make this VBS the best one yet.

Four to Six Months To Go… The Planning Stage

•    Pick a theme
•    Decide on dates/times
•    Start to publicize dates/times to community and congregation
•    Secure facilities (Incorporate outdoor spaces as possible.)
•    Discuss budget options and plan expenses
•    Purchase sample supplies (Not only can you try out supplies, but then you can set any decorations around your church to get kids excited about this year’s events!)

Two to Three Months To Go… Rally the Troops

•    Recruit volunteers to handle various age groups, kitchen duties, registration, first aid and any other needed areas
•    Create each age group’s daily schedule
•    Add VBS reminders to Sunday’s bulletin
•    Start to publicize your event (Use those sample supplies you ordered!)

Two to Six Weeks To Go… Supply Time

•    Estimate this year’s attendance (Use last year’s numbers or have parents indicate intended attendance on a slip of paper and then pass them in during collection time.)
•    Order VBS supplies (Order extras!)
•    Supply teachers and volunteers with learning materials and duties
•    Heavily publicize your event (Check out our tips for getting the word out!)
•    Hold registration and/or distribute registration forms (Give each person a VBS theme sticker as they register!)

One Week Before… Nearly There

•    Finalize head count
•    Secure volunteer help
•    Adjust staffing/room assignments as needed
•    Purchase food, tableware and perishable supplies
•    Decorate your facility (Keep the sticky tack, tape and pins handy!)
•    Take care of last minute details

And then get ready for fun!

Helping Hands: A VBS Volunteer Guide

As anyone who’s planned a Vacation Bible School knows, the “V” in VBS could easily stand for Volunteer! From planning lessons and activities to helping students grow in the spirit, volunteers are what make VBS the faith-filled experience it is. Check out these tips and ideas to recruit, guide and thank your Bible school’s volunteers.

How To Recruit

•    Begin by contacting last year’s volunteers. Even if they can’t help this year, they might be able to offer you some helpful pointers. Don’t be afraid to ask!

•    Get the word out. Post sign-up sheets around your church with blanks for interested volunteers to provide their name, phone number and email. You could also include an announcement in your church’s bulletin or newsletter. Remember to include at least one contact number as part of the announcement.

•    No matter what, start early! Many potential volunteers plan vacations in the summer, so be sure to inform them of your VBS dates and times as soon as possible.

Guiding Your Volunteers

•    Get to know them! Before you assign roles to your volunteers, learn all you can about them. A volunteer who loves to paint and draw might make a great craft time leader, and a musician or singer might feel right at home leading sing-alongs. Those with teaching experience are perfect for leading lesson time, and if you have a volunteer who’s a bit nervous about working with kids, he or she can still help by preparing snacks, decorating and cleaning up.

•    Be prepared! A few days before VBS begins, meet with your volunteers to go over the lesson plans. Make sure they’re comfortable with the material, and give them a chance to ask questions.

•    Dress them up! Encourage volunteers to dress up in your VBS theme or as characters from Bible stories. If some of your volunteers like to act, little skits and plays can bring lessons to life and make learning fun.

•    Stay positive! Kids can be very receptive to adults’ moods, so be sure your volunteers keep a positive attitude. Hold a daily volunteer huddle before or after VBS to voice concerns, pray and most importantly, encourage!

How To Say Thanks

•    Pizza Party! Sometime after VBS has ended, thank your volunteers with a pizza party. To make set-up easy, use an all-in-one party pack that includes tableware, napkins and decorations.

•    Meet for lunch. If a pizza party sounds like too much work, consider meeting at a favorite restaurant to buy lunch for your volunteers.

•    Gifts. Sometimes a little gift can say a lot. Give each volunteer a Bible mint tin and include a little note that says, “You’re worth a mint to us!” You could also give a personalized religious medal with your volunteer’s name and the name and dates of your VBS to let them know they’re true heroes!

Word Search Activities

Use word searches in your Sunday School classroom or use them as a supplement to your VBS week to help kids identify important people and places from the Bible.  Besides being a great resource for teaching kids key concepts of the Bible, word searches can be used at home or even on long car trips.

Inspiring Lesson Plan for Sunday School

By Penny Warner

To enlighten and inspire your young Bible students, make your Sunday School lesson plans rock! All you need are a few hands-on activities and some spirited imagination to make those important stories come alive.

V.B.S. Fundraising Ideas

Every dollar counts when you’re raising money for your V.B.S. program. Below, we’ve provided you with several creative and clever ways to fundraise so you can reach even more kids during V.B.S.