As November ends and December begins I always have a tendency to check my budget so I finish the year in good shape. I already know VBS went a little over (an annual problem of mine) but I know if I have unused money such as training teachers or attending conferences I can make the investment now and still have my 2015 budget untouched.
If you have funds for training that are unused, I encourage you to use them now for a great conference I am hosting here in OKC. The Sharpen Conference March 27 & 28, 2015. This is an amazing training experience for anyone serving in childhood ministry. This conference is the keystone event for gathering practical ideas to use with preschoolers, children and childhood ministry leaders.
The registration fee includes two days of great training in four super sessions, six breakout sessions, pre-conference sessions, lunch and a big fat notebook full of great ideas you can begin using immediately.
The Sharpen Conference will help you sharpen your skills, vision and leadership. This conference is only offered every other year so register now before all the tickets are sold. Check out all the speakers, conference titles and descriptions online. Groups from one church can attend for as little as $69.00. Go to www.mrmarksclassroom.com/sharpen for all the details and register today.
Your Friend Always!
Mr. Mark
PS- Here are some great ideas to use with your kids this week!
SMOOTH MOVES
Objective: A circle game of adding a signature “move” onto a string of moves that keeps growing as it goes around the circle.
If you mess up, go to the end of the circle next to whomever started the motions. Can you make it all the way around with everyone adding their own motion? Stop the game and do one of the motions. Can the kids name who did that? The story of Joseph and his brothers after their father dies talks about going back in time to “who did that”. Sometimes, its more important that the whole group succeeds than just what one person did along the way. You may not be able to predict how the final string of moves will look like, but God always knows the end!
FACE MAKERS
Objective: Relate the idea of making someone else into something they are not with our assumptions and our words.
You will need cheap 8×10 frames with glass and dry erase markers. Remove the backing and paper from the frame so that only the glass is left in the frame. Secure it with duct tape. One child will hold the frame up to their face and the other person will draw on the glass with dry erase markers. Make silly faces. Remind kids to draw silly things without being demeaning. Make a girl into a princess, draw a beard on someone, give them a scar or a pirate’s eye patch. Have a mirror handy so everyone can see themselves transformed. Wipe off and trade places. Joseph’s brothers thought he’d be vengeful, but he was loving inside!
HOT COCOA CUPS
Objective: Create a room display with each child decorating a cup to represent a division of the Bible.
There are ten divisions so you will have ten cups. Provide a template of a cup for kids to trace or precut cup shapes. In the space where the hot cocoa would be, stick Velcro sticky dots, placing one for each book that would be in that division. Next, paint glue around the dots and sprinkle with real hot cocoa mix to make the cups smell like chocolate. Finally, make marshmallows for each book of the Bible in their division. Use the other half of the self-stick dots on the back of the marshmallows. Leave the cups up on a wall for kids to play “match the mallows” when they arrive early or have to wait to be picked up. Kid-made, teacher-approved!
