Many churches like to have a vacation bible school during the summer. Some of the programs already have games set up in their booklets. Then there are some churches that like to set up their own programs. This article will give you some games that can be played both indoors or outdoors.
1. Shoe Relay
Place your children in straight teams sitting down. They should be sitting one behind the other. At the other end of the room or outdoor area, place several large beach towels( the shoes will go on top of these.) Doing one team at a time, have them take off their shoes and place them on the beach towels. When all the shoes are on the towels, mix up the shoes in a big pile. On the command of “GO”, the children get up run to the other end and find their shoes, sit down and put them on. They must sit down to put them on. Once they get their shoes on, they run back and sit in their spot. The first team to do this correctly is the winner. Shoes are not allowed to be tossed or thrown.
2. Adventure Challenge
Let us assume that you have 10 children (2 teams of 5). You will need several items for this game.( Two of everything). Hula Hoops, broom sticks, ropes (jump ropes will work), 4 cones or area markers, beach towels, floor scooters (if you have them) and a 8 ft long 2 by 4.
Using the four cones, mark off an area and place the children outside the area. Give each team their equipment.
Place a spread out beach towel in the center of this area in front of each team. This is a safe island. Tell the children that with the items they have, they have to work as a team. Their goal is to figure a way to get across the area without stepping on to the marked off area. I always tell them that this is an ocean. They have to help each other get to the island and then to the other side. If you have little children, place an older child with them as a leader. They use the equipment and their imagination to get to the other side. This forces children to act as a team to succeed. Note; You can add other items, too.
3. Bible character Charade (Older children)
This is a great rainy day activity. Make out small index cards with a bible character on it. You will need about ten of these. You can run off sheets for each child. However. have about 50 to 100 different characters on the sheet. The children sit in a circle and the one person goes into the middle. The middle person is then given a character and acts the part of that character. The children sitting in the circle have to guess who they are. If they guess correctly, they get to go in. Here is a list of some of the characters. (David, Paul-Saul, Moses, Noah, Joesph, John the Baptist, Adam, Pilate, Solomon and of course Jesus.)
4. Balloon Relay Without Hands
The balloon is the object to move. Have a set of teams. Their goal is to move the balloons without using their hands. They can kick it, roll it, carry it between their knees, push it with their nose. The game works best if you have a balloon for each child. Keep in mind that only one child goes at a time. I would also recommend having the same color balloon for each team. The first team to get all their balloons to the other end is the winner. Children must be seated before the next team member gets to go.
These are four simple games that children can use both indoors and outdoors at vacation bible school.
