My 2015 VBS reviews begin in just over three weeks . . . I have eight reviews completed and I'm waiting for seven more kits to arrive. I'm very happy to say the resources I'm reviewing this year so far are showing themselves to be very well written with solid Bible lessons which will engage children so they understand their need for Jesus and how to grow in their walk with Him! These resources will be able to be used in your church in a variety of settings all year long! But, if you could have a VBS exactly the way you want it, what would it include? What components do you want to see in a VBS resource? What do you look for when you choose a VBS resource for use in your church? If you could have a publisher design a VBS for you, what setting would you like to see them use? Which stations would you want them to include? What would your "ideal" VBS look like? Please take a moment to comment below!
I like everything laid out, so it is easy to implement. The Director materials giving clear directions, the teacher/game leader/kitchen/craft/whatever person with clear instructions, as well. I don't like to find that we have paid a bunch of money and then we have to flesh it out.
That said, I prefer that not everything is scripted to death. That makes things very stilted.
I don't like when the programs assume we are all mega churches with mega budgets. IF X,Y&Z are important but add mucho costs/attendee, it is not going to fly in our smaller, family oriented fellowship. Yes, the box of starter materials might be only $XX! but when you add in another $15-25/attendee, you have lost us. We need budget friendly in all aspects of the curriculum. *IF* the attendees are to take home a verse/story reminder every day, give us options on how to do it in a budget friendly way!
I would like to see suggestions for how to do things on a smaller scale. When you are working with a small facility, small (but dedicated) staff, and small groups, some of the materials won't fly. But, unless we can preview the materials (not all areas have preview nights) in an in-depth manner, we might just be stuck with the wrong fit for our situation (which has been the way our last 4 church experiences have been).
SKITS! especially humorous ones! It is a great way to involve the teens, and the attendees realy become engaged :)
Is there any VBS out there that is family friendly? As in, we could do it incorporating whole families? Materials are focused on the elementary students with some preschool stuff tacked on for all of the ones I've seen, but our current church has a lot of families that like to do things together ... how cool would it be to have something inter-generational!
I like VBS materials that don't focus on the same stories. It seems like the parables get a ton of traction, some major old testament characters, and some new testament stories, but the same dozen or two keep being used. The free Bible Boot Camp was very refreshing in that aspect :)
I like everything laid out, so it is easy to implement. The Director materials giving clear directions, the teacher/game leader/kitchen/craft/whatever person with clear instructions, as well. I don't like to find that we have paid a bunch of money and then we have to flesh it out.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I prefer that not everything is scripted to death. That makes things very stilted.
I don't like when the programs assume we are all mega churches with mega budgets. IF X,Y&Z are important but add mucho costs/attendee, it is not going to fly in our smaller, family oriented fellowship. Yes, the box of starter materials might be only $XX! but when you add in another $15-25/attendee, you have lost us. We need budget friendly in all aspects of the curriculum. *IF* the attendees are to take home a verse/story reminder every day, give us options on how to do it in a budget friendly way!
I would like to see suggestions for how to do things on a smaller scale. When you are working with a small facility, small (but dedicated) staff, and small groups, some of the materials won't fly. But, unless we can preview the materials (not all areas have preview nights) in an in-depth manner, we might just be stuck with the wrong fit for our situation (which has been the way our last 4 church experiences have been).
SKITS! especially humorous ones! It is a great way to involve the teens, and the attendees realy become engaged :)
Is there any VBS out there that is family friendly? As in, we could do it incorporating whole families? Materials are focused on the elementary students with some preschool stuff tacked on for all of the ones I've seen, but our current church has a lot of families that like to do things together ... how cool would it be to have something inter-generational!
I like VBS materials that don't focus on the same stories. It seems like the parables get a ton of traction, some major old testament characters, and some new testament stories, but the same dozen or two keep being used. The free Bible Boot Camp was very refreshing in that aspect :)