1. A Back To School Party
2. “Marvelous Things Without Number”... Job 5:9
3. Two Little Fish And Five Loaves Of Bread
4. “In Like Manner...” I Timothy 2:9
5. “...Remember The Works Of The Lord...” Psalm 77:11
6. Bible Jeopardy
7. Back To School Bingo
8. “...Known By His Doings...” Proverbs 20:11
1. A Back To School Party
When Michael and I were youth leaders several years back we enjoyed planning different types of activities for fun and fellowship. One time we had a Rodeo Party and the kids had barrel races on stick horses. I draped some black and white cloth that looked like a cow over a high chair and my cousin David brought a lasso and taught the kids how to lasso. I always enjoyed planning the activities and I shared many of the ideas on my “Lamp Unto My Feet” devotions web page.
I was thinking about kids going back to school and thought that maybe someone planning a back to school party might enjoy using some of the ideas. I could not find many games based on Bible stories or verses and I prayed that God would give me ideas, and He often did. The next week or two will be different from the daily devotional I usually write, but you might enjoy trying some of the games with a group or family gathering, or maybe with your children or grandchildren. For more ideas you can visit my Activity web page at Activities
2. “Marvelous Things Without Number”... Job 5:9
We often put holiday candies, like M & M’s and Candy Corn, in a small jar and let everyone guess the number for a door prize. Our group enjoyed this game so much that I started using two identical jars so that two people could win the candy. For a Back to School party I wanted to use colorful paperclips and rubber bands. And for a different variation I strung them together in a long string to tape around the walls of the room. (I counted the number of pieces before anyone arrived and sealed the answer in an envelope. I used a lot to make it more difficult and taped it high enough that they could not touch it with their hands to count them.) Write "Name" and "Guess" on the top of a sheet of paper. Everyone should put his/her name and the number he/she guesses on the paper. Explain that no one can use a number someone else has guessed. The person nearest the actual number wins the string of clips and bands. Explain beforehand that "the closest number without going over is the winner."
3. Two Little Fish And Five Loaves Of Bread
You may introduce the Bible story telling how Moms and Dads, or brothers and sisters, might pack lunches for school. They might even be big enough to pack their own lunch. One day a large crowd, with 5,000 people was following Jesus, and there was a little boy who wanted to go, too. He had his lunch, two little fish and five pieces of bread, and he went with them. He listened as Jesus taught the people. When they needed something to eat, Andrew took the boy with his lunch to Jesus, but how many people could one little lunch feed? The little boy was happy to give his lunch to Jesus. Jesus took the lunch and gave thanks. He broke the fish and bread in pieces and fed everyone. Jesus performed a great miracle with the small lunch that the little boy gave Him. When we give what we have to Jesus He can use it for His glory.
I prepared a cloth bag with two toy fish and five rolls and showed it to the children. I also prepared lunch bags with things that they might pack in their lunch. Put one item in each bag and tape it closed. Number the bags and give the children a piece of paper numbered to match the bags. Pass the sacks from person to person and let the children try to guess what is in each bag. Tell them not to open the bags or squeeze them too tightly. They write their guess, or have someone write it for them, by the matching number. I started a different bag at several places along the table so that the children at the end did not have to wait on everyone else before they had a turn. When everyone is finished guessing each bag you can open the bags and see who guessed the most items. The kids really enjoyed this game. (My boiled egg ended up in tiny pieces, and someone put a thumb through the lid of the applesauce cup, but all ages had lots of fun with this.) A few ideas for the lunch bags might include: an apple, a banana, a sandwich (It is a good idea not to include anything with peanuts or peanut butter because of allergies), a small bottle of water, a fruit roll-up, a bag of chips, a pickle in a plastic bag, an oatmeal cookie, a can of soup, a boiled egg and an applesauce or fruit cup.
“5 When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6 And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.
7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him,
9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
10 And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.
11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
12 When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
13 Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.
14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.” (John 6:5-14)
4. “In Like Manner...” I Timothy 2:9
I can remember how hard it was for me to make new friends when I started back to school each new year. I was shy and found it hard to talk to people I did not know. Here is an Ice-Breaker People Bingo Game that could help provide tid-bits of information that may open the way for friendships. We have played the game In Like Manner with all ages, but I made some changes so that this one, In Like Manner For Students, could be played with school-aged children. Give each person a Bingo Sheet and have them sign the middle square. They go from person to person asking questions to find a different person that can sign one of their squares. Designate how many times a person may sign another person’s page, depending on the size of your group. Try to get five in a row, in any direction. After awarding the winner(s) read each square and say, “Raise your hand if you can play a musical instrument like David. Put a big check on the first square.” Continue through the squares and see who fits the most descriptions in like manner, for a final winner. (The words and boxes sometimes overlap on my old computer, but show perfectly well on my Ipad. If you have problems viewing the puzzle pages on one device, it might help to try another device.)
Sample squares:
Plays a musical instrument like David. II Sam. 6:5
Is tall like Saul. I Sam. 10:23
Has climbed a tree like Zacchaeus. Luke 19:4,5
Has ridden horseback like Mordecai. Esther 6:11
5. “...Remember The Works Of The Lord...” Psalm 77:11
Our party theme this month is, “Going Back To School.” A big part of going back to school is remembering the things you have already learned. That knowledge prepares you for the new things you will study. This activity will be like a review of the Bible stories many learn as children. Set up a large chalk board, or dry erase board in the front of the room. One by one, let each person illustrate a Bible story they remember, or have a list of Bible stories to use. Divide into two teams and see which team can be first to guess the most stories. We played this at youth meetings and let the younger children go first and draw the easier stories, “Jonah and the Whale”, “Noah’s Ark” or “Daniel in the Den of Lions”. Follow the LINK and find more stories, including favorites such as...
Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors
David and Goliath
The Birth of Jesus
Wise Men Follow a Star
Jesus Died on the Cross
Jesus Rose from the Dead
Jesus Calmed the Storm
God Creates the Heaven and Earth
6. Bible Jeopardy
We have played Bible Jeopardy with adults and older kids. The first game I made was probably for a back to school party. The categories are Reading, Writing, Math, History, and Spelling with all the questions from the King James Bible. People enjoyed it so much I also made games for Easter, Spring, Valentine’s Day, October, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Western. The Link will take you to the page for the Back To School game. On some computers the games do not print correctly so there is also a print page for all the games, and you can follow each link for the game you choose. I hope you enjoy these games as much as I enjoyed making them.
Copy the following chart of categories and points on a large dry-erase board. (You may choose to use only 10 to 50 in the game, and if the teams want to play again, you can use the harder questions 60 to 100.) Divide into 2 or 3 teams and choose a Captain for each team. All the players on the team may help with the answers, but the Captain is the speaker for the final answer. A time-keeper may help to keep the game moving quickly. Team 1 chooses a category and begins with the easiest question (10 points) in that category. The score-keeper reads the clues from the lists provided and awards points for each correct answer. (Erase the points from the chart so everyone will see which questions have been answered.) After each correct or incorrect answer, play moves to the next team, who chooses which category they prefer, working from the easy questions (10 points) to the harder questions (100 points). These questions and answers are from the King James Version of the Bible. If you use another version, you may wish to verify the wording beforehand. ** Teams may get double points for correct answers to those specially noted questions. Hints are given for some of the math questions if you choose to use them.
7. Back To School Bingo
Give everyone a bingo sheet and tell them to write down one item in each square that you might put in your book bag. This worked well with our group because we had all ages and the older children helped the younger ones with ideas and spelling. We had two identical sports/book bags full of school supplies, one on each end of the table. As we took an identical item from each bag, (keeping them separated in two piles for the relay race) the children and parents used dried beans to mark their bingo papers. We kept playing, awarding small prizes with each "bingo" and tried to see who could fill his or her card completely. After the bags were empty we divided into two teams and had a relay race. The first player carried the empty bag to his or her end of the table and put in one item and then carried the bag back to the next player. The kids had so much fun with this! When the bags got too full and heavy for the smaller children, I told them that two people could carry the bags, one for each handle. At the end of the race we emptied the bags back onto the table and let the winning team choose one item for a prize first, and then let the other team choose one item for a prize. My group was small enough that everyone got to choose three items to keep.
Items could include: Pencil Box, Crayons, Pencil, Erasers, Pen, Pencil Sharpener, Glue Stick, Small Note Pad, Highlighters, Paperclips, Notebook, Folder, Dictionary, Bible, Paper, Money Pouch, Lunch Money, Lunch Bag, Water Bottle, Stapler, Rubber Band, Index Cards, Colored Pencils, Markers, Kleenex, Calculator, Blanket or Nap Towel, Hair Brush, Tape, Journal, Ruler, Stickers, Post-It Notes, and Calendar. (Do not use scissors or a compass for safety reasons.)
Follow the Link for a Back To School Bingo Sheet
8. “...Known By His Doings...” Proverbs 20:11
Part of going to school, especially going to college, is deciding what you want to be. Children often say, "I want to be a fireman when I grow up", or "I want to be a doctor when I grow up." There are jobs that seem glamorous or exciting to children. It is sometimes hard to decide what you want to be. The important thing is to pray and seek God's will in your life, and let Him lead you in the direction you need to go. No matter which path you take, and which job you choose, do all you do for the glory of God. There are several occupations in our Bible. Our youth enjoyed playing this game as you would play charades. Cut out the job titles and try to make your team mates guess what Biblical job you are doing. If the two lists do not print correctly, you may try using another device. (My computer is old and sometimes the spacing changes.)
Christian Youth Activities -
Back To School Party
