Cave Quest VBS – Frugal Craft Ideas

In the past few years, Group Publishing has transitioned from crafts over to “science-y gizmos”.  According to a blurb in this year’s curriculum, it was a move to cut down on the little junk that kids took home and eventually trashed.  My issues with this are that (a) their science-y gizmos are just junk that kids take home and trash…. and (b) we like crafts, doggonit!  The suggestions from group are pricey and not impressive {in my opinion}.  I recently shared the things I love & don’t love about Group’s curriculum and many of you shared my feelings about crafts.  I’ve come up with some very frugal and fun Cave Quest themed craft ideas that will work with Group’s curriculum {some of these are my own ideas and some are from other crafty bloggers}!  You could use these frugal crafts instead of Group’s suggestions or alongside them, whichever fits your kiddos best.  Feel free to share and adapt these to your program!

There are some craft supplies we use and re-order every year.  You may want to stock up on:
–Permanent Markers {regular and chisel tip}
–Washable Markers
–Double Stick Tape
-Scissors {Adult size and kids size}
–Construction Paper and/or Cardstock {we use both for different areas}
–Acrylic Paint or Washable Paint
–Fabric Paint {you can also use acrylic paint on fabric}
–Glow in the Dark Paint

Bible verse activity sheets
I designed activity sheets with each night’s bible verse on it. These can be used as coloring pages or puzzles – or even both! There are 4 options for each night – coloring book font 9 piece puzzle, bold font 9 piece puzzle, coloring book font 20 piece puzzle and bold font 20 piece puzzle.  You can download all the activity sheets and see step-by-step instructions here.

Spelunker helmet
All great spelunkers need their caving gear! This cute helmet is super easy and VERY cheap to make {pennies per child}. I would write the bible verse on all the helmets ahead of time, then let kids add the “headlamp” at the front and decorate the helmet.  You can see the details of my spelunker helmet here.

Source: Pinterest

Tshirt decorating
This craft will cost more than some of the others because tshirts can be expensive {check out Delta Apparel for great pricing – but you have to be logged in to see the best pricing, approximately $2 per shirt}. This year’s theme lends itself perfectly to some glow-in-the-dark fabric paint! You could paint the phrase on the tshirt ahead of time for younger kids and let them add polka dots, stars, lines, etc.  Older kids could handle all of it on their own.  How cute would it be for all of your VBS-ers to be wearing “Jesus lights up my world” tshirts?!

Glow stick bracelets
These super simple glow bracelets could be customized with any verse or saying!  My step-by-step instructions with free printable templates are over here.  The glow bracelets are quick and would work well as a filler between activities or even as a prize.

Glow in the dark pasta necklaces
This new spin on the classic dyed pata necklace is sure to be a hit! Check out the tutorial over at Growing a Jeweled Rose. You could also add a tag/bead that says “Jesus Lights Up My Life”.

Cave snot {gak}
One of Group’s activities was making cave snot. They provide a small amount of powder for each child that can be mixed with water to create cave snot. I think our kids would love the hilarity of the phrase cave snot, but I don’t want to buy the expensive powder packets.  An alternative idea is to make gak and call it cave snot.  You can see the recipes for gak here {regular gak or glitter gak}.  This would be a fun craft for each cave crew to work on together!

Source: Pinterest

Snakes
Okay, no frugal craft list from a child of the 80’s would be complete without some repurposed toilet paper tubes. These TP tube snakes are ADORABLE! You could take this from as simple to as messy as you wanted – markers, glue, sequins, paint, you name it!

Source: Pinterest

Lightning bug jars
If there are lightning bugs in your area like there are here in Indiana, lightning bug jars will be fun and functional! You could use baby food jars or any other containers with a lid. Just cut small holes in the lid {do this part ahead of time} and let the kids decorate the jars.

Glow in the dark puffy paint
This glow in the dark puffy paint could be adapted to a craft any night of Cave Quest VBS! The supplies are simple and cheap! Check out the tutorial here.

Paper Bag Lightning Bug
The preschool kiddos will be the perfect age for this paper bag lightning bug thanks to I Heart Crafty Things. Isn’t that just adorable?!

Can you tell I was the crafts leader last year?  I was definitely gifted with a crafty/artistic side {aka I enjoy hoarding things that could be used for some project sometime}.  Stay tuned for more Cave Quest frugal ideas!  For more ideas in the meantime, make sure to follow my VBS boards: Cave Quest, Cave Inspiration, VBS Craft Ideas and Director Goodies.

Thanks for visiting!  If you know others using the Cave Quest curriculum, share this post with them using the links below.  Make sure to follow Borrowed Blessings at the top of the page for more Cave Quest VBS ideas!