Alternative VBS Ideas
The Coronavirus has impacted every thread of our society and the way we practice our faith. Wow, what a strange time we’re living in! Here are some alternative VBS ideas that you may consider for 2020 (and other times when traditional VBS isn’t an option).
If you had been planning traditional VBS for summer 2020, do not fret! Your work will not be wasted. Any supplies you’ve already purchased can be used for your alternative VBS this year, or saved for traditional VBS next summer. Here are a few ways to connect with your kiddos and minister to local families while socially distancing.
SMALL GROUP IN-PERSON VBS
If your church is in an area where it is safe and legal to do so, you could consider small group in-person VBS. What does this look like? It could be neighborhood VBS, where you equip church volunteers to share short bible stories, games and maybe a pre-packaged snack with a few neighbors. It could also be that you’re a small church and you pre-register a set number of kids to attend VBS at church. Even if you are a small church, I have to caution against this idea for 2020. Please be cautious – kids are not skilled at social distancing. 🙂
NON-VBS ONE DAY EVENT
Maybe you could plan an abbreviated one-day event at church. This could look similar to a drive-in church service using just one day’s lesson from your 2020 VBS curriculum. Families could stay socially distanced from one another outdoors while dancing their hearts out to VBS music. A leader could share a skit, one bible story or a testimonial. Challenges to this idea would be keeping kids with their families and access to bathrooms.
TAKE-HOME PACKETS/ONLINE LESSONS
Many VBS publishers are giving churches way more permission to use materials online this year. You could make a VBS bag for each kid or family (which they could drive-through the church parking lot to pickup). I imagine these bags could have supplies for any activities you want to do – maybe a couple crafts, a few pre-packaged snacks, a fun prize (like a VBS bracelet or lanyard), some printed activity sheets and crayons or markers. If students do not have internet access, you could include written instructions for them in the bag. For families that do have internet access, you could have a short VBS online for several days in a row. Each day you could have a time for music, a bible story, etc (similar to “normal” VBS).
ONLINE ONLY
The most socially-distanced option is to only connect with families online. This could be a one-time event, each day for a week, or once a week for several weeks. Again, you could likely use curriculum already purchased for 2020 and share music, a bible story and bible verse with the kids. You could do an experiment yourself (that the kids just watch). You could also challenge the kids to create a craft using items they already have at home (for example, challenge them to make a train – they could paint, color, build with legos, etc).
One bright side is that you can probably stretch your 2020 curriculum for this summer and next summer. Since you won’t be using the full curriculum for the ideas above, this year’s event will be a preview of next year’s traditional full VBS program.
Our church is watching closely for guidance from our state and district, but we will not be having traditional or in-person VBS this year. We desperately want to hang out with our kids once again, but we have to consider the health of our volunteers and at-risk populations. We’ll be using one of the last two alternative options (an online component, with potentially a drive-thru for supply pickup).
Feel free to share your alternative VBS ideas – we’d love to hear what you’re planning!
