Worship Activity Bags for Kids

We all know that it can be hard for children to sit still and be quiet through an entire worship service. Different churches offer a variety of different ways to keep children engaged during the service. One very popular offering is worship activity bags for children.

There are a couple distinctive ways to approach this. One is to provide pre-assembled bags each Sunday. This is, perhaps, the most labor-intensive approach since it requires a set of "big hands" to assemble the bags each week for "little hands." Another approach is to set out worship bag shelves or carts that contain a variety of items and let children stuff the bags themselves withe the items they choose. At my particular church, we started many years ago with a volunteer who came in each week to organize and pre-stuff 50+bags. Once this volunteer relinquished her duties, however, we switched to the shelf method because we did not have a point person to do the bags each week. 

We have two different worship spaces. The cart is in one so it & the shelf is in the other.

A few things to consider;

The actual bags - I strongly suggest some type of canvas bags to avoid the crinkling, crunching noise of paper or plastic bags. It is completely worth the investment! 

These are the bags we use. (Markers for size comparison.) Our church logo is printed on the other side. We purchased many several years ago and they have lasted well.

Explanation to the congregation - If this is something new for your congregation, it will take some explaining, especially if children are stuffing their own bags. A letter to families, an announcement on Sunday mornings, a note in the bulletin, and/or some signage on the shelves where bags are located are all options. Be sure to include expectations that the bags AND the items in the bags are to be returned each week. They are not meant to be take home party favors! 😉 

Maintenance - Even if you use the shelf/cart approach, someone will need to regularly check the bags & shelves to make sure they are organized and re-stock items as needed. This is less intense than creating bunches of ready-made bags each week, but still needs to be a consideration. 

What goes in the bags? Below is a list of many, many suggestions. I am not, however, suggesting that ALL of these items be available all the time. These are simply suggestions for you to use based on your children and, quite frankly, your budget. Also, think about what ages of children are likely to be using the bags. Remember, too,  that items can be changed out seasonally. 

• Coloring books/coloring pages - You can purchase great coloring books at your local dollar store and/or print coloring pages as you please. 

  

  These both came from the dollar store!

• Markers/crayons/pencils - Of course, if they are going to have coloring books, they need utensils to color with! Crayons, washable markers, and colored pencils can all be offered. 
• Blank paper can always be used for coloring, not writing, or stickers.
• Stickers - All kids love stickers, right? You can also purchase seasonal  and bible story sticker sheets like THESE from Oriental Trading and other sources. 
• Books - Bible story books and children's bibles are great additions to the worship bags.
• Lacing Cards are a quiet activity that can keep little fingers busy while developing fine motor skills. The set of Bible Story Lacing Cards below can be purchased from Oriental Trading. They have a set of nativity lacing cards and various other religious and secular ones. 
  
• Pipe Cleaners - I don't know why, but kids LOVE pipe cleaners! I put them out for our bags and have to replenish them almost every week because they seem to be a favorite! Wiki Sticks are a similar idea, but would also have to her replenished pretty regularly. 

Photo Credit: Flickr

• Fidget toys - Honestly, go to Amazon and do a search fro "fidget toys." you will get LOTS of differs kinds of small items that are great to keep small hands busy. Pictured below are puzzle cubes (like rubix cubes) slinky (be sure to get plastic so they don't make as much noise), snake cube twisters, and fidget spinners. Also, check out Monkey Noodles, Liquid motion bubblers, and mesh and marble finger toys. 

• Activity pages such as word searches, mazes, and crosswords are great for older kids. You can find plenty of reproducible ones online or make your own. 
• Small puzzles are great for quiet play, too! You can get slide puzzles or twisty puzzles so you don't have to worry about losing pieces. 
• Scratch art is something most kids enjoy. You can get playing sheets or you can find shapes. 
  
• Flash Cards are a fun way for kids to learn. You can purchase some or create your own. Some ideas include bible story on one side/scripture on the other; sanctuary symbol on one side/location on the other (so they can actually find it in the worship space); and sing language image on one side/word on the other side (The Frutis of the Spirit are great for this one! )
• Bingo card - I saw this idea on another site. Create a bingo card with words they might hear during the worship service (pray, hymn, God, etc.) and let them mark off the words as they listen! 
• Magna doodles or Etch-A-Sketches both come in mini/travel size are are great for small bags. 
• Small treats such as fruit snacks or lollipops - This really only works if you are pre-stuffing bags each week. 
• Something kids can put in the offering plate - Somewhere, I saw the idea to give children a small sheet of paper that says something like "My Artistic Offering to God" or "Thank You, God, For . . ." so that they can draw a picture or write a sentence and, then, actively participate in the offering by putting it in the plate. 

Last, but not least, here are a few suggestions for what NOT to put in the bags. (Please note: these are all just from my personal opinion and experiences. If you feel these would work in your setting, you could certainly try them!)

• Play dough/slime - In our sanctuary, the pews are upholstered, so I have always been afraid that play dough and/or shine would get stuck tot he fabric. Many child care facilities have also expressed concern about these materials harboring germs. These could work if you pre stuffed bags so that old ones could be replaced with new/clean ones each week, but that can get pretty pricey! 
• Anything that make any amount of noise! I once purchased several of the little wooden Jacob's ladders (like this) thinking they would make great little fidget toys. I was quickly informed by several people that the "clackety-clack" noise they made was quite disruptive an had to remove them from our shelf! 
• Anything that is too expensive to replace. Unfortunately, the small fidget toys and a few other items I have put out have a tendency to disappear and have to be replenished periodically. If you have something you cannot afford or do not want to lose, I would suggest you don't put it out just to be safe. 

Have you tried worship bags? Have some additional suggestions of what to include or what not to include? Please feel free to share in a comment!