The smell of the buttery popcorn; the sweet taste of that pink cloud-on-a-stick they call cotton candy; the sounds of elephants, lions, and monkeys; the sights of daredevils, jugglers, and clowns; the lights, sounds, and smiles! A voice over the speakers quiets the crowd: “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages, welcome to the amazing circus!"
Life is a circus! In some ways, that’s wonderful. There are many exciting and interesting things about this life God has given us. However, we live on a fallen planet full of chaos and trouble. In the midst of it all, it can be difficult to know where to turn when we feel discouraged, confused, angry, or afraid. Hebrews 12:1 has the answer: “Look to Jesus!” Jesus was the great showman! His life shows us what true greatness looks like. While greatness permeated all of Jesus’ time here on earth, it all led up to the “grand finale” in his final hours. He showed us how to face our biggest struggles and live a truly great life, pleasing to God and helpful to others.
Sidekick presents a Vacation Bible School designed to help kids and adults alike learn to face their struggles by looking to Jesus: the Great Showman.
PLEASE NOTE: To save you valuable download time and space, the sample is lower resolution quality than the actual products.
HOW IT WORKS
Sidekick VBS materials are a digital package. You'll receive a download containing ALL materials with permission to print, send, and distribute as much as you need within your Church or organization. This makes it easy to produce only what you need and save space! Everything is included in one price! No need to pick and choose from a long list of different items and products only to realize you forgot to order enough of one manual or the promotional cards. It's all there for you to produce as much as you need!
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SIDEKICK VBS can be purchased in 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 day formats, depending on the length of your VBS! No need to adapt skits or lessons for your personal length. It's been done for you!
In the main assembly, all VBS guests sing, pray, and watch funny and thoughtful skits that connect the VBS theme to the Biblical theme for the day. From there, guests are dismissed in smaller groups to different stations for a designated time interval.
In a rotation-based model, they’ll move from station to station, led by designated and recruited Team Leaders.
In a stationary model, students remain in their separate spaces for a longer duration without rotating. If you choose the stationary model, simply combine different stations in the curriculum and perform them together in the same space (ex: Tamer Training, followed by a Carnival Game and/Concession Creation for the same class in the same room. You may also choose to include or exclude a separate Circus Cinema Puppet Theater in the Main Assembly at the beginning, end, or as a separate entity!).
PLEASE NOTE: To save you valuable download time and space, the sample is lower resolution quality than the actual products.
In the Tamer Training Learning Center station, students will explore the connection Jesus has to the theme of the day. Warmup and Reinforce sections allow them to solidify the concepts even more.
In the Carnival Games station, students will get active with games that correspond to key concepts to be remembered.
In the Concession Creations station, students will either build or participate in a food-related activity corresponding to Biblical concepts that will feed both their appetites as well as their brains!
In the Circus Cinema Puppet Theater station, students will watch fun and engaging skits that bring Biblical concepts into everyday scenarios that connect the daily themes to real life.
Adult Lessons are provided with this VBS! Some would prefer for adults to rotate through the stations. In this case, they would form a separate age group rotating through and could follow the Older Kids materials in those stations. However, adults do not have to rotate through. If they do not and you would like to provide them with a lesson, you can utilize the Adult Teacher Guide to provide a session for them while the children rotate through their stations. They could still join the Main Assembly.
LEADER GUIDES
Leader Guides: these booklets contain an introduction to the theme and instructions for volunteers leading different stations/classes. Separate Leader Guides for Games, Concessions, and Learning Centers provide tailored experiences for various age groups coming to that station. Materials are divided into Older Kids, Younger Kids, and Toddler/Preschool. Lessons are generally the same topics and activities for the Older and Younger groups comprised of K-12th with adjustments for language. Use your best judgment based on your age group breakdowns and maturity levels where to draw the line with kids K-12th for which age groups get the Older Kids and which get the Younger Kids lessons.
Adult Teacher Guide: this booklet contains an introduction to the theme as well as the classes for adults. Each lesson contains a warmup activity called “A Thousand Words”, a teaching portion, and a gameshow style section that reinforces the lesson at the end.
Skit Manual: this manual contains an introduction to the theme as well as the skits for each day in the main assembly.
Puppet Skit Manual: this manual contains an introduction to the theme as well as the puppet skits for each day in the Circus Cinema. Skits are divided into Older Kids, Younger Kids, and Toddler/Preschool. Skits are generally the same with adjustments for language. Use your best judgment based on your age group breakdowns and maturity levels where to draw the line with kids K-12th for which age groups get the Older Kids and which get the Younger Kids skits.
PROMOTION & FOLLOW-UP
Promotional and Follow-up Materials: posters and invite cards allow you to bring others to join in on learning about Jesus at your Vacation Bible School. Cards for follow-up allow you to engage with your guests by thanking them for coming and inviting them to Bible class, worship, or other events you would love to see them at in the future.
SIGNS, NAMETAGS, & MORE
Station Signs and Name Tags: these items allow you to help teachers navigate rooms and guide students in a way that follows the theme and makes the experience more fun and exciting! You may choose to decorate further. Some transform the entire space and others opt for a simpler setup. One suggestion is to recruit a decorating crew whose responsibility it is to do the decorating for various spaces. This way, station leaders can focus on their activities and teaching rather than also being responsible for decorating.
Digital Class Needs: Leader Guides as well as skit manuals will reference Digital Resources to print and use in various stations or in the main assembly. These are contained here. All volunteers should have access to these files.
PLEASE NOTE: To save you valuable download time and space, the sample is lower resolution quality than the actual products.
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WHAT’S IN THE DOWNLOAD?
-Printable Leader Guide
-Printable Manuals for:
-Main Assembly Skits
-Puppet Skits
-Adult Sessions
-Learning Center
-Snack-Based Center
-Games Center
-Printable promotion pieces:
-11x17 poster
-invite cards
-4’x8’ outdoor/indoor banner
-Powerpoint slide
-Digital web ad
-Digital character images/resources
-Printable name badges
-Printable Centers signs
-Printable Follow-Up cards