Dovecot Sunday School is a very good site which provides ideas for quizzes, games, activities and children's talks. It is well presented and easy to navigate. Recommended

DLTK Bible Educational Activities is a good site to find illustrations and craft ideas. There is a wealth of pictures and line drawings. Many are themed around Bible stories and can be used for colouring-in or to go along with memory verses. There are also craft activities suitable for Sunday schools and holiday clubs. The quality of the material is variable. While some material is excellent, some may need you to exercise a little care!

Apple Sauce Kids has a variety of resources suitable for children's work. There are games, crafts, puzzles and even sound effects. (You can download the sound of a roaring lion to go with the story of Daniel). Again, the quality of the material is variable and some care needs to be exercised.

Kid's Sunday School Place is an extensive site which covers everything from games and craft ideas to teaching. It has material suitable for toddlers right through to teenagers. While some material is free, much of the material is available only to members. The quality of the free material is extremely variable - but you may find something which is useful or can be adapted.

Children Desiring God is a Sunday School resource which uses a doctrine-based approach, but it can be expensive. Its goal is to 'fuel spiritual desire in children by exalting the greatness and worth of God and His glorious work through Christ.'

Teaching doctrine to children Many churches have used the ABC to teach the nature of God:

• A is for Almighty (illustrated by the story of creation)
• B is for Bountiful (illustrated by Israel's entry into the promised land and the blessings of obedience or the feeding of the 5,000)
• C is for Care/Compassion (illustrated by God's provision in the wilderness - water from the rock or manna)
• D, E ... X, Y, Z (Divine, Eternal ... [E]xalted, Yes and Amen, Zealous)

Lunch and Listen is used in a variety of ways to develop relationships with contacts in the community;

• Retired People
• Mums/Carers from the Parent and Toddler Group
• Parents of children in the Sunday School/Youth Club

Holiday at Home is an activity week (like a holiday club) for people who have retired. Various activities are organised throughout the week; visits to gardens or museums, walks demonstrations, lunches etc. Each day ends with a short epilogue.

Prayer Fellowship - For those who have retired or for those not in full-time employment - why not have a regular day-time prayer fellowship with others in your church? Commit yourselves to pray for the spiritual growth of every member of your church. Pray for the nation.

Taster Days - If there is someone in your church who has a particular hobby, interest or profession - use it! A church in Dorset recently had a 'golfing taster day' led by a church member who was a professional golfer. The day ended with a brief talk about Christianity.

Daddy and Me - If you have a successful Mothers and Toddlers Group - why not extend it to include Dads too? Dads are invited to come along with their children on Saturday morning. They can watch their children play, snack on the food provided (bacon sandwiches are popular) and get to know other men from the church.

Off-site evangelism - If a number of members from your church all have the same interest or hobby - why not join a Club or an Adult Education Class together? Use it as an opportunity to develop contacts with people who wouldn't normally go to church, with a view to sharing the Gospel with them.

Coffee mornings - If your church is near a busy shopping area - invite shoppers in for coffee. Use the coffee mornings to raise the profile of the church and to develop relationships with local people in the community. Try having a coffee morning during:

• Fair Trade Fortnight (usually in February/March). This year Fair Trade Fortnight is on the 22nd February - 7th March 2010.
• The World's Biggest Coffee Morning (an annual fundraising event for Macmillan Cancer Relief). This year the coffee morning will be on Friday 24th September 2010.

Church Fun Days - A rounders match and BBQ held on sunny Saturday afternoons does wonders for the church family (even if only watching) and for those who are on the periphery of church life.

Church Meals - Invite groups from the church (eg the mums or carers that come to Mothers and Toddlers), out for a meal with other church members.

Women's Meetings - To make the programme varied, use:

• Testimonies
• Topical news discussed from a scriptural perspective.
• Get everyone to read a set book (e.g. 'Bold I approach' - a book on prayer or 'A grace disguised' - a book dealing with loss) and then comes together to discuss it.
• Bible Study - Two or three weeks prior to meeting, give out a Bible passage with three or four questions relating to that passage. The Bible study starts by discussing the answers to those questions.
• Quizzes and Games to familiarize people with the Bible. For example, drawing an outline of a house on a large sheet of card with Bible references relating to houses written around it. (eg references that mention foundations, walls, doors etc) Make a game of looking up each reference. Once a verse is found an appropriate picture of that item is put on the outline - so gradually building up a picture of a house.

Last updated: Saturday, 27 February, 2010