How to Use Answers VBS Games to Reinforce Teaching

We know kids love to have fun, and we highly recommend you play tons of games during your VBS week. But the games don’t have to be a way to entertain kids, they can be a fantastic way to reinforce the Bible teaching you’re doing throughout the week.

Answers VBS wants to equip you to execute your VBS week with ease and confidence. You won’t have to make up your own games if you order the Splish! Spash! Games guide (also comes as a part of each starter kit), which gives leaders all of the direction needed for a fun week of VBS games the children won’t soon forget. Relay races, animal games, and of course, water games are sure to keep smiles on their faces. Still, as much fun as they have, there is a far greater lesson that they take with them. Every game played includes a teaching tie-in to bring everything back to what the kids are learning through the daily lesson, or to give them answers to skeptical questions they may have.

For example, the Fossil Fun game on the fourth day emphasizes that sea animal fossils are found all over the world, including the tallest mountains like Mt. Everest. It shows that we can trust the Bible when it tells us that the highest mountains were covered with water, as we see the effects of the global Flood all over the earth. As they play the game, the children search for the “fossils” in wet sediment to show a few of the conditions needed for the formation of the fossils.

If you want to stay away from water, the Team Raven/Team Dove game on the same day references the two birds sent out by Noah from the Ark to find dry land. The teams search the game area to retrieve an item (such as a ball or paper wad), just like the dove returned to Noah with the olive leaf. This relay race type of game will get kids moving and excited as it shows them how Noah discovered that the floodwaters were subsiding.

The Splish! Splash! Games guide lays out many different activities that kids will love at Ocean Commotion VBS, providing ideas for all age groups (Toddlers through Juniors) and both indoor and outdoor options. Have your game leader think through each activity you want to play, get a jump on what supplies they will need, and be mindful of the tips to adapt games to the site of your station. But most of all, ensure that your game team is prepared to share how each game relates to the lessons students are learning that day and to help lead children to a better understanding of God and His Word.