Last year we tried something new for Easter. Our church does not do egg hunts but the children's department wanted to do something for our kids and the families at our church. However, this isn't just a kids' activity. We had all ages participate which was our goal. We will be doing it again in just a few days (we do it on Good Friday) but I thought I would post what we did last year and then later what we did this year adding in any changes we make.
First let me say we kept it very simple. We did not have resources to deck out the church and turn it into Jerusalem. I would LOVE to do that someday, but for now we started simple.
We had 12 areas or stations that the groups would go to and experience a portion of the story from the Triumphal Entry to the Empty Tomb.
The first thing you saw when you pulled up to the church was a live donkey!
A church member brought her little donkey up and the kids were able to pet her. Gently of course. Alas, this year we will not have a live donkey because the owner was injured and won't be able to bring her. We are praying for her recovery!
Upon entering the church, you signed in and received a "palm branch" to wave while shouting Hosanna!
I have palm branches in quotes because we used what we had and they weren't exactly palm branches but they were large leaves and it worked for us. I am a BIG fan of using what you have!
The next area was in a classroom. It was a foot washing station and I don't seem to have any pictures of that one! In fact I have no pictures of the next one either which was the Garden of Gethsemane. We moved the furniture and put down green fur rug for grass, used rope lights around the perimeter of the room, and added some rocks made from cardboard boxes. People were encouraged to kneel and pray in this room.
The next area was the Crown of Thorns.
We had two crowns displayed on tables for the people to look at and touch.
Next was the cross area.
We had our wooden crosses on display and some scrap wood, nails and hammers that could be nailed into the wood. It was the noisiest section, so think about that ahead of time.
Adjacent to the cross area we had some red wine vinegar in a bowl with some cotton swabs to dip and taste.
Moving on, next we had a Roman Soldier and his spear, along with a giant dice game to represent "casting lots".
As you can see, we did NOT decorate the spaces! LOL
Now we approach the "wrapping" room. We had strips of fabric to wrap one another up. I think they had too much fun in this room.
Next the "spice" room...
We just used potpourri and cinnamon sticks wrapped in cloth and tied with jute.
And last but certainly not least.... The EMPTY TOMB!!!!
The room was covered all in black and boxes painted like stone were used for the slab. We used the little battery operated flicker lights so that you could see a little inside and a folded up white cloth.
Outside the door in baskets were small river stones with "He is Risen!" written on them and each person was encouraged to take one as a reminder.
Then we all gathered in the Sanctuary and had some time to write some prayer requests and add them to the cross up front.
We had a puppet skit and sang a couple of songs and were dismissed. We gave treat bags to the kids as they left.
I should note that we had soft music in the background in each room/station to set the tone. We also gave out an instruction sheet to follow as well as instructions and scripture posters displayed at each area.
We had a lovely time. It was very touching to see families reading the scriptures with each other and participating in a hands on way.
The notes I took afterward that we should do differently this year were:
- waiting for everyone to gather in the Sanctuary. We need something to occupy those waiting
- change up the ending celebration a bit
- keep all the items gathered together in a "kit" for next year (we did this! Yay! It's making this year so much easier!)
- we had problems with the puppet mic being heard. Need to correct this if we use a puppet again.
- we swapped the order of two of the areas and that confused people.
- arrival times being staggered would help the flow,
And that's it! I think it was a success and I pray that this year we have even more participation!
I still have all the files and posters we made for the walk. If you would like a copy contact me and I will email them to you for free!
He is Risen! Amen!
Comments
Post a Comment