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There is an important reason to decorate a classroom. The classroom environment is the first things kids see when the come in. It can be drab and boring or alive and exciting. It doesn’t take a lot of effort to give kids a wonderful welcome into the classroom and create a place they are valued.

A fun, colorful, exciting environment helps kids learn. Studies show that kids learn better when they have “catalysts” around the room to get their senses going. Touch, feel, see - all senses can be used with decorating. Below are some simple ideas for decorating (or crafts!) to get your own creative juices flowing:

Winter 2008
Theme: Compass

  1. Make your room a giant compass. Set aside a space the floor or table in the center of the room. Use construction paper or colored poster board to cut out a large arrow that will be the compass indicator. Then create large letters N, S, W, and E to indicate the directions and place them on the appropriate walls in your place. Even think about decorating the walls in each direction with posters and pictures of places in those directions. They could be nearby places (a local amusement park, lake, skating rink) or they could be far away places (China, Brazil, Mexican ruins, Egyptian pyramids, etc.).
  2. Decorate the room in a special theme like a forest, mountain wilderness, ocean, or outer space (a place where someone might need a compass). Then do an art project to create drawings of compasses to place around the room.
  3. Create large circles out of material for each Blitz team. During the first class time, have each Blitz team create/decorate their circle into their very own compass. This compass will be their very own space for the entire quarter.
  4. Do a special art project this quarter that will the boys in your classes will really love. Set aside some extra time in the quarter to gather items for creating actual working compasses in class. Then visit this National Geographic Kids website to download the instructions to create the compasses: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngkids/trythis/tryfun2.html.
  5. Decorate your room with road maps. An easy way to do this is to invest in a large-size Rand McNally road atlas and pull apart the pages to decorate the walls. Or have students draw their own maps of your town or state.

Fall 2008
Theme: Outreached Hand

  1. Have each of your students trace their hands on construction paper of various colors and cut them out. Use a hole-punch to place a hole at the base of the palm of each hand. Attach string to each hand through the hole and dangle the hands from the ceiling around your classroom.
  2. Think about various objects that show what hands do – work, cook, sew, etc. Find play items like a play power tools set, cooking set, and sewing set for kids (found in toy stores and probably in many homes of your students) and decorate your classroom area with these items. It will also keep their attention prior to beginning each class and you can remind students that they can use their hands to do many things including helping other people.
  3. Do you have greeters for your class? Think about a special handshake that you will use during the quarter (or change every few weeks for variety).
  4. Want to do something with the walls? Do decorating idea number one. Instead of punching holes in the hands and extending them from the ceiling, place the hands around the room on the walls. Have the kids help you decorate and let them know that this is to remind them that God is working all around them.
  5. Think about a special outreach activity that you can do this quarter such as sponsoring a child or missionary or doing a food drive. Every week, children can bring loose coins or a can of food to “tithe” during Sunday school. After the quarter is over, plan a special outing to deliver the food items or write letters to the sponsored child or missionary.
  6. If there is an outside path leading to the children’s education wing of your church, consider a fun outside activity if it is nice. With the church’s permission, use sidewalk chalk to trace hands on the sidewalk from one of the outside doors to the parking lot or other area of the church to mark a pathway to the children’s ministry area. It will be a fun way to mark the children’s ministry area and help newcomers find your classrooms.

Summer 2008
Theme: Elephants

  1. If you are short on time and have a little budget, consider getting elephant posters. Check the Internet for plenty of resources. At the end of the quarter, consider reusing for future classes or give each child one of the posters to remember the theme from the quarter.
  2. Consider making your room look like the television show “Survivor: Africa.” The Internet has lots of resources to explore. Or just make the room a jungle theme. Have the blitz teams each have their own handkerchief color for the entire quarter. Use the handkerchief as name tags or use fun clothing accessories worn around the neck, as headbands, or ponytail holders.
  3. Have “elephant” snacks this quarter. Elephants tend to eat fruits, seeds, leaves and twigs so use fresh or dried fruit (or trail mix), sunflower seeds, pretzel sticks, and jelly beans as the fun “human” alternatives. Also consider downloading a recipe for “elephant ears” covered in cinnamon sugar. Your kids will love them.
  4. Consider visiting the local greenhouse for an Elephant Ear plant. This great plant is perfect in the summer and grows well both indoors and outdoors with plenty of sunlight and water. With church permission, get a few bulbs to grow outside the church and have the kids plant them in May. Each week, take some time to let each child water the plant. Since they tend to be annuals, you can decide to give each child an Elephant Ear leaf as the quarter comes to an end.
  5. Make the entire room into a zoo. Decorate the door as a zoo entrance and have each teacher or volunteer agree to dress up in greens and khaki’s for the quarter. Do a search online for zoo decorations and you’re set. Find an animal sounds CD. Visit www.animalplanet.com for some fun ideas. Or…here’s a creative way to decorate…let the zoo keeper do it for you. Arrange for a field trip with the class to enjoy the zoo. It would be a fun Saturday outing to end the summer.
Spring 2008
Theme: Sticky Notes
  1. Here’s a fun way to do prayer requests. On a bulletin board or white board, label an area for prayer requests. Each week, have different color sticky notes for kids to put their prayer requests on the board. Remember to go through and pray for each during prayer time.
  2. Use butcher paper to cover the door to your classroom and use a large yellow piece of paper or poster board (too look like a large sticky note) to welcome your class.
  3. As an extra activity each week, have kids use sticky notes to write something nice about another child. Pair kids up and have them write one or two things about the other child to encourage them (such as they have a pretty blouse, nice hair, great tennis shoes, etc.) This activity will boost your kid’s self-esteem for 13 weeks…they will love to know what others appreciate about them.
  4. Decorate your room with large sticky notes (available at office supply stores) or make your own. Use cardboard boxes and paint them various sticky note colors. And although they may not look exactly like sticky notes, they will add tons of color and fun to the room.
  5. Looking for an activity? Try the sticky note relay. Gather one or two pads of sticky notes (having a separate color for each relay team is recommended). Use one scripture reference on each page of the sticky note pad. For a good relay, have 8 to 10 scripture on each pad. Place the sticky pads at the opposite end of the room or area (if you are outside). Start the relay by having one child from each team run to their sticky pad. They need to pull off the top scripture reference and place it on their foreheads. Then they will run back to their teams with a Hands-On Bible (or other bible) ready to reference. Each team must look up the scripture reference, give them Bible to the first person who ran who must read the scripture reference out loud. After the scripture is read, the next child in line can continue to relay for the team by running to get the next scripture from the sticky pad. This is a great activity when it is nice outside and kids are itching to enjoy the sunshine.
Winter 2007
Theme: Bubbles
  1. Consider your budget and see if you can get a bubble machine for use during the quarter. This fun machine could be placed in the front of the class during praise and worship and add to the anticipation of thinking about how the Holy Spirit is all-around them as they worship.
  2. Use a craft time in the first week to create bubbles with different Bible verses about how they can trust God. Hang them from the ceiling or along the walls.
  3. Get some pipe cleaner (various colors) together and have your kids create bubbles out of them. These can be looped together to create bubble strings around the room. Or paste them on huge poster boards that can be placed in each room. Consider using them as weekly after-class activity—kids can write inside the bubbles what they’ve learned from each Bible lesson.
  4. Make bubble paper! This fun activity can also be used to decorate your room. Get several bottles of bubble solution together and add several drops of food coloring to each bottle. Hold up paper and have the kids blow bubbles on to the paper. Eventually, you will have a multi-colored paper that can you can use to decorate.
  5. Use one class of the quarter to have a bubble blowing contest. You can use bubble solution or balloons. Ask the kids to blow bubbles for every time they trusted God in the last week. Have them tell you specific examples. If you use balloons, you can also consider getting helium that an experienced adult can blow up for the kids. These helium balloons will temporarily decorate your room with colors everywhere.
  6. For a fun food activity, frost bubble-shaped cookies. Equip each child with a toothpick to etch into the cookie what they learned about God that week. And if you feel the kids are too small to make using toothpicks a safe activity, a leader can do it for them.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </SPAN>Either way, the kids have a fun, cool snack!
  7. It&rsquo;s almost Christmas time! Make thought bubble ornaments for a classroom Christmas tree. These can be made of poster board, fabric, or foam core. Take a picture of each child with a digital camera and print out the pictures small enough for them to cut them out and place on their bubble ornament. On the Sunday before Christmas, allow each child to take their bubble ornament home to hang on their own tree and share with their families.
  8. Make a giant cut out of a favorite person at church (pastor, teacher, helper) and put it at the front of the room for the quarter. Each week, post a new thought bubble by the image that the kids can enjoy.
  9. Collect cool cartoons with fun thought bubbles that would be appropriate and fun for your classroom. Blow up these cartoons large or even life-size and create comic strips along each wall.
Fall 2007
Theme: Light Bulb
  1. Outline small-group or large-group areas with colored tape (don’t use masking tape on carpet – electrical is ok) in shapes of light bulbs for the kids to meet in.
  2. Make large free-standing foam core or insulation light bulbs and have the kids decorate. They can be used at the front of the room or anywhere.
  3. Utilize additional lamps with colored light bulbs and put them on timers. Have each color symbolize a time in the class (Blitz, Praise, etc.)
  4. At the end of each class, use the light bulb stamp from the kit for a fun bonus. Stand at the door ready to stamp each child’s hand that can tell you one thing they learned from the day’s lesson.
  5. Use a Lite Brite as a game in the classroom throughout the quarter.
  6. Make streamers of light bulbs that hang in the doorway as an alternative to a door.
  7. Use plastic knives to cut out sandwiches in light bulb shapes. Kids can build their own light bulb sandwiches with various fillings (watch out for food allergies).
Summer 2007
Theme: Silhouette
  1. Hang a sheet in the classroom and use a projector to do silhouette motions to songs.
  2. Help your kids make silhouettes pointing in the direction of classrooms and post them in the hallway to greet kids, parents, and newcomers.
  3. Create a mystery silhouette each week out of cardboard or poster board and put it is a prominent place. Ask kids to guess each of the mystery silhouettes each week at the end of the class time.
  4. Consider teaching all of one class behind a sheet as a silhouette. It will add excitement to the class and may help kids concentrate on your words and actions as you lead them through the lesson. Ask kids at the end of the class time what they liked and did not like about you teaching this way. This may be an opportunity to help kids understand the concept of knowing God.
  5. Use silhouettes of heads, hands, arms, and legs to decorate a wall of the room. Kids can guess who they belong to.
  6. Create silhouettes of outdoor things or idea/concepts from the Bible lessons. These can be used to reinforce the Bible lesson or decorate throughout the quarter.
  7. It's warm outside and you need a change of pace. Why don't you take the kids outside for a lesson and have them use sidewalk chalk to create silhouettes and pictures of what they have learned about putting God first.
  8. Do you have cookie cutters at home? This is a great time to put them to use. Cut out cheese (for cheese and crackers), tortillas, or other food items for a fun food snack.
  9. Create sand silhouettes! Use shirt box or shoe box lids and pour a ¼ cup of sand into them. Have kids use the sand to create symbols that show how they are putting God first in their lives.