Introduction
Sunday morning often revolves around what’s happening during the year, holiday-wise. If kids are decorating red hearts with 1 Corinthians 13:13 stickers, Valentine’s Day is probably around the corner. Painting a flowerpot? Mother’s Day, for sure. And for those who minister to children, the holidays can be the hardest times to find fresh, faith-focused ideas.
That’s where Seasonal Specials comes in.
We’ve set about celebrating 13 popular holidays—all from a Christian perspective. You and preschoolers through preteens can blow out each holiday with a devotion, craft, skit, snack, game, song, and outreach idea. That means right now you’re holding more than 90 original, innovative, engaging ideas—all stamped with Group’s R.E.A.L. Guarantee that these holidays will be more than just a bolded date on a calendar. Instead, they’ll be Jesus-centered experiences.
This book covers all the major holidays (Easter, Independence Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day) as well as other celebrations (Earth Day, Memorial Day, and more). Each holiday’s section has fresh ideas that inspire, educate, and celebrate.
You’ll find the holidays arranged chronologically, so finding exactly what you’re looking for is a cinch. You can use an entire section as a full lesson or simply pick and choose elements to add to a lesson. Here’s an example of the elements you’ll find in each chapter.
NEW YEAR’S DAY
- Pressing On (Devotion)
- New Year’s Crackers (Craft)
- Do-Over (Game)
- New Life Gingerbread People (Snack)
- A Clean Heart (Skit)
- Jesus Makes All of Us New (Song)
- Book Beginnings (Outreach)
Each element includes Scripture, age recommendations, supplies needed, easy-to-follow instructions, and great questions aimed at helping kids explore what they experience.
Jesus used what was around him to teach people about God—including daily life and seasons. He told parables about the harvest, fig trees, and mustard seeds, all in conjunction with what was happening on the calendar. Seasonal Specials is designed to follow that model, while making holidays incredibly special—and meaningful—for kids.
Be aware that some children have food allergies that can be dangerous. Know your children, and consult with parents about allergies their children may have. Also be sure to read food labels carefully as hidden ingredients can cause allergy-related problems.
Overview
Need engaging, supplemental ideas for your holiday lessons? Seasonal Specials is chock-full of fun and practical ideas for all the major holidays, including Easter, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and more. Pick and choose what you’d like to use and add them to your Sunday school lessons, outreach programs, and more! Best of all, every idea interactively connects kids to Jesus through the year's celebrations we enjoy.
Covering preschool-6th grade, all 13 holidays include at least one of each of these elements:
- Devotions
- Crafts
- Games
- Snacks
- Skits
- Songs
- Outreach Ideas
Plus, each element includes Scripture, age recommendations, supplies needed, easy-to-follow instructions, and great questions aimed at helping kids explore what they experience. Jesus used what was around him to teach people about God—including daily life and seasons. Seasonal Specials is designed to follow that model, while making holidays incredibly special—and meaningful—for kids. You can use an entire section as a full lesson or simply pick and choose elements to supplement a lesson you are already doing.
Seasonal Specials covers these 13 holidays:
- New Year's Day
- Valentine’s Day
- Patrick’s Day
- Palm Sunday
- Easter
- Earth Day
- Mother’s Day
- Memorial Day
- Father’s Day
- Independence Day
- Halloween
- Thanksgiving
- Christmas
The holidays are arranged chronologically, so finding exactly what you’re looking for is a cinch.
You'll love Seasonal Specials because you'll get fun, new, timely holiday ideas to make or add to your own lessons. Plus, kids can make a Christian connection to their favorite holidays because you’ll address them from a biblical perspective.
Start using these impactful ideas to enhance the holiday lessons in your ministry.
Permission to print one copy.
Product Detail
Format: PDF
Page Count: 158
Each holiday celebration includes a devotion, craft, game, snack, skit, song, and outreach idea…
NEW YEAR’S DAY
- Pressing On (Devotion)
- New Year’s Crackers (Craft)
- Do-Over (Game)
- New Life Gingerbread People (Snack)
- A Clean Heart (Skit)
- Jesus Makes All of Us New (Song)
- Book Beginnings (Outreach)
VALENTINE’S DAY
- Love Letters (Devotion)
- We Love Tambourines (Craft)
- Balloon Buddies (Game)
- Strawberry Surprise (Snack)
- Unexpected Valentine (Skit)
- God, How I Love You (Song)
- True Love (Outreach)
ST. PATRICK’S DAY
- St. Patrick’s Shamrock (Devotion)
- Lucky Charms (Craft)
- Spread-the-Word Tag(Game)
- Lost Gold Coins (Snack)
- The Dude in Green (Skit)
- St. Patrick’s Hurrah(Song)
- Beautiful Feet (Outreach)
PALM SUNDAY
- True Worship (Devotion)
- Donkey Glove (Craft)
- The Wave Parade (Game)
- Palm Sunday Salad (Snack)
- It’s a Great Day to Sell Palm Fronds (Skit)
- Jesus Came to Town (Song)
- Victory Palms (Outreach)
EASTER
- Washed Away(Devotion)
- Stones Cry Out (Craft)
- Sliding Stone (Craft)
- A Common Thread (Game)
- Good News Bouquet (Snack)
- Stained Glass Cross Cookies (Snack)
- Shadow of the Cross (Skit)
- I’m the Life, the Truth, the Way (Song)
- Food to Spare(Outreach)
EARTH DAY
- Handle With Care(Devotion)
- Salvage and Recycle(Craft)
- Creation Sculptures(Game)
- Seven Days to Praise(Snack)
- Clean Earth(Skit)
- God Has Given Us This World(Song)
- Clean-Up Committee(Outreach)
MOTHER’S DAY
- The Best Mom (Devotion)
- Mom’s-a-Gem Wordle (Craft)
- Mom’s Coffee Sleeves (Craft)
- She Knows Me So Well (Game)
- Soup for Mom (Snack)
- My Amazing Mom (Skit)
- I Love You, Yes I Do (Song)
- God Gave Me a Mother (Song)
- Mom’s Helping Hands (Outreach)
MEMORIAL DAY
- Stones of Remembrance(Devotion)
- Memory Slap Bracelets(Craft)
- Movement Memory(Game)
- Sparkler Pretzels(Snack)
- Remembered(Skit)
- We Remember(Song)
- We Will Not Forget(Outreach)
FATHER’S DAY
- Mr. Fix-It (Devotion)
- Peek-a-Boo Dad (Craft)
- Feats of Strength(Game)
- Our Father (Snack)
- Role Reversal (Skit)\
- I’ve Got a Father (Song)
- Treasure Ties (Outreach)
INDEPENDENCE DAY
- Untied (Devotion)
- Parade Wands (Craft)
- Streamer Celebration (Game)
- Fruit Flags (Snack)
- The In-Deep Pen Dance (Skit)
- The Flags on the Boat (Song)
- Free for All (Outreach)
HALLOWEEN
- Good or Evil? (Devotion)
- Glowing Slime (Craft)
- Stomp! (Game)
- Pumpkin Pancake Party (Snack)
- God’s With Matty, Too (Skit)
- Oh, God Almighty (Song)
- Reverse the Curse (Outreach)
THANKSGIVING
- Thank-full (Devotion)
- Pennant Pockets (Craft)
- Gifts From Above (Craft)
- I’m Stuffed! (Game)
- Corny Cobs (Snack)
- Mini Thanksgiving (Snack)
- A Tale of Two Thanksgivings (Skit)
- I Am Thankful (Song)
- Wall of Thanks (Outreach)
- Flock of Turkeys (Outreach)
CHRISTMAS
- Eyes on Jesus (Devotion)
- Mini Manger (Craft)
- Poinsettia Christmas Trees (Craft)
- Count Your Chickens (Game)
- Good News Angel (Snack)
- Find-and-Eat Christmas Story (Snack)
- This Is the Son God Gave (Skit)
- Jesus, Our Savior (Song)
- Welcome Home (Outreach)
- Treasure Jars (Outreach)
