Vacation Bible School supplies and tools consume a large amount of brain power for VBS directors. You make lists upon lists upon lists of supplies you need to get.
That doesn’t even include the supplies that you already have but need to gather from all the dark recesses of your church and storage areas.
Then, there is all the price checking. Thank goodness for the internet and places that you can price check from your desk. Previously, you would search through catalogs, make phone calls, and {gasp} have to go to an actual store! [Note my excitement for shopping at brick and mortar stores…it may have something to do with three young kids that I take with me everywhere I go, oh and all their things too!]
I get it. VBS supplies are crazy. But I wanted to share my list of 7 essentials that I wouldn’t want to do VBS without.
Bibles
Before VBS, I want to make sure that I have a good supply of kid-friendly bibles on hand. I want teachers or crew leaders to feel free to give Bibles to kids who don’t have their own Bible.
I also want to be able to give kids who made a profession of faith a Bible.
Personally, I study out of the ESV (English Standard Version). I have found it to be an accurate translation that is very accessible to read. If I am giving a Bible to an older kid, I typically give an ESV. Say, 4th or 5th grade and older. This Bible is a reasonable price for a gift or award Bible. But if you are looking for something more economical, consider this outreach Bible.
If I am giving out a Bible to a younger reader, I almost always give a NIrV. This Bible is designed to be a 3rd-grade reading level. The sentences are shorter and the vocabulary is very age appropriate. Here is a nice gift or award Bible of imitation leather, or a very basic NIrV outreach Bible.
Chocolate
For the volunteers. Really. Not really. For you. AND for your volunteers. And if I have to break into my stash, I’m always happy to find Lindt Chocolate Truffles. You know, the kind with the hard outer shell and creamy chocolate center. You know exactly what I’m talking about. (And if you have to raid your stash now, no thanks necessary.)
But, I also like to have chocolate on hand for my volunteers. Sometimes the best initial medicine for a problem or a crisis is some of those medicinal sweetened cocoa beans stuffed with peanuts or nougat, or caramel, or something like that. [Translation: Snickers, Milky Way, or Reese’s]
In fact, I have been known to purchase 25 pounds of fun-size Snickers bars from a surplus store. My volunteers loved that!
Follow that chocolate up with a listening ear and kind wisdom. The wisdom that gently brings a volunteer back to the hope that is found in the redemptive work of the cross. And know that you have loved and served your volunteer simply by considering small comforts.
Promo Material
You have to promote VBS in some form or another. If you are just doing VBS for your own kids at church (and that is just fine), you can do all of your promotion in-house. But if you are inviting your community and planning for your VBS to be an outreach, you have to get the word out there.
There are so many ways to promote VBS. None of them are the “right” way or the “only” way. So I will just share a little bit about how we promote VBS at our church.
We intentionally schedule our VBS for the week after our small town’s festival in the summer. The festival kicks off with a parade. We always have a float in the parade that matches our VBS theme. We also have people who walk by the float and hand out fliers.
Now, you know what you do with all “stuff” that you get at a parade, right? Trash it, as soon as you are home. Or sooner if a trash can is handy.
We do a teeny tiny bit to fight that and tape a piece of candy to it. Our candy of choice: Dum Dum sucker (unless we can find something else reasonably priced that matches our theme). A little better than a tootsie roll (no offense if that is your fav). But not so much that we can’t give out 1000+ at a small town parade.
I would love to give away free snow cones at our small grocery store for a couple hours armed with VBS registrations if anyone would so desire to register. I love the idea of loving our community in that small way on a hot summer day. I’ll let you know if I get the details worked out. And you let me know if you have ever done anything like that before and how it worked (seriously…comment below.
Encouragement for Volunteers
This is one of my favorite VBS supplies. I love giving volunteers a little extra “thank you!” Especially when it is food related. Plus I’m a little nerdy. (My husband teases me about liking all of the nerdy TV shows.) So, if I can make it fit with my VBS theme and be a little cheesy at the same time, double bonus!
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Attach the respective candies (Milkyway and Starburst…if you didn’t get it) to these little tags and you have yourself a great little, “thank you.” No form found
But sometimes, you just can’t do one. more. thing. I know. This is one of those things that would be a perfect thing to delegate. I would guess that there are people in your church that aren’t able to help with VBS, this would be a great way to include them. Make the need known, preferably by a personal ask and provide the supplies needed to put these together.
Follow-Up Supplies
VBS is a ton of work. And if you fail to follow-up with your VBS attendees, you are not making the
most of the work that you have put into VBS. There is no one way to follow-up VBS.
But I would argue that it is vital to follow-up with kids who made a profession of faith at your VBS. You can do this in many different ways, but one resource that I like to use is, I’m a Christian Now! Younger Kids by Lifeway (there is also an Older Kids Version). This book does a good job of walking a young believer through the basics of the Christian faith.
In addition to following up with kids who made a profession of faith, I like to follow-up with all of the kids who came to VBS. Who doesn’t love getting a postcard in the mail? My kids just got a postcard in the mail today and were so excited!
A simple quarter piece of cardstock with your VBS’ logo and a quick message from their teacher or crew leader will brighten a kids day. And it will provide another quick way to engage kids and their parent’s who attended your VBS.
Curriculum
Obviously. Right? But so many things hinge on what curriculum you choose. And whether you choose to purchase a prepackaged curriculum or if you choose to write your own. Or a combination of both of those options.
If you are looking for help with choosing a curriculum, Concordia Supply has put together the best side-by-side comparison of the current year’s curriculum that I have seen (just click on the download button under “Comparison Chart” to grab your PDF). The only two popular themes that aren’t included in their resources is Lifeway’s Game On and Orange’s Amped.
Laminator
Laminate. All. The. Things. OK, maybe not all the things. But I think that a laminator can come in handy for many projects for VBS. And just think, you aren’t going to store a laminator all year just so you can use it at VBS. You will have a laminator to use for all of your events.
I printed signs and hung them outside last year. Then I reprinted them because they got wet and I hadn’t laminated them.
What about theme specific giveaways? Do you create your own? And laminate them.
Or name tags? I like lanyards for name tags with a hook. Laminate the name tag and it will last all week.
An Opportunity for You
I’m guessing that you are well aware of the massive amount of money spent on VBS supplies each year.
Are you familiar with AmazonSmile? What about CMConnect?
CMConnect exists to serve under-resourced children’s workers and to challenge people to serve “the least of these” in their local community. One of the ways that CMConnect serves is by fundraising and providing resources for those who need it.
AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon with the same products, prices, and shopping features as Amazon.com. The difference is that when you shop on AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price of eligible products to the charitable organization of your choice.
CMConnect has joined AmazonSmile as one of their charitable organizations. So if you are purchasing VBS supplies from Amazon, would you consider taking the extra step and going to the AmazonSmile website and choosing CMConnect as your charitable organization of choice?
By taking these simple actions, you are helping other ministries serve kids and share the hope of Jesus. And remember, you aren’t being charged any more
then if you were shopping at Amazon. Just make sure that you are going to the Smile website. And that you choose CMConnect as your charitable organization of choice.
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Want help planning your VBS to-do list? Join the VBS Planning Challenge and get your tasks planned in one week. And do it with a like-minded community!
These are great ideas! Thanks for sharing.
Jen,
We’re glad our VBS comparison chart can help you and other VBS directors plan for VBS 2018! Thanks for mentioning our resource; we’re praying you have a great VBS!
Laura @ Concordia Supply
It is such an awesome resource. Thanks for creating it.
This is quality work regarding the topic! I guess I’ll have to bookmark this page. See my website YR4 for content about Web Development and I hope it gets your seal of approval, too!
1– Sit on the top of an exercise bench with a dumbbell in every
hand. Expect expert-backed exercises, nutrition advice, the latest in energy sports activities, and a whole lot of motivation heading
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may be greatest advised to do each these workout
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program. If you suppose about power curves, the movement
is simpler on the top than it’s the backside.
Firstly, flaring your elbows introduces inner rotation into the motion. Brace your core by taking in a deep breath and pushing your diaphragm outwards earlier than every rep.
This stabilizes your torso. By incorporating
both, you’ll build a a lot bigger, fuller, broader chest and achieve the attention of all onlookers.
In a gym, you won’t have to look exhausting to search out an adjustable bench,
so you presumably can choose and choose your angle.
A good start line is to pick a small weight and attempt a set of eight to 12 repetitions.
The athlete ought to complete no less than eight repetitions utilizing the correct kind.
They can proceed to extend the load until they can not full a set of eight to
twelve reps. Although not the primary muscle group labored in the course of the
flat chest press, the biceps brachii act as stabilizers and help in sustaining grip on the barbell.
Since the incline bench press remains to be a demanding train, it’s best to carry out it near the start of the exercise.
For most compound actions, a great amount of time to relaxation between units is anywhere from 2-3 minutes,
relying on how heavy you’re lifting. The extensive grip
barbell bench press shifts emphasis to your pectoralis major,
particularly the decrease, center and outer area of your pec main.
The overhead press, for instance, is a typical train that you can carry out sitting or standing.
It entails pressing a barbell or pair of dumbbells out of your upper chest to
overhead. Full-body routines can additionally be more practical
than spot training, or at all times performing the identical exercise to attempt
to build up that muscle. Remember, your body quickly adapts to exercise, so it’s important to switch up
your workouts to keep your physique challenged. This train may cause
your body to increase progress hormone production. Growth hormone is produced to assist your physique restore itself after exercising.
Given the popularity and effectiveness of the dumbbell bench press, there are a number
of variations of dumbbell bench press.
This switches you from eccentric-concentric contraction to isometric contraction. General, it’s
good for building power, as isometric contraction is great for getting stronger.
With resistance bands, the extra they stretch, the more resistance they
have. With that, within the bottom range of the bench press,
the band has less pressure, almost to a negligible level, so
the load load just isn’t really harder than it normally could be without the band.
Nonetheless, as you press up, the band stretches, so whenever you attain the mid
to prime vary, the band provides resistance so what would usually be the simpler part of the
carry becomes more durable.
If utilizing a flat bench, research show round a 30% increase on upper chest activation.
So, if you would like to goal your upper chest without as much shoulder work, flat bench reverse grip is
great. The same is true for incline, however the increase to the upper chest just isn’t as nice, contemplate the incline position already targets the upper
chest extra with the standard grip. With incline reverse grip bench press, you’ll
get a couple of 5-10% enhance in upper chest recruitment.
You won’t need much more house beyond the space required for
the bench itself. Additionally, you can also attempt different bench press variations to
emphasize totally different muscle tissue within the chest,
arms, and shoulders. I started going to the health club 3
weeks ago and made a schedule with somewhat assist from
r/bodybuilding. So to my query, today was chest day so I
started doing dumbbell press and dumbbell flys. Whereas
taking a break I observed that everybody doing dumbbell press and flys had been doing incline dumbbell
press and flys. My query witch are higher, are they the identical and may I do both.
1– With a dumbbell in each hand, arrange for dumbbell bench presses as traditional.
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Press the weights together as exhausting as you’ll
find a way to and maintain this inward strain throughout the exercise.
Therefore, I recommend you go with the incline dumbbell press first in your workout.
If you do flat presses first, you might fuel out and
not have sufficient power to maximise your weights and lift with good form.
The main advantage of single arm dumbbell bench presses is you could address muscle imbalances.
All in all, the flat bench press would always be considered a main lift, not an help raise like incline or decline bench presses could also be depending on the program.
We will go over programming bench press into your routine later in this
information. The bench press plays a vital function in weightlifting, bodybuilding, and powerlifting as it’s considered
one of several staple compound workouts.
His mission is to inspire fellow “exhausting gainers”
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to get outcomes fast. Moreover, aim to eat at least 1 gram of protein per lb of physique weight.
Decide your upkeep calories utilizing the TDEE calculator
and add 5-15% to determine your daily bulking calories.
This is how much you ought to be eating daily to construct muscle and power.
So take your time be secure when you begin getting up there
in weight ensure you have a spotter. Dumbbell presses may interact extra stabilizing muscle tissue, while bench presses
enable for larger general weight usage. You May find yourself recruiting muscle teams other than the precise
muscle tissue intended to be focused by the exercise.
There is a pure arch in your again that must be there whereas performing this press exercise.
When you try hard to push your again into the bench, your shoulders
will naturally roll ahead.
Decrease the bar as long as you possibly can whereas nonetheless maintaining
an otherwise proper type and don’t expertise any discomfort.
The goal is to work your muscle tissue through an extended vary
of motion, and when you lower the bar until your chest and shoulder
muscles are absolutely stretched, that’s lengthy enough.
For a lot of people, this shall be when the barbell touches the chest, but not for everybody.
Your anterior deltoids (aka front delts) are activated to a greater extent in the incline bench press.
If you’re aiming for improved muscle steadiness and joint well being, the
flat dumbbell press is the superior possibility. For maximum strength
gains, the barbell bench press may be higher suited.
Since the flat bench press is kind of a demanding train, it’s best to carry out it close
to the beginning of a workout when you’re not overly fatigued.
If your goal is strength, focus on lifting within the 1-5 rep
range. Nonetheless, if you’re looking to build muscle, it’s higher
to lift within the 8-12 rep vary. To refine dumbbell and barbell chest presses, have interaction in paused
reps. This amps up rigidity and enhances muscle stimulation. Incline variations target the higher pecs more,
and flat bench targets total chest growth.
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When they’ve completed a set, this motion must be reversed.
The weight should be lowered to the athlete’s knees and positioned on the ground.
For instance, in case your upper chest is not the place you want it to be from an aesthetics standpoint,
an incline bench press could be the solution to your issue.
Or, when you have pre-existing shoulder pain or tightness,
then manipulating the angle of the bench might let you still carry out a urgent movement safely.
The incline bench press is often programmed on chest,
higher body, or push days. Although you can prepare the incline bench press in the 1-5 rep range, the
8-12 rep vary is good. If aesthetics is your aim,
lifting within the 1-5 rep range isn’t going to be the most advantageous method
to prepare.
The hammer chest press takes somewhat stress off the shoulders while emphasizing
the internal and decrease pec major. The movement is kind of comparable as a daily db
bench press besides your arms will be held in a hammer
grip (neutral grip with palms dealing with in) and you’ll have your arms at about 90˚.
With hammer grip chest presses, you’ll have a fair larger ROM as a result of you can convey your arms closer together on the prime of the
motion. This is a normal bench press when it comes to type and body positioning and
every little thing. The solely distinction is you’ll use bands to hold weights
off the ends of each sleeves of the barbell. By doing this, you will be completely changing the dynamics of stability.
Most individuals use this grip in the event that they really wish to hone
in on their chest and take emphasis off their triceps and stop the shoulders from being
a limiting factor. The muscular tissues of the shoulder joint,
shoulder girdle, and elbow joint are involved within the flat bench dumbbell press.
In the shoulder joint, the anterior deltoid, corachobrachialis, and middle pectoralis main muscles are in action. The deltoid is a
three-headed muscle that covers the entrance, high and again of the shoulder.
In this exercise, it’s mainly the anterior and center
deltoid which are involved. The corachobrachialis is a comparatively small muscle situated deep beneath the deltoid and pectoralis
main muscular tissues working from the scapula to the inside surface of
the humerus.
Usually speaking, newbie and intermediate lifters will see
one of the best outcomes by benching twice every week. Studies show that coaching
a muscle group twice a week will present better outcomes than once every week.
No matter what variation of the bench press you do, pretty
much all the same muscular tissues might be activated. However, the different variations of the bench press will emphasize sure
muscle tissue.
Nonetheless, the variety of times that you must carry out
a bench press per week depends on your private targets and
health routine. The dumbbell bench press is a push train as
a result of athletes need to push the burden away from their our bodies.
A neutral backbone and a strong core will assist hold you balanced while performing a
bench press. Additionally, it’s going to assist your again muscular tissues stay
in the acceptable position. Not maintaining a 45-degree angle can put additional stress on your elbows.
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