Trying to break in a new preteen leader? Here's a way to "bless"
the leader with popularity! Create an opening segment called
Weird Moments that your new leader hosts.
Each week, introduce the leader and his or her Weird Moment.
Fill this time with competitions such as these that are too weird
for words:
- Diving for Dollars-Have two preteens compete
for a dollar bill placed in a plastic bag at the bottom of a wading
pool filled with ice. Preteens must keep their hands behind their
backs and use only their teeth to retrieve the prize.
- Stick Around-Have two leaders compete to see
who can stick to the wall the longest. Use duct tape to secure them
with their feet off the floor. Then conduct your meeting and see
who lasts the longest!
- Marathon Belchers-And, of course, don't forget
the oldies but goodies. After a soft drink, see which preteen can
burp the longest! Remember, your preteens love to live on the
edge...even (or maybe especially) when we find that edge a bit
gross.
Loose Lips
Challenge preteens to communicate creatively. For each team of
four, make a kit with four straws, a racquetball-sized lump of
clay, three wiggle eyes, five 6-inch yarn strips, and a metal
washer. Make an extra kit for yourself.
Using your kit, build a creature or contraption model using all
the supplies. Then hide your model outside your room.
Once teams are formed, have teams each choose one preteen to be
their director. Take all the directors out to view your model.
Allow three minutes for them to memorize the object.
When directors return to their teams, they aren't allowed to
speak. They can only use gestures to give directions to their
teammates. Teams have five minutes to try to build an exact replica
of the model.
When time's up, show teams your model. Ask, "How difficult was
it to build an object you'd never seen? How did it feel to not be
able to talk to your teammates? Could you understand what your
silent teammate was trying to communicate? Why or why not?"
Read aloud Luke 1:11-22. Then ask, "Why did Zechariah lose his
voice? How do you think he felt when he couldn't tell anyone about
the message Gabriel had given him?"
Read aloud Luke 1:57-64. Ask, "When we doubt God's Word, what
does that do to our ability to communicate it? How can faith keep
you from being unable to deliver God's message?"
How Do You Smell?
Illustrate for preteens that Christ makes them different from
kids who aren't Christians.
Before class, set up stations throughout your room or around
your church. At each station, include items that smell sweet,
overpowering, inviting, repelling, and downright stinky. Some
suggestions are an onion cut in half, a cup of coffee, cotton
doused in cheap perfume, a fresh flower, a dirty sock, soured milk,
and vanilla extract.
Start your meeting by giving preteens scorecards. Have them move
from station to station sniffing each substance and voting how many
seconds or minutes they'd be willing to smell each item.
Once they've visited each station, ask, "Which smells did you
like? Which did you dislike? Why?" Then read aloud 2 Corinthians
2:14-15.
Ask, "How did smelling the soured milk make you feel? the
vanilla extract? How are those feelings like or unlike the ways
people feel about being around Christians? How can we be more like
the vanilla and give off the sweet aroma of Christ?"
To augment this discussion, spray air freshener. Then lead a
discussion of ways to "freshen up" your youth group.
Please keep in mind that phone numbers, addresses, and
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