This week is our VBS at our church. What I thought was going to be difficult has turned out to be a great experience. Each morning at 8:35 AM I meet with the preschoolers for a 4-minute story time. They get there early because their parents are setting up their classrooms or rehearsing the music.
We originally planned for it to be in our Enrichment Center, but we ended up with 50 kids and many teachers. My struggle has been selecting a book for toddlers through 5-year-olds. I only have 4 minutes which in reality is 2 minutes so the book does not matter. This morning I got lots of hugs as the kids lined up to go their next rooms.
Both mornings I have been shocked how attentive the kids are during the story. The other challenge is finding books about Jesus and Peter. My other shock both mornings is how many adults come into the Enrichment Center to visit. So far only 4 have looked at the shelves. All the others just want to visit. So much for my to do list. I was thrilled when 4 teen boys came in yesterday! Yes, the floor trembled! One of them is a huge reader. He was looking for The Case for Christ and Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus. I am working with him to find what he wants. He returned today to checkout what we had and I'll connect with him next week when the other book arrives. Made my day!
I also got to talk with the leader of Lifeway Kids Publishing. She is a member of our church and is a huge help in selecting books for kids. I recommended to her that Lifeway consider publishing undated books for kids that relate to the focus Bible passage each year for VBS. She knows about what we do on the Church Librarians Network so I could see the wheels going on in her mind. Here's hoping that might be a possibility in the future.
What are your personal VBS experiences with people this summer?
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The week ended well for this experience with preschoolers. At the end of each reading I asked them to wave at me when they walked by the Enrichment Center during the day which each group did twice. They not only waved but also yelled "Hi Morlee!" Great fun for them and me! A couple of them did the same yesterday morning as they walked by the EC on the way to Sunday School. The preschool leaders want to have story time again next year.