Super Bible Games for Ages 8-12

Book excerpt: The "tween" years can be a scary and complicated time in a child's life. Dealing with rising expectations, peer pressure and discovering one's self can be overwhelming. These 46 games will engage and reinforce important Christian values and lessons in a fun and playful way. Each game corresponds with a Bible story or situation so that the children are not only listening to the stories, but engaging in an activity that utilizes other senses to create a fun and multi-faceted learning experience! Studies have shown that game play is one of the most effective teaching tools for keeping children's attention. These games are perfect for 8-12 year olds, but can easily be adapted for other ages. The activities are designed to be played after reading the related Bible story. For example, after the story of Samson and Delilah is read, play 'The Good Apple/Bad Apple Game' to illustrate how easily negative influences can affect us and how to resist peer pressure. Recite the bolded teaching script to make connections between the Bible story, the game and real-life situations. Use the discussion questions to encourage deeper personal connections and understanding of the lesson. Finally, the related bible verses found at the end of each game have been carefully chosen to reinforce the learning concept from another section of the Bible and encourage further reading. Thankfulness, patience, teamwork, persistence, obedience, honor, respect and truthfulness are just a few of the topics addressed throughout these lessons. Overall the emphasis is on the vastness of God's love for us so dig into His word and have fun!