1. Host a drive-in prayer night. Invite families to drive up and park in your parking lot. Using a sound system, lead a couple of worship songs and then spend some time in guided prayer.
  2. Host a remote movie night. Dedicate a night for families to watch the same movie. Send out some talking points or questions for families to discuss the movie together. If many of your families have a subscription to Netflix, consider hosting a Netflix “Watch Party.”
  3. Plan a Family Photo Scavenger Hunt. Send out a list of pictures for families to take of things they can do together or objects they may find. Set a time frame for families to take all of the photos and give them a place to send the photos. Send a prize to the family who completed the scavenger hunt first/with the most photos completed.
  4. Create a chalk obstacle course in the church’s parking lot. Using chalk drawings, design an obstacle course for the kids in your community to do. Create areas for them to skip, hop, spin in circles and more to help get their energy out.
  5. Create a prayer walk in the church’s parking lot or throughout the church’s property. Email a prayer guide for families to follow along and do together. Set up specific areas or checkpoints where they can pray for a specific topic. In one area outside they might stop to thank God for all that He has made. Near a stop sign they might pray for safety for police officers, firemen, etc. Near a door, they might ask that God would open doors with opportunities to share the gospel in their community, and for missionaries around the world. Get creative!
  6. Plan a hike or bike ride. Look up local forest preserves or trails that you can go. Consider planning themed hikes – like a “touch and feel” hike or a “color” hike. Consider looking for different animal habitats, or recording the kinds of insects, plants or birds that you discover along the path.
  7. Have a family challenge night remotely. Invite families to join you on a Zoom call. Plan for some friendly family competitions – such as a “Family Feud” game, Bible trivia game, Pictionary or Bingo Night. Get creative and (things like Bible trivia competition, something like a “Nailed it” baking challenge, bingo night, etc. over Zoom).
  8. Host a family picnic. Invite families to pack their lunch and bring a blanket with them. Have families picnic in the church parking lot, or a nearby field. Consider singing a few songs, doing simple games that you could play from a distance, like “Simon Says,” blowing bubbles, or making chalk drawings and messages for each other.
  9. Have a campfire cookout. Invite 1-2 families at a time to have a campfire cookout in someone’s backyard. Roast marshmallows!
  10. Have a drama night on Zoom. Choose a script from the Skits book (Item #2726). Send it to families ahead of time. Have each participating child create their own costume ahead of time. “Act” out the skit together on a group video call.
  11. Have a sing-a-long night on Zoom. Do you kids have a few worship songs that they love to sing? Have families join you for a group video call, and play their favorite worship songs for a fun sing-a-long!
  12. Testimony Time. Invite your club leaders, or invite members of your church or leadership team to share their testimonies with your club members.
  13. Que the Questions. Invite kids to send you any questions they may have about God, the Bible, friends, life, etc. Screen the questions to make sure they are appropriate. Ask a few leaders to be prepared to answer the questions. Interview these leaders with the kids’ questions via video.
  14. Host VBS in a backyard! Instead of meeting for VBS at church, ask members of your church family to host small VBS events throughout the summer in their backyards. Reuse the same program in different backyards all throughout the summer. Limit the number of kids/leaders according to your state’s requirements.