Felt books are a perfect busy bag item for worship services.
The thought of moving a child from the nursery to the main worship service is nearly enough to make some moms consider abandoning the faith for a few years until the kid is old enough to overcome the ants in his pants. The good news is that even though Mom might not be able to pay much attention to the service, she is definitely praying. She is praying that her child does not loudly point out the boil on Mr. Smith's face or shout out an answer to the speaker's rhetorical question.
Despite the inconvenience, parents who want to instill their values know that they have to lead by example. If those values include attending worship services, then parents must seek out practical solutions.
Busy bags can help. A busy bag is a satchel or backpack full of items and activities that keep kids occupied. With just a little bit of planning, you can get through the childhood years with your faith intact.
There are always those who will argue that it is disrespectful for kids to be doing anything during a worship service except for sitting silently with hands folded. Opinion on this matter will depend on your place of worship. Look around at your next service and see if you can spot a few kids working in activity books or playing with dolls. If so, you are probably safe to use a busy bag without facing excommunication.
For busy bag inspiration, see the ideas below. Be sure to check out the photo album at the bottom of the page for more ideas, including several that cost less than one dollar each.
* Try biblical paperdolls. The free, printable bible characters over at Making Friends come with a variety of clothing and accessories. Store dolls in an old travel-sized wipe container.
* Felt books are a silent way to keep kids occupied. For a Bible-based felt book set, try Little Folk Visuals Bible Beginnings. The set has story pieces that tuck neatly into a pocket on the back of the book. If you feel crafty and want to make your own, just sew a few sheets of felt together to make a book. Next, use the paperdoll templates from Making Friends to cut out characters and accessories.
* Teach your child to Pray in Color. This form of visual prayer requires only some paper and crayons. It is a good way to keep kids quietly engaged in a spiritual activity while you pay attention to the worship service.
* Aleph Bet Puzzle by JET or these Bible story tray puzzles are an inexpensive way to keep kids busy and quiet.
* Silly Putty can keep little hands occupied. It is not as messy as Play Doh and you can buy it at any dollar store in packs of two. Give your kid a bible comic book and show him how he can transfer images to the putty.
* Dollar tree is full of Bible story coloring books, stickers and other inexpensive items for stocking your busy bag. See the photo album at the bottom of the page for ideas.
* Pre-fold construction paper into cards. Give your child some stickers and crayons and let him make cards for congregation members.
* Finger weaving is a silent activity that is not distracting to others.
* Use lacing cards. Check out this post at Little Birdie Secrets to see how to make them yourself.
* Write the events of a bible story on cards and have kids put the cards in the proper order. For younger kids, use pictures.
Other helpful tips from moms:
* Bring out toys one by one instead of giving the child the entire bag at one time.
* If you choose to give your child food items to help keep them quiet, make sure that you unwrap them before packing to keep crinkling sounds to a minimum.
*If you must take your child out of the service, make sure that he has much less fun in the hallway or cry room than he was having in the service.
*Discuss the service with your child once it is finished. Often, kids are paying attention and absorb more information than you might first think.
Also see:
TV-free ways to keep kids busy part one
TV-free ways to keep kids busy part two
TV-free ways to keep kids busy part three
TV-free ways to keep kids busy part four
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