Four ideas for a Merry (Covid-safe) Christmas

Here are four COVID safe ideas to give you inspiration as you plan for ministry this Christmas season

Usually about this time of year, children’s ministry leaders and SRE teachers start planning for Christmas. Some start from scratch and look for a new idea every year. Others have a Christmas tradition that gets brought to life afresh. But this year, things are looking different. The pandemic has brought all kinds of new challenges and many of us are tired. How do we celebrate Christmas this year?

Here are a few ideas:

1.       Christmas cards

If there was ever to bring Christmas cards back, it’s this year. Christmas cards can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish. The best part is that the message on the front points us to Jesus and the message inside seeks good relationship with those we care about.

If you’re not back at church in person yet, it could involve sending out a few blank cards and envelopes with suggestions about ways to decorate and verses to look up and include. Ensure there is easy access to the address book and encourage children to write to two friends of any age and one person they don’t know so well. Postcards can be an easy option too.

If you are gathering in person, you could set up a church letterbox, and have a delivery time at the beginning or end of the service. Children could make cards together and leaders can help with writing personal messages, addressing envelopes and spelling. If you’re really creative, you could take photos of the children or their artwork and print them to use on the cards.

2.     Video of the Nativity story

Since so many of us have newly developed tech skills, why not make a video of the nativity story? Children love seeing themselves in photos and videos. Adults love watching children having fun together with others. It’s a great hands-on way to remind everyone of the Christmas story.

If you’re not back at church in person, you could do this by collecting short clips sent in by families and editing them together. Use costume markers to create consistency (Joseph always wears red. Baby Jesus is always wrapped in a white blanket etc).

If you are gathering in person, this could be a project that comes together over Term 4. Use small group time to read the bible passages and work out a script. Guide the children to make their own decisions about how to put it together and how to do it. Make the costumes and set together.

Some variations on this idea include: Using sock puppets, Lego figures or toys instead of acting it out. Including a blooper section at the end is always fun. While you might be able to create more polished credits at the end, encourage the children to draw them and then record the kids holding up their pictures. Show ‘taster’ clips in church in the lead up to the finished product being released and make the first showing something that children can invite their friends to. Then upload it onto your church website/Facebook page/Vimeo/YouTube channel for everyone to share.

3.       Advent countdown activities

There are lots of advent options for families to do at home but why not create something that the whole church can do together? Or your whole kids church? It could be a weekly countdown to Christmas that involves challenges or activities for everyone. It could be a series of different challenges: learn a verse, make up a song or rhyme, send a card, make a gift or decoration. Or it could be a cumulative project: adding a new picture to a wall of pictures, learning a new verse of a song.

If you’re not back at church in person then setting activities or challenges for the whole family might be a better goal. Challenges could include inviting other families over for a meal, baking something to share, making thank you gifts for leaders and teachers or doing something new together like a beach walk or hike.

4.       Christmas Projects

If you’re brave, you could give children a range of options about what kind of Christmas project they want to work on and let them make the choice. Over Term 4 at kids church or kids club, different small groups could work on their own projects and then present them to each other. Leaders can help by keeping the groups focused and the end goal achievable.

Projects could be crafty such as a nativity scene made of paper, or from items gathered from nature, or a mural. Or they could be dramatic including: songs, scenes or skits presented in person or recorded. These stories or scenes could be straight from the Bible, or stories about people celebrating Christmas and sharing its significance. Children could even create a new board game or Christmas version of a game.

I hope these ideas have sparked something for you. It has been a tough year, but it is good to celebrate Christmas. It’s good to celebrate that God didn’t leave us alone in our sin and pain but sent his Son into this messy world not to condemn us but to save us.

How are you going to celebrate Christmas this year?