The Children's Ministry Resource Hub
A Collection of Resources for Children’s and Family Ministry
There are many websites out there offering free resources for Children’s Ministry. As the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) follows the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL), the Sunday School curricula listed also follow the RCL.
This allows for the message in the Sunday School room to mirror the message in the sanctuary, creating opportunity for family discussion and shared discernment of the Scripture.
Lastly, I always recommend doing your research to ensure the message of the lesson aligns with your congregation’s vision and values!
Table of Contents
Click on the links below to jump to the resources. I do encourage you to check all of them out as many of these resources can be used in multiple settings, such as Worship, Sunday school, and at home!
Faith Formation for the Family
Children and Youth Animated Youtube Videos (for at home or church!)
Children’s Bulletins, Colouring Pages and Activity Sheets
STEM Activities (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
Free Sunday School Curricula
1.
RFour.Org: A free Christian education resource website created by Nathanael Vissia, educator with the United Church of Christ. It provides a large collection of
Sunday school lessons, children's sermons, youth ministry lessons, confirmation curriculum, and adult Christian education materials designed for churches, pastors, and Christian educators.
This website is very easy to use!
2.
Sermons4kids: Tons of free children’s sermons with object lessons, children’s activities, Bible coloring pages, games, and crafts. Use these fun children’s sermons for kids in Sunday school, children’s ministry, and family ministry. There are multiple options for each week, so take a few minutes to find the one that suits you best.
There is a paid curriculum and a free curriculum, though the free version is excellent!
3.
Ministry To Children: Designed specifically for volunteers and small churches like you! Access to free, printable children’s ministry lessons, crafts, games, and Sunday school resources to teach kids about Jesus.
It’s great for craft ideas and printable activity sheets!
4.
Grow Kids: A lectionary-based Sunday school curriculum created by the Child, Youth and Family Ministry department of the Lutheran Church of Australia . It includes flexible teaching sessions, school/classroom devotions, background Bible notes, and activity guides.
Curricula Available for Purchase
1. Sparkhouse:
Variety of curricula for various ages, from early childhood to youth.
https://sparkhousedigital.org/?redirected=true
Whirl: designed for pre-kindergarten through grade 6. It helps children engage with the Bible through age-appropriate lessons, animated videos, hands-on activities, and take-home resources for families.
Some
free resources are available here,
https://www.wearesparkhouse.org/free-resources/
2.
Godly Play Canada: a creative, hands-on approach to storytelling and faith formation
3.
Illustrated Ministry:
digital resource that includes curriculum, worship bulletins, coloring pages, devotionals, and educational materials.
Mini Revolutions, is an intergenerational, lectionary-based curriculum built around the Revised Common Lectionary. It is designed to be simple, flexible, and low-preparation, making it useful for churches of all sizes and ministry contexts.
Family Resources
Grow Kids:
free digital resources for the whole family
Jesus Glue and Glitter: creative, accessible, and inclusive Christian education resources that help children explore faith through storytelling, activities, crafts, and worship experiences. Developed by members of the United Church of Canada, this faith formation content is very relevant for Canadian churches and cultural settings.
DLTK Kids: another free online resource that provides Bible-based lesson plans, crafts, worksheets, coloring pages, games, puzzles, stories, and teaching materials for families, churches, and Sunday school programs.
My favourite part is the activity sheets for older children including anagrams, crosswords, wordsearches and cryptograms!
But watch out for all the pop-ups - don’t click on anything, use your back button if needed!
Bless 5 Praying with Kids:
a practice of praying for friends and family with children. (printable PDF)
Trueway Kids: Offers free weekly Bible lessons covering both the Old and New Testaments.
Each lesson pack typically includes a lesson outline, Bible story, worksheets, coloring pages, games, crafts, and activities. I love the printable mini bible storybooks! Click under Bible Lessons from the menu to see all the options. There are also some STEM lessons and lessons designed specifically for inclusivity
Children in Worship
Dollar Store Children’s Sermons: Created by Pastor John Stevens of Zion Lutheran Church, ELCA. Dollar Store Children’s Sermons is a
free video library of kid-friendly sermons based on weekly lectionary texts. Each message offers a creative, accessible take on the gospel, using common objects as illustrations. A great tool for generating ideas for children’s sermons and Sunday School activities!
Worshiping with Children: Yes, there hasn’t been any new material added since 2021, however with the RCL, the scriptures are the same, and can be reused.
YouTube Videos - Saddleback Kids:
Stories of the Bible:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5aPdmniG3y_n7hXEKTV4qQnIeCe-p6Ws
Church at Home- Toddlers:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5aPdmniG3y803gtKIxXyUJGXSAV2wkkT
Church at Home- Early Learners:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5aPdmniG3y8oMovZSL8BQ1O488OhKVQz
Church at Home- Elementary:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5aPdmniG3y9QHVgHAeLfQtsklRDaHsQD
Children’s Bulletins, Colouring Pages and Activity Sheets
Sermons4Kids: Scroll for the correct week, click on any of the options and on the left will be a menu for printables
Ministry To Children: Scroll the lesson for links to their printable activity sheets
Sparkhouse children’s bulletins are also available on Sundays and Seasons (see Library-> Children’s Bulletins) for those with a digital subscription
Trueway Kids: Click on
Bible Lessons from the top menu to see your options
STEM Activities (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
Childrensministry.com: 10 science experiments for Children’s Ministry, Each experiment comes with instructions, bible verse, and discussion questions
Childrensministry.com: 7 science experiment bible lessons for children
Creative Kidswork: There are some free activities available, or a paid version that includes bible stories, crafts, games, magic tricks, puppetry, science experiments, and more!