VBS and Summer season Camp Curriculum Prime Picks for 2024

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Constructing Religion’s 2024 Trip Bible College and summer time camp curriculum opinions are in! We now have evaluated 10 new curricula for this yr and located a wide range of enjoyable and fruitful choices for VBS and camp packages. In case your neighborhood is getting ready for summer time VBS, camp, or intergenerational formation alternatives, these opinions can assist you get began in discerning which curriculum could greatest meet your neighborhood’s wants and targets.

Our Evaluation Course of

This yr we invited a crew of 5 ministry leaders to conduct the opinions. The crew primarily examined publishers’ web site content material, pattern supplies which are out there without cost, and movies, moderately than full curricula. Within the analysis course of, the crew thought of six interrelated dimensions:

Theological messages
Interpretations and makes use of of scripture
Approaches to studying and formation
Language and practices relating to inclusivity and variety of human identities and experiences, particularly in relation to race, tradition, gender, sexual orientation, incapacity, and financial standing
Consideration to social justice, service, and creation care
Program construction and logistics

Every evaluation supplies an outline of the curriculum and highlights what the curriculum does properly in addition to what may very well be improved. Under you’ll be able to entry particular person slidedecks for every evaluation. You too can comply with this hyperlink to view the total slidedeck with all of the opinions.

We provide our suggestions and demanding suggestions in a spirit of compassion and dedication to enriching religion formation for all folks in liberating, life-giving methods. As all the time, we encourage you to replicate on the presents, wants, values, and commitments of your ministry context to be able to discern which curriculum could also be greatest on your neighborhood.

Prime Picks for 2024

This yr’s prime picks for brand new curricula are:

On the entire, these assets are inclined to exhibit age-appropriate, theologically substantive formation alternatives that may provide a whole lot of enjoyable, creativity, and play for VBS and camp individuals. They have a tendency to reveal consideration to human range and inclusivity in addition to to practices of social justice, service, and creation care. In addition they are inclined to replicate considerate and versatile program design, and the supplies present useful steering to set program leaders and administrators up for fulfillment. Whereas in addition they have areas for enchancment throughout the standards we assessed, we predict that these curricula may be helpful choices for VBS, camp, or intergenerational formation packages.

Further Evaluations

We additionally reviewed these curriculum choices:

As we studied their content material and design, nevertheless, we discovered points that pose obstacles to cultivating hospitable and significant religion formation alternatives. Consequently, they aren’t amongst our advisable curricula this yr.

For the total slidedeck of all opinions, comply with this hyperlink: Constructing Religion VBS and Summer season Camp Curriculum Evaluations 2024

A Phrase of Due to Our Evaluation Crew

We wish to conclude by providing many due to our curriculum evaluation crew: Sally Benton, Molly Herman-Gallow, Meg Jones, Juniper LaNunziata, and Marvin McLennon. They introduced wealthy experience and perception to the evaluation course of. Our Constructing Religion crew is most grateful for the time, vitality, and work that they contributed to this yr’s opinions.

Take a look at their bios to study extra about them:

Sally Benton (she/her/hers)

Sally Benton is the Director of Youngsters, Youth, and Household Ministries at St. John’s in McLean, Virginia and has been ministering to youngsters and youth for over 10 years. She and her husband are at the moment dwelling in Alexandria, VA with their two young children. They’ve had the enjoyment of ministering collectively not solely in parishes, however on faculty campuses, at summer time camp, and nearly all over the place in between. Sally is obsessed with religion formation for all folks and serving to folks construct confidence in exploring their religion independently in addition to in neighborhood.

Molly Herman-Gallow (she/her/hers)

Molly Herman-Gallow lives in Atlanta, GA and works on workers at St. Martin within the Fields Episcopal Church. She at the moment serves as St. Martin’s Youngsters & Youth Minister and enjoys attending to minister to all of St. Martin’s households and youth. Molly is a cradle Episcopalian and grew up within the Diocese of Atlanta. She graduated from Elon College in 2019 with a filmmaking and spiritual research diploma. To at the present time, she loves telling the Church’s story via her work in ministry and her ardour for images and videography. Within the fall, Molly plans to start her Grasp of Divinity at Duke Divinity College.

Meg Jones (she/her/hers)

Meg Jones is serving because the Director of Youth and Younger Grownup Ministries at Grace Church Cathedral in Charleston, SC. She is a lifelong Episcopalian, raised within the Diocese of Atlanta. After graduating from Appalachian State College, she spent two years on the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta of their youth ministry internship program, a yr doing youngsters and youth ministry at a smaller church, and previously because the Director of Christian Formation at Christ Church in New Bern, NC. Meg brings expertise in church buildings of various sizes in addition to diocesan, provincial, and nationwide church connections.

Juniper LaNunziata (they/them/theirs)

Juniper LaNunziata is the Director of Christian Formation at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Greenville, NC. They’re a Pennsylvania native, however they’ve been dwelling within the south for 15 years. Juniper likes to bake bread, drink boba tea, and go geocaching. Take a look at their weblog for Christian formation and design at www.formedbyexperience.weblog.

Marvin McLennon (he/him/his)

Marvin McLennon is the Director of Youngsters and Youth Ministries at Christ Episcopal Church in Little Rock, AR. Marvin is a cradle Episcopalian and Arkansas native. He grew up attending St. Mark’s Episcopal Church the place he grew to become lively of their youth group, diocesan youth management positions, and as a camper/counselor in coaching (CIT) at Camp Mitchell. Marvin attended Hendrix Faculty, the place he obtained his diploma in Communications. Throughout his faculty years, Marvin spent his summers attending Camp Mitchell as a camp counselor and social media coordinator. After graduating in 2013, he moved to Louisiana to be a Episcopal Service Corps member, the place he served because the assistant youth director for St. James Baton Rouge. After his yr of service, Marvin grew to become the Youth Director for St. James in addition to the Diocesan Youth Director for the Diocese of Louisiana till 2016, when he moved again to Arkansas to start working for Christ Church.

Featured picture is by Kirk Wheeler on Unsplash

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