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The Praise Factory is a six year, multi-age children’s systematic theology curriculum for elementary school children. It is comprised of 104 key biblical truths -- called "Big Ideas"-- divided into 16 units, common to a systematic theology. These biblical truths expand the children’s understanding of the same 12 big questions and answers used in the two preschool curriculums and add four additional big questions and answers. Within each 3-week Big Idea, there is an Old Testament, New Testament and Church History/Missions story presented. Each week’s curriculum includes 8 different activities to reinforce the Big Idea concept and story. |
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The VIPP Group learns about a VIPP-a Very Important Prayer Person-from your church. It is the only activity of the eight suggested that spends little focused time on the story and the Big Idea. Instead, it is an opportunity to help the children know more about and pray for church leaders and missionaries. There are two approaches to helping the children learn about the church's VIPPs: The" VIPP Clue Sheets and Games" or the "Meet the VIPP" interview. Who's a VIPP? The primary focus of the VIPP group is to help the children understand more about particular church leaders and supported workers do. For this reason, VIPPs should include elders, deacons, supported workers, and church staff. However, your church may not have many VIPPs of this kind. Feel free to use special volunteers (such as Sunday School teachers or the pianist) and other regular church members as VIPPs. It never hurts for children to get to know everyone in their church and pray for them! VIPP Group Snack-time Discussion Time Emphasis The VIPP Group snack and discussion time is spent in a general discussion of the story and Big Idea. Feel free to use the Big Idea and Story Review Discussion Sheets included in the curriculum for discussion ideas. Click below to see samples of discussion resources: Big Idea #1 Big Idea Concept Discussion Questions.pdf Big Idea #1 Story Review Discussion Questions.pdf Note on ACTS PRAYER: You may want to have the children wait and pray the ACTS prayer at the end of your session. This allows you to pray for their requests and you pray for the VIPP. Activity Option #1: VIPP Clue Cards, VIPP Games and VIPP Picture Boards In this approach to the VIPP group, children in this group identify the week's VIPP from a picture board of all the VIPP's after filling in VIPP Clue Cards or playing a VIPP using 9 basic questions about the VIPP. VIPP Picture Board The VIPP Picture board(s) are used in both the VIPP Clues Cards and the VIPP Games. The VIPP Picture Board is simply a poster of pictures of all the VIPPs, their titles and groups (such as elders, deacons, supported workers, church staff, special volunteer and/or church member). If all of your VIPPs can fit on one board, you can simply paste the group pictures next to each VIPP and the children will be able to distinguish them from each other that way. If you have so many VIPPs that you need to make a board for each group, you would only need to stick the group picture somewhere on the board, letting the children know that everyone on the board is in the same group. You may want to use the VIPP Board Signs to construct your board. These are simple a piece of paper with a frame on it that allows a 3x5 photo to fit inside it. There are spaces to write in the person's name, title and to glue the appropriate group icon in place. The VIPP Board Signs template is found in Reproducible Masters along with copies of the group icons. A sample picture board is found on the following page. The VIPP Questions Nine basic VIPP questions are used in both the VIPP Clue Cards and the VIPP games. They are: #1: What group do you serve in? (Elder, Deacon, Church Staff, Missionary, etc.) #2: What's my favorite food? #3: What's my favorite animal? #4: What do I like to do for fun? #5: How do I serve the church? (have up to three of these) #6: What job do I do during the week? #7: What do I look like? (Hair, eyes, man or woman) #8: Who am I? How do I serve? #9: What can you pray for me? (have up to three of these) Optional #10: A picture of me Speak to your particular VIPP for answers to these questions. We find that the general questions about food, animal, free time activity are things that the children can easily relate and to help the children connect with the VIPP. The other questions serve to educate the children in what the VIPP does in ministry and how they can pray for them. Together they make a good combination. Coming Up with VIPP Facts and Prayer Requests The best way to get the VIPP faces and prayer request is simply to call up the VIPP! We have found our VIPPs encouraged and pleased that the children are learning about them and praying for them. They are all too happy to answer the questions. However, sometimes a VIPP is not available to answer questions. The VIPP Information Resources found in Appendix E includes a list of frequently used VIPPs, blurbs on what these people do as well as 3 possible ways they serve and 3 possible ways to pray for them. Use these as appropriate. see some sample VIPP descriptions.pdf A Note on Question #6: Job During the Week: Sometimes the job question poses a difficulty when a VIPP has a job that is fairly intangible to the children. Feel free to omit this Question/Card. It is probably the least important of all the cards used. The VIPP Clue Cards The VIPP Clue Cards are 9 (or 10) coloring sheets which correspond to the 9 (or 10) VIPP questions which when finished are stapled together to make a clue book for a particular VIPP that the children can take home to share and pray with their family. The VIPP Clue Card sheets are found in Appendix G, in the Teacher's Binder. The children fill in and decorate each sheet in order as the teacher the VIPPs answer to each of the questions. By Question #8, the children have all the clues. Hold up the VIPP Picture Board(s) and have them guess who they think the VIPP is before revealing the VIPP in Question #8. Then, finish up with filling in the name and title of the VIPP (#8),the prayer request (#9) and giving out a picture of the VIPP(#10), if using this optional final sheet. When finished, staple each child's clue cards together along the left side, making it into a little book of clues for the child to take home. If you are running short on time, make sure to at least get the words written down on each clue card. The children can always finish decorating them at home. see samples of the VIPP Clue Cards.pdf VIPP Games Once a VIPP has been introduced, use a VIPP game to reinforce what they have learned. A different VIPP game is suggested for each week's curriculum. You will need a set of the 9 (or 10) VIPP Clues sheets to use with each game. The instructions for all VIPP games are found in Appendix E in the Teacher's Binder. see a sample of a VIPP Game.pdf Activity Option 2: Meet the VIPP Interview In this approach to the VIPP group, children in this group are introduced to a VIPP each week. A VIPP information sheet provides a general description of the VIPP and why what he does is important. After reading the information sheet to the children, the VIPP can be interviewed by the children. If the VIPP is unable to attend, the leader can answer any questions the children have. A number of creative ways to interview the VIPP are: #1: Answer the 9 VIPP Questions and Fill in the VIPP Clue Cards: The children ask the VIPP the nine questions on the VIPP Clue Cards and fill in the pictures of them as they go. Do as few or as many of them as you have time for. #2: Hypothetical Situation: Ask the children what they would do in a particular hypothetical situation that involves something the VIPP does that the children can understand. See if they know how the problem/job is taken care of. For example, if the VIPP were the Pastor ask the children: "What is someone came up to you and told you that you had to preach the sermon next week? What would you preach on? How would you prepare? How long do you think it would take?, etc." After the children give their answers, allow the pastor to give his answers to these questions. #3: "What or How It Happens" Questions: Ask the children a question about a problem, need or duty that they observe in church and see if they know who or what takes care of it. Such as, if the VIPP were the Church Treasurer, ask the children, "Every week hundreds and even thousands of dollars are put in the offering plates at church on Sunday morning. What do you think happens to that money? Who keeps it? Who gets to use it? Who makes sure that its being used properly?" #4: Tell an Interesting Story: For a VIPP who is a missionary or involved in an outreach ministry, ask them to be ready with a short story/example of what they do or the people they minister to (that the children can understand.) #5: 20 Questions: Introduce the VIPP by name, but do not tell the children what he/she does that is important. Give the children a chance to ask 20 questions to find out what the person does. The person can then follow up with a little explanation of what they do, after the children have had a chance to guess. After interviewing to the VIPP/reading the VIPP information sheet, help the children to think up (or ask the VIPP) specific things they could pray for him and write these down on a white board or large sheet of paper. Pray for the VIPP Both formats for the VIPP group end with praying for the VIPP. Some teachers like to wait and do the class ACTS prayer at this point, rather than at the beginning of their small group time. Optional Ending Activity: Prayer Letters to Send the VIPP Another activity you can do with your children is making prayer letters to send to the VIPP. A letter you can send to the VIPP is including in the general resources of each Big Idea. The letter includes a space to write the VIPP's name at the top, the key concepts that the children are learning in the particular Big Idea they are learning and a place to sign their names at the bottom. The rest of the letter is blank for children to write their own personal message to the VIPP and/or decorate the card. Cards may be decorated in a variety of ways: stickers, markers, crayons, sequins and glitter glue, and paper or foam shapes. Older children, especially, should be encouraged to write at least one sentence of their own to the VIPP. They can use their prayer requests you wrote down for writing ideas. Use the decorating time as more discussion time about the VIPP or about the session's Big Idea, Verse, and story. The leader will gather the cards at the end of the session and give them to the VIPP after the session. |
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VIPP Group