Solving the Problem of "What Now?"

One of the biggest challenges in planning a session for a large group of kids with an age spread of four years is managing what we call "Art & Snack Time."  This is the "free time" of each session, when families have snack and complete art projects and other tasks related to the lesson at their own pace.  And that's what makes it so hard to plan - each child has their own unique pace.  Some children will spend copious amounts of time coloring a flower until it is "just right."  Other children will slap on a little color, call it done, and ask, "What now?"  As in, I'm done with that, what can I do now?  For the past few years, I've answered that question with what I called "optional worksheets."  I would just have an assortment of puzzles, mazes or word finds for kids to pick and choose.  It worked fairly well for a lot of kids, but this year I decided to step it up a notch and offer a better variety of activities that would not just fill the time but would to some extent support the lesson of the day or the general concept of living our faith.  Since our theme for the year is "Family Faith Under Construction," I created The Workshop.

 

Kids can visit The Workshop after completing their main "Art & Snack Time" tasks. 

Certain items will be the same each month, like these Share Sticks:

Kids take a stick from the paint can back to the table to stir up a fun family "What If" talk

 

 

Other items will change from month-to-month to fit both the theme of the lesson and whatever season we are in at the time.  These items include books, activity sheets like mazes and word puzzles, and a simple crafty activity.  Kids choose just the things they want to do, and if they run out of time, they can take something home.  Here's a photo of The Workshop for our October session:



 I'm looking forward to coming up with fun new items to add each month!  Got a great idea?  Leave a comment!