Using Puppets to Minister to Children
Puppets are a big part of many children’s ministries around the world because the can be so effective at entertaining and educating children. Puppets can be a big help to ministry workers that are facing significant challenges in their efforts to minister to kids.
If you are uncertain about using puppets in your ministry or if you are wondering how they can really benefit you and the children, here is a look at some reasons why you should consider using puppets in your ministry.
Fun and Entertainment
While ministering to the children and teaching them is much more important than having fun, teaching them in a way that allows them to have fun will be a tremendous help in terms of creating an effective ministry.
Children’s ministry leaders appreciate the use of puppets because they make it more effective to convey a message to a child, but kids pay more attention to the fact that they are having fun during a puppet presentation. They will still be learning, but their emphasis is usually on the entertainment. If you can create a fun and educational environment the kids will respond accordingly.
Educational
Not only are puppets fun for the kids, but they are also an excellent way to teach and to communicate with the children. Kids tend to pick up the messages that are presented through puppet presentations at least as effectively, if not more so, than they would in another format.
Retained Messages
A good puppet presentation will teach a valuable and important lesson to the kids, but they will not just learn it and forget it. Because of the environment and the entertainment, these messages that they are learning are much more capable of sticking with them for the long-term.
Involvement
Getting people involved is necessary for most types of ministries. With a puppet ministry you will need several volunteers, which can be a challenge, but it is also a great way to get many different people involved in the children’s ministry.
Since many volunteers will be needed for the puppet ministry, it’s common for churches to encourage their teens to get involved in this way.
Versatile
Puppets can be used in so many different ways and so many different places within a children’s ministry. This is one of the great things about puppets is that there is basically no limitation to how and when they can be used.
Can be Low Cost
One of the barriers in many ministries is related to money and expenses. However, you can start and run a puppet ministry with very little money needed if you are willing to be creative and make the puppets and props from items that you have around the house or the office.
If you want to spend some money for higher quality resources, that is always an option, but it is not necessary to get started.
Availability of Scripts
If you’re interested in starting a puppet ministry, don’t let the lack of a desire to write scripts stand in your way. There are plenty of great resources for low cost or even free scripts available online.
CCES has produced a book of 15 quality puppet scripts that can be purchased and downloaded online. There are also some free scripts that are available on the site as well -Puppet skits from CCES