So our church has like thirty kids total. On good days.
Preschool through middle school. One room. Budget's basically nonexistent. Me and maybe two volunteers if planets align.
Most curriculum assumes you got separate classes every age. Professional teachers. Money tree in back yard.
Right.
Wasted years trying stuff that didn't work. Too complicated. Too expensive. Too much everything.
Finally found some things actually work for real churches. Thought I'd share before my brain forgets.
Here's What Actually Matters
Small churches need flexible. Like stupid flexible.
Can't use stuff only works with exactly eight 2nd graders. Or needs five adults. Or costs more than our entire budget which is basically my gas money.
Need things work with two kids or twelve kids. Ages 4 to 14 all mixed up. Volunteers who show up five minutes before we start looking confused.
That's reality. Better work with it.
Grow Curriculum Actually Gets Small Churches
Okay gonna be honest - love this stuff.
Super simple. Doesn't assume you got perfect setup with trained teachers and separate rooms and supplies closet looks like Target.
Activities work for mixed ages without me having minor breakdown. Prep's not insane. Volunteers can figure it out without me explaining same thing seventeen times.
Best part? Adapts to whatever disaster you're working with. Three kids today? Fine. Fifteen next week? Also fine. No volunteers showed up again? You can handle it yourself without crying.
They actually understand small churches aren't just broken big churches. We're different species entirely.
Gospel Project When You Want Real Bible Teaching
More traditional but solid. Good Bible teaching that actually follows Bible instead of random topics.
Problem? Completely designed for age-specific classes with trained teachers and budgets and stuff.
So you gotta adapt literally everything which is exhausting.
But materials are decent quality. Stories follow actual timeline which I appreciate. Leader guides actually help instead of making you more confused.
Takes work making it fit real life. Sometimes worth it when you want something deeper than goldfish crackers and felt board.
Orange for Creative Days
Has great ideas. Really creative stuff. Kids love the videos and games and whatever.
But assumes you got time and money and volunteers and energy.
Lots of prep. Lots of supplies you definitely don't have. Lots of everything you don't got.
I steal ideas from Orange. Use their games sometimes. Take craft concepts. But following it exactly? Not happening.
Good when you feel like being creative. Just know you're gonna simplify absolutely everything to make it work.
Kids Sunday School Place When Money's Tight
Cheap. Simple. Gets job done without drama.
Not fancy but who cares about fancy. Stories are solid. Activities don't need supplies from craft store you can't afford.
Perfect for budgets that are basically nothing. Download what you need. Print at home on paper that jams your printer. Done.
Only complaint? Sometimes too simple even for us. But that's way better than too complicated for volunteers to figure out.
What Absolutely Doesn't Work
Anything requiring separate rooms for each age. We got one room and that's it.
Anything needing minimum five volunteers. I'm lucky getting two who actually remember to show up.
Anything with supply lists longer than my grocery list. Our monthly budget's like fifty dollars if we're lucky.
Anything taking hours of prep time. I got maybe thirty minutes Saturday night if my own kids cooperate which they don't.
Learned this trying fancy curriculum that looked amazing online but was completely impossible to actually use in real life.
Mixed Ages Are Actually Awesome
Most curriculum treats having different ages together like huge problem to solve.
Totally wrong.
Older kids help younger kids with crafts. Younger kids ask questions older kids never thought of. Everyone learns different ways from each other.
Just need activities that work for everyone without anyone being completely bored or totally confused.
Not baby stuff that makes big kids roll their eyes. Not complex theology that makes little kids cry.
Sweet spot exists somewhere. Just gotta find it and stick with it.
Volunteers Need Super Duper Simple
My volunteers are amazing people. Also completely untrained and slightly terrified.
They show up Sunday morning ready to help but don't know what they're doing.
Need curriculum with clear simple guides that normal humans can follow. Pictures showing how crafts should actually look. Scripts telling them what to say during games so they don't panic.
Too much complexity and volunteers get overwhelmed and stressed. Then they don't come back and I'm stuck doing everything myself again.
Budget Reality Is Harsh
Small churches don't have curriculum budgets like those big churches with their fancy everything.
Can't spend hundreds of dollars on materials. Can't buy separate resources for every single age group.
Need stuff that's actually affordable and works for multiple ages and doesn't require buying new supplies every single week.
Free or super cheap wins every time. Quality matters but not if you literally can't afford it.
Prep Time Is Basically Zero
I'm not full-time kids minister with office and secretary and planning time.
I'm volunteer with full-time job and own kids who need rides everywhere and homework help.
Don't have hours to prep elaborate lessons with seventeen steps and five different activities.
Need something I can review Saturday night while kids are finally asleep and teach Sunday morning without having nervous breakdown.
What I Actually End Up Using
Honestly? Total mix of everything depending on mood and what's working.
Grow Curriculum for main structure because it's easy to follow and actually works with our weird setup.
Gospel Project sometimes when I want deeper Bible study stuff. Usually have to change it a lot though.
Orange for creative ideas when I'm feeling ambitious. Mostly just steal their games and activities.
Kids Sunday School Place when budget's super tight which is most of the time. Always reliable backup.
Random stuff I find online at midnight when I realize I forgot to plan anything. Pinterest has tons of free ideas if you dig.
Don't Feel Guilty About Small Church Reality
Small church kids ministry isn't just broken version of big church kids ministry.
It's completely different thing. Often way better in lots of ways actually.
Kids get way more individual attention. Families are closer. Everyone knows everyone's names and stories.
Your curriculum should fit your actual church not some fantasy church that doesn't exist.
My Real Honest Advice
Start with something simple and cheap. See how it actually works with your real kids and real volunteers in your real space.
Don't try to do everything perfectly right from the start. Figure out what works with your situation. Build from there slowly.
Ask other small churches what they're using. We all have same basic problems. Maybe they found solutions you haven't thought of.
Most important thing? Pick something and stick with it for a while. Constantly changing curriculum confuses everyone including you.
The Actual Truth Nobody Talks About
Best curriculum in the world is the one you'll actually use consistently.
Doesn't matter how amazing and perfect it is if it's too complicated or expensive or time-consuming for your real life situation.
Start simple. Work up to fancier stuff later if you want and can handle it.
Your kids need consistent Bible teaching way more than they need perfect curriculum with all the bells and whistles.
What's Actually Gonna Happen
Gonna keep using mix of different stuff. Probably always will because that's what works for us.
Small churches need flexibility more than anything. One-size-fits-all curriculum doesn't work for churches like ours.
Took time but finally found combination that works for our kids our volunteers our budget our reality.
Your situation's probably totally different from ours. That's completely okay. Find what actually works for your specific church with your specific kids and volunteers and budget constraints.
Just don't give up when first thing you try doesn't work perfectly. Good curriculum options for small churches definitely exist. Just gotta know where to look and how to adapt things.
And honestly? Sometimes the best lessons happen when everything goes completely wrong anyway and you just wing it.
