25 Summer Missional Activities for Kids (& Free Printable)

Summer's here! 
Hearing that brings about feelings of excitement for picnics, being outside (and hopefully getting a tan) and adventure. But with 4 kids 5 and under, it also brings about a tinge of fear and worry. What in the world am I going to do to keep them occupied for 1400 hours this summer?! 

I love my kids and love spending time with them but... my boys... well, they are boys and given too much free play someone gets hurt every 30 minutes. So I need a plan. I've come up with a flexible summer schedule but I don't want to just entertain them but foster a sense the world is bigger than them and doesn't revolve around them. So I thought of 25 summer missional activities for kids I hope to incorporate into our summer schedule. 

25 Summer Missional Activities for Kids

To download the free printable, click the image below.

1. Chalk Messages. Draw pictures, verses and sayings like “Jesus Loves You” on the sidewalk.

2. Visit a Nursing Home. Pick or buy bouquets of flowers and make cards with verses and prayers to give out to people in the nursing home (Maybe the kids can even pray for and with the people).

3. Praying Feet. Take a picture of peoples feet (starting with family members) print, cut and glue to hearts.Then hang in the kids room and pray for them in the morning and night.

4. Book Giving. Let your child choose their favorite book about Jesus and buy an extra copy. Take the book to your next trip to the doctor’s office and let them tell the doctor about the book and tell them it is a gift for them to put in the waiting room.  (Call ahead to make sure office policy allows you to donate a book)

5. Cookies for Firemen. Bake your favorite cookies. Decorate a box with pictures, drawings and verses and line with aluminum foil. Put the cookies, tract and thank you note in the box and take to the fire station and give to a fireman.

6. Lemonade Stand. Sell cans of pop, lemonade and/or fruit snacks and have the money go toward a missions organization of the kids choice. You could also have them write a verse on  the cups and/or print verses and tape to the cans and fruit snacks. (Here's some ideas for organizations to give to: Agape International Missions, World Vision, Samaritans Purse)

7. Handprint Prayerboard. Have the kids trace their friends and family members hands. Write the persons name, color and cut  it out and paste it onto other paper. You can either glue them to a poster board or pretty paper. Then write things to pray for on the poster and write a time to pray for the people everyday.

8. Pray Around the World. Get a world map or globe (Either physical or online. The Operation World Book or JoshuaProject.net would also be helpful). Ask each kid to point to a place on the map or globe, research a little about it and pray for the people in that country (You could even watch a youtube video of kids in that country).  You can have the child write the date and what you prayed for on a sticky note and stick it to the map. Try to fill up the map.

9. Tag Hunt Prayers. Search for tags in the house (Like the one in the back of your shirt). Each child gets a notebook and pen and writes down the country the product they found was made in. At the end pray for each of the countries and for the specific person who made that product.

10. Water Giveaway. Print verses on paper and have the kids help cut them apart and tape to unopened water bottles. Bring them in ice to a community event and hand out. 

11. Baby Bottle Change. Get a baby bottle and fill up the bottle with spare change then donate to a local pregnancy center.

12. Homeless Sacks. Get lunch bags and fill a bunch of them with non-perishable snack food (like beef jerky and water bottles), a tract and resource guide for the homeless (search online for your city and print off). Decorate the bags and then keep them in your car. When you see a homeless person on the street, hand them one and then pray for the person with the kids.

13.  Drive Thru Notes. Make decorative cards with construction paper. Write verses on the cards and an evangelistic website (GotQuestions.com is a good one). Put them in the car and give out to people at drive thru windows.

14.  Necklace and Bracelet Gifts. Make bead bracelets and necklaces to giveaway to friends and cousins. String beads that say Jesus Loves You or use the gospel beads bracelets and teach the child how to share the gospel using the bead colors. Then they explain the colors to the friend they give it to.

15.  Joshua 4 Rock Garden. Read Joshua 4. Recount the ways God has come through for each of you. Then gather rocks and decorate the rocks and write a one word summary of each of the ways God has provided or come through and shown Himself.

16. Neighborhood Obstacle Course. Plan an obstacle course in your backyard or at a park and invite the neighborhood kids. Have the kids invite at least one person to church.

17. Church Invite Bags. Decorate lunch bags and fill with candy, stickers and other $1 store items. Print info about your church and/or a nearby Vacation Bible School. Then with your help hand them out around the neighborhood or shopping area close by.

18. Fishing for men box. Get a box that is used for a house for sale brochure and put out front of your house. Have the kids pick some tracts to fill the box with. Once a week check if it needs to be refilled.

19. Ethnic Food Prayer. Go out to eat at an ethnic restaurant. Talk about the differences (taste, smells, music, language etc) and talk about what God thinks about that ethnicity and pray for them.

20. Library with Culture. Go to the library and check out books, videos and music from different cultures to watch together. Then pray for that ethnicity.

21. Missionary prayer Package. Go to the store to buy things to put in a package to send to missionaries. Let the kids help pack the package and draw pictures to include. Spend time praying for them.

22. Nickels for Nets. Here is the the website of the ministry and here is a great way Amanda from OhAmanda.com did this.

23.  International Dinner. Find some international food recipes and make for lunch or dinner. Let the kids help you cook it. Watch some youtube videos of kids in the country the food is from and discuss what their daily life must be like. Have the kids pray for the kids in that country. You could even invite friends over to do this with you. Here'sother great ideas relating to food.

24. Collect Paper. Heather at GodCenteredMom.com shares about gathering craft supplies and paper to send to two sweet girls doing some incredible things with it.

25. Pray for Kids Around the World. Pull up Stand4Kids.org and pray for the specific requests and kids they have set up for you to pray for. 

For more ideas check out Families on Mission (many ideas of these ideas camefrom here) and Melissa atHiveResources.com

Here's a free printable. Click on the link "25 Summer Missional Activities for Kids Printable" then you'll see the print button on the right. Enjoy!

About Laura

Laura, the creator and host of Missional Women is married and has four kids, two of whom are adopted. Laura and her husband have been missionaries to college students for 11 years serving with Master Plan Ministries. Laura is the Staff Women's Development Coordinator and has discipled over 150 girls, led over 30 Bible studies and speaks 10-20 times a year. Laura is an award winning author of a 12 week Bible Study on First Samuel, Beholding Him, Becoming Missional, recently released Reach; How to Use Your Social Media Influence for the Glory of God, and A Devotional Journey through Judges, a devotional to accompany the free online Bible study at TheBookofJudges.com. You can find her on facebook,twitter, pinterest and youtube.

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