“Make EVERY Week Special In Youth Ministry

Tired of the weekly question from your parents and students, “Is there anything special happening this week?” Now you can answer honestly… “EVERY WEEK IS SPECIAL!!” by actually making every week special, unique and fun.

It is not that hard or expensive.  Below are all REAL, “in-the-trenches” Youth Ministry Nights I have done or am currently doing!  These are simple ways to keep excitement happening between other big events and trips.  It is a way to be attractional without losing a whole night of teaching.

Here is an example of what a month of weekly “Special Nights” might look like for you!?

• 1st Week: Birthday Night: Instead of sending out a card or a comment on social media, throw a 5-minute party for everyone who has a birthday that month.  The cost of a small prize or some cupcakes, along with maybe even a silly birthday video greeting like these: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZWFNu934JB4P6b2gjprWxw/videos

• 2nd Week: Hilarious Holiday: Find a special or weird holiday happening on our near that day of the month and celebrate it with games, food, prizes, dressing up… Check back on here the first week of every month for suggested holidays and connected hints to celebrate. Check out October’s suggestions! Last year, my group had a great time celebrating days like Pi(e) day, National Chocolate Day, Cinco De Mayo, and National Pajama Day!! 

• 3rd Week: Crazy Dodgeball: Students are obsessed with dodgeball.  I am tired of it and having to play it every week, so I decided years ago to make it a once-a-month thing and make it a night to play unique, crazy versions of dodgeball.
  • Check out this list of options: (Click Here) 
  • Be looking in our game section in the coming weeks for a new downloadable PDF book with a full collection of my favorite dodgeball variations

• 4th Week: Food Night: You might serve food every week, but on this night, make it a unique or bigger item.  Please don’t feel like you have to do a whole meal unless you want to and can afford it.
  • Some Idea: Hot Dog/S’more Roast, Nacho Bar, Hot Cocoa, Cereal Bar, Cookie Buffet, Ice Cream, and so on
  • If you want to make it Fun and Crazy, consider what we did at my last church, having “TOP THIS  Nights.” 
  • Even try the “Silly Smorgasbord” idea below!

• 5th Week (if you have one): Invite a Parent/Adult Night: Have students invite a parent or a special adult in their life, to come to check out the youth group with them for the night.  We make these special parent nights with a particular lesson and even a special game. My parents and students love “Parent Vs. Kid Dodgeball”; is always a huge hit! These nights are great to include other adults from the church, experience youth group, and see what is going on!

• Dress to Impress Nights: Silly, themed dress-up nights, Like Silly Socks, Twinning, Semi-Formal, Super Hero…
• RanDumb Fun Night: Ridiculous Ran-DUMB stuff once a month.  Silly video clips, stage games, challenges make it a surprise every month!
• Silly Smorgasbord: A buffet of one particular item in every flavor/style- Oreos, Pop-Tarts, Chips…
• Snack Attack Potluck: We just did this, last week and it was a HUGE hit!  A couple of times a year everyone brings a snack to share, then agrees to leave the unopened leftovers to be used for other nights.
• Inviting a Friend is a Big Thing: Slight spin on the old invite a friend night, with a BIG sharable candy (1 lb Gummy Bear, 5 lb Hershey Bar….) given away through a drawing at the end of the night to the person who did the inviting to be shared with their friend(s)

Get Great Posts Like This One, Along With Fresh Content Delivered Right to Your Email