PRETEEN MINISTRY GAME: TALK THE TALK
We live in a crazy world – one that tell us we should never hesitate to speak our minds and tell people what we are feeling.
The problem with this is the fact that we are all flawed and allow emotions to filter what and when we say things.
Preteens are just starting to figure out how to express their feelings. They end up making a lot of mistakes because they don’t take time to think before they speak.
What better way to help them see how they should talk than through a game that only allows them to speak for 5 seconds at a time.
Use this game to help remind students to think before they speak.
– Nick Diliberto, Preteen Ministry
PRETEEN MINISTRY GAME – TALK THE TALK
Written by Rob Quinn
Bible: James 1:19; James 3:1-2
SUPPLIES
Large sheets of butcher paper
Markers
Post-it Notes
Stop watch
GAME PREP
Hang pieces of butcher paper all around the room – enough for one per team.
Divide your students into groups of 4-5.
Give each team a marker.
Beforehand, draw pictures on the Post-it Notes – as many as you want, but at least double for the amount of teams you have.
Picture examples: house, smiley face, cat, dog, pig, car, book, Jesus, Ferris Wheel, etc. – make some easy and some really hard.
Place all the pictures in a pile, in the middle of the room.
One person, per group will be the ‘drawer’ (the one to draw pictures) and the rest will be ‘talkers.’
This will be played in rounds.
‘Talkers’ will take one Post-it Note each and describe what the picture is, while the ‘drawer’ draws what it is.
Talkers cannot say what it is – they can only describe it.
They only have 5 seconds to describe each picture.
Teams get a point for each round they can correctly draw what is on the Post-it Note.
Return the Post-it Note to the pile for other teams to use in other rounds.
Play as many round as you want or until run out of pictures to draw.
The team with most points wins the game.
TEACH
Say: Congratulations to the winning team!
In fact, you ALL did really well.
I want to ask you a few questions:
- What was the hardest part of the game?
- Was it hard to describe the picture? Why?
- Was it hard to draw what they were describing? Why?
- What would have made it easier?
- So, what if you took longer to think about what you were going to say before describing it? Would that have helped?
- Have you ever said something before really thinking about it?
- What happened?
SAY: In the game, you had a few seconds to describe what was on the paper.
If you got the description right, then your teammate was more likely to draw the correct picture.
But, if you didn’t give the description fast enough, then your teammate had no idea what to draw.
Just like in real life, if we don’t take our time when we talk, we can say things that people may not understand and even take the wrong way.
However, this world tells us we should always speak our minds.
The problem with this way of thinking is we end up speaking before we think about what we want to say, or should say.
Let’s see what the Bible has to say about this:
Read James 1:19.
“Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.”
No matter what is going on in our lives, if let emotions override our words we are going to say things that hurt people.
We must take our time with what we say.
We do this by listening first, and then speaking.
ASK:
Have you ever been angry with mom or dad, a brother or sister, a friend?
What happened when you were angry? Did you end up saying something that got you in trouble?
Would the situation have played out differently if you had thought about why you were angry, and then talked to the person you were angry with?
The difference would be the outcome.
Thinking first would allow a conversation to happen where you and the other person were able to talk about how you were feeling about the situation.
In closing, let’s read James 3:1-2:
“Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.”
This verse reminds us that our tongue, or what we say, is the first impression people get of who we are.
If you talk badly about others, if we gossip about others, if use bad language even at things people are going to see first about everyone.
But, if we control what we say and how we say it then we can shine God’s love to each other by our speech alone.
Today, let’s choose to allow God to guide us in what we say and do.
Close in prayer.
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PRETEEN MINISTRY GAME: BANG OR BUST
About Rob Quinn, the Writer of this Game
Rob has nearly 10 years of experience in preteen ministry and is currently a junior high pastor. He is married to an amazing woman Jodi, who just so happens to be the Children’s Ministry Director at his church. They have one beautiful daughter Sydni, and an 8-pound attack dog named Lilly.