Unleashing the Creative Juices of Preteens

As I dropped off my preteen son to school on Friday, something caught my eye. Ethan was holding his sisters’ mini-beach girl (not a usual thing), and something looked different about it. I looked closer and realized he had given the mini-beach girl a buzz cut (see the above picture). Ha! You got to love the creativity of a preteen.

Preteens, if not given an outlet to their creativity, will find a way to express it. And usually, maybe in the case of my son, it isn’t in the most constructive way. Preteens have a lot to offer in adding some creativity to your programming.

Here are some ways to unleash the creative juices of preteens in your group:

Ask preteens topic ideas of upcoming series. Brainstorm on possible programming elements (skit, video, object lesson, song, etc).

Get together some preteens and have them plan your next relational event.

Work with an interested preteen to create a piece of art that helps illustrate an upcoming lesson.

Give students an opportunity to suggest ways your group can reach out to the community.

Get preteens to come up with the next opening game at a weekend service.

Those are just a few ideas. The goal is to do something. How can you unleash the creative juices of preteens?

Nick Diliberto is the creator of PreteenMinistry.net, which provides cool curriculum and resources for preteen ministry. He’s also the preteen columnist for Children’s Ministry Magazine and a Children’s Pastor in San Diego, CA.