CLM Hen House

daredheaded1 · Joined: 15 May 2025 Posts: 131 Location: PA

Our church is hosting an Old Fashioned Sunday School Picnic for the other churches in our area. We have reserved a few pavilions in a park & are expecting a pretty good turn out from what we are hearing from our contacts in the other churches. It would be really great to have a day of fellowship with like-minded believers!

So, I'm looking for old fashioned Sunday School picnic ideas. We already have the food taken care of, but we need some games for the different age groups and other ideas. Anything you want to throw at me I'd appreciate. Decoration ideas, entertainment...anything! We're having it in early September, so we really need to get on the ball.

When I was growing up the annual Sunday School picnic was the big thing to look forward to each summer. Churches around here just don't have them any more for whatever reason.

Looking forward to some fun ideas...

Stacey
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"When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost."

Retreat Coordinator · Joined: 20 Jul 2025 Posts: 6

We have church in the park once a year and here are some of the things we do:

Talent Show
Cherry Pit Spitting Contest
Crochet
Volley Ball
Relay Races
Water Balloon Toss

Here are some we don't do, but I remember doing as a kid:

Duck-Duck Goose
Sack Races
Homemade Icecream

One more thought - our church uses our church in the park as an outreach. We have had people come to the park that will not enter a church. They hear the gospel, get fed and see that Christians have a great time together. Some that have attended the park service have actually started coming to church. It's a great evangilizing tool! Perhaps you can integrate that into your picnic. Our teen band is involved as well as a devotion by our pastor.

Good luck and have fun!
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Rhonda

mraider · Joined: 12 Mar 2026 Posts: 44 Location: KY

Hi,
We have something like this in the fall - we call it Harvest Blessings. We do a lot of the games that have been mentioned. Last year, since we have some older women who can't participate in the games, we did a little pumpkin craft for them (cover toliet tissue with material). We also did a scavenger hunt using clues from the Bible. This was a big hit...this does take some time to come up with clues, etc. Hopefully, we can do this again this year. If anyone has any ideas or tips to help with the scavenger hunt, I would appreciate your input. Last year, we rented an inflatable for the small children's play area. We have an egg toss and we have had the same winners x 4 years. I'm trying to encourage my husband to keep practicing with me so we can maybe take the trophy, I can't understand why he doesn't like the way I throw the egg to him. These are some of the activities that we do. Hope this helps some.

outnumbered · Joined: 16 Mar 2026 Posts: 56

Picnics are such a fun summer thing. We have done them with very involved activities to very simple. Here are some things we like to do:
-We always have an apple pie baking contest. This involves the older ladies and the men love to judge!
-We have a jar full of jelly bean for people to guess how many are inside. We docorate a huge jar with fabric and rafia around the lid. The winner get to take it home, which is always fun because everyone wants to win but no one REALLY wants that many jelly beans!
-We have done an old fashioned "cake walk" which is basically musical chairs but the prize is always a cake.
-We have had a dunk tank, everyone joins in when it's the Pastor's turn to get dunked.
-Bobbing for apples
-We had a man dress up as Uncle Sam and pass out treats to the kids.
And every year someone brings water balloons and the day ends in a huge fight!
Thats all I can think of now!
Bonnie

siscosmom · Joined: 21 Mar 2026 Posts: 206 Location: West Virginia

We had a horse shoe toss and the men really enjoyed it. We also had a contest where you had to put your hands behind your back and eat a mini doughnut on a string stretched out like a clothesline. Whoever finished their doughnut first won the game. If yours fell off into the grass, you had to find another doughnut on the string that wasn't taken and start over.

Mraider, can you please post the directions for making the pumpkin toilet tissue cover? I've heard they are beautiful but I've never made one. Thanks

Rebekah

daredheaded1 · Joined: 15 May 2025 Posts: 131 Location: PA

Great ideas, ladies!

"Retreat Coordinator" (sorry, don't know your name) -- thanks for bringing up the outreach issue. We are planning on using this as an outreach to the community as well. We are posting flyers all over town, and we are having several blitzing days to invite people in the community. All of the churches involved (so far 6) are on the same page with ours as far as our doctrinal beliefs & such, so we really hope that we will be able to get some people involved in church...whether it is ours or one of the other wonderful ministries in our area.

I LOVE the dunk tank idea...definitely going to price that out! The apple pie contest is great, too. I think the older ladies will really enjoy that.

Mraider, I'm with Rebekah on this one...can you please post the directions for making the pumpkin toilet tissue cover? That would be great for one of our Fall fellowships.

Any more ideas? Please keep them coming!

Thanks!
Stacey
_________________
"When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost."

mraider · Joined: 12 Mar 2026 Posts: 44 Location: KY

I think I got the directions for the pumpkin from the previous creative ladies forum. If anyone else has this and would like to post the directions go ahead. If not, as soon as possible when I can get to my crafts I will post the directions. We have made these for 2 years. The first year, we had an informal ladies meeting on a Saturday morning and made this to decorate our Thanksgiving tables. I'm sorry I can't get right to the directions which includes the amt. of material needed for each one (my son and daughter-in-law) are living with us right now while their house is being finished. Praise the Lord their previous house sold early so they are getting to spend some time with us and her parents. They are also expecting my first grandchild in Oct.-Nov. so I am enjoying having them with me so my little Hannah will know my voice.
Marilyn

Jill · Joined: 28 Apr 2026 Posts: 23 Location: Texas

The Dunkin Tank thing is great. The kids as well as the adults like it. We are able to "borrow" one from the Volunteer Fire Department or the Lions Club. Since it's for a church they usually don't charge us. It's worth a try. Very Happy

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Have a Blessed Day!

Jill

daredheaded1 · Joined: 15 May 2025 Posts: 131 Location: PA

Thanks, Jill. I'll check with them!

Stacey
_________________
"When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost."