These are some valuable tips from people who actually write VBS programs for a living! These is some of the things they will be looking for!
THEME: Be specific! Are you going to just be detectives or detectives exploring clues throughout Great Britain? Sometimes those details are what can make a theme!
TITLE: Get creative! No offense, but adding the word "adventure" doesn't make it an awesome title. Which is more creative: "Island Adventure" or "Outrigger Island (Lifeway 2008)"? I think you get the point!
TAGLINE: Taglines can really vary! Here are some examples: "Where Kids Are Wild About God! (Group 2005)", "Decoding Joshua 1:9 (Gospel Light 2007)", "Discover The Riches of Christ! (Concordia 2006)", and so on! Tags can essentially be anything that further explain your title and captivate the audience.
DESCRIPTION: Descriptions are used when someone wants to discover more about the program. What's an example of a description, you ask? Let's look to Concodia's 2008 Theme, Friendship Trek:
Grab your gear and join Friendship Trek, an amazing hike through the Bible to meet Jesus, our Forever Friend. Kids find fun, faith, and friends at Friendship Trek. They experience Jesus’ friendship, enjoy meeting old and new friends, and learn to care for each other.
The description can be longer and could even detail some of the activities you want to include, as well as how the Bible Stories will help kids experience, well, what you are trying to get them to experience!
BIBLE STORIES: Pick 5 stories that will correlate with your message! If your focus is the Beatitudes, you'll want to pick stories that bring those to life! If you're uncovering the ten commandments, pick stories that exemplify the commandments! Feeling real creative? Impress us with titles for the stories! Here's a great example from Concordia's 2003 VBS Rancho Roundup.
LOST! The lost sheep --- LAME! Jesus heals a crippled woman --- and so on.
OTHER STUFF: Do you know the perfect theme song? Is there a certain object lesson that you know is perfect? Have you done a craft that your kids loved and it fits in with this theme? Tell us all about it! Anything that will make your proposal stand apart is what you can include in the other field.
ONE LAST NOTE: Don't plagiarize! Please don't infringe upon any copyrights in an attempt to win the contest. We're the VBS experts and know about every VBS ever made. Don't confuse plagiarism, though! Just because Standard did a construction theme in 2005 doesn't mean you can't!
VISIT THESE SPONSOR WEBSITES: Apostles Publishing | Walk By Faith Press
Copyright © 2008 The VBS Help Site. All rights reserved.