It can be challenging to find baptism crafts for Sunday school. Let’s discover 5 new Bible crafts based on this important event in every believer’s life. Below is a collection of creative ideas and a couple of Sunday school crafts that you can use in children’s church. Whether you are teaching the kids about the baptism of Jesus or your church is having a baptism Sunday, there will be an option from the list below that can work for you. 

1. New Life Plant

2. The Spirit Dove Paperplate Craft

3. John the Baptist's Snacks

4. The River Collage

5. Coloring Picture of Jesus' Baptism

Note to the Sunday school teacher

Before we begin, I want to encourage you to take a moment to remember that children’s ministry is more than entertainment or games. Even though there are beautiful and fun ways that we can teach kids, we need to always make sure our hearts are in the right place. Are you going into Sunday with the expectation that kids will encounter God? How are you preparing yourself (and your volunteers) to be discerning what the Holy Spirit wants to do in your time with the kids? Can you pray over the classroom or meeting space beforehand? 

Before you scroll down and dive into the crafts and activities below, I want to encourage you to pause and ask God to guide you to choose the best one for your specific group. He knows the name of each child you are working with and He cares about what you are going to teach them. 

Some keywords to focus on when teaching about baptism are: new | spirit | Jesus | John | water | old life | new life | dove 

I have done a few of these activities with groups of kids when the church did baptisms. In my experience, it worked well to explain baptism to the kids with a tangible craft (since it can feel like such an ethereal idea). But then, once they've snapped it, I always took the kids into the actual baptism service. I've been part of many different kinds of churches, from traditional to informal, and baptism is usually always a celebration service. That is why I believe Baptism Sunday is a GREAT time to invite the kids to be part of the church family! Children celebrate with Heaven and stir up joy in grownups too!

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5 Baptism Crafts for Sunday School with Activities

1. The New Life Plant Signifying Baptism

If you're crunched for time, a simple activity is to have the children plant seeds in containers. It can be egg cartons, foamalite cups, empty tins, or anything else. You can buy one packet of seeds for fairly cheap (R30 in SA) and there you have it! Have the kids decorate the container if you have more time and some craft supplies and remember to teach them to water the seeds. Focus on the water as a symbol of growth and link that to the water of baptism - where a believer takes a step into a new life in Christ. The complete Sunday school lesson that accompanies this activity can be about how we get a new life when we are baptized. I also explain the new life found in God in my own curriculum for Kids Church that I wrote. It is based on 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new".

2. The Paperplate Spirit Dove at Jesus’ Baptism

This craft is based on the Holy Spirit descending as a dove at the baptism of Jesus. In your Bible time, read Mark 1:9-11 in the Easy-to-Read Version: “John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw the sky torn open. The Spirit came down on him like a dove. A voice came from heaven and said, “You are my Son, the one I love. I am very pleased with you.” You can also consider speaking this over the kids as well: God loves you; He is pleased with you. Hearing these things helps them see God for who He really is. He is not mad at them or distant. 

Teach the kids that the Spirit of God also dwells inside each one of them. The lesson here is that the Holy Spirit is God-with-us. Use paper plates to make a simple white dove. A dove template can be found here. It’s always a good idea to make an example before class so that the kids can see a visual representation of what they’re expected to make. Toddler groups might find this craft a bit too advanced. 

3. The Snacks of John The Baptist

Consider focusing on the perspective of John the Baptist for a unique Jesus’ baptism activity. Older children will particularly enjoy this one since it’s a bit different from what they’ve probably done a million times before. John’s story is quite unique and it is a fun one to explore with kids! This craft helps children recognize the humanity of Bible characters, which in turn connects them to Jesus more – like, He was a real human being; fully God and fully man! 

This is not so much a craft, but it is a great way to teach something in a way that middle school children will understand. A creative way to teach the kids the story of John is to focus on his diet of grasshoppers and honey. Take a sugar cookie and drizzle some honey over the top. It is optional to add some gummy sweets in the shape of bugs on top. Focus on Matthew 3:11 ““I baptize you with water to show that you have changed your hearts and lives. But there is someone coming later who is able to do more than I can. I am not good enough to be the slave who takes off his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (ERV) If the idea of sensory learning interests you, read this post I wrote about it.

4. The Classic Magazine Collage

Using a glue stick and some magazines, have the kids make collages of the baptism story. They can include all the elements like the river, the other people, John the baptist, the dove from Heaven, and so forth. 

You can give more detailed instructions depending on the age group you are working with. For example: High school students might be challenged to create a portrait picture of John the Baptist or something like that. Other groups might cut out letters or words to craft their own poem about baptism. Perhaps a few brave ones can read their poetry out loud to the rest of the group. 

Focus on the fact that Jesus’ baptism kicked off His public ministry. Highlight the need for new birth and that we should not try to do things for God from our own strength. Switch things up on this day and do the craft first, turning your usual program on its head. Doing so will teach kids about how the baptism came first in a very practical way.

5. Coloring page about the Baptism of Jesus

This printable activity can be printed on any blank page. It is a very simple activity suitable for any age group. This craft encourages independent work and might introduce a great window of opportunity for volunteers to move through the kids and pray with individuals as they color in. Draw the kids’ attention to certain details in the picture by asking them questions. 

Older children can be challenged to take a Bible and copy the text of the baptism story onto their page. In the past when I’ve wanted to challenge my kids ministry group, I’d encourage group activities. For example: You can print this coloring picture on a big page (A2) and instead of handing out 30 individual pictures, the whole group can work together on one picture. This challenges kids to move beyond an individualistic mindset towards a collectivist one, which teaches them about loving their neighbor and having patience. 

The coloring picture above is from my Bible Coloring Book on the life and ministry of Jesus. Available as PDF printable for only R150 (that's about $8.50) - 50 illustrations like the one above with Scripture references.

Final thoughts on Baptism Bible crafts

These baptism crafts for Sunday school are sure to break the box a little bit. Each activity or craft can actually be fleshed out a bit, and then you have a free Bible lesson based on baptism! Children can grasp the true meaning of baptism and how it is the place where everything is made new. If you are still unsure how to teach the meaning of baptism, the following Scripture is a great place to start: 

Now that you've taught the kids about the meaning of baptism, there is no reason why they should not be included in the baptism service.

As I wrote in my Practical Theology Master's thesis: "Nancy Going (2011:50) explains that, historically, the church’s normal view of young people has not been influenced by theology but rather by psychology. When saying this, she specifically referred to Erik Erikson’s development model, which places adolescents at a lower level in a hierarchy. We need to be careful to adopt whatever the world says is true about young people into our churches, because development is also spiritual. Our actions in church and mission have often excluded youth (White, 2006:3) despite Jesus continually placing children central in His teachings about the Kingdom."

I want to extend the invitation to you once more: If possible teach the kids about baptism one week prior to the Baptism Service at your church, or if your Baptism Service has a sermon portion as part of it use that time to teach the kids separately about what baptism means... But do not exclude them. For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to little ones such as these! (This post was originally written as part of a series I wrote for GodsVerse.org)

In the comment section (if you scroll down)...

Let me know if you used any of these ideas and how it went. Also, feel free to share some prayer requests for your Sunday school or kids ministry in the comments below. I would love to come alongside you and support you in this important task of nurturing the faith development of young ones.

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