How to make Sunday School interesting
"A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." - Proverbs 17:22
I've heard it said that it's a sin to bore kids with the Bible. Yet it can feel super challenging to make this ancient Scripture and timeless God appeal to them. Many leaders and volunteers wonder how to make Sunday school and youth group interesting - not just "fun", but how to keep kids and teens engaged, how to truly see their eyes light up, and ultimately, how to teach them about God and lead them to know Him personally.
Interesting ministry isn't primarily about making things entertaining; it's about creating a group where children can actually encounter and respond to God.
May you find space here to pause, reflect, and abide.
Making Sunday School interesting
Sunday School is not supposed to be yet another school day where the children sit at a desk and are expected to listen; it's essentially a Bible study group. Just with little people. The same goes for youth group.
Consider for a moment if this is a change in perspective for you and how it might affect the way you minister to these young Christians... A Bible study group is a gathering, not an event. A group includes responses, questions, and conversations. The people in a group knows each other and they form a group dynamic or group culture.
In this post, I'll take you through my top three tips for getting out of a rut with the kids you're leading to Jesus. Each tip will have its own section explaining why it matters:
You might also be interested in 7 ways to keep kids attention in long lessons
Helping kids understand the Bible
Tip number 1: Start building from the ground up.
Sunday school is essentially Bible school, or God-school but we learn the most about Him from His Word. The Bible is not boring - it really isn't. So why are our Sunday School programs often... a snoozefest?
I love the Psalm that says "taste and see", because I have tasted and seen for myself just how good our God is. That moment of tasting and seeing is what I believe sets apart a Sunday school lesson that is impactful from just another one.
But (taking the metaphor a bit further), unfortunately, the Bible is an acquired taste. It takes some getting used to. It's more like an olive or a caper than it is like ice cream or bread. The Bible has incredible depth of flavor when it is paired with the right things and prepared in the right way.
Otherwise it's just a boring old book. It's important to teach kids about the very basics before getting into the bigger stuff. Even youth - Don't assume they know anything and start building from the ground up. Cover the essentials: timeline, people, genres, etc.
We often get up in front and start teaching straight off the bat: "This verse says this so that means this" - but we are speaking a language they do not understand (yet). What is a verse even? Where are you getting this information from? Why is this something worth listening to?
Do this before you read a verse expecting them to pay attention:
Introduce the Bible in a lesson (let them hold it, page through it)
Use songs & games to learn the books of the Bible
Teach them about key people and events first
I wrote this other post about choosing and adapting Bible passages for kids
Remember: you're leading a group, not a class.
A good group leader pays attention to relationships, participation and group dynamics — not just whether the lesson content was covered.
Use the group's existing experience |
Group members are not empty vessels; their experiences become part of the learning process. |
Ask, “Have you ever felt like this?” or connect biblical stories to things children actually encounter. |
Invite young people to interpret faith through their own experiences rather than only giving them predetermined answers. |
How to make kids church fun
Tip number 2: Introduce more safe structure & flow in it.
It's very counterintuitive when you are asking how to add more FUN & I respond with adding more structure; I know.
But in my experience, youth and children's ministries often tend to get a bit chaotic and out of hand. This prompts loving helpers to act more like strict school principals than people leading kids to Jesus... You don't want to raise your voice or lose your temper, but it feels like there is just no other way to get the group together...
One of the main reasons why youth group or Sunday school is not fun is because when fun comes in the window, order goes out. Many churches / groups tried to do something fun once but it ended with you thinking: "Phew, I'm never doing that again."
Children thrive in structure. Like a plant growing on a trellis - I've found that the security of a set program allows kids something to lean on and grow. It creates safety when they know where the boundaries are. Otherwise they keep running into invisible walls and it feels unfair - like the rules keep changing.
Use repetition and ritual |
Familiar structures help groups develop identity and predictability. |
Repeated elements — a welcome, question, prayer, song or closing ritual — can make children feel secure and develop group identity. |
Recurring practices can create belonging without making youth ministry feel like another institutional programme. |
It takes care of discipline, so the program becomes the "bad cop", and you get to be the group leader and friend. It frees you up for fun.
When you have to be the one discipling them AND the one enforcing discipline it complicates your relationship with the kids (especially teens). There's a difference between discipleship and discipline. Parents can walk the tricky tightrope of being both for their kids, but as a leader of a group... In my experience, it's really hard.
Do this before you get more strict:
Consider the elements of your Sunday school program
Print out a visual "flow of events"
Introduce it to the kids on Sunday
Use it every week (and remind the kids of it. E.g.: "Who can remember what we do next? That's right. It's time for our Bible memory verse.")
Having a program does not have to mean that you are tied to it or that there is no room for flexibility. But it means there is a familiarity and foundation that you can return to again and again. Like the chorus in a song.
Adapt in the moment |
Good facilitators respond to what is actually happening rather than rigidly following a plan. |
If the children are restless, change the activity. If they're fascinated by a question, explore it. |
If a genuine theological question emerges, don't shut it down because it wasn't in the lesson plan. |
Ideas to make it more fun:
Incorporate more of their senses. If you are learning about Jonah and the Whale, play whale sounds, eat dried seaweed, and spritz ocean-scented room fragrance...
Bring in more young male helpers. I've found that 20-year old guy volunteers really bring the energy to a whole other level.
Do a game that relates to the lesson. If you are learning about Moses splitting the Red Sea, play open the gates. Play hide and seek when learning how Jesus left the 99 sheep...
Switch up where you are. Start in a line or circle outside. Play in once space. Do the lesson in another. Spread out for response and ministry time.
Do a "fun bomb" every ten weeks or so. Everybody brings a snack to share. Review what you learned and give small trinkets for correct answers (trinket example: mini eraser, sweet, sticker...)
Build a group family feel. Take photos and put them up in the room. Get to know each other. Invest in building relationship first before trying to go deep together.
Best idea for more fun: Ask the teens or kids what they'd like :)
But remember, children aren't an audience. They're participants in a community gathered around Jesus.
That's why adding "fun" elements probably won't cut it in the long run.
Going deeper - Teaching kids to have an interest in God
Tip number 3: Don't just tell them about Him; Help them to know Him.
When you're asking "How do I make this more interesting?" - I don't think you are really asking a question about the ministry. It's not the youth group program that needs to get more engaging. It's not the Sunday School room that needs a fresh coat of paint, more expensive equipment, or a flashy curriculum.
We may be looking in the wrong place:
If our ministries with children are uninteresting, something else is missing from the equation. Or rather, Someone.
Matthew 16:15-17
“But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven."
While Peter saw Jesus in the flesh, that was not the thing that revealed Him. God showed Peter by the Holy Spirit. In the same way, God will reveal Himself to the kids you're working with.
He is incredibly interested in them. He cares about them. He wants to know them.
It's not really "fun" we're searching for - ministry to youth should do more than entertain. You have the opportunity to disciple these kids and teach them how to have true and personal relationships with Jesus. You have the incredible job of introducing them to God.
While the whole class is a Bible study group together, each person in the group has an individual "aha"-moment with God. The leader of a healthy group does not spend the whole time talking about themselves.
Facilitator ≠ lecturer |
The facilitator guides the group rather than doing all the talking. |
The leader creates opportunities for children to discover, respond and interact with Scripture. |
The leader becomes a facilitator of meaningful theological conversation rather than simply delivering answers. |
Even if your testimony is amazing and your relationship with God inspiring - it won't do anything for them. You can witness but you cannot move their hearts like He can. You can plant the seeds but He makes it grow.
Do this to help them meet God for themselves:
A tangible example of this is to not only pray over the kids, but to let them pray.
Talk about Jesus like He's in the room (because He is)
Focus on the Holy Spirit, the Helper, who is God with us
Make room for more participation, like response activities after lessons
Review:
3 Tips for Making Ministry with Kids or Youth more Interesting
Tip number 1: Start building from the ground up.
Tip number 2: Introduce more safe structure & flow in it.
Tip number 3: Don't just tell them about Him; Help them to know Him.
What's next?
I don't want you to read this post and then still feel like, "Now what?"
The first step you can take toward making Sunday School interesting this week is to choose just 1 doable item from the ideas above and to implement it slowly. (While I know how tempting it is -) It's unwise to ditch everything you're doing now and start from scratch altogether. That will remove the little bit of safety the kids to have and disrupt the whole group dynamic.
So choose just 1 thing that stood out to you. Here is a recap with some of the options you can choose from:
Introduce the Bible
Start using a program
Let kids pray in their own voice
P.S. If you enjoyed this post or feel curious to go deeper, I want to invite you to sign up for my newsletter. Be the first to hear about new resources to lead kids in faith.
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