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I never got around to reviewing Standard’s VBS theme last year. But prompted by their mailings to my church, I decided to take a look for my VBS 2009 curriculum reviews. Here is my first look review of Studio GO VBS by Standard Publishing. My opinions in this review are based off their marketing materials, forums, friends who have used Standard, and their website.
If you’ve used Standard’s VBS materials, please leave a comment below this article.
First Impressions Of 2009 Studio GO Vacation Bible School
- Bible Content: I’m a little cautious from what I’ve seen.
- Theme Appeal: Most kids love game shows.
- Supporting Materials: Looks good.
- Music: Limited samples on their website (8/22/08), but the theme song seems in line with previous years quality.
- Overall grade: B-
Studio GO Theme
This Vacation Bible School has a game-show theme. They even have slick game-show host graphic on the starter kit box. Studio GO will appeal to churches who want a high energy theme. The concept is heavy on fun, but I normally prefer the VBS themes that are set in different world locations.
The theme verse is Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” I’d be interested to see how they use this verse, because it seemed a little out of place on a Game Show set.
You can learn more about Standard’s Studio Go them from their website and forums. If you are considering this theme, I suggest you read the VBS forums from their 2008 VBS God’s Big Backyard. This will give you some feedback from churches that actually used Standard’s vacation Bible school.
Standard’s Studio GO Bible Lessons
Standard is taking the typical approach to VBS curriculum. Each day’s Bible teaching is based on an application statement that is illustrated by a Bible character. Many publishers stick with this format, but I would like to see more focus on God’s character.
- GO Lead: Gideon from Judge, 7:1-22
- GO Risk: Esther from Esther 4-7
- GO Tell: Women witness to Jesus from Matthew 27
- GO Obey: Peter preaches under threat of prison Acts 5:17-32
- GO Serve: Ananias helps Paul Acts 9:1-19
Service Showcase
This is a special feature of Studio GO that continues Standard’s emphasis on volunteerism. The idea is to give kids real life examples and opportunities for serving others. This replaces the lesson time about missionaries that many traditional VBS curricula include.
Concerns About Studio GO
Application Driven Lessons: My concern is that building the whole lesson around a themed application point will distract kids from the real point of these stories – God’s Glory. (See my review of Group’s Crocodile Dock for examples of God-centered lesson titles.) This is not a issue unique to Standard, many Christian publishers default to this approach. However, churches should guard against using the Bible for moral teaching while missing the Glory of God and his loving plan to save sinners.
Volunteerism Over Gospel: Of all people, Christians should be the most dedicated to loving their neighbors. But as our culture adds volunteerism as a key feature of its social religion, we should be careful not to confuse doing good things with following Jesus. The message of Christianity is God’s plan to save sinners and remake the world through Jesus Christ. We should remember that good works are the outcome of changing lives, and changing lives are the outcome of God changing people when they hear about Jesus.
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What Do You Think?
Please share your opinions about Studio GO VBS in the comment selection below. My comments are just one opinion, so let me know what you think.
Need More Help? You can find even more practical ideas on my Vacation Bible School resource page and my Vacation Bible School crafts page.
Related posts:
- Crocodile Dock: Group’s 2009 VBS Theme
- LifeWay 2009 VBS Theme Announcements
- Gospel Light’s VBS 2009: “Son Rock Kids Camp”
{ 54 comments… read them below or add one }
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we have used the standard publishing vbs theme for several years here in philippines… it promotes real love to God and service for men. continue your great jobs. God bless
Ok, well, I have read what others have put down, and I feel led to make a few comments… I have been the VBS Director for 9 years now, and I have used most of the different publishers at one point or another. We have gone through several “stages” with our children, having bigger groups in the now 12-16 year olds, and upcoming group of 1-3 graders… so it is a challenge each year to find the right program that has the message we want, but that is not BARNEYish either. I find that I can always make a program “younger” but to end up with a program that is truly geared for the Pre-K through say 2nd graders and to get the 3rd through 6th graders to want to participate, well, let’s just say that can be a real problem to the whole vbs. Been there, done that…
We used Studio Go this year, and I will just say that we did adapt the program in a few ways, one of which was the service showcase. We did NOT use that, as we have a WKFM and we usually do the same type of thing each year. We have kids bring in either canned goods or money, whichever they can, and the food goes to the local food shelf, and the money, well, we have found each year where we can send the money to either World Hope or World Vision, which usually has a program where they will triple what you send in to feed children. So… we feed children at the food shelf AND internationally. This year, we threw a twist to the children, and asked them to bring in school supplies (something different each day) and those supplies were packaged up and sent to an Indian Reservation that has NOTHING, and we made Christmas Boxes for them (the only Christmas gift they will receive).
We adapted the games, snacks, and crafts to fit our age groups, and the only complaints that I have about Standard, is that the crafts are things that will end up being thrown away or break right away. We change things up and usually find something that they can “decorate your own” but that they will use…for example, the white hats they decorated with the theme of the day, and I still see children wearing them 2 months later. Pillowcases, T-Shirts, and even socks that they can either use the fabric markers to decorate or utilize the iron on that you let them color themselves. There were other things that we “made our own” but we never change what the kids learn.
We had a ton of fun, and I am looking forward to previewing the program for next year.
Any questions, I would be willing to answer about how we changed things up. We are a very SMALL church, and we really had a great week. Let God lead you. He won’t steer you wrong!!! ;-))
The service part was the best part. The game show was just a wound up way to review. Little kids were exhausted. Bible Message was very clear.
I guess it all depends on how many kids you have. We had 50 and they all went because we made sure that no kid who previously participated would come up for a new game. Also, you can try pairing them instead of one kid at a time. If you have the space do more kids than the manual suggests. Just make sure you have a prize for everyone who participates. This reinforces that at Studio Go! “everyone is a winner.”
–PJ
http://studiogogameshow.shutterfly.com/
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