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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.
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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/
Since we will be doing this theme in 2010, could I get some input from you experienced Studio Go participants. During the opening and the closing for the game show part…did any of the children fill left out if they didn’t get to participate in a game? If you have a lot of children, how do you make sure you keep it fair? I don’t want any child going home at the end of the week and them telling their parents that they didn’t get to participate in any of the game shows on stage.
One suggestion that seemed to work well for our group was to have kids put their names into a jar when they registered the first night that they attended. We just drew names from the jar whenever we needed contestants on the stage. We always gave them the option to decine, but they rarely did. By using different colors of paper for different age groups, we were able to choose an age appropriate contestant. Once a child had participated on stage, their name was removed from the jar. The jar made a neat and colorful addition to our stage.
For a very large VBS, there are a few options for using more contestants than suggested. We modified the “Unsramble the theme” game each night to allow for more participation. One night we gave 6 contestants signs with the letters on them, amd let them put themselves in order. (this would be fun with t – shirts if budget allows) Another night, we taped letters under their seats, and instructed the kids to race to find the letters and get onstage in order. You could actually choose an older child to be your announcer for the opening by drawing a name, giving them a coat, tie, sparkle covered hat, whatever… and allowing them to be the one that reads the names of the contestants in their best “Come on Down” voice. These ideas will allow you to use at least 15 more kids. Good Luck. Our VBS went great. Be sure you have a good lights, sound, and video guy. Very important that everything flows in order to keep it high energy.
Well, we did it and all I can say is THANK YOU! Standard Publishing. We had yet another successful and blessed VBS. Your theme was perfect and because of our years of experience with VBS (I’ve used Group Publishing for over 10 years), we were able to tailor it perfectly for our purpose, which is to reach un-churched kids with the life changing truth of Jesus Christ! I can go on an on about how great Studio G! was but will let the photos and videos do that talking.
http://studiogogameshow.shutterfly.com/
We have just fininsh our Studio Go VBS. I have used Standard Publishing for over 10 years, and have always been pleased. Our Youth class (middle and high school) said this was the best VBS we have had in years. I do have two suggestions: How about more games based on an actual game shows (ex: wheel of fortune, jeopardy, family fued), and we really needed an idea for a game show for our end of the week program, not just a repeat of the same games we had played earlier. For more high energy fun, leaders should check out Standard’s “Camp” cirriculum. We have had great success with those for our midweek program.
I developed a few games on Power Point. One of them was a spin off Jeopardy which we called Shepherdy. With real buzzers, the Jeopardy theme song and all sounds.
The end of the week game show was geared for the parents not the kids. It was to show the parents some of the action and fun that the kids did during the week. We did them and the parents loved being selected to “Let’s Make a Deal!”
http://studiogogameshow.shutterfly.com/
As a preschool teacher I am very disappointed with the curriculum in this program. My preschool class has 3 and 4 year olds and half of them don’t even talk all the time. Also the bible stories are very hard to follow for anyone younger than 5.
Our church has just finished the “Studio Go!” VBS week! We passed out evaluation forms to our adult and teen volunteers. After reading them last night, my impressions and feelings seem to match those of the volunteers. The theme was high energy and fun…….everyone loved it. The Bible story times (we chose to use the option of costumed character monologues) were wonderful. The children were on the edges of their seats as Gideon, Esther, Peter, Ananias, and the women at Jesus’s empty tomb shared their experiences “first hand”.
I have to disagree with the reviewer about this program. I thought the review was misleading, especially since the reviewer was looking at promotional material only. Our church has used several publishing houses in the past, but some seemed to be more on fun. We found that the straight forward Bible teaching offered with this program challenged the kids and provided them a way to live out their indivual walks with the Lord (through the service showcase). With the ecomony in such a state right now, many children are experiencing a parent without a job, or having to tighten their belts this year. We chose a local charity for the kids to focus their attention on. It was a very personal experience. I highly encourage other directors to take a look at Standard’s material!
I’d also like to add that the games are great games…but the participants on stage should be age appropriate. don’t let a 6 yr old in a game that should probably be played by an older child.
We’ve just completed the Studio Go! VBS week at our church and I can tell you that it was the most exciting VBS we have ever been involved in (and we’ve done quite a few!) I led the Worship for the week and the songs were awesome. Excellent messages about God, about Leading, taking risks, telling about Jesus, obeying God and Serving God. The songs were very catchy and kept the children’s attention. They were very much involved in the motions and singing the songs. This was a great package. Joshua 1:9 was perfect for this. The kids loved the curriculum and had a blast on the game shows. I would recommend this to every church wanting the children to learn that we need to GO! for God….and this also emphasizes that “God is with us wherever we go”! this week was FANTASTIC!!!
I am the grandmother of a 6 year old who was wrapped in saran wrap (handi wrap) last evening per the direction of a game in the Studio Go program, called “Wrap It Up.” As I understand it, he was wrapped from his arms to his ankles. He then tried to hop to a location and lost his balance falling on his right temple. He suffered a mild concussion and appears to be o.k. at this time. This doesn’t sound like a safe game for children. Judy Suggs, Massillon, Ohio
I am sorry to hear that your grandchild had an accident– but we need to remember that accidents can happen anywhere, to anyone. I chose to use toilet paper for this game, more because it was cooler though.
Sorry to hear about the incident but I just received this material because our church is going to do this theme in 2010 and i was thinking how dangerous it sounded to use saran wrap but it clearly states in the directions not to wrap the childs arms up so that they can catch themselves in case of a fall.
This was the first year that I have used Standard curriculum for VBS. I loved it! The theme was great (I tend to use themes that are unique and I HATE seeing similar themes over and over and over again.). It was high energy, but every part had a purpose. The children received the Bible point in every area. Our church is a very missional church. Our children are taught very early about serving others out of love for God. They all loved the Service Showcase the best. They remembered the Bible points and stories, which was very encouraging. All of the volunteers said that this was one of the best put-together VBS programs they’ve ever been involved in. I think that speaks for itself.
we are currently doing studio-go this week at my church and it’s been very fun and has good lessons. my church has used Standard’s themes for a long time and each year is very very fun and exciting! all the kids have an amzing time and they always come back next year! it’s awesome!
Being a Southern Baptist Church pastor, I stepped out of the mold and tried Studio GO. With many churches in our areas, if you are not doing (a certain publisher fond of preying on SBC Churches) VBS within the first or second week of summer then the kids are already bored. They have done the songs and know the Scripture. I was highly impressed with Standards curriculum and its implementation. I dearly loved the service projects. I hear your concerns about volunteerism, however we have created generations of believers who are consumer friendly and not going out and serving. We will always have to get people on the right motive to do what they need to do. Yes, it should be for God’s glory. That is the heart of discipleship. I have had several teachers who told me in 20 years this has been one of the best VBS curriculums ever.
We have used Group for many years and love it for so many different reasons, we will continue to use it again this year for our annual weekly VBS. We draw lots of kids from our church and other local area churches. We can see the results from Group’s VBS and appreciate the results. However, the Group theme does not generally bring in children from the community who do not attend church. So last year we chose to use Standard’s, God’s Big Backyard, and each Wednesday in the summer (10 weeks) we went to the local park and presented the lessons. Standard gave us the ability to gently witness to the un-churched community and through that form of witnessing we have been able to win and grow more mature christians. Therefore, both Group and Standard have a place. I hope more churches can see that by presenting 2 very different VBS’s in 2 very different formats you have the ability to present God to more people.
I’ve used Standard off-&-on for many years. My main concern is that I usually have to really adapt it. It takes a lot of work to get it across to the kids here. I agree that the Game Show setting is going to be a trial, but can be easier to adapt than normal.
I just ordered this curriculum. I’m very excited about teaching children about our Savior & Servant-leader Jesus. After all, the Gospel states, “faith without works is dead”. This is all about putting our faith in to action and…God giving us the strength to carry out HIS work (will). I appreciate the comments regarding staying focused on Scripture and not letting the service element take over the teaching.
Word of caution…let us not label each other so much. I’ve seen a lot of terms mentioned for various groups of Christians in the comments I’ve been reading on this site. The definitions for terms such as liberal Christians, conservative Christians, moderate Christians, evangelicals, etc. are ever changing and very subjective. Stating that liberal Christians may not like a certain VBS curriculum is not informative. It comes across as very devisive to me. Thank you for this web site. Please keep the reviews focused on the content of the materials and personal experience with the publishers. I personally would appreciate the absence of Christian “labels”.
By the way, if I had to put a “label” on myself I’d say….conservative.
Last year I was craft director for our SP theme-Big Backyard. We did a different craft each day in line with “service”. One day we painted little clay pots and put a little viola in each one that had been prepotted in fiber pots. One day we filled quart jars with a soup mixture and recipe tied around lid. One day we baked cookies during class time while each child decorated a brown bag for the cookies so they could take them to someone. ( We also let each one eat a fresh one from the oven.) One day we made bead animals with lacing to share with a friend.(Many patterns on internet.) And the last day we made picture frames from CD cases and took pictures of each child so they could take it home for themselves. We encouraged the children to give their project to someone the other 4 days. This was the first year we didn’t do one big project for the entire week and I think we will do something similar again this year. We have used Standard for as long as I’ve been helping with VBS (34 years).
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