1. Dry Erase Game: This is one of my favorite games to play with my students. I use itfor almost every class, and the kids never seem to get tired of it. It's especially helpfulwith young readers, as they can hear and see the words as they say the verse. This willreally help them as they play more complex games with the verse that requires reading,as they have already seen and become familiar with the words to the verse. I also feelthat this is one of the best ways to help kids really memorize the verse. Write the verseout on a dry erase or chalkboard. Point to the words as you say the verse. Then, eraseone or two words and say the verse again. You can also invite students up to choose aword and erase it themselves - they love to be chosen! Alternatively, you could alsosubstitute some words with pictures, but this won't help the kids learn the words by sightif they are playing another "reading" type of game after this.

2. Chant It: Pick a simple rhythm and chant the verse. "For God So... loved the world...that He gave... His only Son..." You could also add clapping. The verse won't fitperfectly, but it's fun to try!

3. Emphasize It: Repeat the verse several times, each time emphasizing the next word."FOR God so loved the world. For GOD so loved the world. For God SO loved theworld." Make it more fun by having your students throw a ball or balloon up in the air andcatch it as they say the emphasized word.

4. Stop that Verse! Say the verse several times with your students. Then, as you saythe verse, stop suddenly and see if your students can say the next word. Make a gameof it.

5. Exploding Balloons: Before class, print several copies of the Bible verse on different colors of paper, with small print. I usually do 4 copies for my class of 20-24 students. Cut the words or word sections of the verse apart and insert each single color verse in one color of balloonsbefore blowing the balloons up. (For example, you might put all of the "red" verse in "red balloons", blue in blue, etc.) Blow the balloons up with thepaper pieces inside of them. When you are ready to play, go over the verse several times. Then, divide your students into teams (equal number of teams to the number of colors of balloons you have - 4 balloon colors = 4 teams). Assign each team a color of balloons. When you say "Go", each team must pop their balloons, retrieve all of the verse papers, and put the verse in correct order. First team to get all verse pieces in correct order wins. This game is chaos, but the kids love it!

memory verse games and Activities

6. Don't Get It Wrong Bible Verse Game: This game works great if you have asimple verse that kids have already repeated several times. Have your studentsstand in a circle, each with a very soft foam ball, balloon, artificial snowball, orwadded up paper ball. Have one student volunteer to stand in the middle and saythe verse. If they get a word wrong in the verse or can't remember the next word, allof the students in the circle throw their balls or balloons at the person in the middle.Then, the class says the verse together again and the person in the middle gets topick another student to stand in the middle. This game leads to lots of giggles andsome kids will, of course, get the verse wrong on purpose.

7. Hidden Words Bible Verse Game: Before class, write the Bible verse out onseveral different colors of paper. Cut the words or word phrases apart. Fold thepieces of paper and use masking tape to hide the verse words around theclassroom. When you are ready to play, go over the verse several times with thestudents so they are familiar with the verse. Then, divide your students into teams,the same number of teams as the number of verse colors. Assign each team a colorto look for. When you say "Go", each team must find all of the pieces of their verseand assemble the verse in correct order. First team to get all of the words in thecorrect order wins.

8. Make a Bible Verse Puzzle: Write a Bible verse onto a piece of copy paper. Addsome simple drawings, such as a heart or simple shapes. Photocopy the verse ontopieces of card stock and cut the card stock into large pieces to make a puzzle. Havekids put the puzzle back together. Alternatively, you could write the verse and drawsome lines to cut along. Photocopy the "puzzle" and have your students draw, color,and cut apart their own puzzles with safety scissors.

9. Make a Bible Verse Mural: Use the back of wrapping paper or a large piece ofcraft paper to create an over-sized mural of your Bible verse. Have students writedifferent parts of the verse and decorate the mural as desired. Also makes a great classroom decoration!

10. Bible Verse Chalk Art: Have your students write the Bible verse on a sidewalk outside of your church. If they can't write yet, write the verse for them and have your students draw pictures around the verse. Your students will love showing their parents what they drew! As for me and my

house, we willserve the Lord.

11. Bible Verse Hopscotch: Use masking tape to make a hopscotch game on your floor.Put a sticky note or piece of paper with a word of the verse or phrase in each square ofthe hopscotch game, in order. Have kids say the verse as they jump. You may also startto remove the sticky notes and see if the kids can remember the missing parts of theverse. You could also do this with chalk outside. Write the words with chalk and let thekids use a spray bottle filled with water to "erase" the words.

12. Bible Verse Toss Game: Have your students stand in a circle and toss a ball orbean bag while saying one word of verse with each throw. See if your students can getthrough the whole verse without anyone dropping the ball. This can also be played oneon one, having each person say one word of the verse as they toss the ball, then thepartner saying the next word as they toss the ball back.

13. Hot Potato Bible Verse Game: Have your kids stand in a circle. Give one student aball, balloon, bean bag, or whatever you have on hand. When you say "Go", the wholeclass says the verse together as they pass the ball from student to student, one word foreach pass. Student holding the ball when the verse is done is "out". Continue, until youhave one winner. To make the game more challenging, you may have the studentsremain where they are, even after a student steps out of the circle, so that there are"gaps" to throw the ball over. If someone doesn't catch a ball, both the catcher and the thrower are out and the verse starts again. For younger students, have them sit in a circle and pass the ball to each other.

14. Dartless Balloon Board: This activity takes a little more prep, but can be used overand over again - and the kids love it! Take 2 large foam boards (I use two 20 inch by 30inch foam boards from the dollar store) or 2 large pieces of thick cardboard. Hot glue gunclothes pins to the board in two lines on each board, about 13 -14 clothes pins. Glue twotacks under and to the the sides of each clothes pin, point up, so that a balloon that isclipped to the clothes pin will touch one of the tacks if the balloon is pressed back. Blowup one balloon for each clothes pin, plus one or two extras in case of an accident. Use asharpie marker to write the words or word phrases of the verse onto the balloons, thenclip the balloons to the clothes pins in the correct verse order. To play, have yourstudents say the verse out loud together a couple of times. Then, call one student tocome forward. Give them three bean bags and show them where to stand. Have them tryto hit a balloon with a bean bag and pop it. If they can't pop it in three throws, their turn isover. If they do pop a balloon, their turn is over. Read the verse as a class, including the"missing" words on the popped balloon from memory, then have another student comeforward and try to pop a balloon. Repeat until all of the balloons are popped and the kidsare saying the verse completely from memory. If a balloon comes loose, that student'sturn is over. Set the balloon aside, read the verse as if the balloon had popped. At theend of class or church, that student gets to keep his freed balloon. If you have a verylarge class, you may want to divide the class and have more than one game going on.

15. Echoing Bible Verses: Have your students sit in several rows of chairs. The teachersays a verse phrase loudly. The first row repeats the verse phrase a little quieter, thenthe second row repeats a little quieter, etc. - making the verse "echo".

16. Bubble Verses: Take a bottle of bubble solution to class. Blow the bubbles, thenhave your students try to say the verse before all of the bubbles pop. Repeat severaltimes, having different students blow the bubbles, or have the students work in pairs,each with their own bubbles bottle.

17. Stop and Go Bible Verse: Hold up a "Go" Sign. Start saying the verse with yourstudents. Flip the sign to "Stop" at different words and see how many students caninstantly stop.

18. Sticky Note Bible Verse Game: Write the Bible verse out twice, word by word orword phrase by word phrase, on sticky notes. Divide your students into two teams. Call avolunteer from each team. Have the two volunteers come to the front and turn their backsto their team mates. You will take the sticky notes from one verse and stick them all overone volunteer's back. Take the other set of sticky notes and stick them all over the othervolunteer's back. Make sure you stick them on randomly so that the words are out oforder. Select a second volunteer from each team. This volunteer will come forward andstand next to the first volunteer with their backs to their classmates. Select a thirdvolunteer from each team. This volunteer will come forward. When you say "Go",volunteer #3 must take the sticky notes off of volunteer #1's back and transfer them in thecorrect order to volunteer #2's back. The team mates still sitting may call out instructionsto volunteer #3 to help him or her, or just to cheer them on. First team to get all of thewords in the correct order on Volunteer #2's back wins!

19. Bible Verse Snake Game. During class, write out the verse (fairly largely), about onecopy per 20 students. Cut the verse apart into words or word sections. You want to haveone piece of the verse for every student. (8 students = 8 pieces of the verse, 19 students =19 pieces of the verse.) Mix the verse sections. Go over the verse several times so yourstudents are familiar with the verse. Then, give each student one piece of the verse and apiece of tape. Have the students tape the verse piece to their shirt front. When you say"Go", have the student with the first part of the verse find the next word section of theverse. Using their LEFT hand, the first word section will grab the second word section'shand. Without letting go of the first section, the second word section must then find thethird word section and grab on, forming a human "snake". When all of the verse is puttogether, have the students read the verse aloud, each person reading the section fromtheir own shirt front. If you have time, you can repeat this game, mixing the word sectionsand giving them to different students.

20. Make a Bible Verse Road: Draw a large, curving "road" onto the back of a large sheetof wrapping paper or craft paper. Write the Bible verse onto the "road". Have your studentsdraw buildings, trees, rivers, etc. around the "road" and say the verse as they drive matchbox cars on the road.

21. The Tricky Teacher: Repeat the verse with your students several times so that theyare familiar with it. Then, have your students listen while you say the verse to them.However, as you say the verse, you will make a mistake. ('For God so liked the world...")When your students hear the mistake, they call out “Gotcha” and get one point. If yourstudents don’t catch the error or call out when there is no mistake, the “Tricky Teacher”gets a point. See who gets the most points - the students or the "Tricky Teacher". Hint:Make sure you have a copy of the verse on a card so you don't get confused yourself!

22. Puppets: Say the verse with puppets.

23. Keep It Going: Go over the verse several times with your students so that they arefamiliar with the verse. Have all of your students form a circle around you. Assign onestudent to be the first word in the Bible verse. They say the first word. The person on theirleft says the next word. Continue going around the circle, with each person to the leftsaying the next word in the verse. If anyone can't remember or messes up, tell them whattheir word is. Then, start the verse over again from the original first word student. See ifyou can get all the way through the verse, with each person saying one word of the verse.If desired, you could play again, having a different person being the starting point for theverse.

24. Bible Verse Line Up: This is a cooperative, not a competitive game. Before class,write out the verse in large writing or font and cut the verse words or phrases apart inabout 10 to 12 sections. Mix the verse sections. Go over the verse with your studentsseveral times. Then, call students forward, the same number of students as you haveverse pieces. Have the students stand in a line, backs to their classmates. Use tape totape a section of the verse to each student's back. The students will not know what wordsor phrases are taped to their backs. When you are finished, students at the front mustremain with their backs to their classmates. The sitting classmates must give verbal directions to the kids standing about where to move and stand, until the verse words on their backs are in the correct order. For example, "Julie, you need to stand next to Ethan. No, Julie, stand on the other side of Ethan. Ok, stay there Julie." If desired, play again with different kids standing at the front.

25. Bible Verse Cup Stack: Before class, take the number of students you usually have and divide it by 5. (For example, I usually have about 20 students, so I get the number of 4.) This will be your number of teams. If you usually have only 5 or fewer students, you can have your students will race the clock, or have 2 smaller teams. Multiply the number of teams by 8 to 10. This is the number of styrofoam or disposable plastic cups you will need. (I need 32 to 40). Take the cups and stack them upside down, upside up, upside down, upside up - one stack for each team. (So, I might have four stacks of 9 cups each.) Use a sharpie marker to write Bible verse words or word phrases on each cup, starting with the bottom cup. The words will be upside down on the bottom cup, rightside up on the next cup, etc. (See the image.) When you are done, mix the cups and stack them together as you would normally stack cups to save space, one stack per team. Go over the verse with your class so that they are familiar with the verse. Divide your class into teams, about 5 students per team. Place the cups on a table or one stack on different desks. When you say "Go", each team must work together to figure out how to stack the cups in the correct Bible verse word order. First team to get their cups stacked wins. You can play again with different teams, if desired.

ForGod so

lovedthe

world

that hegavehis

onlybegotten

Son

thatwhosoeverbelieveth

in himshould

notperish, but

have ever-lastinglife.

John3:16