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Option 1: Steal the Bone Game
two “bones” (popsicle sticks, dog bones, rolled-up newspapers, etc.), masking tape
Gather supplies. Place two “bones” in the center of the playing area, and mark off two lines with masking tape.
Divide children into two teams. Assign each child a number so that each team has a player with each number. Have the teams line up on opposite sides of the room. Call out two numbers. The children on each team with those numbers run to the center, grab a “bone,” and try to get back to their line without being tagged by the children representing the other team. If a player crosses his or her line with a bone without being tagged, his or her team gets a point. If a player gets tagged while carrying the bone, the opposing team gets a point. Continue to play—being sure to call all numbers at least once—until one team reaches a set number of points and is declared the winning team. Remind the children that God can breathe life into dried-up, dead bones.
Option 2: “Ezekiel, Ezekiel, Where’s Your Bone?” Game
chair, popsicle stick
Gather supplies. Set one chair in the front of the room so a person sitting on it would be facing away from the group. Place a popsicle stick “bone” under the chair.
Have children sit behind the chair. Choose one person to be “Ezekiel” and have that person sit in the chair and close his or her eyes. Tap one of the children, and have that child quietly take the bone from under Ezekiel’s chair and hide it in his or her lap. Have everyone say, “Ezekiel, Ezekiel, where’s your bone? Somebody took it from your home.” Ezekiel can then turn around and has two chances to guess who took the bone. If the child guesses right, he or she continues to be Ezekiel. If he or she guesses incorrectly, the person who took the bone gets to be the new Ezekiel. Continue to play until many have had the opportunity to be Ezekiel and hide the bone. Remind the children that God can breathe life into dried-up, dead bones.
Option 1: Dry Bones Skeleton
rolls of white masking tape (one per team), large black garbage bags (one per team)
Gather supplies. Cut a slit in each garbage bag so a child could put his or her head through it.
Divide the children into teams of three to five members. Give each team a roll of masking tape and a garbage bag. Have one child from each team volunteer to be the skeleton and put on the garbage bag. Explain that the goal is to work together to place tape pieces on the garbage bag to represent a human skeleton as accurately as possible. Give teams 5 minutes to complete their skeletons. When the 5 minutes are up, all teams must stop working. The leaders will then determine which team has the most accurate skeleton. The team with the best skeleton wins the game. Remind children that God brought dead bones to life.
Option 2: Dry Bones Relay Race
two colors of paper, scissors, straws (one per child), buckets/boxes (one per team)
Gather supplies. Print and cut out a small bone pattern on colored paper (one color for each team). Make sure there are an equal number of bones of each color and at least two bones per child. Spread the paper bones randomly around the play area.
Divide children into teams and assign each team a bone color. Give each child a straw. Tell the children that they must use the straw to suck up their team’s bones and carry them back to their team’s bucket/box. They may not touch the bone with anything except the straw. When the leader says “Go!” all children can begin collecting bones. The first team to retrieve all of their bones wins the game. Remind the children that God can breathe life into dried-up, dead bones.
