Oriental Trading Company

Those of us who teach Sunday school to young students often face the dilemma, “What craft can the children do this week??!” A coloring page, of course, can be used as a last resort, but if you’re like me, you prefer using a variety of arts and crafts that are easy, fun, and inexpensive.

With a little planning, Oriental Trading Company can come to the rescue. While its catalogs are a well-known source for novelty items used at parties and school fairs, Oriental Trading Company also publishes specialty catalogs filled with Christian-related crafts, along with small toys, stickers, rewards and incentives with a Christian theme.

Most craft kits can be purchased by the dozen, making the cost of each craft in some cases as little as 33 cents each. Some examples in this price range include foam craft kits depicting Biblical themes such as “Jonah and the whale,” and  “Daniel and the lion’s den.” There are also many other inexpensive crafts from which to choose: picture frames, magnets, pins, suncatchers, and unfinished wooden crosses, just to name a few. If your church sponsors a Vacation Bible School, you will also find things like water bottles, visors, medallions, and ribbons designed specifically for this purpose.

Other items can be used as resources for the church school from year to year. I purchased a felt board with figures of Christ, the myrrh bearers, and angels depicting the empty tomb to reinforce a lesson on Pascha. Cloth hand puppets in a variety of styles are sold by the dozen and would be a useful addition to Bible story time.

Oriental Trading Company can be contacted at 1-800-228-0475 for customer service and 1-800-228-2269 to place an order. Visit their website at www.orientaltrading.com.

Reviewed by Rosemary Shumski.