Activities for Kids From the Early Church in the Book of Acts

Reinforce the teachings contained in the book of Acts with children’s activities. The book of Acts was penned by the Apostle Paul and teaches many concepts. Within its pages are found the establishment of the church, the conversion of one of Christianity’s most ruthless converts, the conversion of the first gentile to the gospel and Paul’s sermon to the Grecians from Mars Hill. Children can learn many valuable lessons from the book of Acts.

The first few verses of Acts 2 describe the Holy Spirit descending to the apostles, while the latter half of the chapter describes the establishment of the early church on the Day of Pentecost. According to Acts 2:3, the Holy Spirit came to the apostles with “cloven tongues like as of fire” and “sat upon each of them.” Reinforce this concept by making fire-shaped name tags with the words “It all began on Pentecost” on them. Let the children decorate the tags with markers or glitter glue. Create a Bible treasure hunt for older children. Use the Old Testament references found in Acts 2.

One notable conversion contained in Acts is that of Saul of Tarsus. As the Apostle Paul, he was one of the most prolific writers of the New Testament. Saul of Tarsus was present at the stoning of Stephen in Acts 8:1-3 and “made havoc” of the early church. His conversion to Christianity is recorded in Acts 9. Teach about Paul’s conversion starting with the death of Stephen. Collect several sizes of rocks and have the students write John 8:7, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone,” on them. Explain to the class that all people have sinned and Christ forgives sin. Create trading cards for each topic contained in Acts 9. Allow the students to decorate their cards.

Acts 10 records God appearing to Peter in a vision about a net filled with clean and unclean animals. God explains to Peter that everything is clean. Through this vision, Peter realizes that the gospel must be preached to the Gentiles. Acts 10 and 11 record the conversion of Cornelius, the first gentile convert, and his household. Use this passage to teach children that the gospel is for all. Create a trivia question board for the wall, and divide the class into two teams. Have the children answer questions pertaining to the two chapters. Help children construct small nets filled with plastic farm animals. Create age-appropriate crossword puzzles for the class.

Acts 17 contains Paul’s famous sermon on Mars Hill, where he discovers an altar set up to the “unknown god.” He explains to the Grecians that the unknown god is the one they ignorantly worship, and that God commands all men to repent. Paul informs them about Christ -- his death, burial and resurrection. Teach this lesson through sculpture. Encourage the children to use salt dough to make a sculpture of the “unknown god.” The image can look like anything the kids imagine, or can be based on pictures of Grecian statuary. Make a puzzle game with the words from Acts 17:30 to help the children memorize this verse. Write each word from the verse on a blank piece of paper and place the words in a bowl. Have the kids piece the words together so they are in the correct order.