Welcome to the Jungle!

And no, this post has nothing to do with Guns N' Roses.

3 weeks ago we started our kids' club called Olympians. I am one of the coaches for the Challengers (grades 1-2). I am so excited to report that we are expecting 15 munchkins in our class this year!

In order to make our PT (or Personal Training) room inviting the kiddos, I decided to turn it into a jungle theme! After many, many, many hours of hard work and trips to the dollar store and Walmart, I am so excited with how it turned out! And the kids loved it! And I just want to share the excitement with all of you!

In Olympians, the kids start in the PT rooms where they drop off their bags, and books, and coats, and anything else they bring with them. Then after the lesson in the Opening room, the kids come back to the PT rooms again. On an average night, the kiddos are spending about 45 minutes in their PT rooms! Which is why I found it necessary to make a fun and inviting environment for these kids. We want them to be excited about and enjoy coming to church! Yay!

View from the corner of the room. We planned for 10 kids...guess I'll be going shopping and working in the room again this week to get it ready for our expected 15!

Rules of our Jungle: As told by Eloise the Elephant, Edgar the Giraffe, and Tristan the Lion. Posterboard and paper were supplies used from the church and the animals were drawn by my awesome friend Sadie!

This cabinet is cover in laminate. Let me tell you, it was a HUGEEEEEE pain to cover, but it looks great now that it's done! Contact paper from Walmart.

One corner of the room. The wall stickers, the grass skirts for the curtains, the palm trees, and the hanging zebra and leopard decorations I got at the Dollar.

The Quiet Time Hut: a place for the kids to read a book, or work on their memory verses or quiet time books. Or just spend some quiet time praying or any other quiet activity. Except sleeping of course! The chalkboard is from Walmart, and the "No Shoes" sign is made from pictures I found online, covered in clear contact paper that I got at the Dollar Tree.

The Hut. The blanket and pillows are all from Walmart. The hanging lanterns are all from the Dollar Tree. The "Teach me How to Pray" poster is from Mrs. Chalkbox, our local teacher supply store.

Thanks to Mrs. Nycole, we have verse flashcards for the entire year! The word-strip holders are from Target.

This is what the kids see as they walk down the hall into our room! The welcome sign is from the Dollar Tree. The crates are from Walmart. The hanging animal-print things in the doorway are from Dollar Tree. The tree in the middle of the room I got from random decorations found in the church. The vines hanging from the ceiling were made out of brown mailing paper that I got at the Dollar Tree.

The window in the door says "Watch out! It's a Junge in Here!" Washable window paint from Dollar Tree.

Poster from Mrs. Chalkbox. Stickers from Dollar Tree.  Our attempt at keeping 15 short attention spans under control while we spend individualized attention with the kiddos.

So there you have it! Every Wednesday since Olympians started, I have had to go out and buy more supplies because we keep having new kids! How awesome is that!!!!

Having a hard controlling my excitement...
-A.A.