5 Tips for Meaningful Impact at Your Awards Night!

We know there are still a couple months of Awana left to go and that the weeks fly by while your club nights seem to crawl at the pace of a turtle. In the midst of managing theme nights, flu-invoked absences, and parent communication, take 10 minutes right now to start thinking through what your awards night might look like! To get your creative juices flowing, here are five things to consider to create a lasting impact at your end-of-the-year event.

1. What is the purpose of your Awana awards night?

I know, I know. I can hear you saying, “Isn’t the purpose of any awards night to hand out … umm, awards?!?” YES. It is! However, a handful of creative leaders have taken their awards night and turned it into a family fun night! Check out these ideas:

“We did a talent show in addition to book awards so that EVERYONE could be involved. It was a hit!” Kirsten Hitchcock

“The Saturday before our awards night, we host a swim party at an indoor pool.” Marsha Rossen

“We have a red-carpet affair. We have a red carpet and a paparazzi background the kids receive their awards in front of. We serve dinner for the families, as well, and each class has a presentation of some sort.” Christina Malick

2. How do you want to celebrate volunteers?

By planning ahead, you give yourself the opportunity to pull together a thoughtful gift/thank you for each of your faithful leaders. If you have the budget, consider giving a small gift for all they have done to pour into the kids of your church. If you have a limited budget, a hand-written note of thanks is a powerful gesture! You could also take the next couple of club nights to go around to each group (when the leaders aren’t there!) and ask the kids to describe their leader in one word. Use those words to encourage and thank your team of volunteers!

3. In what ways can you recognize every child for something they have accomplished this year!

While the recognition for book finishers is an incredible achievement, it doesn’t represent all that has been accomplished and learned throughout the club year. Here are a couple of ways to recognize every child in your club:

“We will incorporate fruit-of-the-spirit awards this year to recognize kids who are living out what it means to be a follower of Christ. We also make sure each kid gets recognized for what they achieved: for a child who doesn’t finish their book, we give them a certificate that congratulates them for finishing ___ number of sections and verses.’ Kaitlin Gustafson

–Download a Sparks Recognition Certificate from the Awana Store. Use this certificate to celebrate ALL the little Sparkies in your life!

4. How can you show evidence of what God has done through the club year?

Your clubs are incredibly well run and strategic; all of the work done sets the stage for each child to have the opportunity to connect with their Creator. Use your awards night to be intentional about sharing what God has done in the lives of these kids! Whether it is through a video, picture slideshow, or even live testimonies, everyone in attendance needs to see the work God has done through the last year!

5. Gather with your leaders to plan ahead.

Try to plan an hour before club or after church on a Sunday to gather and intentionally collect the information you need for awards night! (If you can throw coffee and snacks into the mix, even better!) Here are a few questions to start your planning conversations:

–What have each of the children in your groups achieved this year? Start making a list next to each name. That list could look like book completions, frequent friend visitation, acts of kindness, number of verses memorized, etc.

–What growth/improvement have we seen in each of these kids? Use these improvements to write unique and thoughtful notes on the back of each certificate!

–How have we seen Jesus through this child? Whether you use the answer to this question as a personal encouragement or an encouragement to pass along to each parent, stopping to see all that God has done in the lives of these children is the motivation for all we do!

–How soon can we order our awards? Getting ahead of the game is critical to a smooth awards night. We want you to have all the awards you need and, pending any shipping issues, we will do everything in our power to make that happen! Have we told you lately how grateful we are for your patience and grace? You guys are truly the best! You can start ordering awards today!

No matter what you do, your faithfulness and passion for the discipleship of the kids in your club will be evident. As you close out your club year and plan for your awards night, know that the team at Awana is praying for you! Share your story with us or tag Awana in your post with #eternalimpact so we can celebrate with you!

Happy Planning!