AwanaGames/Sparks-a-Rama Tips page
These pages are designed to gather together tips and useful advise for area churches forming an AwanaGames or Sparks-a-Rama Team. We pray that you will work hard to properly prepare your teams, both physically and spiritually.
- HOW TO BUILD YOUR AWANAGAMES/SPARKS-a-RAMA TEAM
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- Get your church and Awana Club excited about the AwanaGames/Sparks-a-Rama.
- Choose a Coach with a good Christian attitude.
- Plan out all of the practices and widely distribute the information
- Speak to the parents of interested clubbers and explain the commitment level (including practice dates and event date/location) - the Team Application/Permission Slip (MS Word format) may help.
- Get to know your team members and explain what is expected of each one.
- Have no favorite players - treat all fairly.
- After trying all players, select your main team.
- Try to practice at least once on a full size circle.
- Be sure all players complete the required handbook sections to be qualified.
- Try to have a few alternates in case of illness, etc.
- Have a Permission Slip for each player.
- Be sure all participants (coaches, players, etc.) wear gym shoes.
- GOOD CHRISTIAN SPORTSMANSHIP IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!
- The whole emphasis is to reach the people attending with the Gospel message. So how you conduct yourself is how a Christian is thought to be, It is far better to lose a heat or the entire event than lose your temper and turn someone off to the Gospel!
- TIPS ON IMPROVING AWANAGAMES/SPARKS-a-RAMA SKILLS
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General Tips
- Watch the Circle Pins! - Make sure the runners go around, not over the pin. If the pin is knocked over, judges will watch where pin was for disqualification!
- Know the Rules! - The more familiar the games are, the better the Clubbers will do.
- Always Finish the Event! - No one knows what teams have been disqualified until the event is over. There have been many times when the first three teams were disqualified and the last child did not finish!
- Keep practices realistic - The main goal is to learn and have fun!! Too long and the children get very tired, resulting in discipline problems and a counter-productive practice.
- Use your stopwatch! - Run a time trial on every team member (and record it on a team tracking sheet) to see who are your fastest runners both in the sprint and in the marathon. Don't forget to factor in attitude into your decisions, a child who is very athletic with a poor attitude will do your team more harm than good. (This primarily applies to AwanaGames versus Sparks-a-Rama)
Event-Specific Tips