General Conference Treat Buckets

ByKierste Wade Updated on Family Life, Kids' Ideas

Our church has the opportunity to hear from our church leaders twice a year, which is called General Conference. It’s always a fun weekend, with lots of food, family, and friends. Having little ones can be a challenge though, since they aren’t quite as excited about sitting down to listen.
My good friend shared this fun idea with me, and when I introduced it to my kids, it was a hit. A {HUGE} hit. So much so, they have been talking about it since October.

General Conference Treat Buckets


*I found the tin buckets in the dollar section at Target–perfect!


*We decided the words we wanted the kids to listen for during Conference–prophet, temple, faith, scriptures, and family–then I added one word to the front of each bucket in vinyl (font = Wish I Was Taller) . You could also use stickers, rub-ons, or print the words on cardstock then mat them on scrapbook paper and attach them with double stick tape. I tied ribbon around the handle for a fun accent. For really little ones, you could add a picture in addition to or instead of the words.

*I filled each bucket with the kids’ favorite candy…



*During conference, I line the buckets up along the hearth, and then anytime they hear one of the words on the bucket, they can come and take a piece of candy. I also give them a cup with their name on it to put their candy in, although not much makes it into the cup, lol.




This is such an easy idea, and I promise, your kids will never get tired of it!

This idea isn’t just for General Conference…it could also be used in any kind of classroom setting–from home, to school, to church!

…..

Enjoy!

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45 Comments

  1. I LOVE this. I was especially thinking of it to use in my future classroom. So clever and creative :)

    Reply

  3. That is a fun idea! We have done something simlar with snacks. We put pretzels, chocolate chips, goldfish, etc in baggies and each baggie has a topic. When someone speaks on that topic they can eat that snack.

    Yours is much more fun! ;D

    Reply

  6. I love it! I have been thinking I need something new and creative for conference. Thanks for sharing:>

    Reply

  7. Adorable! Hi! My name is Aubrie and I have a blog called A Mama B's Crafts & Recipes, and I just started a General Conference Idea Linky Party and would like to invite you to come join in and link up your Conference Ideas!

    http://amamab.blogspot.com/2011/03/conference-candy-coutdown-lei-linky.html

    Thanks!

    Aubrie @ http://amamab.blogspot.com/

    Reply

  12. I love how you can take a simple/fun idea and turn it into such a cute craft. I featured this post today because I liked it so much. I'm hoping that I can find some similar buckets this afternoon.

    Reply

  14. I cannot tell you how much I love this idea!!! I can't wait to try it when my kids are old enough. :) I'm featuring this post on my blog this week . Thanks for the inspiration! little-inspirations.blogspot.com

    Reply

  17. This idea was genius!
    Is it okay that I'm going to do it this weekend and there aren't any kids in my house? ;)

    Reply

  20. This is an awesome idea. Even though I don't have children I might just have to use this for my husband and I. Thanks so much for the fun idea.

    http://jessychad.blogspot.com

    Reply

  22. No Way!! This is the best conference idea yet:) I wouldn't feel guilty at all bribing them with this!!
    Thanks for sharing, I'm going to feature this on my blog this week and link back to you for sure!

    Reply

  23. Those are so cute. I bet they will love it. If I filled them with M&M's I bet I would listen a WHOLE LOT BETTER ; ) Of course, it might be a little disruptive since we always go to the Stake Center to listen.

    Reply

  25. I absolutely LOVE this! Growing up, my dad would do this on paper with us (even until we were 18yrs old) but we had a couple dozen…and I've been looking for a way to decrease it for my kiddos….
    Props to you for this idea ;)

    Reply

  26. such a good idea!! I just snatched up a few of these buckets @ Tarjay!!
    {what font is that you used?}

    Reply

  27. What a GREAT idea!! I already bought 3 of those buckets for no reason at all, just hoping for some great idea to hit my in the face – and you just did! – now off to see if I can possibly find 2 more…

    Reply

  34. I LOVE this idea and can't wait to try it out tomorrow! I linked you from my blog I hope that's ok? wwwppink.blogspot.com

    Reply

  35. i picked everything up at the store..such a great idea!! we decided to do candy for half the tins and crackers/pencils/stickers for the other ones. Don't want too much sugar overload :)

    Reply

  36. Okay, I forgot to get all the things to make the buckets and I thought about it Sunday morning. So I just grabbed 2 bowls and the 2 candies we had in the house, and I assigned each bowl 2 words. I used: Spirit, Family, Prophet, and Temple.

    My 6 year old was getting after the younger kids to be quiet so she could listen! (that was amazing itself!) But they hit the jackpot with Bednar and Monsons talks about the temple and spirit of revelation!!!

    Thanks for your great ideas! It was a nice conference Sunday!

    Reply

  37. This is such a cute idea. It would only cause MAJOR chaos at my house. lol. I give each kid several little containers with small snacks in them. (grapes, strawberries, popcorn, candies, juice box, etc) they are each labeled Apostle, Seventy, or lady speaker. Then when each get up to speak they get a small treat. If 2 or 3 apostles speak in one session they only get the one treat. I made them each a conference bucket that these treats, crayons, & packets all go in. It is a big hit at my house. I hope by next conference to have my reusable baggies made with the labels embroidered on them. Either that or have pictures of a certain apostle, seventy or auxiliary presidency member on them. I love checking out blogs like yours, you always have great inspiration!!!

    Reply

  38. I totally loved this idea and used a cheaper version of it at home. I live in Hawaii and every thing is more expensive. :) So I used small bowls. Kids don't care and they totally loved it. Thanks for sharing this great idea.

    I posted about it on my blog. Check it out if you wish.

    AlohaCrafts.blogspot.com

    Reply

  39. I wish I had found your blog about 2 weeks ago! Just LOVE this idea! I have 6 kids, so this would be brilliant to help encourage them to listen! Thanks for posting!

    Reply

  40. Kierste:

    I am a pastor with my husband, and one huge thing I concentrate on is children. As you know, God considers them very precious; and so do I. We do not have children as of yet because of fertility issues, but I will say I am so happy to have found this blog; and I am so happy that you are encouraging your kids in Christ! I have never commented on a blog before, and you caught my eye so much that I believe I am going to become an avid follower of your postings. Thank you for your wonderful spirit, gifts, and for loving the Lord! God Bless You & Your Family, Pastors Jon & Marla McGowan (mcgowanarmyfamily@gmail.com)

    Reply

  41. I just linked your post at my blog. I made some labels for my buckets that I'm sharing. Thanks for the great idea.
    http://mrshomeec.blogspot.com/2011/09/general-conference-treat-bucket.html

    Reply

  42. What a cool idea, I wish I had this as a kid. Watching Conference was painful for me, it felt like forever. At the time, the only thing I had going for me was I got to go to church in my pajamas (because it was at home :P) Thanks for the idea!

    Reply

    1. It is hard to sit still during conference when you’re a kid–I remember those years too! It really does make it so fun for the kids, and they definitely listen for those key words!! And I’m with you–I still think church in my pajamas is pretty awesome! :) xoxo

      Reply

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