This updated and expanded 3rd edition of Theme Scheme offers you a wealth of creative ideas, activities, games, plays and quizzes to help plan, organise and lead your group's programmes. All are fun and practical, requiring minimal equipment, resources and time to prepare.

The first section covers a whole year, month-by-month, to help you celebrate New Zealand and international anniversaries, national days, organisations and causes.

Games are a wonderful way for folk to mix and get to know one another. There are easy instructions for indoor and outdoor games suitable for active, young people, through to less mobile, older people. Great for convenors, leaders, teachers and diversional therapists.

The book also includes sound, straightforward guidelines for running small group meetings, covering rules for happy meetings, an agenda and minutes structure, and the role of the person leading the meeting.

Special Sundays and church related activities through the year are highlighted. This section also notes related plays and readings in Rosalie's companion book Ten Plays: Short, easy dramas for churches (available in print and as an eBook).

The last two sections of material for themed quizzes and trivia competitions on general and Bible topics will keep your group entertained and interacting with each other throughout the year.

About this Updated and Expanded Third edition
In the first section - Months of the Year - dates for National Observances and Appeals have been updated, discontinued events deleted, and new entries added.


In the chapter for January we have added another set of years for Chinese Animal symbols for 2032-2043. We have also added graphics for the Animal symbols and for the Signs of the Zodiac.


We have added a section on Celebrating Significant Birthdays for older people, traditional gifts for milestone Wedding Anniversaries, and Birthstones, Colours and Flowers for Birthday months.


In the Games section we have added:A new large space game: Paper Track-Wheel Races
Long Table Games for several people, which are ideal for elderly and mobility impaired persons
Small Table Games for 2 to 4 people
Competitions with a message
Craft activities
Themed Word searches
Outside Games




Website links have been checked and updated.


In the Quizzes section, lists of M¿ori words have been expanded.


And countries statistics have been updated to include the latest population sizes and life expectancy.