January 27, 2013

Opening Song: Choose the Right (Hymn 239) - use flipchart
Closing Song: Choose the Right Way (p160) - use sign language

Program Song: I Am a Child of God (p2) - all verses
Other Songs: I Know My Father Lives (p5), I Will Follow God's Plan (p164)
Wiggle Songs: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (p275) - Junior
                         Do As I'm Doing (p276) - Senior

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Identify the doctrine: Because we are children of God, He gave us a special gift called agency. Agency means we can choose for ourselves. When we make choices there are always consequences. Consequences are what happens because of our choice. There are good and bad/positive and negative consequences. Our Heavenly Father wants us to always choose the right so He can bless us.

Help the children understand it: (use for both Jr and Sr)

Today we are going to play a game to help you understand more about agency AND help us review the songs we have learned this month:

• On the floor you see there are different pictures that represent choices we make. I will draw names out of my can to see who gets to come and throw the bean bag onto one of my pictures. After you land on a picture, we will talk about what the consequences are to your choice. We will then sing the song or verses at the bottom!
• Pictures will include:

Listening and Singing Experiences:

Junior Primary

I Am a Child of God

1. Verse 1: Pitch leading, sign language on chorus.
2. Verse 2: Poster, sign language on chorus.
3. Verse 3: Poster, sign language on chorus.

I Know My Father Lives

1. Testify to the children that our Heavenly Father lives and loves them. They can know too by praying and asking for the Spirit to tell them it is true.
2.  Use the flipchart.

I Will Follow God's Plan

1. Testify that our Heavenly Father's plan is a plan of happiness. Living by His plan is how we can return to live with Him in the Celestial Kingdom. This is a song about that plan.
2. Use the flipchart.

Wiggle Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (p275)

                  

Senior Primary


I Am a Child of God

1. Verse 1: Pitch leading, sign language on chorus.
2. Verse 2: Poster, sign language on chorus.
3. Verse 3: Poster, sign language on chorus.
4. Verse 4: Poster, sign language on chorus.

I Know My Father Lives

1.  Use the flipchart.

I Will Follow God's Plan

1. Use the flipchart.

Wiggle Song: Do As I'm Doing (p176)

Nursery (following Jr. singing time, go into Nursery and sing the following songs with them)

1. Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
2. Give Said the Little Stream
3. I Feel My Savior's Love
4. I Love to See the Temple
5. Families Can Be Together Forever
6. I Am a Child of God

January 20, 2012

Opening Song: As a Child of God (2012 outline)
Closing Song: I Know My Father Lives (p5)

Program Song: I Am a Child of God (p2) - verses 3-4
Wiggle Songs: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam (p60) - Junior
                         Do As I'm Doing (p276) - Senior

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Identify the doctrine: I am a child of God. God is my Heavenly Father. He knows and loves me. He wants me to understand His words and follow His plan. He will bless me if I do His will. I can return to live with Him in the Celestial Kingdom one day.

Help the children understand it: (use for both Jr and Sr)

Tell the children to close their eyes and picture in their mind what you are going to describe to them. Then start with:

• “Imagine you are in a beautiful place. In this place there are beautiful green trees, lovely flowers growing. I can hear a stream off in the distance. If I’m quiet I can hear the birds singing in the trees. When I look around I notice that my family is all here in this beautiful place with me. I feel so happy when I see them. As I walk around I feel very peaceful and calm.” (general idea)
• Have them keep their eyes closed and then tell them “We don’t know exactly what it will be like to live with Heavenly Father again. But I know that it will be perfect and we will be filled with joy and love.” 
• Have them open their eyes. Tell them to raise their hands if they want to share how they think they will feel to live with Heavenly Father again.
• Tell them you are going to sing the 3rd verse of “I am a child of God”. This verse talks about living with Heavenly Father again.

Listening and Singing Experiences:

Junior Primary

I Am a Child of God

1. Sing verse 3 to the children. Have them listen for rhyming words (store-more).
2. Sing verse 3 with the children (tell them to sing what they remember). Have them listen for what word describes the blessings our Heavenly Father has for us (rich).
3. What does it mean "rich" blessings? We sing that our blessings are "in store", does that mean we go to a grocery store to get our blessings? What does it mean? 
4. Sing verse 3 with the children (again, they sing what they remember). Have them listen for what we need to do to return to Heavenly Father (do His will). Explain that doing His will means DOING what He tells us. Remind children that last week we learned about "understanding His words", review where we learn those things (prophet, scriptures, temple, families, Primary, blessings). 
5. Sing verse 3 and the chorus altogether.
6. Teach chorus in Japanese for Brody's homecoming.

Wiggle Song: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam (just to break it up, sing once)

I Know My Father Lives

1. Testify to the children that our Heavenly Father lives and loves them. They can know too by praying and asking for the Spirit to tell them it is true.
2. Sing verse 1 to children with flipchart. Have children listen for what the Spirit tells them (it is true). 
3. Invite children to sing verse 1 with me.
4. Sing verse 2 to children with flipchart. Have them listen for how we should live His plan (by faith). Also have them listen for what the Spirit tells them (that I can).
5. Sing song all the way through using flipchart.                   

Senior Primary

Wiggle Song: Do As I'm Doing

I Am a Child of God

1. "Help the children understand it" activity.
2. Sing verse 3 (no chorus). Listen for trouble spots, fix with mirror singing. Sing again.
3. Sing verse 4 (no chorus). Listen for trouble spots, fix with mirror singing. Sing again.
4. Show video and invite children to sing along to all 4 verses.
5. After video, learn first verse and chorus in Japanese.

I Will Follow God's Plan 

1. Ahead of time: place phrases on the board using magnets with corresponding picture.
2. Testify that our Heavenly Father's Plan is a plan of happiness. Living by His plan is how we can return to live with Him in the Celestial Kingdom. This is a song about that plan.
3. Sing the song to the children (invite them to sing along since they can read the words). Point to each phrase.
4. Practice singing, inviting the children to take away a phrase (leave the picture) each time. Use pitch leading.

Nursery (following singing time, go into Nursery and sing the following songs with them)

1. Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
2. Give Said the Little Stream
3. I Feel My Savior's Love
4. I Love to See the Temple
5. Families Can Be Together Forever
6. I Am a Child of God

January 13, 2013

Opening Song: He Sent His Son (p34-35) - use flipchart
Closing Song: I Lived in Heaven (p4) - no flipchart

Program Song: I Am a Child of God (p2) - verses 2-3
Wiggle Songs: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam (p60)
                         Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (p275)

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Identify the doctrine: I am a child of God. God is my Heavenly Father. He knows and loves me. He wants me to understand His words and follow His plan.

Help the children understand it:
Our Heavenly Father wants us to understand His words and follow His plan. Today we're going to keep learning the new verses to I Am a Child of God.

Listening and Singing Experiences:

Junior Primary

I Am a Child of God

1. Place flipchart photos for verse 2, phrases 2-3 on the board face down.  (Do ahead of time using magnets)
2. Tell the children that our Heavenly Father knows that we have many needs - what are some of the things we need? When children say one of the items on the board, flip it over. Guide them as necessary with prompts. (home, food, family, "understand His words" - the photo of the family at FHE is to represent both "family" and to "understand His words" or learn the Gospel. Sing phrases 1 and 2 (I am a child of god, and so my needs are great). 
3. One of then needs we have is to "understand His words". Sing phrases 3-4 (help me to understand His words, before it grows too late) to the children using pitch leading. Ask the children where we can learn God's words. When children say one of the items on the board, flip it over. Guide them as necessary with prompts. (prophet, scriptures, priesthood blessings, prayer, Primary)
4. Sing verse 2 twice.

Wiggle Song: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam (just to break it up, sing once)
                      

Review

1. Place footprints in a circle on the floor. 
2. Tell the children that under each footprint is a song about how we can "understand His words" and follow His plan. I'll ask one child at a time to come and play a sort of musical chairs.
3. Ask the pianist to play the chorus of "I Am a Child of God", when she stops playing whichever footprint the child is standing on is the song we'll sing.
• Book of Mormon Stories
• Keep the Commandments
• Stand for the Right
• Follow the Prophet
• Search, Ponder and Pray
• Nephi's Courage
• Verse 2 of I Am a Child of God
• Families Can Be Together Forever
• I Love to See the Temple

Senior Primary

Wiggle Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

I Am a Child of God

1. Ahead of time: Ask to go second for music time to give time to write verses 2-3 (verse 4 if time and space) on chalkboard (leaving blanks for word strips). Don't write the chorus.
• Write "I Am a Child of God" at the top since we always start singing that phrase.
• 2nd verse: 
• "and so my needs are" _______
• "help me to understand" _______
• "before it grows" ________
• 3rd verse:
• "rich blessings are in" _______
• "if I but learn to do" ________
• "I"ll live with Him" ________
• 4th verse
• "His promises are" _______
• "Celestial glory shall be" _______
• "If I can but" _______
2. Hand out the word strips to the Sr. Primary (multiple to each child). Sing each phrase on the board and when a child thinks they have the missing word/phrase, invite them to put it on the board using a magnet.
3. To practice, erase words off the board and continue singing! Challenge the children to sing verse 2-3 without any words on the board (and verse 4 if there's time)!
4. Teach them "I Know My Father Lives" using the flipchart and pitch leading.

Nursery (following singing time, go into Nursery and sing the following songs with them)

1. Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
2. Give Said the Little Stream
3. I Feel My Savior's Love
4. I Love to See the Temple
5. Families Can Be Together Forever
6. I Am a Child of God

January 6, 2013

Opening Song: My Heavenly Father Loves Me (p228)

Closing Song: I Am a Child of God (p2-3)

Program Song: I Am a Child of God (p2) 
Wiggle Songs: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam (p60)
                         Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (p275)

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Identify the doctrine: I am a child of God. God is my Heavenly Father. He knows and loves me.

Help the children understand it:
Tell children that this year our theme is "I Am a Child of God". Bear testimony that each child is a child of God, that He is their Heavenly Father, and that He knows them by name and loves them. Show the video, "I Am a Child of God" made by the church on the Mormon Channel on YouTube:

Tell the children that they will sing the first verse twice and then the second verse once. Invite the children to sing along. Tell them that we will be learning the second verse today, so don't worry if they don't know the words yet! (Especially our new little Sunbeams!)

Listening and Singing Experiences:

Junior Primary

1. Sing the second verse to them, phrase by phrase. Have them sing each phrase back to me. (Mirror Singing)
2. Keep the beat by clapping, patting knees while singing.
3. Use How To Sing Sticks if time.
   
   Wiggle Songs: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
                           Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
   
4. Sing the first and second verses together once.
5. Bear testimony and explain 2013 Primary Music CD's.

Senior Primary

1. Invite the children to sing verse 2. Listen for any trouble spots. Fix with Mirror Singing.
2. Teach the children verse 3 using Mirror Singing, Keep the Beat (clapping, patting, walking), and How To Sing Sticks.
   
   Wiggle Songs: Do As I'm Doing
                           Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
   
3. Sing verses 1-3 together once.
4. Bear testimony and explain 2013 Primary Music CD's.

Nursery (following singing time, go into Nursery and sing the following songs with them)

1. Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
2. Give Said the Little Stream
3. I Feel My Savior's Love
4. I Love to See the Temple
5. Families Can Be Together Forever
6. I Am a Child of God