September 2010 LDS Primary Sharing Time Helps and Ideas

Image of Mother Teresa, one of God's greatest examples of love and obedience.

Monthly Theme: I Obey Jesus Christ Because I Love Him
Monthly Scripture: "If ye love me, keep my commandments." John 14:15

Weeks 1 and 2: I show love for Jesus Christ when I keep the commandments.

* Have a child hold GAK picture 303. Ask the primary children to share what they know about Nephi. Did he love the Lord? Sing Nephi's Courage (CS pg. 120). What did Nephi do and what can I do? Have swords cut out of posterboard (or cardboard... something sturdy!) and let the children wrap with aluminum foil. Have sharpies or permanent markers out for them to write on their swords, "I show love for Jesus Christ when I...." Of course little one's can draw pictures of what they do to show their love.

* Bring in puppets! Have the children use the puppets to act out different scenarios on how to keep the commandments and show their love for Jesus. Some different scenarios could include:

-A friend really wants a toy from the store. She doesn't have enough money. It is one awesome toy and she really really wants it, what should she do?
-A friend watches TV every single day for 5 hours straight. It's so entertaining and easy to just plop down after school and zone away! Plus, those Ninja turtles are kung fu masters! Is this friend breaking the commandment about idols? What can they do to keep the commandment and show love for Jesus Christ?

* Ask the children if they could get a gift for Heavenly Father and Jesus, what would they give them? A horse, a toy, a book, a sweater?? A wise man once said, "Your life is a gift from God, what you do with that life is your gift to God." (Leo Buscaglia) Invite a child to come to the front, someone who can stand very still. You'll need wrapping paper, tape, scissors and a bow. Have questions, scriptures and songs having to do with keeping the commandments. As the children answer the questions and participate, invite them up to wrap the primary friend! (For example a child answer's a question, so they get to cut the paper. Another child answers another question and gets to tape. Another child reads a scripture and gets to tape some more, etc...) Bear testimony that as we keep the commandments, we truly give Jesus all our love and you can't get a better gift than that!

* What are different ways we show love? Have the children give themselves hugs, blow kisses, high five each other, softly cheering hooray... can we show our love for Jesus these ways? In heaven, but not right now... so then how do we show our love for Jesus now? Break into groups and give a large sheet of butcher paper. Let them brainstorm and write/draw ways we keep the commandments. Let them come up with scriptures and songs that have to do with the topic and add to their papers. Have a member from each group share a few ideas they came up with to the whole primary.
3 Nephi 11:9 "And Nephi arose and went forth, and bowed himself before the Lord and did kiss his feet."

While we can't show Jesus our love for him with kisses and hugs yet, we can do so by keeping the commandments.

Pass out ziploc baggies with Hershey's Hugs and Kisses and a piece of paper with 1o squares on it. Challenge the children to do 10 things this week to follow the commandments and show their love for Christ, as they do so they can check a box.

(This is food in primary, yes, I realize... but it does have to do with the lesson, so feel free to use your personal discretion)

* Make a board game entitled "To Prosper or Not To Prosper". How do we show love for Christ? By keeping the commandments! And what do we get in return... more than we really deserve! "And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep His commandments; and he has promised you if ye would keep his commandments ye would prosper...." Mosiah 2:22

Have a dice, some sort of child figure with a heart to move on the spaces and little cards with questions, scriptures and songs on keeping the commandments for the children to choose when they land on a spot. Where is the final destination on the board game? Right by the Savior of course!! (You could have also little cards that say something to the effect of, "We're all human! Today you sinned... you will not prosper, move back 1 space.")

* The Sharing Time Outline suggested having the children review "My Gospel Standards". Here is a link from The Friend magazine for printable cards the children can take home to practice with their family.

* Here are a couple different ideas from The Friend magazine by Karen Lofgreen on obedience. I really like the button idea and will be trying that at Family Home Evening!

* Here are some ideas on how obedience makes us happy by Sheila Wilson. There is a great little book for the children to make on the beatitudes.

Week 3: My love for Jesus Christ grows when I pray.

* Bring in a tape measure. Have about 5 different stories (with a picture for each) from the scriptures on prayer. Ask the children to tell you the stories and after each one ask, "How did their love grow for Jesus Christ when they prayed?" Then invite them to stretch the measuring tape a couple feet after each story. Try to get the measuring tape to stretch across the whole room (you'll have to use the special button to make it not retract) and bear testimony that you know your love for Jesus Christ will grow even longer and more than what we see on the measuring tape when we pray!

* Bring in a watering can and a paper flower. Have about 10, 2" strips of green paper than can be the stem. Have the children come to the front and answer questions, scriptures and songs on prayer. As they do so, let them water the flower and add a stem to see it grow. Our love for Jesus Christ grows when we pray!! (As a little twist, you could actually bring in a pot, soil, seeds and watering can and plant a real flower as they answer questions, sing songs and read scriptures on prayer... then perhaps have someone take it to a friend who wasn't in primary)

* Bring in a manual air pump and beach ball. When we pray our love for Christ grows. Let the children come up and take turns pumping. Notice how we have to keep doing it often and work hard at it!! Mosiah 4:12 "And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of Him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true."

* Have a gigantic paper ice cream sundae bowl on the blackboard. Let the children have scoops of ice cream and write (or draw) different things they can pray for on the scoops. Senior Sharing time can also add scriptures about prayers, or examples from their own life about times they've prayed. Add all the scoops to the Sundae! Wow!! Just as this sundae went from an empty bowl to completely full, so will our love of Christ grow as we pray.

* Bring in a lock and a couple different keys to try to open it. Have a child try the different keys and figure out which one works. "Learn to pray. Pray often. Pray in your mind, in your heart. Pray on your knees. Prayer is your personal key to heaven. The lock is on your side of the veil. And I have learned to conclude all my prayers with ‘Thy will be done’ (Matthew 6:10; see also Luke 11:2; 3 Nephi 13:10).”Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov. 2009, 46 Hand out different hearts with questions on prayer and keys with answers. Let the children walk around and find the matches, then have them share with the Primary.

Week 4: My love for Jesus Christ grows when I study the scriptures.

 

* Tailor the above ideas with scriptures instead of prayer.

 

*Half an hour each morning privately studying, pondering, and communicating with your Heavenly Father can make an amazing difference in your lives. It will give increased success in your daily activities. It will bring increased alertness to your minds. It will give you comfort and rock-steady assurance when the storms of life descend upon you." (M. Russell Ballard, "Be Strong in the Lord, and in the Power of His Might" (CES fireside for young adults, March 3, 2002), 3–4)

Let the children find different numbered rocks (1-10) throughout the room. Have 10 questions, songs and scriptures (total) on scripture study for the children to answer and do. Let's study the scriptures and get that rock steady testimony! As we do so our love for Christ will grow!

 

* Bring in 2 mirrors. Have a couple children help. Hold up a Book of Mormon and Bible in between the 2 mirrors. What do the children see?

"My works are without end, and . . . my words . . . never cease" Moses1:4

 

* Do you find our primary children don't know where the different books in the scriptures belong? Do you wonder why? Wonder no longer, it's because they are children and we need to teach them. Take the time to learn the names of the books (Thanks Children's Songbook for making this easy!! Pages 119,116,114) and the different stories that go in the books. As we do so our love for Christ will grow!!! If you have graph paper, you can have senior sharing time choose 3 books in the scriptures and have them make a mini-cross word puzzle. Have them switch with other children and let a couple children share clever clues with all the primary.