My Mother Dear - Creating a Flipchart with the help of the Primary Children

With Mother's Day just around the corner, I'm getting a head start on learning our two songs for sacrament meeting:  My Mother Dear and Grandmother.  This lesson is just for My Mother Dear, since I will be doing actions for Grandmother (which if you look at the lyrics to Grandmother the actions are pretty self explanatory.)

With this lesson, the children will get to choose a word that's missing.  Have fun and maybe sing the wrong word on purpose :-) After each word, they will sing a song that gets the wiggles out. At the end, you will have a Flipchart to continue learning and reviewing the song for Mother's Day. For Senior Primary, there is a Relay Game using the words of this song. 

Click here to Print FLIPCHART PDF
Click here to Print Senior Primary Relay Game

Images were found on Google Images

Introduction:  "Who knows what a poem is??! That's right.  It's a different way to tell a story or feelings.  Sometimes it rhymes or has a unique rhythm.  Did you know that a lot of songs are poems?! In fact, the song we will be learning today is a poem.  Now, I learned about poems in school, so let's pretend we are in Singing School today!  When I say go, you guys can come sit in front of me on the floor and I'll be the teacher.  You guys are going to help me write this poem for our song.  Sing reverently as you come and find a spot on the floor.  Go."  Start singing I am a Child of God as the children find their spot.

Have the Flipchart papers displayed on the board with 

only the first line showing and the rest turned over.  

Read the 1st line with the missing word, "Like blank in the morning that wakens day from night. Hmmm...what would waken day from night?  Sunshine or Raindrops?  Raise your hand if you think Sunshine.  Raise your hand if you think Raindrops."  Whichever one they pick, sing the line with that word until they pick the right one.  "Yes, I agree.  I think Sunshine fits best for this poem!  Let's sing a song about Sunshine."  Stand up and sing Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam.

Flip over the next two papers.

Read the 2nd line with the missing word, "Like blank in the springtime so colorful and bright.  Hmm...what is so colorful and bright?  Flowers or squirrels?  Raise your hand if you think flowers.  Raise your hand if you think squirrels."  Whichever one they pick, sing the line with that word until they pick the right one.  "Yes, I agree.  Flowers fit best for this line of the poem.  Let's sing about flowers."  Stand up and sing Popcorn Popping. "Did you know Popcorn popping is about flowers?!"

Flip over the next two papers. 

Read the 3rd line with the missing word, "Like blank of bluebirds that fill the air with cheer.  Hmm...fill the air with cheer?  We have either happy songs or scaly feet.  Raise your hand if you think happy songs.  Raise your hand if you think scaly feet."  Whichever one they pick, sing the line with that word until they pick the right one.  "Yes, I agree.  Happy songs fits best and scaly feet is just silly.  Let's sing a happy song."  Stand and sing If You're Happy.  

Flip over the last two papers.

Read the last line with the missing word, "A blank bright and lovely is my mother dear....Hmm...what is your mother?  A person or a starfish.  Haha I think we all know.  But let's vote to make sure.  Raise your hand if your mother is a person.  Raise your hand if your mother is a starfish.  Oh good!  No one has a starfish mom :-)  Let's sing about being a person."  Stand up and sing Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes.  

"Hurray we finished our poem!  We will be singing this one quite a bit so we can sing it to your mother's on Mother's Day!  Thanks for helping me with it!"

Bear your testimony. 

Senior Primary Relay Game (Printable PDF at the top of the page).  I put magnets on the back of the words, but you could use sticky tack or tape.

Write before Singing Time or have them sing a song while you write it on the board.

1.  Sing through the song one time using the Flipchart above.  Before singing, remind the children to listen carefully and try to remember the words.

2.  Split the children into two teams.  Have them line up facing the board.  Explain the rules of the game, which are:

                   The person at the beginning of the line will come to the board.

He or she will choose a word and place it in one of the blanks where they think it should go.

Then they race back and touch the hand of the next person in line.

That person will go to the board.

They can choose to place a new word, or move a word that has already been placed to a different blank.  

When all the blanks are filled on any team the race is over and everyone must STOP.

3.  Sing the song as written on the board; even with words in the wrong spaces. Keep playing until all the words are correct. 

*If they know the song, remove more words.

*Switch out words and do different rounds. 

Fun Singing Time

Being a 5th Sunday and since the children worked so hard all month on If I Listen With My Heart, this will be a more relaxed, fun activity week.

Date:  January 31, 2016

Opening Song: Search, Ponder, Pray p. 109 CS  (also have this for Ooh and Aah prelude)

Talk, Scripture, Theme, etc.

Visitor Song: Hello Song p.260 CS

Birthday Song: Your Happy Birthday p.283 CS

Singing Time

There are a lot of games like this one on Pinterest and I read a lot before making my own.  I've never done this activity before, and my primary children can be a little rambunctious so I'm a little nervous to see how this goes.  My back-up plan is to practice singing I love to See the Temple in Russian, or bring some flip charts for future songs to get a head start on them.  But a lot of posts said this is a "no-fail" activity, so I'm crossing my fingers.  

Materials:
*Ooh and Aah sign (for prelude)
*Plastic cups (I used 12)
*Elmer's Glue
*Rubber bands (as many as you have cups)
*Tissue Paper
*Foam Board (You can use poster board as well)
*Cards that have different ways to sing. I printed mine from this great blog: Primary Singing Time Ideas

On the back of each card (I only used 12) I wrote down the songs and page numbers of ones that would work good with each category:

Plug Your Nose:  I Hope They Call Me on a Mission p.169, You've Had a Birthday p.285

Eyes Wide Open:  He Sent His Son p.34, I Love to See the Temple p.95, The Oxcart p.219

One Big Breath: Listen, Listen p.107, The 1st Article of Faith p.122, When We're Helping p.198, Fun to Do p.253

Stop/Go:  Tell Me the Stories of Jesus p.57, Called to Serve p.174, Give, Said the Little Stream p.236

Stomp to the Rhythm: The Church of Jesus Christ p.77, Follow the Prophet p.110, The Iron Rod p.274 HYMNS, We'll Bring the World His Truth p.172

Lights Out:  A Child's Prayer p.12, Stars Were Gleaming p.37, I Am Like a Star p.163

Every Other Word: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam p.60, Hello Song p.260

Sticky Arms & Legs: I Need My Heavenly Father p.18, To Think About Jesus p.71

Sing Backwards: Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes p.275, Once There Was a Snowman p.249, Wise Man, Foolish Man p.281

Hold Your Tongue:  Rain is Falling All Around p.241, We're All Together Again p.259

A Capella:  Love One Another p.136, Popcorn Popping p.242, Do As I'm Doing p.276

Eyes Shut: I am a Child of God p.2, Faith p.96, If You're Happy p.266

How to Make the Punch Board

To make the cups evenly spaced on the board, with room at the top for the Title, I drew a graph on the back of the foam board with 3 evenly spaced marks length wise and 4 evenly spaced marks width wise. Then I punched a pencil hole where the lines met, so I could know where to glue the cup on the other side.

I traced each cup on the hole prick so I could glue it centered.  My see-through cups came in handy.  Good thing I saved them from Christmas time :-)

I glued the bottom of the cups down with Elmer's Glue.  Look at that cute little foot! :-)  The kids were great little helpers...actually, I ended up waiting for nap time to finish.

While the cups were drying, I cut the tissue paper (also saved from Christmas) into circles.  One Pinterest post said this makes it look neater.

After you put the cards with the different ways to sing in each of the cups, over them with tissue paper and a rubber band.

I added a title that I drew on scratch paper and glued it to the stop.  You could just write straight on the board or whatever.

My boys enjoyed testing it out.  Here's what's best:  Place it against a flat surface/wall.  Tell them to punch in the middle of the cup so they don't hit the cup and it comes off the board and you have to re-glue it...
Sometimes the tissue paper doesn't break and it gets pushed in the cup and the rubber band goes on their hand.  I figured if this happens, that'll be just fine.  The tissue tends to break better when the rubber band is really tight, but I have all different sizes of rubber bands so some I can't get tight.

Closing Song:  If I Listen With My Heart (Outline for Sharing Time 2016)

This is the punching board after Senior primary...what I thought might happen, did.  Oh well.