Week plan for JANUARY 14—20
Young children
These activities are designed to catch the attention of young children, but could be modified for older children. I hope you enjoy it!
Monday
Doctrine: Jesus was born
Song: Stars Were Gleaming
Do actions for each line of the song
Have your children try to arrange these stars in the correct order
Other songs of the week
Away in a Manger
I Will Be Valiant
Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Scripture story
Read: Jesus Is Born (longer) or The Nativity Story (shorter)
Watch: the video below of children explaining the Savior's birth (if you don't hear sound, right click and press unmute)
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Sit in a circle and have everyone, one by one, talk about what makes them happy (you could turn it into a Show and Tell if desired). After everyone has shared, show a picture of Christ and say "something that is good tidings of great joy for all of us is that our Savior lives." Then bear testimony in your own words of how He can bring us joy.
Coloring page
Activities
Play a Nativity "Who Am I" game
Find The Differences picture
Everyone stand on their own chair at the far end of the room. One at a time, have each child throw the Nativity story cube as far as they can and then run to retrieve it. According to how it landed, the child will tell what he knows about that part of the story and then make up an action for it. Everyone on the other side of the room repeat the action.
Tuesday
Doctrine: Jesus was born
Song: Away in a Manger
Wrap a popsicle stick with a white piece of felt to be a Baby Jesus for each child. While the song plays, have them gently cradle their little Baby Jesus in their cupped hands and rock Him back and forth.
Other songs of the week
Stars Were Gleaming
I Will Be Valiant
Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Scripture story
Watch: The Birth of Jesus
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Read Luke 2:10, emphasizing the words "good tidings of great joy." Have everyone, including yourself, draw what they think the angel meant using those words. When finished, explain the pictures to each other.
Coloring pages
Activities
Read the poem Welcome Jesus while the children do slow motion dancing and cradling their popsicle stick Baby Jesus in their hands
Rebus: Jesus Is Born
Video your children sharing why they love Jesus and what He means to them. Pray together for inspiration as to who you could send the videos.
Wednesday
Doctrine: I can give good gifts to Jesus
Song: I Will Be Valiant
Everyone grab a metal pot and something for a drumstick, then line up to march around the room like a marching band. Play the song on speakers and sing along with gusto, lifting knees high with each march, and creating as much noise as possible with your drum. If you don't know the words well, print and tape the lyrics to your drum so you can lead the others.
Other songs of the week
Stars Were Gleaming
Away in a Manger
Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Scripture story
Watch: The Wise Men
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Create together a hand clapping game to emphasize each syllable of the phrase (use two beats for "great").
Coloring page
Other activities
Put together printable paper toys of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Print enough for each child to make one gift. Before making the final folds, add one different piece of small candy inside each (i.e. a jelly bean, a gummy bear, and a Tic Tac). Then play a Right/Left Nativity Gift Exchange (note that you may want to alter/omit some details that don't match doctrine).
In a large bag, conceal a few objects that represent a gift we can give to the Savior. Have a child stick their hand into the bag to feel one of the objects and guess what it is. Pull it out and discuss how it can be a gift you can give to Jesus. Examples: pet brush (taking care of animals), toy (sharing), prayer rock (praying), dime (tithing), Sacrament quiet book (reverence).
Draw pictures of your gifts to Baby Jesus, then "wrap" the gift by covering it with a flap of wrapping paper as shown in this picture.
Cut this into an easy jigsaw puzzle: Precious Gifts
Thursday
Doctrine: I can give good gifts to Jesus
Song: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Try singing with gigantic smiles and without letting your lips touch
Talk about what it means to be a sunbeam for Jesus
Other songs of the week
Stars Were Gleaming
Away in a Manger
I Will Be Valiant
Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Scripture story
Hide Baby Jesus (a baby doll wrapped in cloth) in the house. Have all children, except one, dress up like Wise Men with paper crowns and pillowcase capes. They will all follow the last child holding a star (which can be suspended on a stick) while he searches for the Baby Jesus. Switch roles and play again.
Read: The Wise Men
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Compete with each other to see who can say it the slowest or fastest, deepest or highest, or while standing on one foot, or the most in one breath.
Coloring page
Activities
Watch the music video, What Shall We Give and tell your children to do a jumping jack whenever they see someone do a nice thing.
Read together this Be Helpful page and then teach your children a new skill they can use in the future to help another person (i.e. clean windows, give a foot massage, bake bread).
Cut, fold, and hang these Gifts of Love to open every few days
Wear scripture power capes and blast off flying (with superman arms) around the house taping up these You Are Super reminders. Sing or play a recording of "I Will Be Valiant" or "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" while they are running around. Draw pictures of each child in a superhero cape and fill in their blank super challenge.
Get cozy, wrapping the biggest blanket in the house around all of you and read the story A Gift for Jesus.
Friday
Doctrine: Jesus was once a child like me
Song: Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Sing the song with Sway and Freeze movement
Other songs of the week
Stars Were Gleaming
Away in a Manger
I Will Be Valiant
Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Scripture story
Print the Map-It activity from this Jesus Stays Behind at the Temple lesson. While the video below plays, help your child move the Mary, Joseph, and Jesus figures back and forth. When Jesus stays behind, have your child cover Him up with their hand or finger.
Watch: The Boy Jesus and Young Jesus Teaches in the Temple
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Draw a reversible smiling/frowning face on a paper plate. Have one child hold it in the frowning position and then switch it to smiling when another child says, "good tidings of great joy!" In reply, the child holding the plate can say, "Jesus is born!"
Coloring pages
Activities
Look at photo albums of each of your children as a baby
Sing "Once There Was a Snowman" to these lyrics (near the bottom of the page) about starting as a baby and growing bigger.
Measure the height of each child with a string. Cut them and tape to the wall. Show pictures of Christ at different stages of His life and have your children guess how tall He might have been at that age. Tape the pictures next to the strings at the estimated heights.
Saturday
Doctrine: Jesus was once a child like me
Song: Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Spin a top when you start singing, and have your children start spinning too (or spin each other). When the top falls over, they can fall over too. If you don't have a top, make a paper dreidel or a bottle cap spinning top. Explain that Jesus probably only had simple toys like these.
Other songs of the week
Stars Were Gleaming
Away in a Manger
I Will Be Valiant
Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam
Scripture story
Read: The Boy Jesus
Act out the story. Draw a sign for Nazareth to put in one room and a sign for Jerusalem in another. Start your children in Nazareth and say you're all going to a big dinner in Jerusalem. Explain that Jesus was twelve years old; have the children count to twelve with clapping. More fun ideas for continuing the story are found here.
Memorize: "good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10)
Watch Good Tidings of Great Joy: The Birth of Jesus Christ and tell your children to listen carefully for when the angel says "good tidings of great joy". When it happens, clap and shout for joy and hug each other.
Coloring pages
Activities
Make chopstick testimony scrolls and learn about what life would have been like when Jesus was a boy.
Eat a Palestinian meal with any of the following: unseasoned fish, olives, grape juice, milk, honey, cheese, dates, grapes, nuts, flatbread, figs. Try eating on the floor without utensils, laying down on your sides and propped up with elbows, as was a common custom.
Make an I-Spy Jesus rice bottle
Glue an open envelope to a paper as shown here and cut out a picture of young Jesus to put in the envelope as if he was in the temple. As an alternative, glue a picture of Solomon's temple to the paper with open flap doors.
Sunday
To review the songs from the week, play Sing or Dare.
Have your children play Family Memory Bingo with family videos or photo albums while you do family history
Take a binder of the printouts to church as a Sacrament Meeting quiet book
Share testimonies
Call grandparents and have the kids share their favorite thing they did during the week
Leave a comment to let me know how I can improve these week plans to work better for your family!
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