LDS Nursery Lesson #21~ Joseph Smith Saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ

The gathering activity I think we will try is to have a movie playing. I am not so sure that this will work, I do not know if children under the age of three even care to watch movies, I know my 18 month old doesn't.  We might try Living Scripture's Joseph Smith Story, or we might try the Church's Restoration movie they made just a couple years ago. I am not sure which is a better choice. I love the movie made by the church, it has beautiful music, and it is short, so it might be good because I don't want to take up too much time. However it is live acting and Living Scriptures is animated and maybe children enjoy animation better. Now on to the real lesson plan.

If you have your lesson in a seperate room you could line the halls with pictures from Joseph Smith's Life up until the first vision and you can talk about each event  leading up to the first vision, and then complete the lesson in the classroom.

I really like the layout of the lesson today. So I think that we will follow pretty straight down the line. 
I like the Exercise listed in the manual about telling the story again only have the kids pretend to be trees.  I like how it suggests that even the plants show respect and reverence for their Creator. I like the repitition of the story, the more times the kids hear it the better off they will be.  The image below could be used the first or second time of the story.

I think we will use it the first time So they can see the visual, if we have the gathering activity be the movie, they will have seen it on movie, talked about the pictures on the way to class, watched the  puppet show of it. And then We might have a few of the kids act out the story. Bring a big bible, have some white robes for the kids to put on and they can stand on the chairs and someone can be Joseph Smith, we could bring a hat for them to dress up. We could have the remaining kids act like the trees like the manual suggests. If we do that I will take pictures, and post them later. I like that idea. I think actually acting it out will drive home that image in the kids heads.

Be sure to reread the Joseph Smith Story found in Joseph Smith history and pray and reaffirm your testiomony once again on this subject before teaching the Lesson. That way you can bare testimony to the kids, and your testimony can be strengthened.

Here is the puppet show from the Friend Magazine

Remove pages 14 and 15 (I included them below) from the magazine and glue them onto a sheet of heavy paper or lightweight cardboard. Carefully cut out each piece, then glue a small craft stick onto the back of each, with the stick extending out the side (see illustration). Find a box about the size of a medium-size shoe box. Cut large openings on both ends and on the box lid (see illustration). As you tell the story of the First Vision, use the box as a stage. Move the different figures and scenery on and off the stage through the side holes as you tell the story. You may want to tell the story at a family home evening.

I also think it would be fun to help the kids do a puppet show and act out the story, or simply leave it out for the kids to play with the rest of the day, maybe keep it in the nursery to play with on other days as well.

For our art activity we might also do leaf rubbings for the pictures. But the title of the lesson is that Joseph Smith Saw Heavenly Father and Jesus, so I haven't decided if leaf rubbings deter from the main idea. I just like to do something a little more than just coloring something that might stick with them longer. Maybe helping the kids make their finger puppets and helping them tell the story with them would be a better use of time and effort for the kids.

Nursery Graduation

My only memory of nursery is when my younger sister who is two and a half years younger than me graduated from nursery. They had a big cerimony and made a big deal about it. I remember thinking it was really cool. And some how to this day I remember thinking that those nursery leaders loved my sister, and that they had testimonies.  So I keep thinking that my job isn't just to the kids in nursery but also to their older brothers and sisters.  I think that having some sort of graduation cerimony would be cool. But we will see when the time comes. The other thing I remember from when my sister was in nursery was that we were in a very old building (it has since been demolished)  however, in my memory the nursery was painted with murals of nature. I remember how much I liked being in the nursery room. I wonder if I could get permission to make the walls in our nursery not so bleek?

Visual Schedule

So part of having a schedule that you follow is actually having a schedule to look at, so that everyone in the room, teachers, parents, substitutes, and child alike know what is coming next.  If it is large enough that you can see it from anywhere in the room then you don't have to divert your attention from what you ae doing to figure out what time something is going to happen or what is coming next. If you make it with pictures than the kids will know what is coming next and they will be able to be at peace that their favorite part of the day is coming.

If you use a pocket chart than you can change the order of things without too much excitement in the room. Or you can put specific pictures such as playdough on the days you are doing play dough and mr. potato head on the days you do potato heads. . .

Or you can be a little less specific and more rigid and just stick to your schedule every week and have it on a poster board unmoveable.  I think that is what I will do.  When I get it made I will surely post pictures of it.

anyhow a large visual schedule will make all nurserys run more smoothly.

A new nursery leader's to do list

Prepare first lesson
Get recipe for playdough
Make playdough
get some quite music
See if we have a cd player in the nursery room
find some wood suns
paint the wood suns
Create a poster for the suns
make stars for check out
talk to primary president about obtaining a seperate room for lessons
Find binder and page protectors for books made by children
Make a visual schedule for the children and Adults

LDS Nursery Lesson #20 I will be reverent

I like how the lesson progress in the manual. My daughters have a book called, "I am Reverent When. . ." by Val Bagley. I purchased it at Deseret Book a number of years ago. I like it because it shows different kind of Revernce. It has a rhyming poem in it which is good for little kids to hear. and it has flaps to lift and wheels to turn so it would be great attention getting activity for the lesson.

Then I think will start in with the lesson and Explain what Reverence Mean, and have all the kids repeat the word reverence.

I will show the picture suggested in the Manual and talk about how the people in the picture are being Reverent.

In the October 2008 Friend there is a book to make about Revernce. Instead of making it for every kid, I think that we will simply make one for Nursery and it can be a book we read at story time, or any other time during the day in weeks to come. It will be good for the kids to have something to go back to. Maybe we can have each of the kids color a page and then turn it in to a book.

After We read the book We can practice being reverent. Then we will go for a revernce walk and practice walking quitely in church, practice having our arms folded. I plan on having pictures of the Savior on the walls like a museum. We will practice thinking about Jesus, and talking quietly. Then we will walk back to nursery. (this will help teach the routine of going to a different room for lesson if we can get permission).

We will have papers that say, "I can keep my hands and feet reverent"  and then we will help each kid trace their hands and feet. And they can color them if they like.

We have singing time seperate, our primary chorister does it in the primary room, I think she does a fabulous job. But I think that music can really bring the spirit to a lesson. So I think we will sing, Reverence is Love  and The Chapel Doors.  The kids sing The Chapel Doors every week in singing time, so it will be go to tie it in.

Effective Teaching

Being a nursery teacher is no different than being any other teacher, in that it requires study, preparation and relying on the spirit to help you teach.  I will be studying The Church of Jesus Christ's, "Teaching no Greater Call" Book to help me learn to be a better teacher.   A few weeks ago I was using the "Preach my Gospel" Manual to help me with my personal scripture study.  On page 19 it states,

. . . you are responsible to thoroughly understand the lessons and teach by the Spirit in your own words. Teach so that others will strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ, Desire to repent, and enter into covenants with God.

Effective teachers are always working to improve their knowledge and abilities. Although you will not teach all you know about the doctrine, your increased knowledge will build your testimony and your abiltiy to teach with spiritual power. You will know you are using the lessons as intend when you:

• Help others make and keep commitments taht lead to baptism and confirmation.
• Strive to consistently study, treasure up, and apply the doctrines in your life.
• Seek and follow the Spirit as you prepare and teach the lessons
• Work with your companion to make specific plans for each person you teach.
• Focus on the central messages and doctrines as you teach.
• Adjust the order, length, and pace of the lessons to meet the needs of those you each.
• Teach often from the scriptures with clairty and conviction.
• Bear testimony frequently

I think to be effective as a teacher in Nursery we need to apply all of this as it is appropriate. We need to be studying the subject of the lesson in our personal study, as the manual points out, we WILL NOT teach everything we learn, but we will better be able to bare testimony of it, we will be better prepared for questions, and most importantly we will be more open and capable of knowing what the spirit wants us to teach.

Craig and I both agree the less time spent in unstructured play time the better.  This does not mean that we should have no fun, or no play. It just means that playing with toys tends to lead to tears and lots of noise, and people getting hurt.  So I have been exploring for some ideas of activities we can do at the beginning and end of nursery. I found a website called LDS Treasure it seams to have some fun Ideas.

Nursery Games

Two hours is a long time to entertain toddlers. The schedule suggested in the lesson manual is valuable for making the time move along without allowing children to become bored or fussy. However, it can be challenging to think of games to play with children so young.

Little ones like simple games. Anything with a bit of action will entertain them and the same games can be played week after week. Toddlers like that which is familiar, so don't try to think of new games for each week. It takes time for them to learn activities. Introduce one or two new games at a time. Eventually you'll learn to stop just before the children become bored, but this takes practice. Watch your students to see if you can tell when they are getting tired or perhaps too stimulated. Then notice what happens just before that.

Following are some simple activities that will keep your little ones occupied for the fifteen minute gathering time:

Blanket and Ball

Have all the children hold the edge of a blanket or sheet. Place an under-inflated ball, cloth doll, stuffed animal or other safe toy on the blanket. Have all the children bounce the blanket up and down to make the toy bounce. This may not sound exciting, but toddlers find this highly amusing. They especially enjoy trying to knock the toy off the blanket, which is why it must be safe.

Blowing Up a Balloon

I believe this was in a previous nursery manual. Children join hands and move in very close together. They gradually move backwards, blowing as they move. When they are stretched as far as their arms will go, yell "Pop!" and fall down. Children love anything involving falling down.

Flashlight Chase

Move a flashlight beam slowly around the room. Let the children try to stomp on it. If each adult has a light, you can keep a number of children occupied at once.

Balance Beam Game

Create a masking tape line around the room in a square. Have the children line up on the line and move around it following your instructions. Have the children hop, wiggle, tip-toe, take large and small steps and so on. Tell them to pretend they are on a high wire or balance beam way up high.

Let's Pretend

Have the children pretend to be anything that fits your lesson or interests them. They can be animals, trees, butterflies, fish, and so on.

Line Ball

Have the children sit in a line facing to the left. Give the first child on the left a ball. He must turn around (scooting while sitting) and roll it to the next child. That child catches it and also turns around to roll it. If you have a large nursery, make two lines. The last child could get up and run to the front of the line and sit down.

Toy Pass

Have all the children sit or stand in a line. Give the first child a toy. Have her place it on her head and take it to the next child. Vary this game by thinking of new ways to get the toy from child to child.

Block Stack

If your nursery has blocks or other stacking toys, let each child in turn get a block and stack it up. Build the excitement. When it topples, laugh. This helps children decide it's okay to make mistakes.

By Terrie Lynn Bittner