Next Year's Primary Theme

The end of the year is almost here and people are already asking about NEXT YEAR'S PRIMARY THEME.

If you haven't already heard, next year's theme is "I Am A Child Of God". 

On lds.org you can find a complete copy of the year's topics and see what we will be learning month to month. I have created a new section on the website where you can click on and get ideas for every

topic and song visuals as well. If you go to the home page you will find a banner across the top of the page called "Primary Helps". If you click on this banner, you will find game and activities that will help with many of the topics throughout the year. You will also see that this same topic was done in the year
2008 and you can purchase (while they last) those sharing time books for only $2 each. I am working
on the songs and have most of them available now, but those that aren't there will be there by January
1st. Also this year, the senior Primary children will be learning about church history and the Doctrine
& Covenants...while junior Primary children will be learning from the CTR B manual and the Sunbeams
from the "I Am A Child of God" Primary manual #1. All the necessary handout books will also be found
in this Primary Helps section. Individual handout downloads will be available along with the books if you
wish to own your own complete set. If we don't manage to put ALL the ideas you might want to use for
these monthly topics, be sure to just check on the site using the "Quick Search" to look up topics you are
wanting to teach about during sharing time and see what there is on the site. We are always happy to
receive any comments on things you like or things you wish we would do but you can't find on the site.
We want our site to be the FIRST place you go to for helps in teaching and working with your own family
in family home evening. We appreciate you SPREADING THE WORD to all those who are looking for fun
and helpful teaching aids for their classroom and family. This month we are offering a special "THANK
YOU" to all those who are ordering books or CD's from our site! If you order ANY BOOK OR CD, you
will be sent a FREE BOOK called "I Know My Savior Lives" plus a CD that allows you to print in black and white or color a lot of great games and activities for classroom, sharing time or family home evening!

This book and CD is currently selling for $14.95 on our site...so it is a SUPER VALUE! Tell all your friends
and let them get in on a great deal as well! Have a wonderful holiday and we hope this helps you get a


head start on the coming year in Primary!

Fun Christmas Game Ideas

With Christmas just around the corner, I wanted to share with you some of the fun ideas I have used over the years for Christmas games at family parties, ward parties, school parties and just for fun! When choosing games to play I look at some of the old favorite games we used to play all the time and turn them into unique and fun Christmas style games. Here are some of our favorites!

1) Christmas "Taboo": If you can't remember how "taboo" is played... you divide the group into two teams. They pick someone from their team to come up and are given 30 seconds (or maybe a minute) to get their team to say as many of the words on their cards as they can without using the five words below the main word on the card. For example: Get your team to say "Santa" without using the words "Presents", "Jolly", "Fat", "Red", "Man". Create your own cards on green or red card stock. Think of different Christmas words and then write below the five words you might use to describe this word. The cards are easy to make and they love to play!

2) "All I want for Christmas...": This is a fun pencil and paper game. I run of a sheet of paper with some Christmas clip art on it and the words "All I want for Christmas..." Written across the top. I also write..."If money was no object, what would you like for Christmas?" Each player writes something they would really like and then hands in their paper without putting their name on it. After all the papers are collected, the leader reads each Christmas wish and the group tries to guess who's Christmas wish it is! It's fun and pretty interesting to find out the deep wishes of the people at your party. Young children can play this by having an adult help them write what their wish is.

3) "Christmas ABC's": This is another pencil and paper game. Make a sheet that has the letters of the alphabet on it in a vertical manner. Each letter has a short line following it on which to write an answer. Give the group about 5 minutes or so to write a Christmas word beside each letter (For example: "A" = Angel, Antlers, "B" = Baby Jesus, Bethlehem, "C" = Candles, Candy Cane, Etc.) Once time is up, each player takes his turn to read his words. If they say a word that you also said, then you cross it out. You receive one point for each word that no one else thought of... so be original and creative! We also do "Happy Birthday Jesus" with this game idea and each person writes something they would give Jesus beside each letter... this gets interesting. You will have to be the judge if you think it was a useable answer.

4) If you have an old "Gestures" game, use the plastic timer that you put cards in and make some of your own using the original cards as you master for the correct size. Write Christmas words on them that the player needs to get his team to guess before it drops through the slot! Christmas words might be: Santa, Reindeer, Tree, Lights, Presents, Candy Cane, Elf, Stocking, Ribbon, Wrapping Paper, Egg Nog, Ornaments, Etc.

5) Bingo and Concentration Games always are a hit. . . especially with younger children. We have some fun ones on the website, but you can make your own using small pictures from coloring books, magazines, or clip art from the internet. 

6) We love to make up our own "Christmas Minute-To-Win-It!" Think of some fun tasks they can do in one minute.  Players come up in front of the group and just try to accomplish the task to entertain everyone else! Ideas might include: 1) Christmas Junk in the Trunk! - (Get a large tissue box and fill with a dozen large circle bells or ping pong balls. Run a small twine or rope through the box so it can be tied around the player's waist. Place the box behind them and then they shake and jump and do whatever they can to get the bells to jump out and fall out of the box. 2) Stack Attack! - Use 49 Red Solo Cups and one green one in a vertical stack. They must remove the cups one at a time placing the top cup to the bottom using one hand and trading from left to right hand each switch. Once the green cup has gone from the top clear through the stack and back to the top, the game is over. 3) Face the Cookie! - Use a small Christmas cookie and place it on your forehead. When the leader says "Go", everyone starts moving their eyebrows and facial skin to move the cookie down their face and into their mouth. If the cookie falls off, they replace it on heir forehead. . . everyone plays this at the same time. . . young and old love this.

Use your imagination and create some fun activities for your group to do. . . it was a real hit with our group last year!

Check out your Christmas section on the webstie to find some more fun game ideas for the whole family! Have a great holiday!

Sunbeam Lesson Helps

Last fall I was so excited to be called to serve in the Nursery.  I loved my little Nursery kids and had fun getting them ready to be a Sunbeam.  Luckily for me, I got to move up with them into Sunbeams.   I love to go to Primary Singing Time with them.  My cute Sunbeam Class, so far, does a wonderful job of sitting still and trying their best to follow along with the songs.  It's wonderful to see kids this age singing I am a Child of God and they really love singing Scripture Power and the all time favorite, Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam.  I realized this past Sunday that they do learn things in Nursery because even the CTR 7 class still squats down low on "Sun" and bursts up on "-Beams".  Coming right out of Nursery I know it was taught there!  I believe that things like this are not all that our young children are learning in Nursery and Sunbeams.  They are developing their testimonies by the testimonies we are sharing with them.  So even if one Sunbeam won't sit down through the lesson, I have faith that he is getting something too.  There was a quote on the teacher instructions I received in my teacher binder,

"Although there may be times when a child does not listen with a believing heart, your testimony of Jesus will remain in his or her mind and soul...If a child is not listening, don't despair.  Time and truth are on your side.  At the right moment, your words will return as if from heaven itself.  your testimony will never leave your children."
Elder Neil L. Andersen

This quote will see me through this year with these cute, rambunctious, boys.  I know a big help on keeping young Sunbeam aged kids' attention is being prepared.  The more prepared you are the better they will listen.  I also understand that their attention span is is short so you also have to be creative and energetic.  

This is where Finch Family Games comes in to help.  There are three volumes of games and activities that go along with the entire year of Sunbeam Lessons.  These books are Nursery Time Vol. 1, Nursery Time Vol. 2, and Nursery Time Vol. 3.  (Don't be fooled by the name, up until a couple years ago the Nursery and Sunbeam Classes used the same manual.)  

 

Another great resource for Sunbeam Lesson Helps is the Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeam book.  This book has black and white handouts and crafts that are easy to prepare for every lesson in the Sunbeam Manual.  Finch Family Games has come up with lots of Sunbeam Lesson Helps for you to use.  

The Nursery Time books skip around a bit so I want to list the games and the Lessons they go with for you.  You can follow the games with links if you would prefer to use the colored digital download.  The handouts from Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams are sold in groups of 4 as downloads. 

Lastly, remember there are many other games and Primary Lesson Helps at FinchFamilyGames.com.  If you don't feel that one of these suggested games is the right fit for your class you can always search for other games using the Quick Store Search on FinchFamilyGames.com.

I hope you find these games useful and fun for your Sunbeam Class.  I know I will be using them and making learning the gospel and coming to Primary fun for my Sunbeams.

Sunbeam Lesson Helps

Lessons 1-4 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 1	I am a child of God	Craft: "I am a Child of God" Headband
		I Am A Child of God Presentation
Lesson 2	Heavenly Father Has a Body	"Look at Me" Mirror
		Joseph Smith Prayed Puzzle
Lesson 3	Heavenly Father's Plan for Us	The Perfect Plan
		Earth Card
Lesson 4	I Can Pray to Heavenly Father	I Can Pray All Day
		"I Can Pray" Figure
Lessons 5-8 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 5	Jesus Christ is the Son of Heavenly Father	Jesus Once Was a Little Child
Lesson 6	Heavenly Father and Jesus Love Me	Gifts of Love
		"Jesus Loves Me" Necklace
Lesson 7	The Holy Ghost Helps Me	"I Will Listen To The Holy Ghost"
Lesson 8	I Am Thankful for the Day and the Night	Our Day and Night Lights
		Sun, Moon, and Stars Mobile
Lessons 9-12 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 9	I Am Thankful for Water	Our Working Water
		"I Am Thankful for Water" Booklet
Lesson 10	I Am Thankful for Trees, Plants, and Flowers	Ready Set Grow
		"I am Thankful for Flowers" craft
Lesson 11	I Am Thankful for Fish	Our Water World
		"Under the Sea" Craft
Lesson 12	I Am Thankful for Animals	Animal Kingdom
		"I Love Animals" Headband
Lessons 13-16 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 13	I Am Thankful fo Birds and Insects	Bird and Bug Bingo
		"I Am Thankful for Birds" Craft
Lesson 14	Adam and Eve were created in Heavenly Father's Image	The Garden of Eden
		Creating Adam and Eve
Lesson 15	The Sabbath Is a Day of Worship	Sabbath Day Bingo
		"Sabbath Day Play" Picture
		Sabbath Search
Lesson 16	I Have a Body	Busy Body Bingo
		My Body
Lessons 17-20 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 17	I Am Thankful for My Hands	My Hands
Lesson 18	I Am Thankful for My Ears	Sound Search
		Art Activity: Listening Ears
		"My Ears" Headband
Lesson 19	I Am Thankful for My Eyes	Art Activity: Look and See
		"My Eyes" Craft
Lesson 20	I Am Thankful That I Can Smell and Taste	The Tasting Table
		"My Taste and Smell Puppet"
Lessons 21-24 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 21	I Have Feelings	Find Our Feelings
		"Color Us Happy!"
Lesson 22	I Can Do Many Things	I Can Do...Can You?
		"I Can Necklace"
Lesson 23	I Belong to a Family	Our Family Tree
		"Family Tree Sewing Card"
Lesson 24	I Love My Brothers and Sisters	"Brother and Sister Puppets"
Lessons 25-28 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 25	I Love My Whole Family	Families are Fun
		"I Love My Family" Hat
Lesson 26	Families Can Be Together Forever	Temple Time
		"Temple Time" Wristband
Lesson 27	We Can Pray As a Family	Pray Together...Stay Together
		Family Prayer Puzzle
Lesson 28	I Can Be Obedient	Let's Obey All Day
		"I Can Obey" Doorknob Hanger
Lessons 29-32 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 29	I Can Say I'm Sorry	"I'm Sorry" Craft
Lesson 30	I Can Forgive Others	Follow to the Forgiving Face
Lesson 31	I Am Thankful for My Home	The Happy Home Hunt
		I Love My Home
Lesson 32	I Am Thankful for Food and Clothing	Food Fun!
		I Am Thankful For Food
Lessons 33-36 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 33	I Can Be a Friend	Fun Friends
Lesson 34	I Can Love Others	Love Makes the World Go 'Round'!
		"Bee" Kind Mobile
Lesson 35	I Can Be Kind to Animals	The Kind Zoo Crew
		Art Activity: Zoo Crew
		I Love Animals
Lesson 36	I Can Be a Good Example	Just Like Jesus
		I Will Follow Jesus' Example" Necklace
Lessons 37-40 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 37	I Can Be Honest	The Beary Honest Bear
		I Am Honest
Lesson 38	I Can Be Reverent	Reverent Ways
		"Reverent Ways" Coloring Page
Lesson 39	Music Makes Me Happy	Music Makers Craft
Lesson 40	The Sacrament Helps Me Think about Jesus	Pass the Sacrament
		Thinking of Jesus
Lessons 41-44 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 41	Heavenly Father and Jesus Gave Us the Scriptures	Scripture Picture
		Scriptures are Special
Lesson 42	I Belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints	"I Belong to the Church" Hat
Lesson 43	We Have a Living Prophet	We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet
Lesson 44	We Can All Help at Church	Helpful Hands at Church
Lessons 45-46 Heavenly Handouts Nursery/Sunbeams Downloads
Lesson 45	The Resurrection of Jesus Christ (Easter)	Easter Lesson
Lesson 46	The Birth of Jesus Christ (Christmas)	Christ Is Born
		Christmas Stick Puppets