Family Home Evening Department
Family Home Evening is the center of an LDS family's week. It's a time when families come together to explore the gospel, have fun, and build a sense of unity. The articles below show how to carry out various aspects of the event or how to teach the lessons. There are also a growing number of lessons. These aren't instant lessons in most cases. They usually offer suggestions to help you build a lesson for your family's special needs.
How-to Articles
Family Home Evenings for Part-Member Families (Keeping the tradition in a non-religious way.)
Reading Scriptures With Toddlers: Even a toddler can learn to reverently hold scriptures and to learn to "read" them during Family Home Evenings.
Flannel Boards in Family Home Evening: They're inexpensive to make and provide numerous ways to teach.
How to Have a Family Puppet Show
Puppets and Puppet Theaters: Learn to make these fun teaching tools for use in Family Home Evening. Part 2 will teach you how to use them in your lessons and even how to teach your children to put on a show.
Telling Pattern Stories: These are the easiest kinds of stories to tell. They repeat essential elements again and again, so they are simple to learn. Give your children the gift of a story told from memory.
Telling Scripture Stories: A simply told story has the power to influence your family's feelings about the scriptures.
Non-Competitive Games: Although written for Primary teachers, this article will show you how to create games where everyone wins.
Lesson Plans
Christmas!
Mary and Joseph: Year 3 of my Nativity FHE series. Mary and Joseph accepted a tremendously challenging calling from God when they agreed to serve as parent and guardian for the Savior. This lesson encourages us to follow their example and face our challenges with a strong spirit and courage.
The Shepherds at the First Christmas: The first lesson in my annual Nativity FHE series. (I write only one or two a year, so this will take some time to complete.)
In Wisdom They Came: First in a two-part Family Home Evening on the Wise Men. The first is a factual study of them and the second is the spiritual application of making a journey to the Savior. Part of the Nativity FHE series.
Walk in the Light: The second of two family home evening lessons on the Wise Men. This lesson presents a spiritual application concerning our own invitation to go to the Savior. Based on a talk by Betty Jo N. Jepsen.
My Family's Gifts to Me: What qualities have family members passed on to each other? A simple lesson in appreciating what our families give us. Particularly good for Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings.
Other FHE Lessons
Love Each Other Better. Simple preparation, meant for older children, teens and adults. This lesson on charity is based on a talk given at Oct. 2003 conference in the Relief Society Meeting.
Count Your Blessings: Requires minimal preparation and can be used as a Sunday activity.
How You Became a Family: This one is for the most dedicated family historian, since it takes quite a bit of preparation.
Teaching Teens About Choices: This can also be taught to elementary school children with adaptations.
The Dreaded Dress Standards: Are you struggling to teach your children modesty? This family home evening prepares teenagers to change their wardrobes.