LDS Nursery Lesson 2: Heavenly Father Has a Body
This helpline is for lesson 2, Heavenly Father Has a Body in the I Am a Child of God manual. It helps teachers who use it in the nursery to adapt the lesson to a nursery audience and schedule. It gives the recommended schedule for nursery from the lesson manual and shows where to place each part of the lesson and how to adapt to the needs of nursery age children. Naturally, these are only suggestions. You should take into consideration the needs of your own students as you develop the nursery.
Welcome this lesson is about bodies. You might want to have a mirror available for children to look at themselves in. Supervise this project. Children enjoy seeing themselves in the mirror and also love to watch themselves make faces.
Playtime
35 minutes. Follow the guidelines given in the introductory material in the lesson manual for nursery play. The Friend offers a coloring page of the First Vision, taught in this lesson. You might make it available for children who want to color. Most children will scribble, which is normal for their age. Make additional copies available to take home for children who don't want to color or who scribble until the picture isn't recognizable.
The Friend has a flannel board version of the First Vision. Set out a flannel board with these pictures for the children to explore. Use it later during class.
Gathering time: 10 minutes
Gathering Time prepares children for the lesson. Opening Song: I Am a Child of God, which was taught last week. (Keep a list of songs used in the lessons and repeat them often, so the children learn them.) Ask a child to give the prayer. Find out if the child needs help before helping, since some nursery children are able to pray without help. Bring out the mirror, even if some children played with it during the welcome, and do that portion of the lesson (In the section titled We Look Like Heavenly Father and Jesus.)
music time: 10 minutes
In the nursery, you don't want to use new songs every week. Children like repetition, so intruduce new songs gradually, repeating old ones often. Again, teach I Am a Child of God. The other songs in this lesson are wiggle songs, and ideal for nursery: I Have Two Ears and Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. Review any songs you taught previously that the children enjoy.
snack time: 10 minutes
After the blessing on the food, and as the snack is being handed out, tell the children taht eating healthy foods can help make their bodies that Heavenly Father gave them very strong. (You will probably want a healthy snack if you do this.) Don't turn this into a lesson--it only needs a comment. Part of being in the nursery is socializing with other children, so you don't want to control every moment of the child's time.
lesson time: 10 minutes
Begin with the activity verse I Have a Wonderful Body, found in Enrichment Activity 1. Follow this with number four in Additional Activities for younger children, in which you help children find parts of their bodies.
Next, tell the story of the First Vision. The Friend has a Shoebox Panorama version of the First Vision that can be fun to use. The Friend also has a very simple four step retelling of the story for little ones. Always use approved resources for your lessons. Use the activity verse 3 in Additional Activities for Younger Children, which is about Joseph Smith.
Show children the picture of the First Vision from the lesson packet. Help them notice that Jesus and Heavenly Father look alike. Tell them we were created to look like Heavenly Father, so we have a body, too. Use suggestion 2 in Additional Activities for Younger Children, in which you help children compare their bodies with Heavenly Father's body.
activity time: 15 minutes
Repeat the activity rhymes used in this lesson, and the song Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. Sing Do as I'm Doing. Play Follow the Leader. Periodically comment that you are grateful for your wonderful bodies. If you have a child with a disability, take this into consideration as you plan the games.
Closing: 10 minutes.
Use the flannel board story you set out during playtime to retell the story of the First Vision. You can allow children to take turns placing a piece on the board. You can tell it several times to give everyone a chance and it's unlikely they will get too bored. Hold up the pieces and ask the children who or what each picture is. Teach the First part of the First Article of Faith (from the section of the lesson called Jesus Christ looks like Heavenly Father.) Have the children stand to say it. Think of interesting ways for the children to repeat it--marching, patting their heads, clapping for each word, turning around slowly.
Bear testimony.
Have closing prayer. While the children wait for their parents, play follow the leader again.
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Nursery Games Adapting Nursery Lessons Nursery Lesson 3 Starting Nursery Why Reverence?
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