Primary Christmas Sharing Time

Sunday is our last Primary Sharing Time together before the new year, because we will only meet for Sacrament on Christmas Sunday. That means we had only three weeks this month to teach the four lessons in the Sharing Time lesson manual. On top of that, we felt inspired to focus on the #lighttheworld initiative to "Follow our Savior Jesus Christ. In 25 Ways. Over 25 Days" in our Primary sharing time lessons for the last couple of weeks. This initiative goes very well with the lessons for December so it is not a complete departure, but I want to make sure to wrap up this Sunday by bringing all of the lessons for December together.

December Lessons:

Week 1: Prophets prophesied about the birth of Jesus Christ.
Week 2: Jesus Christ was born.
Week 3: Jesus Christ will someday return to the earth.
Week 4: To prepare for the Second Coming, I will follow Jesus Christ.

To help prepare me spiritually for planning, I watched the 2016 First Presidency Christmas Devotional, which I had not watched yet. As I prepare this lesson, it has been quite inspiring to be reminded from watching the devotional that the lessons we are teaching our children, which seem so basic, are the exact lessons that were being taught in this devotional to adult men and women, teenagers, and children, around the world. We learn about the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ, the miracles and prophecies that told of his coming, and how Jesus Christ taught while he was on this earth to prepare us to return to Him someday, and to give us peace and hope in our times of trial.

My lesson will go something like this:

I'll start with the "Encourage understanding" idea on Week 3 of the lesson manual, and have four children come to the front of the room to hold up four pictures that I've laminated (just to mix it up for the kids). We'll talk about each of the four pictures for a bit, then I'll have the class help me to put these pictures into the right order.

I'll then put them up on the chalkboard under the following signs and then give the children an opportunity to talk about each section for a little bit.

1. Prophets prophesied about the birth of Jesus Christ
What did Samuel tell in prophecy? (Hint: "Samuel Tells the Story of Baby Jesus" song.)

2. The Savior was born.

3. Jesus taught the people.

4. Jesus will someday return to the earth.
Matthew 16:27 - "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works."

From the lesson manual for Week 3, as well:

1. What are some wonders that will take place when Christ comes again?
Joseph Smith - Matthew 1:33, 36-37
A: sun shall be darkened, moon shall not give light, stars shall fall from heaven, a sign will appear of the Son of Man in heaven, Son of Man will come and send angels before him with the great sound of a trumpet

2. When will the Savior come again?
Joseph Smith - Matthew 1:38-40
A: only the angels of God in heaven know

3. Why should we prepare for the Second Coming?
D&C 38:30
A: If ye are prepared ye shall not fear

4. How long will the Savior dwell on the earth?
D&C 29:11
A: A thousand years.

Talk about Light the World.

We can prepare for the second coming by following Jesus Christ and by doing good things each day. We have been encouraging you children to participate in the Light the World initiative this entire month. All of those things you have done to Light the World, such as serving others and praying, help us prepare for the second coming. These are things that you can't have others do for you, that you need to do yourself.

Encourage children to raise their hands and share things they have done to Light the World. Or if they brought their strips of paper, because we've been building a paper chain for Light the World in our Primary, then we'll keep doing that. We've done this twice now though so I'm tempted, at least with Senior Primary, to ask them questions about specific Light the World topics.

I thought about even attaching the topics to a nativity so that the child would choose a nativity item and then it would have a specific day from Light the World that we would talk about. I don't think I have time for that in the format I am doing so I might need to try a condensed version. I'm thinking of focusing on, time pending:

1. Dec 12 - Jesus Taught Others and So Can You
a. Give an example - I talked to someone about the Book of Mormon last who, who is not a member of the church and did not know many of the stories.
b. Ask if anyone invited a friend to FHE, or taught someone how to do something, maybe someone that was struggling in class or a younger brother or sister.

2. Dec 13 - Jesus Showed Humility and So Can You
a. Give an example - Jesus showed humility when he washed the feet of his Apostles.
b. Ask if anyone asked their parents for help with something this week, or asked for advice for a person problem they are facing, are were willing to admit they were wrong about something.

3. Dec 14 - Jesus Taught Us to Clothe the Naked and You Can Help
a. I donated a bunch of clothes this week. My friend that used to live in this ward would crochet baby hats and donate them to the hospital.
b. Has anyone been able to donate clothes, help knit a hat, or anything else?

4. Dec 15 - Jesus Worshipped through Son and So Can You
a. Ask - how many participated in the stake Carol to Our King last Sunday? (We have a stake sing-along where every choir in the stake sings one song.)
b. Did anyone invite a friend to hear the choir sing today?

5. Dec 16 - Jesus Showed Compassion and So Can You
a. Jesus felt for others. What have you done this week to show and feel love and concern for those who are suffering?
b. Have you prayed for anyone? Said something positive to someone? Opened the door for someone that had their hands full?

6. Dec 17 - Jesus Cared for His Mother and So Can You
a. Did you write your mom a letter telling her all the things that you love about her?
b. Did you maybe do something nice for another person in your life who is like a mother to you?
c. Did you ask your mom questions about her life history?

7. Dec 18 - Jesus Honored the Sabbath and So Can You
a. You can visit a family member
b. Memorize a favorite scripture or a religious quote
c. Do some family history work
d. Write in your journal. Maybe write about special things you can do to draw closer to God.

Also, if time: The Parable of the Ten Virgins - Matthew 25:1-13. Also a great discussion on this parable here: https://www.lds.org/liahona/2009/03/the-parable-of-the-ten-virgins?lang=eng

Light the World - How our Primary is Participating

Our Primary began our official participation in the the Light the World initiative today. I want to share what we are doing.

I posted this message on various neighborhood social media pages today:

The [Our Ward Name] Primary taught about "Light the World" with the Primary children today. This is a 25-day "event" starting on December 1 to "give us a chance to look at the things Jesus Christ did and resolve to do the same." You can read about it here: https://www.mormon.org/christmas/in-25-ways-over-25-days

The children were also given a physical calendar (I attached a PDF to the actual post but have a partial screenshot of it above). We've encouraged them to look for ways to serve each day and write what they have done on individual strips of paper, to bring to church on Sunday. We will add links to our paper chain each Sunday in December to visually show the children how each different way that they choose to follow Christ adds up. This is an amazing opportunity to share the light of Christ. We encourage you to talk about "Light the World" in Family Home Evening on Monday. 

This event is not limited to children that regularly attend our church. If you have children that would like to participate, Primary is in the [Our Building Address] church building from 12-2 p.m. on Sundays. All are welcome!


The #LIGHTtheWORLD initiative began Friday, November 25 and runs through Christmas Day. For our introduction to this topic today, our counselor first focused on what we have been learning in past weeks (about reverence). This was to review what they have learned but also to lead into what she would teach next. She then showed the brief Light the World video that shows modern-day service and how it parallels the Savior's example. She talked with the Primary children about how we can be a light.

Next week, we'll see how many children remember to bring their paper chains, and spend some time around this. We'll send an email reminding parents on December 1 that the initiative has begun, and perhaps a reminder on Saturday night not to forget their paper chains!

Next Sunday, I'd like to spend more time talking about the specific items highlighted for each of the 25 days. The items listed in the calendar are generally for adults but can easily be adapted to children. For example, December 12 says, "Jesus Taught Others and So Can You." The suggestions given are to share a favorite story on social media, pass down something you have learned from your parents or grandparents, or watch an online tutorial to learn a new skill to benefit others. These suggestions are great but more geared toward adults. I think we can have a great participatory discussion in Primary though where we have children give ideas for each day. For this theme, some ideas could be:

1. Help Teach the Family Home Evening lesson
2. Share a passalong card (or a kid's version of one) with a friend.
3. Help your parents make dinner so you can learn a skill there. My parents taught me how to make pancakes at a young age, and it was something I really enjoyed making with them, and then when I got older, for them.
4. Teach a younger brother or sister something you have learned in school or at church.

Since we are focusing our lesson around "Light the World" for two Sundays and then have a stake conference in-between, we are going to combine the scheduled lessons from the Primary Sharing Time manual into one big Christmas lesson on December 18. I'm considering different ways to combine this lesson. We could have something interactive and bring in Nativity clothing or a nativity set. We could break into groups on blankets on the ground for a special storytelling. We try to make our Christmas lesson extra special as it is honoring such a special event, the birth of the Savior of our world!! I'd love to also focus on teaching a lesson in a way that they can take what they have learned home and teach it for Family Home Evening on December 19, Monday. So many ideas! We'll discuss as a presidency when we meet next week, because were 2 or more are gathered, He is there, and he can give us inspiration and guidance as we decide together the best approach that will be the most meaningful for the wonderful children in our ward.

I wanted to also share that when our counselor was teaching this lesson and introducing Light the World, there was a girl in Junior Primary and a boy in Senior Primary, who are siblings, who both raised theirs hands and were excited to share that when they went to visit Grandma for Thanksgiving, she showed them the video (which our counselor hadn't shown yet) and gave them a journal so they could write down every day something they were doing to Light the World. I thought it was great that what their grandmother had done for them had made such a strong impact. I'd love to see other families look for other ways to incorporate Light the World so that what the Primary is doing is simply supporting families as they seek to make this Christmas meaningful.

One other thing. This is a very busy time of the year but I'm hoping that we'll be able to figure out a way that we can serve as a Primary, together, this month. We'll meet and discuss this as a Primary Presidency next week. My biggest idea right now, for something that is simple but that we can do together, is to have the Primary meet to sing Christmas carols to some of the sweet single sisters and maybe even the single brothers (widowed, divorced, and/or empty nesters) in our ward. I think there are so many other great things we can do though so we'll meet and discuss, and in the end, we may just focus on having the Primary do things with their families - but I wanted to throw that idea out there because this is such a wonderful time of the year, but because it's so wonderful, it can also be a struggle for some, and I'd love to have the Primary children find ways to share their beautiful light with others.