I Can Tell Others About Jesus Christ – Primary 2 Lesson #11

Objective:  To inspire each child to help others learn about Jesus Christ.

The link to the lesson is here.

 

In this lesson, the scriptures about the missions of the sons of Mosiah are a good foundation to build upon.  I’d also like to add some stories about Paul from the New Testament.  Paul suffered quite a bit of physical trial as a missionary but he endured because of his faith in Jesus Christ and his desire to spread the message of Christ.  A couple of Friend articles about Paul may be helpful  here and here.

Or, just go directly to the scriptures. This Primary 7 Manual lists quite a few scriptures you can choose from about Paul’s missions in the New Testament.

Not to be negative, but I’m not a huge fan of using pretend stories about “Tommy or Johnny or Susie” because they feel a bit plastic to me.  I’d much rather use true stories, such as one gleaned from this article about President Hinckley’s mission in England.  With the littlest of effort you can find other stories about previous Church president’s missions to include in this lesson.

For other resources about missionary work with a current perspective see the links. Most are from the Friend magazine within the last few years, and there are a couple of video clips from Mormon Messages.

I Can be a Missionary Now July 2009,  Friend

Being Like a Missionary January 1010 Friend

I can be a Missionary, Too.  February 2011  Friend

Missionary Maze  May 2011 Friend

Missionary to the Rescue  January 2010 Friend

Your Day for a Mission (YouTube Mormon Messages) (Maybe geared more toward 7 year olds than 4 year olds)

The Vineyard (YouTube Mormon Messages) (Maybe geared toward 7 year olds than 4 year olds)

I would close the lesson by bearing my testimony that as a convert to the Church I am eternally grateful to my sister’s example.  She was a missionary to me when she didn’t even know she was acting like a missionary.  She didn’t wear a missionary tag.  She didn’t receive an official “call.”  She didn’t say anything particularly powerful that caught my ear.  It was just her quiet but constant example that made all  the difference.  Anyone can be an example.  You just never know who will notice and become eternally grateful to you.

CTR 4-7 Lesson #5 “I Can Make Right Choices”

by Sara K.S. Hanks

Link to Lesson

Purpose: To held each child understand that we can choose the right because Heavenly Father gave us agency.

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ Want Us To Choose For Ourselves

The manual suggests starting out the lesson by having the children choose something, like a candy or a colored rock, from a bowl. This is something I’ll definitely be implementing in my CTR4 classroom. We have a tradition of snacking on Skittles in our primary class, and they end up being great tools for object lessons and positive reinforcement. My opinion is that unobtrusive, low-key treats like Skittles are appropriate for younger kids, though they may be distracting or ill-advised for older kids. My class always loves choosing the colors of Skittles that they like most, so I think this agency activity will be a good way for us to get going.

Sharing Time 2012-January Week 1 & 2 “Agency is the gift to choose for ourselves”

guest post by Cheryl

Link to Sharing Time Outline

 

These were some of my thoughts and inspirations leading up to my sharing time presentations. This might actually be more important than the actual sharing time outlines which follow. My study of the scripture stories made me realize that those who grew closer to God were those who acted. Those who grew away from God were those who were acted upon.

Elder Bednar (from General Conference, April 2010)
In the grand division of all of God’s creations, there are “things to act and things to be acted upon” (2Nephi 2:14). As children of our Heavenly Father, we have been blessed with the gift of moral agency, the capacity and power of independent action. Endowed with agency, we are agents and we primarily are to act and not merely to be acted upon….
Giving a man a fish feeds him for one meal. Teaching a man to fish feeds him for a lifetime. As parents and gospel instructors, you and I are not in the business of distributing fish; rather, our work is to help our children learn “to fish” and to become spiritually steadfast. This vital objective is best accomplished as we encourage our children to act in accordance with correct principles—as we help them to learn by doing…. (John 7:17)
Are you and I helping our children become agents who act and seek learning by study and by faith, or have we trained our children to wait to be taught and acted upon? Are we as parents primarily giving our children the equivalent of spiritual fish to eat, or are we consistently helping them to act, to learn for themselves, and to stand steadfast and immovable? Are we helping our children become anxiously engaged in asking, seeking, and knocking?

CTR (4-7) Lesson #3 “I Am a Child of God”

By Roberta

Link to original lesson

Objective:  To help each child realize that Heavenly Father loves each of us because we are his children.

Some resources that may be helpful for this lesson are:

New Era Article “You are a Child of God”

Mormon Messages Video Clip ”I Am a Child of God”

Mormon Messages “Child of God”

Quotes on the doctrine of Premortal Existence:

Boyd K. Packer (February 2006 Ensign “The Fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ Teaches of Life Before Birth)  “This doctrine of premortal life was known to ancient Christians. For nearly five hundred years the doctrine was taught, but it was then rejected as a heresy by a clergy that had slipped into the Dark Ages of apostasy. Once they rejected this doctrine, … they could never unravel the mystery of life. They became like a man trying to assemble a strand of pearls on a string that was too short. There is no way they can put them all together.”

New page at lds.org called “Children’s Lesson Helps”

by Karen

Emily Jensen at Mormon Times just pointed me to a new area of lds.org dedicated to helping parents and Primary teachers find resources for teaching children. It’s called simply “Children’s Lesson Helps.” You can browse by topic, or by lesson number! They’re still getting it up and ready, but it looks like the first few lessons from each manual are available.

Here is a sample:

http://lds.org/children/resources/primary-lessons/primary-2/4?lang=eng