Activity Day Ideas & Binders
by Kathleen Revoir / ga11202006


 

Each year, about this time, I give my Primary President a calendar of what all we hope to accomplish during the next year. And each year it becomes harder and harder to come up with interesting activities that will promote the Gospel Standards, yet keep the girls eager to come back every other week.  I thought maybe some of the things we've done in the past might be of interest to some of you who are planning your calendars.

I have given each one of my girls a binder. In the front of each binder, I've printed out the Articles of Faith, the Gospel Standards, The Proclamation to the Family, a list of all the girls names, phone numbers and addresses along with the leaders, and a current calendar. In each binder are dividers with the month written on it. Under January I have a page that tells them to make their resolutions...journal writing, getting organized, exercise, etc. Under their birth month I've given them a blank piece of pretty paper to write their testimonies and I've included a page that tells them a little bit of what a testimony is and if they write each year, they can watch their testimony grow.

Each binder also has an empty sheet protector so they can put their Faith in God booklet in there.  Also, I go through the old Friend magazines and make copies of the things they can do themselves...crossword puzzles, mazes, coloring pages...anything Gospel oriented. I've also found some things to print out on the Internet that keep them busy.  So far, the girls love their binders.

Some of the things we've done in the past are:

~~Pedigree charts, and the pretty colorful Family Trees, personal history, ask parents and/or grandparents questions about their youth.

~~We had an older Sister come and bring her journals that she's kept since she was young. She talked about journaling and we covered inexpensive notebooks with fabric to use as journals. Each girl brought a piece of fabric to use for their own journal.

~~We went through magazines and made a collage of modest dress and talked about why some were immodest.

~~Missionaries came and talked about the Sacrament. We measured out all our ingredients and then at our next meeting we made bread to be used for the following Sunday's Sacrament. We also brought some of the frozen bread dough that was all ready to bake so we could have warm bread and butter and honey!!

~~We watched the Good Samaritan movie, talked about how we could be a good Samaritan and then they girls accepted the challenge of going out of their way to help some one. We talked about the outcome of that at the next meeting.

~~First meeting we gathered pine cones from the building area and painted them. Second meeting we took them with us to nursing home and delivered mini-Christmas trees while we sang Christmas carols.

~~First meeting we planned a nutritious meal and made invitations for the parents and missionaries. Second meeting the girls prepared the meal, set the tables, and provided entertainment (one girl hoola hooped and another played the same song on her violin while the parents/missionariess ate!)

~~We did the "Holy Ghost, Listen to our Senses" activity. The girls were blind folded then we gave them different things to smell, feel, taste.  Explained how they need to learn to listen for the prompting of the Holy Ghost.

~~Had a speaker in from the "Project Linus" and then we learned how to crochet.

~~Made Bath Salts for mom....rock salt with food coloring and perfume, fabric lids for decoration.

~~Made scoops out of old detergent jugs for Father's day. The girls had to cut the scoop and decorate them.

~~The girls washed each others feet, we did mini pedicures (no polish) and talked about how Jesus washed his Disciples feet.

~~Swim parties are always a big hit. Talk about water safety, pool safety, life saving stuff, sun burning, etc.

~~We learned "Spool Knitting" and challenged them to make it long. The directions for this are on the Internet. Easy to make with wooden spools and nails and one skein of yarn can be enough for three girls to get started.

~~Made Friendship Bread, then had the girls deliver a loaf of bread and some starter to somebody special. Most of them took it to their teachers. This one the leader will have to get the starter going pretty early in order to have enough for each girl.

~~Had the missionaries come and talk about the Plan of Salvation, discussed the Articles of Faith in depth.

~~Gave each girl a Ziploc bag with an 3" embroidery hoop, a needle and embroidery floss and a chart for them to do a counted cross stitch "I am a child of God" This was a big hit. We planned this activity just before school got out so they could do this in their spare time or in the car when traveling.

~~We made a sewing jar using a small jelly jar and then covered a piece of cardboard that was the same size as the canning jar lid. Put some quilt batting under the fabric so it was puffy and glued it to the lid. Then bought an 88¢ sewing kit that had the mini spools of thread and divided that up among the girls They each got to put a few pins and a needle in the top of the jar and the thread in the jar itself. Cute Mother's Day gift. Got this idea from Martha Stewart.

~~Had the Primary chorister come in and teach us to lead music. Put different types of music on the CD player and let the girls take turns trying to lead us!

~~Being a "Standard Bearer"...gave each girl a piece of ribbon that I had put a metal washer on the end and witting CTR on the washer. This was their necklace. The we talked about all the Gospel Standards and asked them which ones they were willing to bear, or take upon themselves to uphold. With each one that they were willing to bear, they got a heart made out of card-tock that had a word on it to do with that particular Gospel Standard. By the time we were finished, they each had on a colorful necklace with all the Gospel Standards on it...or words relating to the Gospel Standards.

~~ Had a Boy Scout come and talk with us about the American flag. Gave each of the girls a mini America flag and also a print out of the LDS flag that Brigham Young designed and flew in Salt Lake City.