Family History

This year, our bishop has greatly emphasized family history work, so I decided to do a small keepsake booklet that the girls can record a little bit of their family history.

I was a little worried about this activity at first, because I thought the girls would be uninterested or even bored with the subject as a whole, but I was definitely proven wrong. This activity was the most spiritual activity we have ever had. The girls had a great time trying to pronounce the names of their grandparents and great grandparents, discovering who they were named after and realizing how long ago their some of their great grandparents were born! I was so impressed that some of the girls even knew stories about some of their family members.

Prior to the activity, I emailed this worksheet to the girls’ parents, encouraging them to fill in as much as they could, and to send the worksheet to the activity with their daughter.

Family History Worksheet

We started our activity with a brief devotional from this 2005 article from the Friend:
Come Listen to a Prophet’s Voice: Your Fascinating History By President James E. Faust

We discussed how family history and temple work go hand in hand, and how we can be families forever. 

Next, each girl received a family history booklet. You can download the booklet I put together here:

Family History Booklet *

* This booklet is best printed on two 11x17 pages, double sided, folded and saddle-stitched (stapled) at the center. It will look jumbled and a bit confusing when you download it, but it will look perfect when printed double-sided and folded.

1. First, have the girls write their name on name plate on the front page
2. Second, have them fill out their family tree with full names only. The numbers on the family tree correspond with the numbers on the worksheet, so the girls will know exactly where to put each name.
3. Third, have the girls fill out the more detailed information on the following pages (birthdates and ordinances completed). There is also room for them to write down their testimony, what they love about their parents, and what they love about their grandparents.
4. Challenge the girls to learn more about their great grandparents, write down a few stories on paper, and add it to their booklets.

Quick note… I only had a couple of girls that had additional step parents and grandparents that they wanted to include. I printed these blank nameplates on sticker paper so the girls could add additional family members. You can download my template here:

Blank Nameplates

I hope that you will love this activity as much as we did!

Journals

I love the fall… the colors start to change, kids go back to school and there is a general excitement in the air. Another thing I love about fall… school supplies go on sale! I found these composition books on sale at Target for 25 cents each!
I decided I really couldn’t beat this deal, so I stocked up and decided that we would have an Activity Day on Journals. I based our craft on this demonstration on eHow.com.

I purchased some girly scrapbook paper at hobby lobby when it was 50% off. Then, I gathered up all of my extra stickers, buttons, and markers. I also made name labels to for the girls to add to the front of their journals (download the PDF doc below).

We started the Activity with a 15 minute discussion/devotional about journals. We asked the girls if any of them kept a journal, why we should keep a journal and things they can write in their journals. We also shared a couple of personal stories about blessing from keeping a journal. My co-leader talked to the girls about Joseph Smith and how he recorded his history. She read verses 11 – 19 from Joseph Smith History, and then bore her testimony about how she was so happy that Joseph Smith wrote those things down so that she could have a testimony of the true church.

Then we got to work on our journals! Here are a few pictures how ours turned out.

 

To download my Journal Labels via Google Docs, click the link below. These should be printed on Avery 5164 Labels.

Journal Labels

Just One Egg - Easter Activity

For our Easter Activity this year, I am going to share the story "Just One Egg" from the Friend and discuss Easter and Jesus' gift to us. Afterwards, we are going to decorate Easter Eggs.

I will send the girls home with the story to share with their families.

Click the link below to download my PDF version the story "Just One Egg" via Google Docs:
"Just One Egg" Story

Family Home Evening Lesson & Charts

My Co-Leader and I decided that we could help the girls pass off a number of their Faith in God Goals by helping them prepare Family Home Evening Lessons throughout the year.

To kick this off, I gave a brief lesson on Family Home Evening using the following articles from the Friend. I also printed copies of these articles and sent them home with the girls’ to share at their next Family Home Evening. I put it them all into a folder and labeled it “Family Home Evening Kit #1: My family can be strengthened through Family Home Evening.”

• Lesson: Following a Prophet
• Activity: Our Family Will be Strong
• Song: Hymn 300 “Families Can be Together Forever”
• Treat: Sweethearts

We thought that creating family home evening charts would help the girls get excited about actively participating in Family Home Evening. These FHE charts are easy to make and very flexible. They took us about an hour to complete.

Materials

• 1 Piece of foam board cut to 12x12”
• 2 Sheets of coordinating 12x12” scrapbook paper
• 2 sheets of tag board in coordinating solid colors
• 28” of ribbon
• Avery Shipping Labels (optional)
• Avery Return Labels (optional)
• Small Clothes Pins
• Buttons
• Craft glue
• Foam Paint Brush
• Glue gun
• Pen
• Scissors and/or Large Round Punches (I used 1” and 1 7/16” rounds) 

Step 1: Chart Background

Combine a little bit of water with a small portion of craft glue. Apply a thin coat to one side of the foam board. Apply one of the sheets of scrapbook paper.  

Step 2: Chart Title

Create a title for your FHE Chart. I simply used “Family Home Evening Assignments” that I printed on a shipping label (you could also hand print your title onto a piece of your solid-colored tag board). Then, I created a boarder out of the coordinating sheet of scrapbook paper and pasted it to the top of my chart.  

Step 3: Task Pins

Cut 1” circles from your solid-colored tag board; enough for a task for each member of your family. Print tasks on Avery Return Labels (or hand print tasks directly on the tag-baord) and trim to fit on the circles. Paste each task label to a clothes pin with craft glue.

  

Step 4: Name Labels
Cut 1 7/16” circles from your scrapbook paper; one for each member of your family. Cut the same number of 1” circles from the solid-colored tag board. Print your family’s first names on the 1” circles. Center and paste onto the 1 7/8” circles.

Step 5: Ribbon
Cut your ribbon into 2 lengths of 14”. Hot glue the ends to the back of your FHE board, keeping the ribbon taut, in two rows.

Step 6: Finish it Up!
Clip the name labels to the ribbon with your task pins. Add decorative touches to your board by adding buttons and cutting patterns from your scrapbook paper. Make it your own!

These charts look great displayed on a small photo easel.

The Symbols of Christmas

For our Christmas Activity, I wanted to share something spiritual with the girls and have some fun, too. I had heard the story "Teach the Children" several times, so I Googled it and was amazed how many versions there were! I combined four versions--three I found on the internet and one that my mother had given me in a Christmas binder some years ago. I condensed a couple of things and used LDS terminology that would be familar to the girls.

Click the link below to download my version of "Teach the Children" via Google Docs:
Teach the Children Story

I purchased tiny Christmas Trees, Ornaments (from the story) and a red fabric gift bag for each girl at a local craft shop. I waited for everything to go on sale and got most of the items for 50% off.

I found some mini clothes pins and hot glued them to the back of each ornament so they could easily be attached to the tree. I placed everything in the red fabric gift bag along with a copy of the story "Teach the Children."

For our opening excercises, we shared the Christmas Story told in Luke 2. When we were done, I told the girls that I had something very exciting to tell them. Santa Claus himself had visited me last night and brought me this little bag. The younger girls were excited and in disbeleif, while the older girls just played along. I told them that Santa Claus wanted me to share something very important with them. I began reading the story. I pulled each item out of my little bag as I read the story, decorating the tree along the way. The girls had fun guessing what each ornament in the bag meant and were very interested in what Santa had shared with me. When I finished, I told the girls that Santa had left them all a bag. They were so excited to have their own little tree for their rooms. They took about 15 minutes decorating their trees and chatting more about each ornament's meaning.

It was a fantastic activity that taught the girls about the true meaning of Christmas in a fun way. I told them to take their trees home and share them with their families for Family Home Evening (which I think they all did!). I also encouraged them to save their trees and bring them out each year to remind them of the true meaning of Chirstmas.