INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY: Give each child ten strips of paper and a pencil. Have them write down the ten most important things in their lives. Perhaps you could do the same as an example. Then place a trash can in the middle of the room. Have the children take one slip of paper at a time and put it in the trash can. Ask them how they would feel if the item on that paper had been taken away from them. Repeat until all of the paper is in the trash can.
CASE STUDIES: Give each student three slips of paper and have them write on each one something unfortunate that could have (or has) happened to a friend at school (such as: extended illness, having to move, loss of a loved on, etc.) or prepare the slips of paper yourself before class. Let each student pick one paper and then discuss how Job’s friends would have responded to each situation. (For example, they would probably tell a friend whose parents had divorced that if s/he had been a better-behaved child, the parents would have stayed together.) Then, discuss how they could respond to that person in a more appropriate way.
VISUAL AIDS: List the following items of trouble on separate pieces of paper. Write the blessings on the other side. Bring a poster with a stick figure representing Job.
– Oxen and donkeys were stolen, and the servants taking care of them were
attacked and killed by Sabeans. (blessing: 14,000 sheep)
– Fire came down from the sky and burned up the sheep and the servants
taking care of them. (blessing: 6,000 camels)
– The Chaldeans stole all his donkeys and killed his servants taking care
of them. (blessing: 7 sons)
– A great wind struck the house of his oldest son with the seven sons and
three daughters inside and killed them all. (blessing: 3 daughers)
– Great sores covered Job from head to foot. (blessing: a long life)
Pass out the troubles, making sure they keep that side up. Tell them that as you read the story and come upon a trouble they will bring their trouble up and tape it on Job. Once you have gotten to the end where God blesses Job, have them turn all the slips of paper over to reveal the blessings He gave him.
SCRIPTURE ACTIVITY: Bring two small containers and small stones (or other small objects). After you have taught the story, pass one jar around the room and let the students add one stone to it for each problem they can name that Job faced. Continue until the jar is full. Place the empty jar on the opposite side of the room and place a picture of Jesus next to it. Read Psalm 91:15 to your class (explain to them that the Lord is speaking in this verse). Let the students take one stone at a time to the empty jar as they repeat all (or part) of Psalm 91:15. When you are finished, point out that sometimes we can’t get rid of our troubles (the stones didn’t go away) but that this psalm teaches us that the Lord will be with us in our troubles.
Julie, What a great help you are. Thank you so VERY much! You have some really great material!!! We will certianly implement your ideas and tell you how they go!
A great big thank you from me too. My Primary kids roll their eyes when I pull out all the fun stuff – but they then tell their parents what a great class we have. I even had one girl comment that I really spent a lot of time preparing for my class – How nice it was to be noticed, but really – I should have told her that it was Julie that came up with the amazing ideas – I can take someone else’s ideas & creatively implement them, but without Julie – I’d be up a creek without a paddle!
Thanks, Thanks and more THANKS!!!
Thanks, Rachel and Lynne.
Julie – Have you noticed if your primary manual will run out of lessons before year end?
There are only 46 lessons in the manual but there are 52 weeks in a year. Deduct 2 for Gen Conf and 2 more for stake Conf. We’ll probably skip one for Xmas Eve also.
But what do we do on the last week of the year?
Roland,
Ask your Primary Pres. what they want you to do. In our ward, we had the Sunday of the Primary Program have no lesson from the book but instead review games and activities from previous lessons or from the Friend. But other wards might want to do that differently.
Our ward accidentally got about four lessons ahead — and they had us combine lessons on those days, because they thought we were behind. We’ll be about five lessons short in my class… we’ll be working on memorizing Articles of Faith and writing letters to the missionaries and our classmates who moved away during the year. ^_^
Thanks, Julie.
I used these ideas with my Valient class today and they loved it. I appreciate the suggestions.
It has been a long time since I’ve been here at T&S!
~Shannon Keeley