home-centered church

May 2021 Primary Singing Time

This month’s singing time outline features the following suggested songs (I’ve included ways to sing them in your homes):

  1. When He Comes Again – While you watch this sing-along video, have the children match the pictures in this printable.  Keep playing and singing the first verse until they’re all matched up.  Then sing it with your kids once or twice with the pictures as your guide.  Some of these methods might seem repetitive but I can guarantee that your kids are listening and learning and that repetition is instrumental in that process.
  2. Have I Done Any Good? Introduce this song by watching this music video (featuring Alex Boye and Carmen Rasmussen).  For older children, you can also watch this short excerpt from a talk given by President Thomas S. Monson where he references this song.  There are some great images of things each of us can do to spread “goodness” throughout our communities and the world.  
  3. Choose The Right. Teach your kids how to sing and sign this song by watching this instructional video.  You can also watch the church’s sing-along video as an introduction.  You can also keep the kids’ hands moving as they sing by using these printable CTR shields found at the blog “In the Leafy Treetops”.’

March 2021 Primary Singing Time

It’s hard to believe it has been almost a full year since we last met together for singing time at church!  I miss meeting together, but I am a huge fan of home-centered learning.  Especially when it comes to the gospel.  The songs we sing in Primary can be sung just as easily at home, and we don’t really even need fancy methods for learning them (although they can help!) 

Parents: It’s important to remember that, while it may feel silly to sing these songs over and over, repetition is how children learn.  They also learn music by experiencing it – which is why I like to provide a few ideas for how to practice primary songs in new ways.  It may seem like a distraction and that the kids are just having fun, but since children learn by having fun, you can bet they are absorbing the music and words (especially if you do it more than once or twice).  In time, the meaning of the words will also sink deep into their souls and build their testimonies of eternal truths.

Here are the three suggested songs for March 2021(plus ways to introduce them to your children):

  1. The Church of Jesus Christ  Have you noticed how many times this song says the word “I”?  Print out this spinner activity on cardstock, attach a spinner (like this one you can buy on amazon) and follow the directions.  Play as many times as you want to!  You’ll have the song memorized before you know it.  You can also watch this sing-along video for some extra practice.
  2. When I am Baptized  Do you remember last year when we used ribbon wands as we sang this song?  You can try it again at home by making your own ribbon wand, or by using a scarf, or a bandana, or by using a stick(or even your hand).  Watch this instructional video on how to sing this song with ribbon wands (Borrowed from Camille’s Primary Ideas).  
  3. When He Comes Again  Cut on the dotted lines of this printable and have your kids match the words of the song to the corresponding picture as they listen to it.  Then sing the song together.  You can also watch this sing-along video.

Home-centered primary singing time for the win.

February 2021 Primary Singing Time

In January during our virtual singing time, we learned the first verse of Joseph Smith’s First Prayer by using our senses.  Could you sense what it was like in that grove of trees?

During the month of February, we are going to focus on the second verse of Joseph Smith’s First Prayer by understanding some of the emotions Joseph Smith experienced as he knelt to pray.  Use this emoji worksheet to better understand all the feelings young Joseph had at the time.  It will help you learn the words to the second verse.

The following are the suggested songs for Primary in February 2021:

  1.  I Want to Be a Missionary Now   As they strive to teach the gospel, most full-time missionaries will spend a lot of time walking.  Use these directional signs to walk in place while you’re learning the words to this song.
  2. The Priesthood is Restored  Play the game “Last Singer Standing” as you learn the words to this short song.  You may be short on breath while you hold out the notes.  
  3. I Stand All Amazed   Sing along to the words as you watch this sing-along video.  Another beautiful version of this song can be found here.

Happy learning!

Let us all press on.

Incorporating church music into our family culture.

When I was a young girl, my parents decided it was high time we kids began to learn some church hymns.  Though I can’t recall the methodology, I do remember that it involved lots of repetition.  Consequently, by the time I was five or six, I had learned all three verses to the hymn Let Us All Press On.  That stirring song holds a sweet spot in my heart to this day.

Fast forward twenty or so years to when Tim and I were raising our young family.  During sacrament meeting, Tim would thoughtfully hold up the hymnbook to give me a chance to read the lyrics as we sang each congregational hymn.  Except that nine times out of ten, I politely let him know that I didn’t need him to.  Having practiced hymns with regularity as a child negated the use of a hymnbook because I’d memorized a majority of them.

Thanks mom and dad.

Music is such a huge part of our worship in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that it’s not difficult to imagine its importance to the Lord.

My earliest memories of feeling the Spirit are directly tied to my experiences singing Primary songs and hymns both in my home and at church.  For that very reason, I have worked diligently to ensure that my kids are given those same testimony-building opportunities.

Now that our church worship has temporarily shifted from meeting as a congregation on the Sabbath to gathering as families or individuals in our homes, how do we maintain the benefits of worshipful music?  Without our organists, our conductors, the special musical numbers and the energetic Primary choristers, how do we keep the music alive?

It doesn’t take much, honestly.  We don’t have to scour Pinterest for amazing ways to teach primary songs (although, as a Primary chorister there are some pretty incredible ones out there and it never hurts to borrow someone else’s awesome idea).

Here are a few simple ways to incorporate music into your home-centered church routine:

  1.  As I mentioned above, repetition is key.  When my girls were little, we labeled one of the “tasks” on our family home evening chart “music”.  The person who is in charge of the music picks a song to learn that week.  Each night after scripture study and before our family prayer, we sing the chosen song…every night until the next family home evening when it’s someone else’s turn to pick the song.  After singing the same song 6 times, you can bet we’ve learned it pretty well.  (And are darn-ready to start singing a different one, not to mention.)
  2. You might be familiar with Music and the Spoken Word.  It broadcasts every Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Mountain Time.  I can’t boast that our family reverently sits down to listen to this broadcast every Sunday, but I can attest that it plays at some point in our house every Sunday.  Although the Tabernacle Choir sings a variety of tunes from Broadway classics to Mendelssohn, my favorites are the tender arrangements of primary songs and latter-day hymns set to slideshows of beautiful scenery.  The inspirational message is always a winner, too.  
  3. Did you know that just about every single Primary lesson in Come Follow Me for Primary includes a song?  If you are using this awesome resource to prepare Sunday lessons for your children at home, feel free to incorporate the suggested song(s).  It is easy to do, ties into the lesson, and might even be one of the songs our ward Primary is preparing for the program in September.
  4. Do any of your children play an instrument or like to sing?  Find an arrangement of a hymn or primary song (at their level) and help them work to learn it.  Then have them provide the “special musical number” in your family’s sacrament meeting one Sunday.  When kids know they will be performing something, even it’s just for your family, they will feel accountable to learn it.  As they learn it, it becomes a part of them. 

As a side note, as a Primary chorister, I have invited several families in our ward to record themselves singing a chosen Primary song during the past month in which we have not had regular church meetings.  Then, I used the videos to make a single mashup video(Here’s an example).  I got great feedback from many families who participated, indicating that learning the song was such a positive experience for their children.  Added-bonus: at least a few children will know each song we are preparing for our Primary program really well.  Hopefully the rest of the kids will pick them up quickly when we resume our regular meeting schedule.  Hopefully.

Another great resource for using music to teach the gospel can be found in the Come Follow Me Manual for Primary Choristers.  Easy ideas for teaching music effectively to children can be found there.

There you have it.  A few simple ideas to incorporate music into your home-centered church (and your family culture, when thinking more broadly). 

What are some ways you use music in your religious worship at home?