Developing Talents, Visit a Museum

Developing Talents #5Visit an art museum or attend a concert, play, or other cultural event. Share your experience with your family or activity day group.

We went to the Springville Art Museum "The Art of Play Exhibit".  It was a fun, free, activity.  They closed early the day we went though, I should have checked the time more closely!  County fairs often have free concerts, there are a lot of other free cultural events to be found, but you have to plan ahead so you can get permission slips and drivers.

I wish I could show you all the girls, but here are my two girls and an anonymous one having fun.  This was a painting the girls could dress up and be part of...

 art book reading area

Box building area

Developing Talents, Work Scavenger Hunt

Developing Talents #7
List five things you can do to help around your home. Discuss the importance of obeying and honoring your parents and learning how to work.

For this activity we made housekeeping kits and did a housekeeping scavenger hunt.  The scavenger hunt is sooo easy and could be the entire activity.

The kits were a bunch of small house cleaning supplies in cello bags (10 cents each).

We used: 

cell-o sponges (cut in half 50 cents each when cut)

magic erasers (90 cents each, but we could have cut these too)

sheets of newspaper (free, great for streak-free window and glass cleaning)

reusable anti-microbial cloths (25 cents each)

a list of ideas on how youth can help out around the house (get the copies at the church, free)

Other possible items include dishwasher cubes, oxyclean pellets for laundry, toothbrushes, cotton swabs, microfiber washcloths, car air fresheners, and/or dryer sheets.

If you like this idea, but have budget constraints you could perhaps make one kit as a class and give it away (new move-in, newly wed, college student, etc.) or ask girls to each bring one of the items to contribute.  You could just show and tell cleaning supplies from your house and how you organize your cleaning stuff rather than giving them something as well.  I wanted to do the kits because I thought they were more likely to "go and do" afterward if they took home sponges rather than just a list of chores.

I had the girls start making the kits as soon as they arrived.  They wrote their name on the cello bag and then stuffed the items.  After everyone had arrived and made a kit, we talked about how helping around the house is a way of honoring parents.  Then we talked about what was in the kits and how the girls could use them to pass off Developing Talents #7 in their Faith in God book.  Only one of 15 girls had heard of using newspaper for cleaning windows, so that added a bit of suspense as they were curious what that item was for.  Another girl suggested the newspaper for lining pet cages.  Pet care is a great way kids can help out around the house.  Rather than tell the girls what each item in the kit was for, I had them brainstorm ways each item could be used.  We talked about dedicating kitchen cleaning sponges/cloths to kitchen and bathroom to bathroom.  

Then we did a housekeeping scavenger hunt.  The girls had a half hour to accomplish as many housekeeping tasks as possible.  we had three groups with a few girls in each group.  We went to different houses in the neighborhood, but this could certainly all be done in your own home or at the homes of a few kind-hearted next-door neighbors or next-door to church neighbors.  I had to swallow my pride a little bit in order to let the girls clean in my house, but it was fun and they weren't judgmental.  The girls thought it was so much fun to go to other people's houses to clean.

Developing Talents #7

List five things you can do to help around your home. Discuss the importance of obeying and honoring your parents and learning how to work.

Pick up toys


Make bed


Make a breakfast

Make sandwiches

Clean own room

Unload dishwasher

Vacuum


Empty garbage cans

Set table

Clear table


Make own lunch

Dust 


Wash walls 

Wash doors

Sweep

Load dishwasher

Empty dishwasher

Clean a sink

Water a plant


Answer a phone call

Wash dishes


Clean a toilet


Clean a mirror

Feed the pet

Start a load of laundry

Fold towels

Fold socks

Presoak Dishes

Vacuum out the car

The Littlest Angel Story and Dollar Store Angel Ornaments

This activity is drawn from "Developing Talents" in the Faith in God book and could be used to pass off activity #4 in that section.  The scripture in the Faith in God book is:

"For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God." Doctrine & Covenants 46:11

The Christmas story that goes with this craft is The Littlest Angel (see below) Its a story book, but you could just read the text while the girls munch on a christmas snack.  You can talk about how everyone has different talents.  The little angel might have had a crooked halo and an unglamorous gift to give, but like the widow's mite he gave the most valuable thing he had and it was very thoughtful because he was thinking about what a little boy would like.  What kind of gifts can we make?  What are our spiritual gifts?  Why does Heavenly Father give us gifts and talents?

I went to the dollar store looking for things to make angels with and this is what I came up with.

• metallic pipe cleaners/chenille sticks
• clothes pins
• glitter drape  (glitter drape is a cottony drape designed to go under ceramic villages at christmas time and my dollar store had a ton of it, but you could use fabric, coffee filters, or tissue paper as well)
• extra wide gold wire ribbon.  This came in 3 yard rolls.
• cardstock, to print the angel faces on (had this at home)
• hot glue (had this at home, one glue gun per every five girls)
• treats are always nice too!

To make the angels, each girl cut a 7" circle out of the glitter drape and poked a tiny hole in the middle.  We pulled it around the clothes pin and glued it on with hot glue.  Then we took about 3" of pipe cleaner to make a little belt tie.  The girls enjoyed choosing their colors for this or even combining two colors.

Next glue on faces.  We printed angel faces that were 1.25" wide on card stock and each girl cut out her own.  Or they could draw their own.


note: you can right click on the picture and save it to your computer's "downloads" folder.  Then you can open it up on your computer and it should print. 

For the halo take another 3" (approx) piece of gold/yellow pipe cleaner and make a circle with a stem hanging down.  Glue the stem on the back of the clothspin behind the angels head.

For the wings we took about 10" of the gold ribbon and folded it into a rectangle,  we made it into a bow by tying another 3" bit of pipe cleaner of any color in the middle very tightly.  Like this.  We left a candy can shaped tail on this pipe cleaner to be the ornament hook.  

They turned out easy, inexpensive, and cute!   The girls loved it!

The Littlest Angel

An abridged version of the short story by - Charles Tazewell

Once upon a time in Paradise, there was a most miserable, unhappy, little angel child known throughout Heaven as The Littlest Angel.

From the moment he arrived, the Heavenly Peace was never quite as peaceful.  He had a shrill, ear-splitting whistle that was constantly ruining the meditation sessions of other angels.  Also, he sang with a loud off-key voice in the Heavenly Choir, spoiling its delicate harmonies.   On top of all that, he was always late to nightly prayers and when he finally arrived he always managed to knock everyone's wings askew as he clumsily bumped and pushed his way into his place.

Of course these annoyances might have been overlooked if not for the added problem of the Littlest Angel's untidy appearance.  Some angels said he didn’t even look like an angel!  His golden halo had black marks all over it from trying to hold it on with sweaty hands while running irreverently all around heaven.  And even on the rare moments when he was standing still, it always hung very crooked, covering one eye or the other.  He had the bad habit of biting his tattered wings when he was nervous and when he was supposed to fly he always tumbled down through the clouds head over halo instead!

Then one day a wise police angel called an Angel of the Peace sat down with the Littlest Angel and had a chat.  The littlest angel explained that there wasn't anything for a small angel to do in Heaven!  And that he was very homesick for Earth, and climbing trees, and pirate caves, and running barefoot in dirt, and fishing in streams!  The Angel of the Peace smiled and asked the Littlest Angel what would make him most happy in Paradise. The angel child replied "There's a box. I left it under my bed back home. Could I have that?"

The Angel of the Peace nodded his head and it was done.

From then on a there was a great change in the Littlest Angel, he was the most happy angel child in Heaven. His behavior was perfect. His appearance neat and tidy, and he finally learned to truly fly like an angel!

Then came the glorious news that Jesus would soon be born to Earth and that all Paradise would celebrate by making gifts to give him.  The Angels and Archangels, the Gate-Keeper, the Wingmaker, and even the Halomaker put aside their usual tasks to prepare special gifts.  All but the Littlest Angel, what could he possibly make?  He couldn’t write prayers or sing hymns or make Heavenly ornaments.  "What, oh what, could a small angel give that would please the Holy Child?" 

But then he came upon the perfect idea! And when the Day of Days came, he proudly brought it from its hiding place, and humbly placed it before the Throne of God. It was only his small, rough, unsightly box from Earth, but inside were all those wonderful things that even a Child of God would treasure!  However, as soon as he placed it among the other gifts of the other angels he regretted it.  Unlike his, the others were so grand that they glowed with radiant light.  His looked awful, he would surely be in trouble for such a shabby, irreverent gift!

But it was too late, all of Heaven was assembled and the Hand of God moved directly over all the other magnificent gifts and plucked his from the pile.  And what was his gift? Well, there was a butterfly with golden wings, captured one bright summer day on the high hills above Jerusalem, and a sky blue egg from a bird's nest in the olive tree that stood to shade his mother's kitchen door. Yes and, at the bottom of the box, a limp, leather strap, that had once served as the collar of a beloved dog.

The littlest angel trembled in shame at the odd assortment, it must have looked like junk in comparison to the other gifts!  Why had he ever imagined the box was so wonderful?  If only he could hide and never be found!  All Heaven sat perfectly still with eyes on him.

Then suddenly, he heard the majestic Voice of God!

"Of all the gifts of all the angels, I find that this small box pleases Me most. Its contents are beloved treasures from Earth and men, and My Son is born to be King of both. These are the things My Son, too, will know and love and cherish as he lives there.  I accept this gift first, in behalf of my son, born of Mary this night in Bethlehem."

Then the most amazing thing happened!  The rough, unsightly box of the Littlest Angel began to glow, a little at first, then more and more until it became a radiant brilliance that blinded the eyes of all the angels in Heaven!

The Littlest Angel was astonished as he saw it rise from its place before the Throne of God, and miraculously take its place in the night sky over Bethlehem.  Yes, his humble gift was shining brilliantly over the stable lighting the place where the Son of God was to be born.  And there it shone on that Night of Miracles, the lowly gift of the Littlest Angel transformed into a star that all men would call forever "The Shining Star of Bethlehem!"

What gifts/talents do we have? 

"For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God." Doctrine & Covenants 46:11

Here are some ideas I got from the Faith in God Book:  Being good at managing money, Having the Faith to pay tithing, singing, playing an instrument, writing songs, stories, and poems, crafting and art, acting, story telling, dancing, learning, scripture knowledge, being a helpful family member, honoring parents, cooking, gardening, understanding health and nutrition, healing, being able to dress nicely or style hair especially well.

What gifts can we give the Savior? 

Spiritual Goals such as preparing wholesome sunday activities, memorizing a hymn, sharing talents, repent and make changes, etc

Budget & Tithing Activity

Learn how to budget and save money. Discuss why it is important to faithfully pay our tithing and how Heavenly Father blesses us when we do (see 3 Nephi 24:10–11). Pay your tithing and begin saving for an education.
~Developing Talents #1 from Faith in God for Girls

Price is Right (Budgeting) Lesson/Game:

Preparation: Go shopping for things you can use and keep the receipt! You'll need 10-15 items. You could use things from your pantry and just run to the store and jot down the prices.

Have two "showcases" of about 10 grocery/toiletry items one is the "economy" and one is the "name brand"

For the game you could have the girls guess the total amount they would save if they bought all economy brands of everything they see. and then maybe give a small treat to the closest guess.  My girls had very little concept of how much things cost, so I gave them lots of hints and helped them as they thought of their guesses so it wouldn't be meaningless.

Explain what budgeting is and why we often need to look for lower prices ask them if they have done this or if their moms do this.  We found that the average savings on items with economy brand for our game was $1 and we had 10 items. Thats $10! That could buy a movie ticket, a dvd, lots of candy, craft supplies, and still have leftovers for missionary and temple donations, etc.   The bottom line: if we're careful what we buy, we can save for more important things.  We also talked about how to decide when economy brands are a good choice and when they are not (huge taste difference, really unhealthy ingredient substitutions, less product in the same size box, etc).

Again, explain the difference in prices to the girls and the value of sometimes buying the name brand (ie chex is gluten free, off brand is not--big deal for a celiac family, the difference in price for Bush beans and generic beans is tiny, but the taste difference is HUGE, do you need fancy paper towel or thin stuff, plain bandaids or cool character print bandaids, etc.)

Lesson: What does money have to do with the gospel? I think it’s important to manage it well so that we have the spirit with us, strong health, and peace of mind rather than fear, headaches, stress, and contention. To manage money well, it is important to have a habit of saving for the future, budgeting (spend less than you earn), and always paying tithing first.

You might ask the girls what they save their money for. Ask them what they do first when they earn money? (Tithing).
Teach about the importance of spending less than you earn (can I afford it? If yes, do I need it?)

Resources for teaching Budgeting:
Elder Robert D. Hales, an apostle taught in conference two good questions to always remember when you are spending money.

The first he learned when he was first married. They were poor and it was Christmas and he wanted to give his wife a really special gift to show how much he loved her. His wife saw a beautiful dress in the store and he knew that was the gift. He encouraged her to try it on and see if she wanted to get it. She tried it on and loved it, but when she came out of the store, she hadn't purchased it. When Elder Hales asked why, she answered
“We can’t afford it.”
He realized that spending more than you can afford doesn't show love, we shouldn't do it no matter what, even if it is Christmas or we really, really like something. He always remembered how wise his wife had been.

The second question he learned years later when they had been married longer and had more money. It was almost their anniversary and he wanted to get her a beautiful, very fancy coat, but once again, his wife said no, this time she pointed out that she was the Relief Society president and was doing service around people all the time who had very little money and wearing a coat like that would be inappropriate. No, she really didn't need it. So the second question we should always remember. Even if we CAN afford something, we should always ask "Do we really need it?" If we don't we should try to be happy without it.

Savings Relay:

Supplies: Four dice, LOTS of household items symbolizing long terms savings (or even shorter term savings such as a bike or electronic device)

Examples: wedding=temple picture, wedding veil, Mission=Missionary name tag, tie, scriptures, College=anything with a college logo very prominent on it, family vacation=beach ball, Car=toy cars, House=toy house, house keys

Put all the household items on a table.  Before starting, ask the girls what kind of things we need to save money for  and show them they items on the table that go along with their ideas.  Encourage them to start saving.  Then, divide the girls into two teams and sit on the opposite side of the room or a good run away from all the "savings stuff".

Each team gets two dice. When the relay starts they pass the dice around their team and each girl rolls. If she gets doubles, she runs and gets an item off the table. The relay ends when all the items are gone.  Take some time to see what each group collected and use it to review(i.e. group A saved for two missions, a wedding, and three college educations)  The team that has the most "savings items" wins.  The teams should stop rolling the dice if someone on their team is running.

Tithing Treasure Hunt:

Before the hunt share your testimony of why it is important to faithfully pay tithing and how Heavenly Father blesses us when we do.

 I took a bunch of sandwich bags and filled them with assorted amounts of play money and treats.  Then I hid them outside just like an easter egg hunt. I called each bag a "paycheck".  I had enough bags for each girl to find three.

Then the tricky part. Have each girl count her money and figure out how much tithing she would owe.  I discovered that this math is pretty hard for 8 and 9 year olds so I suggest putting 10 of a denomination (10 $1, 10 $5, 10 $10, etc) so they can easily choose 1 to pay as tithing.  Older girls might be able to figure out tithing on trickier amounts such as $50 is $5 $70 is $7 and so on.

You can make play money on green construction paper or buy some, the girls seem to love it either way.

Idea #2 (3/4/2016)
My daughter's activity day leader recently did the budget activity like this:
she gave each girl an envelope with $1000 in play money and a budget worksheet

Monthly Budget

	Amount
Tithing	$100
Rent
Utilities
Transportation
Food
Medical Expenses
Clothing
Charitable Donations
Savings
Entertainment & Hobbies
Total

She carefully talked about what each category was all about and let them write down how much they would spend for each category.  Some girls did $100 for each, some did it a bit differently.  Then she spread an envelope for each category throughout the room and let the girls go spend their money and see how much was leftover.  They were amazed at how fast they could spend $1000.  My 8 year old daughter loved this so much and was thrilled to bring her envelope of money home to play with again and again.
http://www.thoughtsfromalice.com/2014/04/5-rainy-day-activities-for-toddlers-and.html