Lehi Traveling Near the Red Sea, by Gary Smith

January 6–12

1 Nephi 1–7

“I Will Go and Do”

As you read 1 Nephi 1–7, think about verses, experiences, questions, and other resources you feel inspired to use to teach the children. The activities in this outline can be adapted for older or younger children.

Record Your Impressions

Invite Sharing

Some of the children in your class may have already heard about or read the experiences of Nephi’s family in 1 Nephi 1–7. Invite them to share what they know. If the children don’t know very much about Nephi’s experiences, give them an opportunity at the end of the lesson to share what they learned.

Teach the Doctrine: Younger Children

1 Nephi 2:16

I need my own testimony.

Nephi came to believe his father’s words because he had desires to know for himself and he prayed to the Lord. Help the children learn from his example.

Possible Activities

• Bring a closed box with a picture of the Savior inside, and give each child a turn to find out for himself or herself what is inside the box. Tell the children that Nephi wanted to have His own testimony that the Lord had commanded his family to leave Jerusalem. Ask the children to listen for what Nephi did to gain his own testimony as you read 1 Nephi 2:16. Testify that just as we each had to open the box to find out what was inside, we all need to ask God to gain our own testimony.

• Bring pictures or objects that represent things that children might seek a testimony of, such as a picture of Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon, or a picture of the living prophet. Invite the children to choose a picture or object and share their testimonies of that thing with the class.

1 Nephi 2:2–4; 3–4

God will help me keep His commandments.

How can you use these accounts to help the children understand that God helps us keep His commandments, even when they seem hard to obey?

Possible Activities

• Read 1 Nephi 2:2–4 to the children, and display a few pictures of items that Lehi’s family might have taken with them into the wilderness, such as a tent, blankets, and bows and arrows. Ask them to imagine how they might feel if they had to leave their homes and go into the wilderness. What does the Lord ask us to do to obey Him today?

• Help the children color and cut out the paper figures on this week’s activity page; then ask them to use the paper figures to summarize the account of Nephi and his brothers getting the brass plates (see 1 Nephi 3–4). The song “Nephi’s Courage” (Children’s Songbook, 120–21) and “Chapter 4: The Brass Plates” (Book of Mormon Stories, 8–12; see also the corresponding video on ChurchofJesusChrist.org) can help you tell this story.

• Use pictures 103–15 in the Gospel Art Book to help the children think of things the Lord has commanded us to do. How are we blessed when we obey Him? Help them decorate badges to wear that say I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded (1 Nephi 3:7). Repeat the phrase several times together.

1 Nephi 3:19–21; 5:19–22

The scriptures are a great treasure.

How can you help inspire the children to treasure the scriptures, or the word of God?

Possible Activities

• Show the children something (or a picture of something) that is very valuable to you. Talk about how you treat it and take care of it. Explain that to Lehi’s family, the scriptures were very valuable, like a treasure.

• Invite the children to help you tell or act out what Nephi and his brothers did to obtain the brass plates: they traveled a long distance, gave up their gold and silver, and hid in a cave to save their lives. Read 1 Nephi 5:21. Why were the scriptures so valuable to Lehi’s family? How can we treat the scriptures like a treasure?

Lehi Receiving the Brass Plates, by Clark Kelley Price

Teach the Doctrine: Older Children

1 Nephi 2:16, 19–20

I can have my own testimony.

What do you learn from Nephi’s example about gaining a testimony of your own? How can you help the children learn from his example?

Possible Activities

• Ask the children to search 1 Nephi 2:16, 19 to discover how Nephi gained a testimony of his father’s words. Invite them to write Nephi’s actions on blocks or other objects and then build something with the objects to represent how those things help us build a testimony.

• Tell the children how you gained your testimony of the gospel. Invite them to share similar experiences they have had, and encourage them to follow Nephi’s example to keep building their testimonies. How can having our own testimony help us?

1 Nephi 3:1–8

I can respond with faith to the Lord’s commands.

Developing an attitude like Nephi’s will help the children when the Lord asks them to do something that seems difficult.

Possible Activities

• Divide the class into two groups. Invite one group to read Laman and Lemuel’s response to Lehi (see 1 Nephi 3:2–5) and the other group to read Nephi’s response (see 1 Nephi 3:2–4, 7). Invite a child to pretend to be Lehi and to ask the other children to pretend to return to Jerusalem to get the brass plates. Invite each group to respond in their own words as if they were the people they read about. What are some things God has commanded us to do? How can we be like Nephi?

• Sing together a song about obedience, such as “Nephi’s Courage” or “Keep the Commandments” (Children’s Songbook, 120–21, 146–47), and ask the children to listen for phrases that teach how we should respond to the Lord.

1 Nephi 3–4

The Holy Ghost will lead me as I seek to do the Lord’s will.

Nephi followed the Spirit, “not knowing beforehand the things which [he] should do” (1 Nephi 4:6). How can you help the children you teach seek the guidance of the Holy Ghost?

Possible Activities

• Invite the children to act out the story of Nephi and his brothers trying to get the brass plates (see 1 Nephi 3–4). Invite a child to read 1 Nephi 4:6, and ask the class to listen for what Nephi did that allowed them to succeed.

• Share with the children some examples of things God would want them to do, such as befriend someone at school who seems lonely, forgive a sibling, or tell the truth after making a mistake. Ask the children to share how the Holy Ghost might help them in those situations. How can we invite the Holy Ghost to help us obey God?

Encourage Learning at Home

Invite the children to share experiences with their families when they were blessed for keeping the commandments. Encourage them to ask their family members to share similar experiences.

Improving Our Teaching

Help young children learn from the scriptures. To help young children learn from the scriptures, focus on a single verse of scripture or even just a key phrase. You might invite the children to stand up or raise their hands when they hear that word or phrase. (See also Teaching in the Savior’s Way, 21.)