I Love My Whole Family

Purpose

To help each child feel love for all family members.

Preparation

Prayerfully study Luke 1:36–44, 56.
Materials needed:
1. A Bible.
2. Picture 1-7, A Loving Family; picture 1-18, John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus (Gospel Art Picture Kit 208; 62133); picture 1-54, Salt Lake Temple (Gospel Art Picture Kit 502; 62433), or a picture of a local temple.
Make the necessary preparations for any Enrichment Activities you want to use.

Learning Activities

Invite a child to give the opening prayer.

Attention Activity

Sing “A Happy Family” (Children’s Songbook, p. 198) with the children.

I love mother; she loves me.
We love daddy, yes sirree;
He loves us, and so you see,
We are a happy family.

I love sister; she loves me.
We love brother, yes sirree;
He loves us, and so you see,
We are a happy family.

Let the children talk about what they did with their families during the past week. Have each child name someone in his or her family, such as father, mother, brother, or sister.

Who else is a part of your family?

Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins are important parts of our families

Show picture 1-7, A Loving Family.

How is this family like your family?
How is this family different from your family?
Which people are the grandmother and grandfather in this picture?

Explain that grandparents are the parents of our mothers and fathers. We all have grandparents, though sometimes we don’t know them very well because they have died or they live far away.

How many of you know your grandparents?
Do your grandparents live near you or far away?
What do you like to do with them?

Song

Sing or say the words to the first two verses of “Grandmother” (Children’s Songbook, p. 200), using the following actions. Repeat if desired, using grandfather in place of grandmother in the last line of each verse.

You give me a kiss (put fingers to lips, then pull them away).
You give me a hug (wrap arms around self).
You smile when you see me, too (smile).
I wish every child in the whole wide world (spread arms out)
Had a grandmother just like you (point).

You read me a book (pretend to hold a book).
You sing me a song (open mouth wide as if singing).
You whisper you love me, too (cup hands around mouth).
I wish every child in the whole wide world (spread arms out)
Had a grandmother just like you (point).

Who else is in your family? (Aunts, uncles, and cousins.)

Briefly explain how aunts, uncles, and cousins are related (for example, your uncle is your mother’s or father’s brother). Let the children tell about their aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Story

Show the Bible and remind the children that we can read about Jesus’ life in this book. Open to Luke 1:36–44, 56 and explain that before Jesus was born, Mary went to visit her cousin Elisabeth, who was also expecting a baby. Elisabeth’s baby was named John, and he was Jesus’ cousin and friend. When John and Jesus grew up, John baptized Jesus. Show picture 1-18, John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus, and have the children point out Jesus and John.

Family members are our good friends

Explain that all our family members can be our good friends. If you have a relative to whom you are close, tell the children how you feel about this person.

Why do you like to be with your family?

Song

Sing “A Happy Family” again with the children. This time include verses for aunt, uncle, cousin, and grandparents.

What do you do with your aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents?

Tell the children about a family reunion or another time when your family gathered for a special occasion. Let the children tell about family parties or visits they remember.

Explain that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ planned for us to be with our families forever. Show picture 1-54, Salt Lake Temple, or a picture of a local temple. Briefly explain that if we get married in the temple and live righteously, we can be with our families forever.

Testimony

Tell the children of your love for your family members. Emphasize that our families are a blessing to us. Encourage the children to be loving and kind to their family members.

Enrichment Activities

Choose some of these activities to use during the lesson.

With the approval of your Primary president, ask a grandparent of one of the children, or someone in the ward who is a grandparent, to visit the class. Have the guest tell the children about his or her love for grandchildren. (Or you could invite an aunt, uncle, or cousin of one of the children to talk about love for all family members.)
Bring one or more pictures of your family, especially ones including grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins. Have the children find you and anyone else they may know (such as your spouse or children) in the pictures. Tell the children about the other people in the pictures.
Give each child a tag with the name of a family member on it, such as “Mother,” “Father,” “Brother,” “Sister,” “Grandmother,” “Grandfather,” “Uncle,” “Aunt,” or “Cousin.” (If you have only a few children in your class, use only some of these names; if you have many children in your class, more than one child may have the same name.) Have each child come to the front of the room as you say the name on his or her tag. Explain that families are important and are meant to be together. Have the children form a circle and hold hands. Ask them to do several actions while holding hands, such as swinging their arms, walking in a circle, and singing “A Happy Family.”
Sing or say the words to “I Have a Family Tree” (Children’s Songbook, p. 199).
Have each child draw a picture of his or her grandparents or other relatives. Label the picture My Grandparents or whatever is appropriate.

Additional Activities for Younger Children

Make a box or bag with a heart on it to represent love. Cut out simple pictures or drawings that represent immediate and extended family members. Ask the children, “Who loves you?” As the children respond, place the appropriate pictures in the box or bag one at a time. When all the pictures are in the box or bag, hold it up and tell the children, “All these people love you very much.”
Place cutouts of family members (see activity 1, above) on the table or floor. Have the children turn around or close their eyes while you take away one cutout. Let the children guess who is missing. Repeat as many times as you want. Put all the cutouts back and tell the children that Heavenly Father wants families to be together with him again, with no one missing.
Sing “When We’re Helping” (Children’s Songbook, p. 198), using the names of extended family members in place of mother. Let the children pantomime things they could do to help these family members.