I’ve been thinking about General Conference a lot lately. This will probably be one of the last times I
don’t try and engage DJ at least a little bit in watching and of course as I
have been looking for ideas Pinterest has been my friend. I have found so many ideas and am so excited
to try them but none of them have made me a happy as what my mom did for us
growing up.
To premise this, my mom is a seminary teacher and general
rock star when it comes to fun scripture game ideas. One of the reasons I’m so super excited to be
living with her this summer is that I’m going to go through and copy all the
games she created for us to play as kids that I think really helped us be familiar
with the scripture stories. Any who I digress,
we are really here to talk about “The General Conference Store”.
Who its best for: Any kid that can talk/listen but gets
better as they get older. Especially
once they can write themselves.
How it works: All the
kids take notes. Mom writes down three
words for each talk that she thinks cover the most important points. The kids also write down words for each
talk. For kids who can’t write they can
tell Dad or an older sibling their words and have them write them down. You can allow kids to write however
many. In our house under 12 could write
as many words as the wanted over 12 had to limit them to 6. You could also give
points if they can name the color tie, what songs the choir sang, or who said
the prayer; play with it how you will. After conference mom compares the words and
the kids get one “conference dollar” for every word that matches mom’s. They then get to spend those dollars at the
Conference Store.
What is in the store: This is where you can get
creative! My mom had everything from
candy bars to dollar store toys, but our favorite things to buy were the
coupons. The coupons would be for things
like “date with mom”. You know you’re
kids and what they would want so get creative, this is an opportunity to create
memories with them that they will be super excited about because the earned
them! You can price them so however many
points you feel appropriate for you kids.
The first conference you do this they may not earn a ton of points but
if you make it a tradition they will get better and better. Here are some more coupon ideas:
·
Movie date with mom and dad
·
3 friends and a movie party
·
Pizza party with 3 friends
·
You pick the restaurant
·
Play at the local theater with mom and dad
·
Dad does your Saturday chores
Why it rocks: Kids
are not only paying attention to conference but to what the talks are
about. It also teaches them about note
taking in church. As the kids get older
they will start not only writing down the words for mom but their own thoughts,
stories told, and things they learn. My
conference journal from high school is one of my most valued possessions because
I had already learned how to take notes well.
After the first conference store your kids will be so excited for conference. And the best part is you can make it fun for
your 4 year old and your 16 year old!
Any who there is my General Conference kid idea. Try it and let me know what you think, how
you changed it, and what coupons you used.
