Parable Activities, Games, Lesson Ideas & Printables for Kids
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“For the fruit of the gospel to blossom and bless our lives, we must be firmly attached to Him, the Savior of us all, and to this His Church, which bears His holy name” (Jeffrey R. Holland, “Abide in Me,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2004, 32).
Activities Quick-Glance List
Lesson suggestions: grapevine, cut off branches, abiding in Jesus, pruning
Vine & Branches Play Mat Folder Game Activity Pages
Vine and Branches poster activity
Fruits of the Spirit Bible Play Mat Activity
Fruits of the Spirit Galatians Scripture Trace
Hello and welcome to LDS Primary Printables. I'm so excited you are here! LDS Primary Printables provides Come Follow Me, Gospel Topics, Primary Events, and Primary Singing Time Resources for Families, Primary Teachers and Primary Music Leaders.
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Write on the board or say out loud the words successful, unhappy, joyful, dead, worthwhile, unproductive, fruitful, productive, unsuccessful, and abundant. Invite everyone to image themselves looking back on their lives 60 years from now. Which of the words you said would they like to describe their life? Why? [FOR PRIMARY LESSON WITH YOUNGER KIDS change the words out to simpler things like: bad, dead, sad, hurt people, good, kind, helpful, etc.]
Read John 15:1-5 and have kids look for what each item represents:
Husbandman (one who takes care of a vineyard) = Heavenly Father
[Heavenly Father is like a husbandman because He planted the true vine (Jesus) from which all others take nourishment].
Vine = Jesus Christ
Branches = Disciples of Jesus (us/those who stay close to Jesus)
Fruit = good works
Grapevine - Let's find out what grapevines can teach us about our need to abide in Jesus Christ.
Get the grapevine play mat page and let kids add the labels to the vine as you discuss.
Feeds the branches - we can do nothing in terms of returning to God or becoming what He wants us to be without Him.
Gives water to the branches - Jesus is the living water. Without water, we would wither and die.
Lifts, supports, and anchors the plants - Our heavenward growth is only possible through Jesus.
How does Jesus feed and give us water? How is He our food and water?
"And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger and he that believeth on me shall never thirst (John 6:35-36)."
Jesus nourishes us through:
the Atonement
the Gospel
Repentance
Forgiveness
the Holy Ghost
Let kids put the bread and water items on the vineyard play mat page. (Grapes will be added later).
How does Jesus lift, support and anchor us? How is Jesus our anchor?
Comforts us and gives us hope
Guides us and gives us direction, etc.
(Activity Page: "Jesus is my Anchor" - available in the FREE library at scripturestorylady.com).
Show a small branch or twig that you have cut from a tree and explain how excited you are for the time when you will be able to pick some fruit from this branch and eat it. Ask everyone when they think you will be able to eat the fruit from this branch...
Why won’t this branch produce any fruit? (Because it was cut off from the tree, it cannot receive nourishment to produce fruit.) Read John 15:4-5. What did Jesus say is necessary for fruit to grow on a branch? (Branch must abide in the vine. Abide means to remain firmly and permanently attached to Jesus and His church). How is the branch like someone who has been separated or cut off from the Savior? Ask kids to name sins that separate them from the Savior. Get out your vine and branches poster. Write what they say on a branch then have someone come and take off that branch from the vine. Repeat each time they name something that cuts us off from the Savior, ex: lying, stealing, hitting sibling, being mean, breaking sabbath, murder, etc.).
Did you know that to bear more fruit the branches are pruned? Pruning means cutting away dead or overgrown leaves and branches. Hebrews 12:6 - "Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth." Like pruning away the unnecessary limbs from a tree, we need to prune away those activities that might weaken our testimonies or lead us astray.
In order to be as healthy as possible and bear the best fruit they can, fruit trees have to be pruned by cutting out the unnecessary limbs. They have to be shaped and molded to withstand the wind and the weight of their own fruit. Not doing this can be disastrous. Ask your kids what attitudes and activities they might need to prune away.
Use the poster vine & branches again to add to branches attitudes and activities they need to "prune" away. (Ex: Not being patient, getting mad to easy, talking behind others back, fighting, caring too much what other people think, putting too much importance on the influencers, sports or movie/tv stars I like, etc. Add those things to more branches on the vine and let kids "prune" away those branches as well.
Branches are trained to grow off the ground so they’ll be most healthy and fruitful.
Christ’s gospel and His Church help us overcome the tendency of the natural man to sag in sin and selfishness and to wallow in worldly things that harm us spiritually. By living the gospel and keeping covenants, we are lifted up to greater joy, peace, and service.
So, it's important we always stay close to the Savior. How do we do this?
Let kids color and trace the Galatians 5:22-23 scripture page and the "I am the Vine" page as you discuss ways to stay connected to Jesus (What are some ways Jesus Christ strengthens us to keep the commandments?)
Watch Grapevine video below.
Galatians Scripture Trace and Grape Vine Coloring Pages in the PRINTABLES LIBRARY
So what do the branches of a grapevine do that aren't detached from the vine? Bear fruit.
As we abide in Christ, we bring forth fruit. What fruits do you want to bring forth? (ex: peace, love, wisdom, etc.)
Let kids put the grapes on the vineyard play mat page. Reinforce from earlier the good things we do to stay close to Christ help us bear good fruit, i.e. our good works).
Abide: “It is … through the grace of the Lord that individuals, through faith in the Atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance of their sins, receive strength and assistance to do good works that they otherwise would not be able to maintain if left to their own means. This grace is an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts” (Bible Dictionary, “Grace”).
Anchor:
Anchor (noun) – this refers to the object that is used to secure another object or a base of stability and security.
Anchor (verb) – this refers to the act of securely grabbing hold of a base
Each part of the anchor has symbolic meaning:
The cross within the anchor represents the unity of spirit and matter, and masculinity.
The crescent moon shape created by the flukes represents femininity and the womb.
The two flukes represent the love between two people who serve to keep each other level-headed.
Grapevine:
Plant name - Vitis vinifera
Plant type - perennial, dicotyledonous angiosperm
Like other flowering angiosperms, a grapevine has a solid, woody stem, which supports the plant and carries water and nutrients from the anchoring roots. The use of stakes and trellises for training the growth of grapevines has been practiced for over 2,000 years. This allows farmers to make sure the plants receive the right amount of sunlight and aeration, as well as to make sure that the branches don’t lie on the ground, where the grapes are more likely to become spoiled.
Bible Facts
The house of Israel was sometimes compared to a vineyard (see Isaiah 5:7). When the Savior taught, "I am the vine, ye are the branches" (John 15:5), it was in the early spring, around the time when grapevines would be trimmed to improve the crop yield. Anciently, grapevines were pruned at two main times of the year: in the autumn after the harvest (a major purge) and in the spring before and after blooming (minor trimming to control growth and ensure a fruitful crop).
Pruning
In Doctrine and Covenants 136:31, the Lord says, “My people must be tried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them, even the glory of Zion; and he that will not bear chastisement is not worthy of my kingdom.”
I now wonder how the Lord is pruning me. Am I learning the lessons he wants me to learn? Am I bearing fruit worthy of Him? Do I see and appreciate the guidance of the Master’s hand in my life? Do I let go of what is unnecessary or sinful in my life and keep only what is good?
