I can’t wait to share this Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Dance Scarves activity with you! This purposeful movement singing time idea is the perfect way to get everyone participating as you teach this hymn in primary!
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Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Dance Scarves
Your primary children will love this fun & easy dance scarves pattern! I’ve created a movement pattern with actions for each line of this hymn to help you teach Joseph Smith’s First Prayer (archives) in primary!
I use dance scarves all the time they’re SO much fun to bring into your Primary! Pick up a set of Dance Scarves from Amazon here. Plus, to help you easily come up with your own Dance Scarves movement patterns, head over to grab my Dance Scarves Movement Cards.
One way to use dance scarves is by simply choosing a movement or action to pair with each line of the song you are teaching. You can choose actions that reflect the lyrics or choose movements that have nothing to do with the words! Either way, they are a perfect tool to keep your primary children engaged in singing time!
For this song, I chose actions with the first verse in mind. However, this pattern could definitely be used with any verse you are teaching. I find teaching one verse at a time to be more effective than trying to teach them all at once!
Before introducing this movement pattern, start by singing through one verse of the song. If you don’t already have a copy of our Joseph Smith’s First Prayer flip chart for this song, you’ll definitely want it as you teach the lyrics!
Then, bring out a dance scarf and tell the children that you’ll be learning a new pattern to go along with the song. Watch closely and see if you can remember the pattern!
Demonstrate the pattern 1-2 actions at a time as you sing or say each line. It’s completely up to you when you choose to pass out the dance scarves! I recommend demonstrating an action or two to get everyone’s attention before passing out scarves.
Once everyone is ready to listen, pass out the scarves and have the children repeat the actions as you demonstrate them.
Start with your scarf down low and wiggle upward as you sing, “Oh, how lovely was the morning!” Next, draw a big circle or sun while you sing, “Radiant beamed the sun above!”
Then, wave your scarf near your ear as you sing, “Bees were humming, sweet birds singing,” and wave up high like a rainbow as you sing, “Music ringing through the grove.”
We’ll be using two actions for the last two repeating lines of the song. As you sing, “When within the shady woodland,” wiggle your scarf from left to right. Then, draw a big heart for the line, “Joseph sought the God of Love.”
Can we try the entire pattern without stopping? Sing through the entire verse using the dance scarves actions and have some fun reviewing together!
Dance Scarves Pattern:
- Wiggle Up – Oh, how lovely was the morning!”
- Big circle – “Radiant beamed the sun above!”
- Wave Near Ear – “Bees were humming, sweet birds singing”
- Rainbow Arch – “Music ringing through the grove.”
- Swiggle Left/Right – “When within the shady woodland”
- Heart – “Joseph sought the God of Love”
Extension Activities:
- For a fun way to mix up the actions, cut out the action symbols and randomly arrange them on the board. Sing through the song, using one action per line and repeating the last two actions for the ending. Then, arrange the actions in a new order as you repeat the song!
- Assign each class 2-3 lines of the song to sing. Have each class do only their dance scarves actions, then listen quietly while another group takes their turn.
- Create your own dance scarves pattern for the song! Have each class choose actions for a few lines of the song. Have the kids teach their actions to create your new pattern! Grab our dance scarves movement cards for some action ideas!
For another fun similar activity, head over to see this As I Search the Holy Scriptures Dance Scarves singing time activity!
Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Dance Scarves Demo Video!
Grab your dance scarves and practice along with me as you prepare to teach this pattern in primary! In this video, I’ll demonstrate all 6 actions used in the pattern and sing through the first verse using the dance scarves pattern. Hopefully this video will clear up any questions you might have and help you feel more confident as you prepare for Sunday!
–> Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Demo Video <–
Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Dance Scarves Printable Song Helps
This free in-post printable includes a 2-page pattern with colorful symbols to represent each movement in this dance scarves pattern.
Join INSTANT Primary Singing for extended printables including patterns for all 4 verses. You’ll find these bonus files included in the Joseph Smith’s First Prayer packet in my shop and in the INSTANT D&C Access membership as a bonus song.
Get more out of singing time with the INSTANT Primary Singing membership that includes printable lesson plans, tons of extended printables and an ad-free experience for each featured song of the month, or get immediate access to the entire song list for the year!
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Head over to this Joseph Smith’s First Prayer Special Arrangement idea for a unique way to focus on the message of this song!
What other fun ways will you use this dance scarves singing time activity in your Primary room?
