Picking songs can be quite a feat! You pour over the lists of all of the monthly songs and your hand jotted notes of what songs they kids have already learned and try to piece it all together and come up with a plan.
Suggested Come Follow Me Primary Songs
Based on a 4-Year Rotation
To help simplify the process, I poured over my two different Come, Follow Me Printable Primary Song Rotation Lists and came up with what made the most sense to me for each of the songs. I picked songs from each year’s song list while looking across all 4 years so there is NO overlap in the songs and each year was divided evenly. This way, I would be able to teach 40+ songs after 4 years, and then repeat those again to help the kids remember the songs anew.
This is just a framework that I created to help simplify my process for picking songs. It should be used as a guidepost only to help you in planning and preparing your song lists each year. Of course, use the Spirit as your guide to help fine tune and make any needed adjustments to pick the right songs for your Primary!
Along with the rotation of song selections, I use the other songs from the monthly list as songs to sing as the children enter the Primary room. It’s a great way to add in even more of the songs in the year.
Structure for the List:
It might be helpful if I share the how and the why behind this list to help explain why each of the songs were chosen.
I began with the Alphabetical Primary Song Rotation List printable and highlighted songs in each column that only were included as a suggested song on a single year first. This gave me my starting list. I then poured over the list several more times considering what songs were similar and doing my best to exclude songs with similar themes from repeating the same year, when possible, to give the most variety.
For example, both Dare to Do Right and Stand for the Right are suggested songs as part of the Doctrine & Covenants list. Since Stand for the Right is only included on the D&C list, I kept that song for D&C and excluded Dare to Do Right for the D&C year and instead selected it’s alternate option – Book of Mormon year.
As I began to do this with songs that had a similar message, I noticed all the repeating themes and gospel principles covered. This helped set the framework for the next step of helping to create variety across the years. I poured through the lyrics of songs to best assign them to a gospel topic and used the remaining list of songs to fill in the holes where a gospel theme could use more support for a particular year I would select those songs from the remaining options from that year’s recommended pile of songs!
In the end, I also wanted to make the list even, which was easy to do with many of the songs repeating on multiple years – several even are included as a suggested song for all 4 years! I filled in those song selections last and to help fill in the cracks of missing song themes.
Song List by Gospel Themes
As I was looking over the list of songs, I started to notice several repeating themes such as prayer and scripture study and missionary work. I thought this was a very helpful measure for dividing out songs that were suggested on more than one year’s list.
You’ll notice the following themes:
- Year Specific Songs – These are songs that fit the stories from that year’s block of scriptures.
- Jesus Christ – Strong testimony songs about who the Savior is to us
- Plan of Salvation – Songs that teach who we are, why we are here, and what our purpose is
- Living the Gospel – These songs share our determination and desire to live the gospel principles in our lives
- Prayer – Songs about praying
- Scripture Study – Teaches about the importance of the scriptures in our lives
- Obedience – Choosing the right and making good choices
- Covenants – This category covers baptism, temples, and making covenants
- Missionary – Songs related to the desire to share the gospel
- Holy Ghost – How the Holy Ghost helps us
- Love & Kindness – Each year included a song around showing love and kindness, often through service, to others
- Families – How we can strength family relationships
- Easter – There’s one solid Easter song selection for each year
- Christmas – There’s one pre-selected Christmas song per year, though of course there are many alternatives to consider as well
New Testament Primary Song List
| Principle/Theme | New Testmant |
| Year Specific | – Come, Follow Me – Jesus Once Was a Little Child |
| Jesus Christ | – I Know That My Redeemer Lives – I Know My Father Lives |
| Plan of Salvation | – I Will Follow God’s Plan – The Lord Gave Me a Temple |
| Living the Gospel | – I’m Trying to Be Like Jesus |
| Prayer | – Did You Think to Pray? |
| Scripture Study | – Tell Me the Stories of Jesus |
| Obedience | – Choose the Right Way |
| Covenants | – Baptism |
| Missionary | (None this year) |
| Holy Ghost | – Tell Me, Dear Lord |
| Love & Kindness | – Kindness Begins with Me – I’ll Walk with You |
| Families | – When We’re Helping |
| Easter | – Jesus Has Risen – Behold the Great Redeemer Die |
| Christmas | – He Sent His Son |
Book of Mormon Primary Song List
| Principle/Theme | Book of Mormon |
| Year Specific | – Book of Mormon Stories – Nephi’s Courage |
| Jesus Christ | – I Believe in Christ |
| Plan of Salvation | – Faith – My Heavenly Father Loves Me |
| Living the Gospel | – Testimony |
| Prayer | – Help Me, Dear Father |
| Scripture Study | – As I Search the Holy Scriptures – The Iron Rod |
| Obedience | – Dare to Do Right |
| Covenants | – I Will Be Valiant |
| Missionary | – We’ll Bring the World His Truth |
| Holy Ghost | – The Still Small Voice |
| Love & Kindness | – Have I Done Any Good? |
| Families | – Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth |
| Easter | – Easter Hosanna |
| Christmas | – Samuel Tells of the Baby Jesus |
Doctrine & Covenants Primary Song List
| Principle/Theme | Doctrine & Covenants |
| Year Specific | – To Be a Pioneer – Family History – I Am Doing It |
| Jesus Christ | – I Feel My Savior’s Love |
| Plan of Salvation | – I Am a Child of God |
| Living the Gospel | – The Church of Jesus Christ – To Think about Jesus |
| Prayer | – A Child’s Prayer |
| Scripture Study | – Search, Ponder, and Pray |
| Obedience | – Stand for the Right |
| Covenants | – When I Am Baptized – I Love to See the Temple |
| Missionary | – I Want to Be a Missionary Now – Shine On |
| Holy Ghost | – The Holy Ghost |
| Love & Kindness | – Give Said the Little Stream |
| Families | – Every Star is Different |
| Easter | – When He Comes Again |
| Christmas | – O Little Town of Bethlehem |
Old Testament Primary Song List
| Principle/Theme | Old Testament |
| Year Specific | – Follow the Prophet |
| Jesus Christ | – Gethsemane – I Need Thee Every Hour |
| Plan of Salvation | – I Lived in Heaven |
| Living the Gospel | – Teach Me to Walk in the Light |
| Prayer | – I Pray in Faith |
| Scripture Study | – As I Search the Holy Scriptures – Seek the Lord Early |
| Obedience | – Choose the Right – Keep the Commandments |
| Covenants | – Holy Places – The Hearts of the Children |
| Missionary | (None this year) |
| Holy Ghost | (None this year) |
| Love & Kindness | – Kindness Begins with me – Love One Another |
| Families | – Families Can Be Together Forever – Love is Spoken Here |
| Easter | (None this year) |
| Christmas | (None this year) |
Download the 4-Year
Suggested Come Follow Me Primary Songs Printable Rotation List
You are welcome to use this printable for your own planning and preparation as a resource. This printable shouldn’t take place of your own review of the annual Suggested Come Follow Me Primary Songs (you can find the Come Follow Me Primary Songs List by Year here!) to determine what songs would be best for your Primary.
It is simply another resource and starting point that may be helpful in planning for a 4-year span of time to keep variety in your song selections.
This printable is for personal and church (non-commercial) use. It cannot be distributed (shared with others). If you want to share this file with someone, just point them to the link to this post where they can download their own copy. This helps protect my copyright and ensure they have all the details and information available for using the printable! This work is copyrighted and cannot be recreated, modified, or shared outside of your own personal use.
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Head over next to grab the printables to help give you a quick 4-year glance at all the Primary songs!
This information will be very valuable as I plan which songs to teach to our Primary children.
So glad it could help as a starting point!!