Don’t throw away your empty egg cartons just yet! Use this I Will Follow God’s Plan Egg Carton Rhythm for a fun singing time activity using homemade egg carton instruments!
There are so many fun ways to make everyday, household items into instruments! Egg cartons make great instruments to add some rhythm into singing time! Collect some egg cartons and have some fun with this living music activity while you review I Will Follow God’s Plan in primary!
** See 30 I Will Follow God’s Plan Singing Time Ideas **
I Will Follow God’s Plan Egg Carton Rhythm
Start by gathering your materials to make the egg carton instruments. For more detailed instructions to make your own egg carton instruments, check out that post
Collect 8-10 egg cartons (depending on the size of your primary). Cut the egg cartons in half longways, then cut the egg carton so that each carton has 6 spots. Gather enough pencils for each of your primary kids.
At the beginning of primary, sing through I Will Follow God’s Plan together.
Pass out the egg cartons to each child or have children sit in pairs if you don’t have enough cartons.
Demonstrate the egg carton pattern by posting one page on the board at a time. Have the children try each of the patterns individually.
Try using the pattern while singing! Sing through the entire song or try singing it in small chunks.
Egg Carton Rhythm:
I’ve outlined the entire egg carton pattern for the song below. It may seem tricky at first, but you’ll get it after a few tries! Each time you see the slash mark, that’s an indicator to switch to the next action in the pattern.
I’ve also bolded some of the slash lines in a different color to indicate repeating the pattern. For the most part, the new patterns come on stressed words in the song, such as the first word in a phrase.
PATTERN FOR FIRST 4 LINES
MATCH MATCH TAP-TAP (REPEAT 3X)
For the “MATCH MATCH,” tap the top left corner of the egg carton, and tap the corner just below it. This pattern is represented in the pattern with two straight lines.
For “TAP-TAP,” tap the top left corner of the egg carton, then tap the lower right corner of the egg carton.
*Use this pattern for “My life is a / gift, my / life has a / plan. My / life has a / purpose in /heav’n it / began.
SWISH TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP (REPEAT 2X)
For the “SWISH” pattern, hold the carton still with one hand. With your other hand, swish the pencil in between the sides of the carton.
For the “TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP” pattern, tap the 4 outside corners of the egg carton. The order doesn’t really matter, just as long as you tap all outside corners. When I do this pattern, I pick one corner, move to the opposite corner, and then do the other sides.
*Use this pattern for “My choice was to come to this / lovely home on earth /and seek for God’s light / to direct me from birth.”
PATTERN FOR LAST 6 LINES:
The last half of the pattern uses the same patterns used before, just in a different order! The actions are paired with different ones than before, but the actions themselves are the same!
TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP SWISH (REPEAT 2X)
“I will follow God’s / plan for me / Holding fast to his / word and his love.”
TAP-TAP MATCH MATCH (REPEAT 4X)
“I will / work / and I will / pray. / I will / always / walk in his /way.”
MATCH MATCH SWISH (REPEAT 2X)
“I will be / happy on earth / and in my / home above.”
I Will Follow God’s Plan Egg Carton Rhythm Video Demonstration
This pattern can be a bit tricky, so I’ve created a demo video to help you prepare for this activity! In this video, I go through each of the actions for this pattern and sing through the entire song with the egg carton pattern! Watch it a few times to help you feel more prepared to teach this pattern in primary!
–> I Will Follow God’s Plan Egg Carton Rhythm Demo Video <–
Extension Activities:
- Divide up the song into 3-4 sections of a few lines each. Have the group randomly choose a section and do the egg carton rhythm while singing that section!
- Have the children choose a partner. Have each partnership sit together and share an egg carton. Create a simple sign that says “switch.” Have one partner start with the egg carton and do the rhythm while the other partner sings. Then, call out “Switch” and hold up the “switch” sign! Have partners randomly switch roles throughout the song. This is a great way to get in lots of repetition!
- Switch up the rhythm! Put the rhythm in a different order or try a new rhythm pattern altogether!
For another fun egg carton activity, head over to this Love is Spoken Here Egg Carton Instruments activity!
I Will Follow God’s Plan Egg Carton Rhythm Printable Pattern
Grab this printable pattern to help you as you teach this egg carton rhythm in singing time! This printable includes the pattern in both symbols and words for the entire song!
If it seems overwhelming to teach the entire pattern, just do half! You can always extend a review to cover two weeks. That way, the kids get to try the egg carton instruments more than once! If you want to challenge them to do the entire pattern, print all 5 pages of the pattern and put them up in primary!
You’ll find a printable lesson plan and black and white printable version included in the INSTANT Primary Singing Membership when I Will Follow God’s Plan is the featured monthly 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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Try this fun I Will Follow God’s Plan Body Rhythm next!
We’d love to hear how you use homemade instruments in singing time! What are your favorites?
