8 Singing Time Ideas for Come, Follow Me Hymn

I’m so excited for the new year ahead and the new singing time format. It does mean more planning and thoughtful consideration for all of us Primary Music Leaders, but that’s a good thing. It means we can be lead more by the spirit to come up with lessons and activities that can really teach these songs to the children’s hearts.

I’ll be introducing Come, Follow Me Hymn in January along with 2 other songs from the yearly theme. I try to do 2-3 shorter activities each week (approximately 7 mins each). To see how I plan for my weekly singing times, see How to Plan a Year of Singing Time Lessons post!

Each of these ideas I planned out in about a total of 10 minutes using my Song Planner Worksheet that made planning a cinch!

See my entire January Singing Time Plan over here!

8 Singing Time Ideas for
Come, Follow Me Hymn

1. Come, Follow Me – Ribbon Wands

We’ll follow this simple Come, Follow Me ribbon pattern that flows with the song as we sing along. Using movement can get the kids engaged and help them feel the rhythm of the song. It also makes reviewing the song fun and it’s easy to sneak in lots of repetition!

2. Come, Follow Me – Bar Graph

I created a printable Come, Follow Me bar graph, to make prep as easy as the print button! The musical staff is represent for the top most note, the higher the note, the higher the bar on the chart! Plus, a little color coordinating effort to highlight the Savior within the lyrics.

3. Come, Follow Me – Silent Video

I’ll start with a bible video of the Savior inviting the fishers to come and follow him. I plan to use this video clip, here. There are many different bible video short clips you could choose from, though, so select the one that best fits for you.

To fit the video best, I plan to start the video first with no sound or music playing. Then, at about :22 seconds into the clip, I’ll start the music clip for the hymn Come, Follow Me. I want the prelude music to start before Christ comes into the scene. Then, the song will begin right about at the time you first see Christ and he asks them to follow him.

4. Come, Follow Me – Sand Blocks

Create sand blocks using pool noodles! Simple cut in rounds every 3″ and then slice each round section in half to create two halves. Each child will need a pair of 3″ halved pool noodles. These are great for swishing, clapping, patsch, etc!

Here’s the pattern I’m planning for using with Come, Follow Me:

• Swish, 6 beats – Rub back and forth together “Come Follow Me the”
• Clap, 6 beats – Clap sand blocks together “Savior said”
• Patsch, 3 beats (6 beats the last time through) – Pat sand blocks down on lap – “then let us”
• Repeat pattern 3 times!

5. Come, Follow Me – Puzzle Picture

Cut pictures from Christ’s life up into puzzle pieces. This could follow an actual puzzle piece grid, or just be cut in long strips or in big squares – whatever works best for you! Grab my printable picture puzzles and see the rest of the lesson plan here.

6. Come, Follow Me – Painting

Color or paint in these fun outline pictures from Christ’s life. You can engage the kids by helping this pictures come to life! Then, explain how these events really took place during the Savior’s life and how we might emulate his life’s example. Grab our lesson plan and printables for this Painting Pictures activity!

7. Come, Follow Me – Fishermen Acting Scene

I’ll use 3-4 volunteers to act out a simple scene of Christ calling the apostles to follow him in Matt 4:19. Then the actors will walk around the room while the rest of the primary sings through the song. This fun activity will get many in the Primary involved, make the song come to life, and draw a connection to the scriptures!

8. Come, Follow Me – Hands & Feet

For this activity, I’ll try to engage the kids senses with an object lesson. I’ll share simple stories, and examples, from Christ’s life about hands and feet. Finally, we’ll draw it back to the song asking how we can use our hands and our feet to follow the Savior.

What other ways will you be teaching this song this year? Leave your ideas in the comments to add to this resource for other readers!