For a fun way to focus on the melody of this hymn, try this Testimony Hymn Silly Sounds idea! Replace all the song lyrics with silly sounds and have some fun singing together!
This word game is super simple to catch on to! I love that the sounds are simple enough for even your youngest primary kiddos to follow. If you want to boost this activity with an extra challenge, I’ve included a few of those as well!
** See all Testimony Singing Time Ideas! **
Testimony Hymn Silly Sounds
The hymn Testimony is organized so that each word or syllable always falls on the same rhythm. That’s why this activity works really well with any of the verses!
This activity can help you focus on the melody, notes, and timing, rather than focusing on the words. The children will also silently sing the words in their mind to help you stay on the right timing.
However, since you’ll mainly be focusing on the melody for this activity, I wouldn’t worry too much about which verse you are practicing. Just start by singing through one of the verses (Testimony flip chart for all 4 verses here) at the beginning of singing time.
Then, tape the first page of the silly sounds on the board. What do these letters mean? Slowly begin singing the letter sounds with the melody of the song. Does this sound like our song?
It looks like we have the song right here, but all the words are missing! Let’s try singing it together.
Each syllable has been replaced by a sound. Starting with the first phrase, sing the letter sounds with the melody and rhythm of the song.
Sing through the silly sounds for the first two lines of the song, then post the sounds for lines 3-4.
Follow the same pattern for the last two lines, but pay close attention to the syllable sounds used here. They are different than the sounds from the first two lines!
Once you’ve had a chance to practice the sounds for the end of the song, try the entire silly sounds pattern together! One tip to keeping yourself on track with the melody and rhythm is to sing along with the piano. This will help you to more easily follow along with the natural flow of the song.
Silly Sounds Outline:
For this activity, I chose a variety of simple sounds to stand in place of the song lyrics. In the printable later in this post, you’ll notice that each sound is differentiated with a color.
These colors don’t signify anything specific other than to help you separate each group of sounds. I’ve included a full outline of the silly sounds for this song below.
You’ll notice that both lines 1-2 and 3-4 are organized in a 5 – 4 -5 pattern, with 5 sounds, followed by 4 syllables, then 5 sounds. This makes it super easy to swap sounds and try different patterns, as shown in the picture below. Check out our extension ideas below for further details on this version of the activity!
Lines 1-2:
TA – TA – TA – TA – TA (The – wit – ness – of – the)
MO – MO – MO – MO (Ho – ly – Ghost, – as )
TI – TI – TI – TI – TI (Borne – by – those – who – know,)
Lines 3-4:
LA – LA – LA – LA – LA (Has – lift – ed – me – a -)
MM – MM – MM – MM (-gain – to – thee, – O)
BA – BA – BA – BA – BA (Fath – er – of – my – soul.)
3 Additional Ways to Play:
- Move around the letter sounds to sing different sounds for each line. Any of the sets of 5 letter sounds can easily be swapped, and the sets of 4 letter sounds can be switched as well. For a more challenging activity, cut out all the letter sounds and arrange them into a 5-4-5 pattern with random sounds! See if you can follow along and sing all the silly sounds in any order!
- Divide the class into 2 groups. Have one group sing the silly sounds for the first two lines of the song, and have the other group sing the sounds for lines 3-4. Then, switch!
- Have the kids come up and write word or syllable underneath each sound as you sing. Then, cross out a few letter sounds and sing the words instead. Switch off singing lyrics and silly sounds!
For another fun similar activity, head over to see this Did Jesus Really Live Again Oohs and Aahs singing time activity!
Testimony Hymn Silly Sounds Printable Song Helps
This free in-post printable includes a 2-page silly sounds outline with sounds for all 4 lines of this song.
Join INSTANT Primary Singing for extended printables including silly sound cards and black and white printables. You’ll find these bonus files included when Testimony Hymn is the featured song of the month.
To access the free in-post printables for this post, you’ll just need to create a free account or login with the Grow.me tool. Then, confirm by email and refresh the page and ALL my free printables will automatically unlock in every post!
For more information on why I use a content lock or how to create your account, you can see the FAQ page here.
Want another review idea? Head over to this Testimony Hymn Magic Crayon idea!
What other fun ways will you use this silly sounds singing time activity in your Primary room?
