Today, I have another fun and easy activity for teaching the new song of the year! Try out this I Will Walk With Jesus Walk the Path activity this year. It’s one of my Old Testament Primary Song picks and I couldn’t be more excited about teaching it!
Today’s activity is a nature-inspired activity that can be so fun while bringing the spirit into singing time and help get the kids up and moving.
** See all I Will Walk with Jesus Singing Time Ideas here **
I Will Walk With Jesus is a beautiful song that was introduced in the 2020 edition of the Friend.
Since we were singing lots of Primary Easter songs in April, I’ll be teaching this song in May. I am so excited to teach this new song in primary, and I think the kids will love it!
With warmer weather ahead, I thought this would be an awesome activity to get the children thinking about nature. For this activity, we’ll be taking a walk as we learn how to follow Jesus.
The idea for this activity is very similar to a recent activity I did with my primary, Follow the Prophet Treasure Hunt. If you are also teaching this song, you may want to take a peek at the details.
I Will Walk With Jesus Walk the Path Activity
I am so excited about this activity! I often love to imagine what it would have been like to walk with Jesus as performed many miracles and taught the people.
For this activity, I will be giving the children an opportunity to “walk” with Jesus as they learn the song I Will Walk with Jesus.
The main thought is that I will be creating footprints to place around the primary room. Each footprint will have an example of one way that we can follow Jesus. As we sing the song, children will be invited to take turns choosing footprints and learning about how we can walk with Jesus today.
To prep this activity, I started thinking of some examples of ways that little ones (and even adults) can follow the Savior.
Here are a few of the ideas I came up with:
- Share with a friend
- Give your friend a hug when they are sad
- Invite someone to play with you who normally isn’t included
- Help your mom by cleaning up your toys
- Sharing your testimony at school
Next comes the footprints. I have created a printable included later in this post that contains printable footprints that can easily be written on. I will be printing these footprints out in various colors to add an extra visual element and writing on each one.
During primary, children will be able to choose a footprint, and turn it over to read what it says. As we review the song, we will be able to learn how to follow Jesus.
Activity Instructions:
- Print out 10-12 footprints and write an example of a way to follow Christ on the back.
- At the beginning of primary, begin by reviewing the words to I Will Walk With Jesus (lyrics here!)
- Then, introduce the activity by inviting the children to notice the footprints around the room. Explain that each footprint can help teach us how to walk with Jesus.
- Each time you sing through a verse, invite a child to choose one of the footprints and read what it says.
- You might choose to have a short discussion about each example, or see if the children have any examples of their own!
- Continue singing until you have chosen all the footprints and “finished your path.”
Tips for Using this as a Outdoor Activity:
Have you ever done singing time outside? It sounds so fun to take the children outside to sing together. If the weather is nice in your area, this might be a great activity to take outdoors!
Simply tape the footprints to the pavement and sing as you follow the footprints. You might choose to have the footprints lead to a picture of Christ or a special handout. For this adaptation, you will probably want to use a recording so you don’t have to drag the piano outside 😉 or simply sing acapella.
Using this Activity as a Craft:
This singing time activity can easily be shaped into a simple craft! For a reverent activity to keep hands busy while you sing, you could pass out a footprint to each child and invite them to draw or color something they can do to follow Jesus.
Since all you need for this craft is some paper and crayons, this could make for a very simple interactive activity that can be meaningful for children.
Extension Ideas:
- Have the kids fill in the footprints! Give each child their own footprint and invite them to draw or color something they can do to follow Jesus while they sing!
- On each footprint, write a different way to sing the song. Some examples might be to hum instead of sing, sing on your tip-toes, or group sing. That post linked has more than 110 ideas for that!
- Have the children use the footprints as a “treasure hunt.” The footprints in the room could lead to a special prize or picture of Christ.
I Will Walk With Jesus Walk the Path Activity Printable
Here’s a simple printable to help you as you prep for this activity! Since there are so many ways to adapt this activity, I’ve included a one-page instruction sheet that includes some variations on this simple activity.
The second page of this printable includes copies of footprints to use for your path. Simply print out the footprints and write down some ways to follow Jesus.
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We have so many fun ideas for this song! Check out this I Will Walk With Jesus Dance Scarves Activity!
How will you use this Walk the Path activity in primary this month?