THANKSGIVING SPIN & SING-A-STORY

As I mentioned in my last post here, here is another option I've used in conjunction with the spinner, but you can use it in other ways.

Spin & Sing-a-Story of Thanksgiving.

The concept of the story part I got from A Children's Songbook Companion book, so it is not my original idea; however, I did rewrite it for my taste and revised how to present it using my spinner and the songs we knew. You can still present the story using the turkey cut out from the previous post here or if you don't want to use a turkey visual to present it, you could use it in a book format as originally mentioned in the companion book. If I had done this in a book format, I would have used a thin binder with page protectors with the storyline pages inserted and the facing page for each left blank to insert the pictures after they had answered and picked the correct picture.  I just noticed a great blog here that posted this same book idea.  It is so wonderful the many great ideas and variations floating around out there.  My file for the First Thanksgiving Story I wrote is attached below.

So here is how I presented it with the spinner. I've also inserted comments for the book version as well.

• Post the pictures on the board or around the room randomly.
• Number the back of the feathers (I used the medium feathers only). Although there are only seven parts to the story, I kept the eighth feather blank on the turkey. If the spin landed on the blank one, they just pulled it out and another child took a turn. This allowed at least an extra spin just for the fun of it. If you want to present the story in order instead of by the random spin, don't number the feathers. As each feather is picked, just go in numerical order. The kids will have fun just spinning/plucking the feathers and won't notice that you are being sneaky and going in the order you want to.
• Have each story statement numbered on a key sheet.
• If using the book format, number the story statement pages and insert those in the page protectors leaving the facing pages blank for the pictures that are posted to be inserted later as you go through the story.  
• Let a child spin the turkey and pluck a feather or pluck a feather from your other turkey visual aid.
• Read the appropriate story statement and let the children give the answer to fill in the blank.  Let them also select the picture that fits the answer. To make it a little more difficult for the SR kids, have the pictures turned over on the board so the kids can't see them, then post the song titles facing front over the back of the correlating pictures. Let the SR kids figure out which song is correct for the answer then remove the song title and turn over the picture.
• If you are doing the book version, you would insert the picture in the appropriate place in your book in the page protector.  You could set the open book upright on the table or on an easel to display the part of the story you are on while you sing.
• Sing the song that correlates with the picture.
• Repeat until done.

There you go. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

First Thanksgiving Story-Nalani

TURKEY SPIN

               HAPPY      
     THANKSGIVING!!!

Here is another way to use the  Big Wheel Spinner I made here. I know this wheel spinner isn't something many of you will make, so I do have another option I'll tell you about later.  

This is how I made this Turkey Spinner

• Cut out some small sized feather shapes from various colored card stock and adhere permanently to the back of the turkey so that the turkey isn't so "naked" by the time the other feathers are pulled out.  Laminate the combined body and feathers. Decorate the feathers making a squiggle line with glue and glitter.

• Cut out some medium sized feathers from various colored card stock, laminate and attach popsicle sticks to the bottom of the feathers so they can be inserted into the styrofoam turkey body.  Decorate making a zig-zag line along the top of the feather with glue and glitter.

• Cut out some large sized feathers from various colored card stock and laminate. Decorate making a swirl design at the top of the feather with glue and glitter. Adhere two square pieces of the loop side of Velcro on each of the corners of the feathers on the back side. Leave the hook side attached to the loop so it is easier to know where to place the hook side on the spinner. Attach the large feathers on the spinner equally. Make sure your feathers are short enough to allow a space in the center for where the turkey body will be attached.
• I don't have a template for the feathers to give you. The shape is just a rounded, rectangular teardrop I freehanded at the time. The size would depend on your spinner. I did eight feathers for each size.

Small feathers and turkey

Medium feathers

Large feathers

• Turkey Body
• Print and cut out the turkey body. File attached. Attach the small feathers to the back and laminate. See small feather instructions above. After it has been laminated, you can glue on some large google eyes. It gives it a more fun and animated.
• Get a round styrofoam disk about 6" x 1 1/4". With some brown craft paint, paint around the edges and about an inch into both of the flat sides of the disk—you could paint it completely, but it will be covered with paper anyway.



Back side of disk

• After the paint is dry, glue a circle of brown card stock on each side with a hot glue gun. The paper gives the Velcro something to stick to.
• Take a 2" strip of clear Velcro and cut lengthwise down the center so you have 2 long, skinny strips. Adhere both of the loop sides (soft & white side) of the Velcro strips to one side of the disk.  Leave the hook side (clear & rough) of the Velcro mated to the loop side. Remove the release liner of the hook side of the tape and adhere it to the spinner wheel in the center. The Velcro allows it to be removed so the spinner can be used for other games.
• Take a square piece of clear Velcro and attach the loop side to the front of the disk in the center. Leave the clear, hook piece mated to the loop. Remove the release liner from the hook side of the square piece of Velcro on the front of the styrofoam disk and center and attach the turkey and small feathers that have been laminated together onto the styrofoam disk.

• Insert the medium sized feathers with the popsicle sticks around the styrofoam disk. They will be between the large feathers on the spinner and the small feathers on the turkey.

HOW TO SPIN AND SING

• If laminated, use wet erase markers to write on the back of the large feathers the songs and page numbers to sing.
• On the back of the medium feathers with wet erase markers, write "how to sing" the song, e.g. clap to the rhythm, staccato, fast/slow, your teacher's favorite song, etc.
• Let two children come up and each takes a turn to spin. One spins for the song and one spins for the "how to sing".
• Now, spin away!!!

I've attached a file with a turkey body and some ovally-shaped feathers if you want to just make a turkey that you can post on a board and have the children pick feathers from to choose songs. You could leave the feathers off and scatter them on the board or around the room and have the children pick/find a feather, add it to the turkey, then sing the song. There are colored feathers if you want to print on colored card stock or a black and white one you could use to color them in yourself. Just print how many feathers you want your bird to have.

Instead of a poster, another option, if you want more of a 3-D look, is to get a bigger and fatter styrofoam disk or ball, cut in half and paint, adhere the turkey you've cut out, use smaller pieces of popsicle sticks to adhere to the bottom of the feathers and pluck the feathers out or stick them in the turkey for the songs. You may have to weigh the styrofoam down a little so it won't topple over as easily.

I'll post another way I used this with a Sing-a-Story next.

Turkey Song Pick Pattern

CHILDREN ALL OVER THE WORLD

One of my favorite Primary songs

during Thanksgiving time is

"Children All Over the World."

I just love the happy, swaying melody.  I've made a flip chart you can download below. I also made some fun posters that I got the idea from the book, The Children's Songbook Companion which was originally designed to be a lesson manual for the Children's Songbook. I embellished the posters some. I will try and take pictures and post as soon as I can.  Here is a lesson plan and some ideas on presenting the song to the children that I put together last year. 

LESSON PLAN WITH VARIOUS IDEAS TO USE

• Say one of the foreign words for "thank you" in the song that the children may not know then ask:
• If you know what I said, raise your hand.
• What? you don't understand this word?
• Do you think that Heavenly Father understands this word?
• There are children that live all over the world and they speak many different languages.
• Do you think Heavenly Father understands all those different languages?
• I want you to listen while I sing to find out if Heavenly Father really does understand all the children around the world. [YES]
• I want you to also listen for the word I said (repeat the foreign word "thank you" in the language you chose earlier) and see if you can figure out what the words means.  [THANK YOU]
• Sing then receive answers
• Post flip chart on the board so teachers can sing with you.
• Listen again and this time count how many different languages I sing for "Thank You." [6]
• Sing again and let the teachers sing with you if you want then receive answers.

• SWAY & FREEZE
• Tell the children to follow you carefully swaying side-to-side with their bodies and arms but they must freeze when I stop singing.
• The piano stops as well. It is helpful for the pianist if he/she sees your arms swaying so he/she knows when you stop and so the pianist can stop.
• Stop and freeze after each short phrase only working on a section at a time. Here is an example of a section of the song cut into four phrases.
• Phrase 1: All over the world at the end of day
• Phrase 2: Heavenly Father's children kneel down and pray
• Phrase 3: Each saying, "Thank you" in his own special way
• Phrase 4: Saying, "Thank you. Thank you." In his own special way
• Repeat swaying and singing going through each phrase with the children repeating each phrase a time a two before moving to the next phrase.
• Repeat the process when you are ready to move to the next section of the song.

• Make sure you help the children pronounce the foreign words.

• CHILDREN POSTERS
• Make and use posters for the children to hold up while they sing. The kids do love the posters. Another fun thing to do with the posters is to have the teachers come up and be the "poster children" holding them. The kids get a good laugh out of that. I'll post the ones I made as soon as I can.

• BELLS
• Invite 4 children to play the bells on the words “THANK YOU” (all languages) & after singing “He loves them” at the end of the song.
• This is great to start doing when you want to practice just the last section of the song on the "loves them" part. This can give a nice break from the Sway & Freeze activity. Have them ring the bells 2 times all together on the echo part of "loves them" and after "every one." After they get the end of the song down, sing the whole song through and incorporate the bells when ever "Thank you" is sung as well.
• I used the following tone bells: Low A, D, F#, & A. You could add G if you want 5.

• OTHER POSSIBLE QUESTIONS TO ASK
• Write the following questions on pieces of paper and attach to different flags from around the world or print another set of flags from the flip chart and cut out and attach the questions or put the questions in a bowl to pick from. As you are learning the song, have a child pick one of the questions and have the Primary listen for the answer as they sing the song.
• What do Heavenly Father’s children all over the world do at the end of day? [Kneel and pray]
• What does each child say in his own special way? [Thank you]
• Who hears them? [Heavenly Father]
• What else do we learn about Heavenly Father? [That he knows, loves and understands the language of every person.]
• Tender voices are heard where? [All over the world.]
• You could have them figure out which country each language is from in the song.
• Gracias: Spanish
• Malo: Tongan
• Wir danken dir: German
• Tak: Danish
• Merci: French
• Kansha shimasu: Japanese

BEAR YOUR TESTIMONY that Heavenly Father does love every single child around the world no matter where they live, what they look like or what language they speak and that Heavenly Father does understand you when you pray to him.

Hope that gives you some fun ideas for teaching the song.

Children All Over the World—FC-Nalani