1 Nephi 8–11; 15

January 18–24

Partaking of the Love of God

Preparing to Teach in Primary

Begin your preparation to teach by reading 1 Nephi 8–11; 15 before studying any supplemental material. Prepare your teaching plan and record your thoughts and impressions. You might also use some of the ideas on the next page or in Come, Follow Me for individuals and families.

Encourage Sharing

• How can you encourage the children to share the feelings and experiences they had as they studied these scriptures individually and with their families? How can you also involve children who may not have read in advance?

Teach the Doctrine

• As you teach the doctrine found in 1 Nephi 8–11; 15, what verses, quotations, experiences, questions, and other resources might you share with the children? How might you use these resources to help children learn gospel principles? How can you encourage children to act on the truths they learn in class?

Encourage Sharing and Learning at Home

• What can the children share at home with their families? How can you encourage them to continue to learn about the Book of Mormon at home?

My Teaching Plan

Improving Our Teaching

Help children express their creativity.

Children could build, draw, construct, or color something related to the story or principle they are learning. When they create something, they are excited to share it with others. Encourage them to take their creations home to help them remember what they learned.

Additional Ideas

Use one or more of the activities below to help children learn about the love that God has for each of them. You may also use your own activities to teach other truths that you find in these chapters.

1 Nephi 10:17–19; 15:7–11. God will reveal truth to me by the power of the Holy Ghost.

• Nephi knew that if we ask Heavenly Father in faith, we can have truth “unfolded unto [us]” (1 Nephi 10:19). How can you help children understand the meaning of this phrase? Perhaps you could unfold a blanket that has something hidden inside it. How might this help the children understand how the Holy Ghost unfolds truth to us? In addition to 1 Nephi 10:19, what other scriptures can you share that teach how the Holy Ghost reveals truth to us? (for example, see D&C 8:2–3). How can you help the children, even if they are young, notice key words in these verses?

1 Nephi 11:16–17. God loves all of His children.

• How could you help the children in your class feel God’s love for them? For example, they could bring an item from home that reminds them that they are loved. This might provide an opportunity for them to teach each other. Lehi’s dream teaches powerfully about God’s love for His children (see especially 1 Nephi 8:10–12). Could the children find words in 1 Nephi 8—or in the picture of Lehi’s dream in Come, Follow Me for individuals and families—that remind them of God’s love?

• You may need to help the children discover what the various symbols in Lehi’s dream represent (see 1 Nephi 11:21–22; 12:16–18; 15:23–30).

See also the tree of life coloring page in Come, Follow Me for individuals and families.

1 Nephi 11:16–33. Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

• To help Nephi understand the love of God, an angel showed him the life of Jesus Christ. Could a similar approach help the children you teach feel God’s love? The Gospel Art Book (2009) has several pictures that illustrate events from Jesus’s life recorded in 1 Nephi 11:16–33, such as Jesus’s birth, baptism, teaching, healing of the sick, and Crucifixion (see verses 20, 24, 27, 31, 33). You can find other pictures on LDS.org or in Church magazines. Children might enjoy matching pictures with relevant verses. For younger children, you could read the verses out loud and ask them to point to the corresponding picture. What do the children learn about Christ from these verses and pictures?

Sharing Time

Singing Time

Help the children learn the gospel through music.

• Consider singing “The Iron Rod” (Hymns, no. 274) or “Search, Ponder, and Pray” (Children’s Songbook, 109).

Sharing by Children

Create opportunities for children to share how they are learning and living the gospel.

• Ask a few children in advance to share scriptures that help them feel God’s love. You might also invite the children to share ways they try to share God’s love with others.