Fun Review Game

This week to review My Eternal Family, I'm going to have my kiddos sit in a circle on the floor (chairs would work fine if you don't want to get on the floor) and give each one of them an envelope with an instruction slip inside. Then I'll choose one child to be blindfolded who will stand in the middle of the circle and spin around, pointing a wand. When the child comes to a stop, whomever he/she is pointing at with the wand will open their envelope and read the instructions. Then we'll all sing the song according to the instructions.

The instructions slips are as follows:

• loud
• fast
• staccato
• whisper
• mouth wide open (my kids love this one)
• tongue sticking out (they love this one too. it's hard to sing with your tongue sticking out)
• sad face
• standing on one foot
• rocking to the beat
• pounding the floor to the beat
• stamping your feet to the beat
• standing up, holding hands, and walking in a circle (you could fall down like "Ring Around the Rosies" at the end if you want to)
• etc.

I'll also have a bunch of slips that say "pick your favourite primary song to sing" for any extra kids we have.I'm decorating the envelopes with shamrocks and printing the instructions in green, since St. Patrick's day is coming up, or you could adapt it to whatever holiday/season that you wish.

Over and Over

We all know that children learn best through repetition. It is boring, however, to just sing the same song over and over. A lot of the ideas out there for review games are often for multiple songs, like when you're reviewing for your SMP. It is just as important to have fun review games when you are learning a new song. Using the same poster or visuals week after week in the same month can become tedious, so I'm always looking for new ideas to mix it up.

One of my favorite ways to do this (which takes no preparation, only some creativity) is also one of my kids' favorites. When we are repeating a song, I'll shout out impromptu instructions for who/how to sing. Here are some examples, off the top of my head:

Sing if you:

• are a boy
• are a girl
• are a teacher
• have blonde hair
• are wearing red
• have lost a tooth recently or have a loose tooth (they love this one, for some reason)
• have shoes that tie
• have shoes that buckle
• have shoes that slip on
• have a summer birthday
• have brown eyes
• have curly hair
• are wearing buttons

Sing in this way:

• opera style (my senior boys' favorite way to sing)
• western twang
• eyes closed
• standing on one foot (always a hit)
• lights off
• facing backwards
• humming (this works well if you have melody corrections to make)
• snap or clap with the beat (use more complex rhythms for senior primary)
• stand up/sit down on key words

Usually I just shout out the instructions before we sing. You could write the instructions down on cards, popsicle sticks, whatever. I'm going to be doing this activity in February, and I'm going to write the instructions on the back of construction paper hearts that I'll post around the room. That always gives the kids (especially the little ones) a fun way to be involved, when they get to go pick the next one.

Any other ideas of who/how to sing when repeating?

A Favorite Repeat Activity

My primary LOVES this activity, and I thought I'd share it with all of you. It's just a really easy way of repeating a song in a fun way. That way the kids get plenty of practice in, but don't get bored. In fact, they love it so much that I have a hard time keeping them reigned in, and I can only use it sparingly.

I have two posters numbered 1-6. The first poster is titled "Who" and says
1. All
2. Girls only
3. Boys only
4. Light hair
5. Dark hair
6. All

The second poster is titled "How" and says
1. Loud
2. Soft
3. On one foot
4. Facing backwards
5. Fast
6. Slow

Each poster also has a laminated yellow star that can move around to indicate which selection we'll be doing.

I have a child roll an oversized, soft die. Whatever number it lands on tells us who will sing. Then another child rolls it again to determine how they are going to sing. Then we repeat certain verses or whatever section of a song needs working on over and over.

The children LOVE rolling the die and fight over it. So it is helpful to use choosing sticks or tell them you're picking by whomever is singing the best or being the most reverent. They also like to throw it around, against walls, up in the air, etc. So if you're not okay with the rowdy factor, you will need to set up some ground rules for appropriate behavior.

I'm not sure why they love this game so much, but it is really motivating to them. It even gets my boys in senior primary singing loud and participating.

Please post one of your effective strategies for repeating a song without lulling the children into a stupor of boredom. I know I could use new ideas.