Family Home Evening Lesson: Ready to Go!

We will be featuring a Family Home Evening (FHE) lesson the 3rd Monday of each month in place of the motivational thought. FHE's are brought to us by guest poster Tiffany. This is a great way to teach your families about the importance of being prepared.

Tiffany again, with another Family Home Evening Lesson!

Ready to Go!

Purpose: To see if our family is ready and knows what we need for our 72-hour kits.

Preparation: Read the lesson to adapt it to you family. Decide if you want to do as the story says and have this activity for your family before you read the story or after. Print clip art of the family color and laminate if desired. (Notice there are two of the same girl, there are two sisters in the story. You will need to print two) Prepare treat.

Opening Song: ♪ The Prophet said to Plant a Garden. ♫ (CSB pg # 237)

Opening Prayer:

Scripture: D&C 38:30

"....but if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."

Quote: "Always we are cautioned that we cannot know the day or the hour of His coming. A 72-hour kit of temporal supplies may prove valuable for earthly challenges, but, as the foolish virgins learned to their sorrow, a 24-hour kit of spiritual preparation is of greater and more enduring value." ~Dallin H. Oaks, "Preparation for the Second Coming", Liahona, May 2004


Let your family know that we are going to be talking today of the temporal supplies that are needed to be prepared for the earthly challenges that we might face. That our Heavenly Father wants us to be prepared both spiritually and temporally! Explain that there is a difference to the spiritual and temporal aspects of our Fathers plan. Let them know that each is of value!

Tell the following story from the Friend.

.Meghan Decker, “Ready to Go!,” Friend, Jul 2007, 8–11

(Based on a true story)

“Come on downstairs, everyone!” Mom called. “It’s time for family home evening!”

Sarah reluctantly closed her book and joined her sister and brother as they went into the family room. Family home evening was fun, but she didn’t think it was as exciting as the adventure story she was reading.

After Dad welcomed everyone, Audrey led the family in a song and Tyler gave the opening prayer. Sarah waited for Dad to announce who was giving the lesson. Instead, he said, “We’re going to practice what we would do in an emergency. You have two minutes to get ready and be in the car. Get whatever you would need if you were going to be gone for three days. Go!”

Dad, Mom, Audrey, Tyler, and Sarah jumped up. Sarah dashed to her room, and then stood in the middle of it looking around. What would she need? Clothes! She pulled clothes out of her drawer and put them in a small bag. There wasn’t room for much more, but she stuffed her pajama pants in too, and then remembered her glasses case and the elastic bands for her braces. Would she need a blanket? Or a pillow? She grabbed both.

Two minutes isn’t very long, and Sarah didn’t feel ready when Dad said, “Get in the car, everybody! Bring whatever you have and let’s go!”

Sarah, Audrey, and Tyler ran out to the car, threw in their stuff, and piled into the seats.

Audrey called back into the house, “Mom, I forgot my tennis shoes—will you grab them on your way out?”

Tyler spilled sunflower seeds into his seat-belt buckle, and Dad had to help him dig them out so the seat belt could fasten. “Why did you bring an open bag of sunflower seeds?” Dad asked.

“That’s my food,” Tyler said.

The family van pulled out of the driveway a moment later. “How did we do?” Dad asked. “We got out in good time, but are we prepared for three days away from home?”

“Mom, you got me two different shoes,” Audrey complained. “I can’t wear these.”

“Sorry,” Mom said. “I was trying to pull all the coats out of the closet, and I couldn’t see the shoes very well. At least there’s a right and a left shoe, even if they don’t match.”

“I got some clothes and a blanket, but I forgot my contact lens case and a brush,” Audrey said. “I did remember my toothbrush, though.”

“Oops,” Tyler said. “I guess I’ll have to borrow yours. But I got clothes and a Book of Mormon—except it’s in French. I picked up the wrong one off the bookshelf.”

“I brought my coat too, because I didn’t know where we were going,” Sarah said. “I saw a flashlight in my room, so I brought that, but I didn’t get anything to eat.”

“We have food in the 72-hour (3-day) kits I put in the car,” Dad said. “Do you remember we put those together last year? And there are tents in the duffle bag. Those are always by the back door.”

“Dad, I know we have things ready, but I don’t know where everything is kept,” Audrey said. “Maybe you should show us where to find stuff in case you aren’t at home and the rest of us have to leave.”

“That’s a very good idea, Audrey,” Mom replied. “I’m not sure that I could find everything in a hurry myself. I knew I wanted to get important papers and my scriptures, but I wasn’t very organized. I grabbed bread and peanut butter and apples, but I didn’t have time to fill the cooler with water, so I just pulled jugs of apple cider and milk out of the fridge.”

“Ugh, warm milk?” Tyler asked.

“We’d have to drink it up fast,” Mom said. “Maybe we ought to put some sealed water containers in the garage, in case we need to leave quickly. I’d never thought of that before.”

“Why don’t we go get an ice-cream cone and talk about what we learned tonight?” Dad said.

“I know one thing I want to do,” Sarah said. “It took me a while to decide what to get. Even though I knew it wasn’t for real, I was still scared, and I had a hard time thinking of what I needed. I want to plan what I would gather up ahead of time.”

“I would definitely want a brush,” Audrey said.

“And I would want something more than sunflower seeds,” Tyler said.

Dad nodded. “Let’s all make a list this week of the things we would need if we had to leave suddenly and be gone for three days. Next Monday night we can go over our lists and decide how to get organized so we are prepared to grab items and go. We will probably never need to do that—but if we do, we’ll be ready.”

While she was eating her ice-cream cone, Sarah decided she had been wrong about something. She didn’t miss her exciting book at all tonight; family home evening could definitely be an adventure!

Activity:

(Click here to go to LDS.org for image)

Your family can be prepared by storing basic emergency supplies in one convenient place. You can gather your own emergency items, such as:

· An extra change of clothing

· A sweater or coat, hat, and gloves

· Your scriptures

· Your journal

· Toothpaste, a toothbrush, a hairbrush, soap, and a washcloth

· A flashlight

· A whistle

· Emergency contact information

· 72 hours’ worth of food and water for each person and pet

· Blankets and sheets (for warmth or carrying someone who is hurt)

· Puzzles, games, and books

Also see here for 72-hour kits

OR if your 72-hour kits are done....

Get them out, talk about the items and why you have them. Let the children ask questions, and learn about what is to go into the kits. This is a good time to get each family member to pack up his or her backpacks.(for ideas on packing the packs click here)

At this time, with the weather getting warmer, you might want to plan a camp-out with your family using only your 72-hour kits! Find out if you can really live on your 72-hour kits. This will help you know if you want to add anything or leave anything out. Plan this together as a family and set the date on the calendar. Moreover, what a great way to spend time together as a family.

Closing Song: ♪ Go the Second Mile ♫ (CSB pg # 167)

Closing Prayer:

Treat: Chocolate Cereal Snack Mix (see Safely Gathered in Recipes)

Enjoy another night of family fun and learning!!

FHE: Ready To Go! Printable

Family Home Evening Lesson: It Wasn't Raining When Noah Built the Ark

We will be featuring a Family Home Evening (FHE) lesson the 3rd Monday of each month in place of the motivational thought. FHE's are brought to us by guest poster Tiffany. This is a great way to teach your families about the importance of being prepared.

Following the Prophets:

"It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark"

Purpose: To learn & teach about food storage, self-reliance and why it is important.

Preparation: Read lesson to adapt to your family. Print and cut out clip art to use. Paper, crayons, makers etc.. to make and decorate your “Family Ark” sign.

Opening Song: ♫The Prophet Said to Plant a Garden page 237 CSB♫

Opening Prayer:
Scripture: D&C 1:12 Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh;

Quote: “They teach and practice skills of sewing, canning, drying, and other food storage methods. With it went much of the food storage, but there was still the togetherness of a family that had learned to work together, to plan and prepare, and to face a difficulty head on.”

--L. Tom Perry The Need to Teach Personal and Family Preparedness, Ensign, May 1981

Ask what it means to be prepared. Explain that you are going to be talking about food storage which is in the temporal preparedness category.

Tell this story:

"The Andersons' Ark"

Make thee an ark of gopher wood; … And of every living thing … shalt thou bring into the ark, … And take … of all food that is eaten … ; and it shall be … for thee, and for them (Gen. 6:14, 19, 21).
“Hey, Mom, I’m home!” I yelled, closing the door. I hung up my coat (but it fell to the floor).
“Hello, dear,” Mom answered. “Come in here and see.” And—like every day—I knew where she’d be.
Hands sticky with dough, flour dusting her cheek, She looked at her bread loaves—enough for a week!
“All ready for baking,” she said with a smile.“ It’s good to make bread, though it does take a while.”
“Then why do you bother?” I asked, op’ning the door Of the oven. “Why don’t we buy bread at the store?”
“Now, that would be easy,” Mom said with a sigh.“ No wheat to be ground, no yeast cakes to buy,
“No mixing the flour, no bread dough to knead—All that takes much effort, and hard work, indeed.
“But if we don’t use what we keep stored away In our food storage room, it will spoil and decay.”
“So why do we store all the food that we do,” I questioned my mom, “when it’s so hard for you?”
“For years now,” Mom answered, “the Church leaders say To keep one year’s food saved for a rainy day.
“In fact, you might think—and not just as a lark—Our food storage room’s like our own Noah’s ark!
“We do as we’re told, just as Noah did back then. Remember, he built it before the rain came!”
“But an ark?” I asked Mother. “I don’t understand How an animal boat is like food, dried or canned?”
“Oh, you’d be surprised!” Mother said with a grin. “Would you take this flour back to its storage bin?”
So down to the basement and into the dark I hurried to board our own “Andersons’ Ark.”
There weren’t any lions there roaring aloud, But I saw all the fruit we had canned, and felt proud.
I didn’t see bears, either growling or funny, But I thought of the sweetness we get from our honey.
Though nary a glimpse of even one otter, We’d never go thirsty—we’d jugfuls of water!
No rabbits were hopping about to and fro, But canned garden veggies were neat in each row.
No cow was there to moo or to wink; However, we’d powdered milk our family could drink.
No elephant stood there to trumpet a call, But I saw our wheat stored—a half ton in all!
I looked everywhere, but there wasn’t a trace Of one single animal found in that place.
I saw enough food for my parents to feed The whole Anderson family if there’s ever a need.
We don’t know what problem, if any, we’ll face. It’s good to be ready, prepared, just in case.
I went back upstairs to where Mom was still cooking. “So how is our storage? You spent quite some time looking.”
“I know it’s important; I just can’t deny it. And without all those animals, our ark’s much more quiet!”
Debbie Davidson, “The Andersons’ Ark,” Friend, Nov 1990, 9–10

**Use Clip Art as the story is being told or after to explain… (Click on the pictures to enlarge so that you can save, print and cut them.)

Explain to your family that you are trying to heed the words of our prophets… Explain that you are doing this by stocking your food storage shelves and making 72-hour kits.
You can also show them your menus, your tracking sheets, your inventories. If you don’t have these here are some examples. If you need to start with menus, tracking sheets, and inventories involve the whole family in this process. Ask what their favorite meals are and see if it can be turned into something that is food storage appropriate.

Activity: Make your own Family Ark sign, for older children have them actually make the sign themselves; for younger children make the sign and have them color it… Find and designate a place for your food storage, if there is already a place established; make sure all family members know where it is. If possible hang your Family Ark sign by your food storage, if food storage is in numerous places, place the sign on your pantry as a reminder of what we should do to be prepared.


Closing Song: ♫Follow the Prophet page 110 CSB ♪
Closing Prayer:

Treat: Camille's Granola Bars

(See Safely Gathered In Recipes)

Remember Family Home Evening is a fun time for family to learn and grow together. Hope you enjoy this lesson and it works for your family.
Tiffany

Printable Version Here

An FHE Activity - Emergency Plans

For our Family Home Evening activity in June, we talked about making a record of your possessions in case something happened to your home. This month, we are going to follow along the same lines of emergency preparedness. Let's talk about making Emergency Plans for our family members.

Does your family know what to do in case of a fire? Where would you all go during a tornado warning? Earthquake? Hopefully most of you have gone over this in your families, but if you haven't, do it now!

Fire. Talk about escape plans. Ideally, there should be at least 2 possible ways to escape from each room in your house. Go from room to room and talk about how you could get out. Ask your kids what they would do if a fire was in the hallway, or if it was in the kitchen. If they don't know, show them. Teach them how to "stop, drop, and roll." Also, teach them that things can be replaced, but people can't. They shouldn't waste time grabbing toys and other things.

Also, I really hope you have a fire extinguisher in your house. PLEASE learn how to use it. That fire extinguisher does you NO GOOD if you don't know where it is, or if you don't know how to use it. If you don't have one, consider getting one as soon as possible. I'll admit, I don't have one, BUT, I do have something called "Tundra" (pictured above). It's a spray can that works for all kinds of small fires (electrical, grease, etc). Boy, I wish I'd had that on hand when I had a fire in my house last October. Lesson learned, though. I don't remember how much Tundra costs (it's under $20), but it's well worth the peace of mind, and it will also be well worth it if I ever have to use it! $20 may seem a little steep, but it really isn't when you compare it to insurance deductibles, replacing your things, etc. Plus, only my kitchen saw the fire damage, but there was soot throughout my ENTIRE HOUSE because the cabinets had been burning for so long. If I'd had Tundra (or a fire extinguisher), it probably wouldn't have been so bad.

One final thing about preparing for fires... decide on a place outside to meet. Make sure it's far enough away that the fire won't effect it, and try to make it on the same side of the street, especially if you live in a busy area. Go there during Family Home Evening so there is no confusion. Make sure kids know how to find that place from each exit.

Earthquake. Even if you don't live in an area where earthquakes are likely, it's still a valuable lesson to teach. Practice getting under the kitchen table, and teach them that the most important thing they can do is protect their head.

Tornado. Another valuable lesson. What room in your home would you all congregate in? It should be a room in the center of your home, and ideally it should have no windows.

There are so many things I could say about each emergency. A little searching on the web will give you a lot more information about what to do in each disaster. Make sure your kids know what to do in these situations - it could be a matter of life or death. You can make these lessons fun by talking about it at FHE. Practice getting out of the house quickly. Make it a game to see how many people can fit under the table.

What have you done so far to prepare for emergencies?

A "Family Home Evening" Activity - Emergency Preparedness

It's important to teach your kids about the possibility of an emergency. You don't want to scare them, obviously, but the more prepared they are, the safer they will be in the event that something happens.

Once a month, we are going to share with you an activity that will help you teach your families about the importance of food storage, or that will help prepare your family in the event of an emergency. This month's activity is about emergency preparedness, and it's a lot of fun.

First, though, I want you to imagine something for just a moment. Imagine that you are away on vacation, and while you are gone you see on TV that a tornado has hit your city. Later, you find out that your home is completely ruined. Sad, I know! Hopefully you have homeowners insurance! So, you call your insurance company and explain everything. They say that they need proof of your possessions before they replace them.

Ok, now comes the hard part. What did you even have in your home, and where can you find proof of that? It's going to be easy to list some everyday items, and the big things in your house are hard to forget about. But it's virtually impossible to remember everything you have in your home. You won't get everything back, that's a fact. Hopefully after this activity, though, you'll do a lot better than you would have otherwise.

All you need is:

• a camcorder (if you don't have one, borrow one!)
• a blank tape for the camcorder

It's simple - for your family activity, go through your house and videotape your possessions! Go from room to room and describe what you see. Your kids will love showing off their toys for the camera. You could even let the kids take turns being the videographer, if they're old enough.

My husband and I did this in our first home we lived in, just a couple months after we were married. Thankfully, we never had to use the tape for insurance purposes, but it's fun now to look back at where we lived and the things we had when we were first starting out (ok... most of it's still the same, but it will be REALLY fun to look back in 15-20 years!).

One last thought, and this is important.... DON'T store the only copy of this tape in your home! If something happens and your home is ruined, chances are the tape is gone, too. Make a copy of it and send it to a relative or friend who lives far enough away that whatever happened to your house (tornado, flood, earthquake, whatever) most likely didn't happen to theirs, too. Make sense?

Enjoy this activity! Get everyone in the family involved and have a good time. The prophet told us to be prepared, and by golly, we're gonna do it!