a YW lesson

Not all YW lessons are easily transferable to an electronic form... at least not mine. They tend to be more discussion and questions thought of in the moment, rather than reading off a check list written down of things to say..... Needless to say, I can't really share most of my lessons or duplicate them (I hope this means that the audience is always different, so different things come out in the discussion... or it just means that I can't remember all the questions that I asked last time :)

Nevertheless. For this lesson I have more visual aids, and so I present my 'material'. My lesson is to have the girls be thinking about their jobs at home, and realizing that working now will benefit them later. And that learning the value of work is part of our Heavenly Father's plan for us. The lesson manual had a story arranged in multiple parts, of a girl that didn't follow through with her assigned responsibilities, and how her parents taught her the importance of work.

Enter first clip:

We will then discuss what jobs each of the girls can do, and what they are able to do in their own homes (and of course, list it on the chalkboard). We will then ask, "what are your responsibilities in your home?" "What are you doing?" "What are your chores?" (This is to follow up on our last lesson, learning how to become Mothers). And after that list on the chalkboard, I will have them list on their own papers, "What should you be doing?" "What can you improve on?"

Show second clip:

This second clip should be a reminder to the girls of the responsibility they have, and help that their parents need from them. Most of my girls are younger, and have few little siblings, but I hope that it will still work out. We will talk about how a family doesn't function with just one person working, that it takes everyone to keep a family happy. Everyone should have a part to play in their family. By having a job, you are more connected and committed to your family. Work also brings you joy and satisfaction. See Alma 36:25.

Third clip:

Ask girls: "How would you feel if you were woken up in the middle of the night to finish what you had neglected to do earlier that day?"

Clip number four:

"If you do not do your jobs at home, who is left to do them? Who does the burden fall on? How do you think that they feel? Are they happy that you have left the work for them to do?" "Why do you think the mother woke her son up to do the dishes?"

(Now, please keep in mind this story was of a 13 yr old girl, not a child, so child cruelty shouldn't be an issue.... However, since Benjamin is a little boy, and not a 13 yr old girl, allowances had to be made for the filming. Benjamin also insisted on having a different name for our 'game', because, according to him, he always does the dishes. I find it fantastic that Benjamin actually does have the chore of doing the dishes (in the dishwasher) himself!)

"How might this story have been different if Wally had decided to go the second mile instead of neglecting his responsibilities?"

See last clip:

Ask: "Why does the work we put off seem harder to do?" "Any personal experiences?" I will then share the story of last Saturday when I was helping some one clean after their move (dirty, dirty crazy, need I say more. No wonder people hate to move, if that is what they have to look forward to! I didn't realize!)

Tell the girls: Our parents love us, and in their efforts to help us learn, sometime it isn't always enjoyable. However, they want us to know the fruits of our labors, as Alma says, and to know the exceedingly great joy we can have.

"What would it be like if we didn't learn the value of work?" Imagine for a minute that you are living away from home. You have gone to college, or are at a summer camp. "What if one of the other girls doesn't know how to clean? What if she doesn't know how to do her laundry or cook or do the dishes?" There aren't little elves that will do this for us, so who will have to do this work? "Is it better when everyone helps? Is it fair to make just one person work all the time?"

Please read D&C 58:27. What could be considered a good cause? We were talking before about what kinds of homes we should have, that invite the spirit. One of the characteristics we listed was cleanliness. The last line, in that verse says "and bring to pass much righteousness". By following the Lord's commandments we are righteous. One of the commandments the Lord has given us says to "Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a ... house of order." D&C 88:119 To clean and organize, to keep our homes in a state of cleanliness, this is an aspect of righteousness.

My lesson will proceed from there... but that is just a short peek into what my Sunday morning will be like! (I hope it works out!)