Individual Worth Activities

Individual Worth Activities

#7, Individual Worth.  This Sunday, I am going to give each young woman a box wrapped in pink paper, with their name on it and an invite to Mutual and a reminder to bring their scriptures.  They are not to open the box, but to bring it with them to Mutual.  (Inside the box is a special talent that each girl has been given.  I am asking the mom, the dad and each sibling to name one talent that this young woman has.  I am also asking the mom and dad and siblings if old enough to write a letter to the young woman on the same subject) 

At Mutual, we will sit on the floor in a circle, and I will start out by giving each young woman a hard piece of candy – jolly rancher, with the instruction to see how long they can make it last. (this is simply to keep them from gabbing too much.)  : )  Then we will first read 1 Corinthians 12:4-12.  Then I will get them to hold up their thumb and ask them what exactly is special about their thumb.  Eventually they will figure out that no one else in the world now, before or in the future has one exactly like hers.  I will also tell a story about my oldest daughter, age 20, and how the spirit told me what her gift was when she was a little girl and that is was my responsibility to teach her how not to let the strong emotions overcome her.  Her gift is empathy – compassion.  Then we will read 1 Corinthians 13.  Then I will ask them why we have gifts and talents.  What is the purpose, what are they for.  (Eventually we will come up with ideas such as help us to bless others.  Then the quote about “it us usually through another that the Lord meets our needs.)  I will remind them of the movie “Mr. Holland’s Opus” and how he worked all his life to write a symphony to be played in the famous symphony halls.  He never got it done, but realized that in fact he wrote another kind of symphony and all the notes were the many people whose lives he blessed and influenced.  Then we will read Moroni 7:12-13.  After that I will read to them the short story found in the New Era, “The Pink Gift” about a girl who doesn’t think she has any gifts.  After the story, I will have them open their pink gift.  Then we will play a talents game that I got from the Friend.  There are about 12 pictures of different talents from singing to hugs.  I will make up a bunch of different problem situations relevant to them.  Someone pulls out a situation and reads it.  Someone else pulls out a talent and decides how they could use that talent to help that person with the problem.  They will have to get creative here.  Then we will read D&C 46:11-26.  Then I will read this cute little anecdote called Billy Waddleton.  Then I will have them open their letters from their parents and siblings.  The last thing they will do is fill out this paper I made called A-Z, I Like Me.  I will have all of the letters of the alphabet on it and they have to fill out a good thing about themselves that go with that letter.  It doesn’t have to begin with that letter, just have the letter in it. Because there are 26 letters they will have to get creative and dig deep. When they finish the A-Z then they will get a Symphony candy bar, because they are writing their own symphony. 
Angie in Wyoming

We did the Personality Quiz that is in the Johnny Lingo Activity at
http://www.ywconnection.com/Activiites/pageAjohnnylingo.html

I dressed up funny and pretended to tell them their “fortunes” from their answers. A few times I would say that their answers needed chocolate and handed them a piece of candy before telling them what it meant.  (Chocolate seems to help solve major little girl problems at our house.)  After the quiz we talked about the “real” fortune of being daughters of God and I gave them a print out with scriptures and we read them together.  Then I had them write how those scriptures helped teach them that Heavenly Father loves them and is mindful of them.  The scriptures and writing assignment are Individual Worth Value Experience 1.  We are having a hard time with Personal Progress and the girls were surprised that something so fun was PP.
Anyway, just an idea.
Shannon

“Red Night” in honor of “Individual Worth” and they needed to wear at least one thing that was red.  After opening exercises when we separated into our class groups, we went into the Mia Maid room where the chairs were in a semi-circle around one chair that was tied with a big red bow.  I introduced the activity by first awarding a little red gift bag filled with treats wrapped in red…socks, candy, etc., to the Mia Maid who was wearing the most red.  Next, we passed out pens and a red envelope to each girl and asked them to write their name on the outside.  We also passed out 10 3 X 5 cards to each girl and had them write the names of each girl present that night on the top of each card (one name per card).  I instructed the girls to write down 2 things they learned about each girl on the card with her name on it, and at the bottom of the card, I asked them to write down something they love about the girl answering the questions.  One by one, each girl took her turn in the “Red Hot Seat” (the one with the bow) and we each were allowed to ask one question of the girl in the hot seat.  The girls asked some great questions:  Who are you most thankful for in your life?  If you could ask Jesus 2 questions, what would they be?  What brings you the most happiness in your life?  After each girl finished writing something they loved about that girl, I collected the cards and placed them in the red envelope belonging to that particular girl.  On the front of each red envelope I wrote, “To Remind You of Your Individual Worth!”  In the past few days I’ve received so many comments from the YW and their moms, telling me about how great the girls felt when they went home and read their cards again.  I really hope the cards continue to serve as a reminder of their worth, and I can’t thank everyone enough for sharing such great ideas for me to build on.  Thank you!—

Individual Worth collages.  I got poster boards for all of the girls then supplied pictures of temples and the Savior, stickers and other scrapbook items that correspond with sports, dance etc. that I know the girls are involved in, and magazines like Better Homes and Gardens, etc.  I had the girls bring a picture of themselves and their families and anything else that they had that described themselves. 
They used the magazines to find their favorite foods, animals, colors, etc. as well as words or phrases that they liked.  After they had everything glued on to their boards, I had them write why they chose the picture or phrase that they did and how it described their personalities, and Individual Worth.  They had a really good time and came up with some really cute boards.
 

Snowflake project activity

OK, let’s see if I remember all of it.  It was centered around a man named “Snowflake” Bentley.  He was a farmer that worked for years to figure out how to photograph snowflakes.  Over several years, he photographed over 5000 and he was the one to figure out that no two are alike.  Anyway, there is a book of his accomplishments by Jacqueline Martin, but I didn’t use it.  I went here: http://snowflakebentley.com/ for his bio info and here: http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/historic/nws/nwind22.htm and here:
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/historic/nws/nwind23.htm for copies of his pictures (There are thumbnails; click on them and they come up big enough to print out).  I printed out about 100 and left them on the sheets.  My girls tend to absorb more if their hands are busy, so I had them cut them out as we talked and then had them cut out paper snowflakes when they ran out.  This really helped them to see how very different each one is, how easy it is to miss them.  There was a quote somewhere by Mr. Bentley that said something to this effect: Snowflakes are each uniquely beautiful and that beauty is for such a short time, never to be repeated.  I stressed this to the girls.  There will never be another person that can accomplish what you can, ever.  You can disappear like the snowflake or leave your lasting beauty on the world.  We talked broadly about things like developing their talents and reaching out to those around them.  I did not feel impressed to stress any one aspect of their individual worth that night.  I do regret, however, not stressing the Saviour’s role in their individual worth (You know, where the red comes from).  We talked about that in our next activity, though.  I really let them have a free reign on the conversation and just regrouped if it got too off course.  I had them tell each other talents they had seen that maybe the girl didn’t realize was there.  We also talked about our in-actives this night: who went to whose school, what was going on with them,
who seemed to be receptive/ non-receptive.  After all the talking, we cut up our burritos as I described before and fried them.  They were so yummy! Hope this helps!
Megan in GA

There are some websites for Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley I just put his name in the search engine and found quite a few… Here is one of his quotes:

”Under the microscope, I found that snowflakes were miracles of beauty; and it seemed a shame that this beauty should not be seen and appreciated by others. Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated., When a snowflake melted, that design was forever lost. Just that much beauty was gone, without leaving any record behind.” Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley 1925

Maybe you could share the story of “Snowflake Bentley” by Jacqueline Briggs Martin published by Scholastic Books (1998). It is the biography of a man born in 1865 who was fascinated with nature in particular snowflakes. In his teen years he bought a camera with a microscope and was the first person to figure out how to successfully take pictures of snowflakes. The book is very well done. It is a children’s story book. The sidebars of each page tell more biographically information of William Bentley as well as scientific information about the formation and individuality of each snow flake. The book is wonderfully illustrated (watercolors). The last page has a photograph of the real man and some of his photographs. He eventually published a book of his pictures. The snowflake stuff would fit perfectly with your individual worth theme. The book in general is a great example of following your dreams, determination, etc. Your local library may even have a copy of it.

On one of the lists they had this idea for a refreshment.  They used the big burrito sized flour tortillas folded and cut them like you would paper snowflakes, then deep fied them until they were golden and then sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar.. I have made them sprinkling powdered sugar instead.

There is a real cute craft of a snowflake that we did for our Family Christmas Party it is in Crafty Kids magazine Christmas 1999 Vol.1 No.4. pg.85 called Mr. Frosty Flake.  I would send it to you, but I looked and it’s copyrighted. 

Snowflake Poem

One cold winter night, I walked outside
And looking up I could see
A skyful of snowflakes tunbling at me.
The sky was high, I was down low.
I saw a million snowflakes glow.
And yet no two were just alike
In all that wondrous, wint’ry night.
It makes me feel so good to know
That on this earth down here below
With all its great variety,
That He who makes the snow made ME
Unique-special,
One of a kind!
If you looked forever
You would never find
A person-pattern just like mine!
And since I’m God’s child,
That pattern’s divine.
 by Jennifer Sainsbury Brown

Young Women are like snowflakes–no two are alike!

You’re an original, an individual, a masterpiece.
Celebrate that; you’re who you are for a reason–
Don’t be someone other than the wonder you are.
Every snowflake is important to the season.

Snowflakes

Silently the virgin snowflakes fall
Softly twinkling in the rising sun
Not a snowflake is alike you see,
Not even a single one.

Each one securing a different place
That is theirs on the earth, by will.
Each one possessing a special face,
Each having a mission to fulfill.

Each little snowflake is a special gem
Descending to the earth again,
Pursuing the path of the Lords elect,
Choosing to follow and Honor Him.
by Margaret Allen
 

SNOWFLAKES

Snowflakes falling, so pure and white,
They always make such a pretty sight,
Especially when there is no breeze
And they fall with delicate, graceful ease.

All are a little bit different in some way,
No two snowflakes alike, or so folks say,
We His daughters start out like snowflakes
Pure and different when to earth each wakes.

Each coming down from heaven above
Made by God with infinite, pure love,
None of us children are made the same,
Different in features, different in frame.

Like single snowflakes we are not strong,
But together we form a mighty throng
Of children going homeward to Him in love,
Return pure as the snowflakes that fall from above.
by M Ann Margetson ) October 24, 2000
 

No Two Alike

Every blade of grass,
And every flake of snow,
Are just a wee bit different,
There’s no two alike, you know.

For something small like grains of sand
To each gigantic star,
Each one was made with this in mind
To be just what they are.

How foolish then to imitate,
How useless to pretend,
When each one of us come from a mind
Whose ideas never end.

There’ll be just one of me
To show what I can do.
And likewise you should feel very proud
There’s only one of you!!!

Precious in His Sight

Drifting, falling, gently landing,
on the coat of one girl standing,
on a winter moonlit night,
snowflakes dancing in the light.

Watching closely as they lay,
she stood in awe of what God made.
Each a masterpiece so small,
yet the Lord sees each one fall.

Delicate and formed with love,
a gift to us from God above.
He takes the time to make each one,
for His pleasure, for our fun.

If He should care enough to make
each and every little flake,
Then how precious in His sight
is one girl standing in the night.

Snowflake Angels
by R.Fogle

Snowflakes are a gift from God
that float on Angels wings,
delighting all who see them
with the beauty that they bring.

They glow with crystal brilliance
that comes from God alone,
then join to make a snowman
with a newness all it’s own.

And like each perfect snowflake,
we, too, were made to be
a wonderful example
of God’s creativity.

So when you see a snowman,
all pure and glistening white,
may you also be reminded
you are precious in God’s sight.

Candy Personality Profile

Hot Tamales – You are HOT!  You are fired up and ready to tackle any challenges that come your way!  You have a talent for making others feel warm and comfortable around you, and your spontaneous, fiery personality often ignites enthusiasm within those you come in contact with.  A real go-getter, you seek others who appreciate taking risks and setting goals.

100 grand – “I want money, lots and lots of money…”  You are motivated to succeed, and success to you means dollar signs!  You always pay a full tithe, because you trust in The Lord and the blessings He sends.  You try to save for your future; be that a mission, or college, or both!  You appreciate peers that are also careful with their funds, and you enjoy leisurely activities such as yard-sales, window shopping, or rolling coins, after all,  “A penny saved is a penny earned”..

Snickers – “Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone”, so you choose to LAUGH!  You are known for your unusual ways of giggling, and one never knows what may set you off.  You often break out in laughter at the least suspecting times; i.e. during Sunday School class, a Biology final, or just after you drank a mouthful of soda.  Others appreciate your joy and happiness, and they like to share in your tasteful, never vulgar, sense of humor.

Butterfinger – You are one of those valiant humans that refuses to give up no matter what life may throw at you.  While often times opportunities slip right through your fingers, you are never discouraged and persevere until you succeed.  You’ve never been accused of taking the “easy way out”, because most of the time you go the “long way around” things. Yet despite the obstacles you face, on you go, and you motivate and encourage others along your way.  You are not afraid to laugh at yourself, and people genuinely feel comfortable around you.

Gummy worms – “Nobody likes you, everybody hates you, guess you’ll go eat worms!”… JUST KIDDING! EVERYBODY likes you, so you can eat worms and not risk losing friends!  You are simply easy to get along with, and people are attracted to your carefree, worm-eating lifestyle.  You obey your leaders, you keep your promises, you don’t talk bad about others. what’s not to like?!!? You are one that is not easily swayed by the crowd.  You are careful about keeping your standards, so peer pressure does not greatly affect you.  You are one-of a-kind – unique – and people like that!

M&M’s – You are a Mighty Mormon!  You are a natural-born leader who leads by example.  Others can not help but admire your knowledge of the scriptures and your reverence for spiritual things.  You have a special relationship with your Father in Heaven, as you go to Him daily in prayer.  You are never preachy, but rather quietly go about doing good and choosing the right, and people notice.  You find joy in living the Gospel, and are not afraid to share the truths that you know.

Twix – You are a great decision-maker.  Whether it be at school or in a social setting, you make good choices when choosing between right and wrong.  You are academically talented, and you are careful about listening in class and studying daily.  You’ve learned the benefits of hard work and of not procrastinating what needs to be done.  You are organized and thorough, thoughtful and deliberate.  You are detail-oriented with a flair for “reading between the lines”.  You like to read and may have the desire to be a teacher
to show others the fun of learning.

Sweet-tarts – You are obviously a sweetheart!  Always thinking of others and putting their needs before your own, you give quiet acts of service.  You refrain from gossip and always have a kind word or compliment for anyone you may meet.  People trust you and depend on you as a friend.  While some people have “best friends”, you are a friend to all, and go out of your way to make others feel included.  You are sincere and sweet in word and deed, and people are thankful to know you.

Sprees – Shopaholics Anonymous called!!! You are a shopper, and no one else can beat your fashion savvy or trend-setting ways.  You try to keep your spendy ways under control, but are often times distracted by weekend sales at the mall or E-Bay.  Your closet is full, your wallet is empty, but you are feeling pretty darn good.  You are an optimist that knows another baby-sitting job is just around the corner, so you try not to worry about your lack of funds.  Bonus: You are able to follow fashion trends without compromising your modesty.  You ROCK!

Almond Joy – “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!”  So, Clap your hands, because you are HAPPY!  Pollyanna has nothing on you, and you cup is always half full!  If there’s a party, you are there… after all, it’s YOUR party!  You love to have a good time and share your joy with others.  You’ve learned that it’s possible to have fun and still stick to your standards.  You would never put yourself in a compromising position, because then you wouldn’t be Happy, and that’s who you are.  Girls just wanna have fun, so keep enjoying life and sticking to what you know is right.

Ring pops – A hopeless romantic you are!  You like to watch old movies and listen to country music.  You keep an eye on the young men in your ward, noting their good choices and the way they treat their families.  You daydream about your future, when you will someday marry a worthy young man in the temple.  In the meantime, you follow the commandments of God and prepare yourself to be worthy to enter the House of the Lord when it is time.  You prepare yourself in other ways, too: practicing homemaking skills, learning as much as you can at school, and helping others take care of children so that
you may one day be an intelligent and comparable companion to your “Prince Charming”!

Jenny Lingo

The video we had was made about 7 years ago in my ward so we played it along with Johnny Lingo for the activity, we served popcorn, candy and soda. I do not have a skit but in the video they just went along the same story line as Johnny Lingo switching Johnny for Jenny (jennifer in our ward) and Mahana for Mahaaron (we had an Aaron who played that part)  It was set in more modern times and they used 8 credit cards instead of eight cows. Mahaaron looked like a nerd at first with big black glasses and his pants pulled up too high, etc. until he ‘changed’. We also talked about individual worth after the videos.
> Lindy

Cow Auction:

The girls want everybody to come in church dress (that shocked me!) and we will start off by watching Johnny Lingo (the 10 cow woman) – then, we have a girl dressed as an auctioneer who will read descriptions of a YW disguised by a cow – then YM will make bids as to what girls or cows they want (the YM have no idea what this activity is – they just think it is about COWS!) After all the bids are done, they come into a room and collect their cows – which are the YW dressed in Church Clothes – they then take the YW in a room where we will have two keynote speakers talking on the topic of “Dating Manners” and how to “present” yourself properly on a date. Then we will end with ice cream! I was amazed at the ideas that the YW had! Can’t wait for this activity!

Started by showing video “Johnny Lingo” – which you can find on the movie “The Worth of Souls” – then we had the COW AUCTION – the YW who wanted to be “auctioned off” stood behind the stage curtains, we had two “auctioneers” – who read the descriptions of the YW – they had written things like; this individual gets along with the rest of the “herd”, enjoys sports, is kind, enjoys music – just basic things – and we had given all YM eight cows to be able to “bid with” – one of our advisors used a die cut for cows and we used these for the bidding.

After the YM had bided – the curtain was drawn, and the YM chose their YW! We ended with the beehive advisor and her husband doing a small “skit” on the do’s and don’ts of dating – and then they went over the 10 steps of dating by Elder Gene Cook. It was a fun night.

If we could have changed anything – we all agreed that when the curtain was drawn back – we could have mixed the YW with some of the RS Sisters – in our ward we have about 7 women who are in their late 70’s who have a TERRIFIC sense of humor – we know that they would have had a blast participating in this activity – and the YM would not have expected a mixture of women!!!!!! – just a thought.

Kathy Terry  Marmy@deseretonline.com” data-mce-href=”mailto:Marmy@deseretonline.com“>Marmy@deseretonline.com

We just had a great class activity watching Johnny Lingo. What a kick. It was followed by giving them a fun personality quiz (to build their self-esteem). We spent the evening wearing colorful plastic lei’s, eating candy & popcorn, quoting the movie, and giggling until our sides hurt. I delivered an invitation to each girl the day before the activity that said,

“Come enjoy an enlightening evening of entertainment,
Featuring the Mormon Box Office Hit, Johnny Lingo.
You’ve heard all the inside jokes, now relive the adventure!
Will Johnny bring all eight cows?
Will Mahana ever climb down from that tree?
Will her father ever ditch that hairpiece?
Will there be enough popcorn for everyone?
Find out the answers to some of these questions!”

The result was every Mia Maid attended! This was a first since I was called last October.

If you are interested in the personality quiz, it isn’t “Church approved” but is certainly rated “G”.

Our Young Women were so into this quiz. I just divided the girls into teams of two girls each and read the questions out loud, so it went faster as they answered to each other. This made it so they had the opportunity to give their first reaction answer. Once through the quiz, I reread the questions and all the girls gave their answers out loud to the whole group, then I gave the explanation to the question. What made this esteem building for our girls is, as they gave their answers, I’d really made it engaging and personalized by saying things like, “Hmmm, how interesting!” This gave the quiz some fun mystery before I explained their answers. Then as I gave the references to what their answers meant, I took it a step further. For example, I expressed what incredible aspirations the girl must have for
herself, etc. We kept it light and fun. It was a great time. The girls now want to give the quiz to their family and friends.

First I’m giving you the questions, then the explanations. Just for fun, try taking it while you read through the questions. Your girls will want to know what your reaction was to each question. Have fun with your girls!

Enjoy!

Personality Quiz

1. Imagine you are in a forest surrounded by tall pine trees. You are not alone. Who are you with?
2. Suddenly you see an animal. What kind of animal is it?
3. What is your reaction to the animal?
4. You walk into an open meadow and see your dream house. Describe it and its size.
5. Is there a fence around it?
6. You walk into the house and into the dining room. What is on the table and what is around the room?
7. You walk out the back door. You see a cup on the ground. Describe the cup.
8. What do you do with it?
9. You go to the edge of your property and find water of some type. Describe the water/body of water.
10. You need to get to the other side of the water. How do you accomplish it?

Explanation of the Personality Quiz:

1. Imagine you are in a forest surrounded by tall pine trees. You are not alone. Who are you with? This is the most important person in your life.

2. Suddenly you see an animal. What kind of animal is it? This represents your problems.

3. What is your reaction to the animal? This represents how you react to your problems.

4. You walk into an open meadow and see your dream house. Describe it and its size.
This represents your dreams and aspirations.

5. Is there a fence around it?
If you have a fence, you are a closed/private-type person. If you did not have a fence, you are an open-type person.

6. You walk into the house and into the dining room. What is on the table and what is around the room?
If you mentioned flowers, food, or people, you have much happiness in your life.

7. You walk out the back door. You see a cup on the ground. Describe the cup.

8. What do you do with it? The cup and what you do with it represent your relationship with the most important person in your life.

9. You go to the edge of your property and find water of some type. Describe the water/body of water.

10. You need to get to the other side of the water. How do you accomplish it?
The water and how you get to the other side represent the romantic side of you.

11. You come upon a barrier in your way. What is the barrier, and how do you get past it?
The barrier represents the BIG problems that come up and how you approach them.

12. You finally reach your destination. Where are you? Represents your view of life after death.
Also, regarding the house…Does it have windows? (Representing an open, honest person as opposed to a house with few windows.)

I’ve also heard the first question as, “Describe the forest.” Their description of the forest represents their outlook on life, or how they view their life. Dark and scary vs. bright, beautiful, pleasant.

Second question, “You decide to take a walk. Do you follow the path or do you walk away from the path.” This represents how they feel about obeying laws and staying within societal bounds.