Lesson 9

I Am Thankful for Water

“Lesson 9: I Am Thankful for Water,” Primary 1 (2000), 25–27


Purpose

To help each child feel gratitude to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ for water.

Preparation

  1. Prayerfully study Genesis 1:9–10; Exodus 17:1–6; and Matthew 3:13–17.

  2. Materials needed:

    1. A Bible.

    2. If possible, obtain pictures of various bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, and oceans.

    3. Picture 1-8, Passing the Sacrament (62021); picture 1-11, Boy Being Baptized (62018); picture 1-18, John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus (Gospel Art Picture Kit 208; 62133).

  3. Make the necessary preparations for any Enrichment Activities you want to use.

Learning Activities

Invite a child to give the opening prayer.

Attention Activity

Ask a child to come to the front of the class. Whisper in his or her ear an activity that uses water, such as brushing teeth, washing hands, or watering plants. Have the child act out the activity while the other children guess what is being acted out. (You may need to show the children how to act out each situation.) Let each child have a turn acting out an activity.

Point out that each activity that was acted out needs water. Tell the children that we should be thankful to Heavenly Father and Jesus for giving us water.

Water was an important part of the Creation

Read aloud and explain Genesis 1:9–10.

  • Why is water so important for us?

  • How do we get our water?

Help the children understand that water comes from many sources, including lakes, rivers, oceans, rain, and snow. Explain that snow and ice are frozen water. Show the pictures of water you obtained and talk about where water comes from in your area.

Tell the children you are thankful that water is a part of Heavenly Father’s plan.

Song

Sing “Fun to Do” (Children’s Songbook, p. 253). For the verses, have the children tell ways they use water, such as washing the clothes, taking a bath, or brushing their teeth. Improvise actions for the song as suggested by the words.

Washing the clothes is fun to do,

Fun to do, to do, to do!

Washing the clothes is fun to do,

To do, to do, to do!

(© 1963 by D. C. Heath and Company. Reprinted by permission.)

We need water for many things

  • Why do we need water? What is it used for?

Explain that all living things, including people, animals, and plants, need water to live. If possible, give each child a small cup of water to drink. Talk about how our bodies could not live without water to drink.

  • How do animals and plants get the water they need?

Explain that we also need water for other things, such as washing and cooking.

Jesus gave Moses and the Israelites water in the desert

Story

Tell the story of Moses getting water from a rock, as found in Exodus 17:1–6. Explain that the people were in a hot, dry desert. There was no water there.

  • What would have happened if the Israelites didn’t receive water?

  • Have you ever been very thirsty? How does it feel to have a cool drink of water when you are thirsty?

Water is important in the Church

Story

Show picture 1-18, John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus. Tell the story of Jesus’ baptism, as found in Matthew 3:13–17.

  • Where was Jesus baptized?

  • How was Jesus baptized?

Show picture 1-11, Boy Being Baptized.

  • Where are we baptized when we are eight years old?

  • Have you ever seen someone be baptized?

Allow the children to talk about what happened when they saw someone be baptized. Explain that we must have water to be baptized.

Show picture 1-8, Passing the Sacrament.

  • How do we use water in sacrament meeting?

Express your gratitude for water so that we can be baptized and partake of the sacrament.

Testimony

Express your testimony of Heavenly Father’s plan and his love for us in giving us water. Tell the children you are grateful to Heavenly Father and Jesus for this wonderful gift.

Enrichment Activities

Choose some of these activities to use during the lesson.

  1. Recite the following verse with the children, doing the actions indicated:

    The Raindrops

    When the flowers are thirsty

    And the leaves are dry (open hands and stretch arms upward),

    Merry little raindrops

    Tumble from the sky (bring arms down, wiggling fingers).

    All about they splatter (wiggle fingers from side to side)

    In their happy play,

    ‘Til the bright warm sunshine (raise arms overhead and form a circle)

    Chases them away (hide fingers behind back).

  2. Help the children sing or say the words to “Rain Is Falling All Around” (Children’s Songbook, p. 241) or “‘Give,’ Said the Little Stream” (Children’s Songbook, p. 236).

  3. Have each child draw a picture of water, such as a lake, a river, or raindrops. Write on each child’s paper I am thankful for water.

  4. Have the children tell about or pantomime ways that they can play in water, such as swimming, ice skating, making a snowman, or splashing in puddles.

  5. Help the children understand that water helps us get things clean. Have them pantomime cleaning activities that use water, such as washing clothes or washing their hands.

Additional Activities for Younger Children

  1. Do some or all of the following activities to help the children learn the different ways we use water:

    1. Give each child a small drink of water. As the children are drinking, explain that water is part of Heavenly Father’s plan for the earth. We can drink water when we are thirsty.

    2. Put a little water in a bowl and help each child wash his or her hands. Remind the children that Heavenly Father and Jesus planned for us to have water. Explain that we can use water to wash things.

    3. If possible, take the children outside and let each one water a plant. Or bring a plant to class and allow each child to give a little water to the plant. Explain that plants also need water to live and grow.

  2. Do the following actions as the children pretend it is raining—softly at first, and then gradually harder.

    1. Pat fingertips together.

    2. Pat hands together.

    3. Pat knees, alternating hands.

    4. Tap feet.

  Listen