Item 10:  Stringboard Activity

Saturday Preparation for the Sabbath

Preparation

• Items needed: Pencils, white cardstock, yarn or string, tape.
• Activity assembly instructions: Print one of the visual aid pages (girl or boy) per child onto white cardstock. Cut the stringboard out by cutting on the dotted line, and then cut out the child figure on each page. Cut out small pieces of yarn and tape a small loop onto the back of each child figure. Cut out one piece of yarn, 12 inches long, per each stringboard. Put the yarn through the loop on the back of the child figure and then tape each end to the back sides of the stringboard, making sure the string goes across the string mark on the church and that the string is pulled tightly in place so that it doesn’t sag. Move the child figure to the far left-hand side of the stringboard. (Resource for Stringboard: Star B Manual, pg. 82)

Presentation

Give each child a stringboard and a pencil. Have the children name some things they could do on Saturday to help prepare for Sunday. (See ideas below. Parents may want to think ahead of things they would like each child to do so they can help direct the answers.)

Have the children write each idea on one of the pathway stones (for little ones, draw some simple pictures on the stones). Tell the children that on each Saturday they can move their figures across their stringboard as they accomplish each item. Tell them that their Saturday preparation for Sunday will help them have a peaceful, holy Sabbath day.

Alternate Idea: Cut out the stones and church. Glue the church building to the far upper-right edge of a half sheet of light blue cardstock. Write the children’s ideas on the stones and give the stones to the children to put on their stringboards with sticky tack. Tell the children that on Saturdays they can put their stones on their stringboard as they accomplish each item. They can move their figures forward on the stones as they do the things that help prepare them for Sunday. (This allows children to choose the order in which they do the tasks.)

Family Saturday Preparation Ideas:

• Get Sunday clothes out and check to make sure they are clean and ironed.
• House cleaning chores (including washing and ironing clothes if needed), yard chores and clean room.
• Find and put out clean shoes, clean socks (or tights), ties, belts, and scriptures.
•  Finish weekend homework.
• If church is early in the morning, finish working on talks, lessons, and other church assignments.
• Prepare or buy cookies or flowers to take to someone who is sick or in need of a visit–a family member, widow, shut-in, etc.
• Do any other shopping that needs done.
• Prepare meals to eat on the Sabbath, or plan light meals.
• Get gas in the car and check to make sure the car is clean.

Optional Idea: Some families put up shelves or make a special place in each room to place Sunday items as they are collected on Saturday.  Or they put up a long family shelf with hooks below it to collect items on. Shelves can be painted and decorated as part of FHE. The children could post their stringboard reminders by the shelf.