Mother Dear

Mother Dear is a simple, short, yet sweet song to sing for Mother’s Day! Jazz up the simplicity of the song by using handbells on the alto!

Use this lesson plan only in singing time, or use it as a musical number in sacrament meeting. The handbells are completely optional. If you are unfamiliar with the bells, check out my post HERE (which includes where to purchase them).

This activity will also work with ANY Mother’s Day song if you omit the bells. Before primary, write the words to the song on the board.

If using handbells, pass them out to every other child. So some children will be ringing and some will be singing.

Each time you sing the song (all 3 verses), have teachers from each class pick a good singer to come and erase a word and then draw a picture of their mom’s smiling face in its place.

Repeat, switching ringers with singers until every child has had a turn to erase a word and draw a picture and everyone has had a turn with the bells.

Hopefully the entire song will be erased by the end and lots of smiling mothers 🙂

Non-Readers

If you are concerned about non-readers, children will still enjoy erasing and drawing on the board! Make sure to have the teachers sing along or play the song on your phone so the kids can listen to the words and do their best to sing along.

The younger kids learn best by repetition and you’ll definitely get LOTS of repetition with this activity!

Mother Dear Bell Chart

Access my bell chart for Mother Dear at my Resource Library. Instructions for accessing my Resource Library are found at the bottom of this post.

Discussion Questions

Optionally, ask these discussion questions (best if omitting the bells):

Verse One:

- What 2 words describe Mother’s face? [happy, smiling]
- Mother’s happy, smiling face makes home what kind of place? [lovely]

Verse Two:

What 2 words describe mother’s eyes? [lovely, shining]
What are mother’s eyes like? [stars that twinkle]

Verse Three:

What will I try all day to do? [please our Heavenly Father]
Why will I try to please Heavenly Father? [to show him that I’m so glad he gave me you]

Variation

Variation: Place the flip chart HERE of the song on the board. Have the kids remove a page and draw a picture of their mom on the board in its stead. This works best with a small primary.

There’s also a fun YouTube video HERE.