
There are a lot of ways to recognize Activity Day girls for their achievements as they go through the Faith in God program. Recognition Activities can be a great way to do something a little special with the girls, family members or other special people in their lives. Sometimes both parents are invited, sometimes just mom or dad or another special person, sometimes the whole family.

At these events, it’s important to remember the instruction for these activities outlined in the Faith in God book under the section “Orientation & Recognition”:
2. At least twice a year, a Primary activity day (or a Cub Scout Pack meeting) should include opportunities for the children to share what they have learned and accomplished.
A key phrase in these instructions is “opportunities for the children to share what they have learned.” Sometimes this can be kind of tricky to include or it often gets forgotten when we plan Recognition Activities. I have seen a lot of ways that groups in our area have created opportunities for the girls to share their growth in one or all of the Faith in God categories (Learning & Living the Gospel, Developing Talents, Serving Others).

I thought it might be helpful to compile some of these ideas all in one place. Many of these ideas can be a part of just about any activity and any theme you are working with.
Enjoy!
- BRING SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT THAT CELEBRATES FAITH IN GOD

This idea works in a lot of ways and can be adapted to just about any theme. Click here for how it was used in the “It’s In the Bag” activity and here to see how the same format was adapted for a “Proud to Bee Me” theme.

This is also the strategy used when the girls share a family history story such as at the campfire activities found here and here.

At this activity, the leader gave a talk about how everyone has unique talents and that sometimes you need to try a lot of things to discover your interests and talents. The leader then shared one or two special things about each girl. Each girl also talked about their talents and some shared what they wanted to do with those talents when they grew up.
Tips to Make Verbal Sharing Successful:
1. Invite a parent to stand in the front with them in case someone is feeling shy or nervous on their own.
2. Establish clear instructions for sharing so they know what they are supposed to do.
3. If there is a girl who doesn’t want to come because she has to be in front of people, invite a parent or leader to share for her.
4. Keep each person’s sharing short and sweet (we’ve found that most girls this age only end up talking for about 30 seconds anyway!)
5. Have parents or leaders briefly share how they have seen each girl grow in one of the Faith in God categories.
2. PREPARE SOMETHING BEFOREHAND TO USE AS THE DECORATIONS

Use an activity before your event to create something meaningful to display and use as the decorations. The above activity “Let It Shine”, where each girl’s testimony was framed and displayed, is found here. This strategy often makes each girl feel completely safe and confident in how they are sharing.

This group had each girl draw a life-size outline of themselves and decorate it with words and phrases that described them. They identified their talents, had others help them celebrate who they are, then got to take their drawing home to remember all the wonderful things about themselves.

Another example was at the “Law of the Harvest” activity where they identified a goal they are working on and made a piece of art to showcase it.

Here are some drawings that girls did to display their talents. They created these at a previous activity and the leaders used Dollar Store frames – this showcased the drawing and the girl!
3. USE A DISPLAY TO HIGHLIGHT INDIVIDUAL FAITH IN GOD PROGRESS

4. CREATE SOMETHING AT THE ACTIVITY FOR SHARING
One group used these “Mom & Me” journals as a way for the girls and their mothers to share thoughts and feelings after the activity.


5. CREATE QUESTIONS FOR GIRLS & SPECIAL PEOPLE TO ASK EACH OTHER
A simple interview can help girls share what is important to them in their Faith in God progress. This example helps them share about their Family History, but what if there were questions about their testimony and how they felt about the gospel? What kind of service they are doing and how they feel when they do it? What do they feel like they are good at and how can they improve on their talents? There are many questions you can offer the girls and their family members to help them share one-on-one about their growth and progress in Faith in God.

6. USE A GAME TO SHARE ABOUT EACH OTHER
A kid-appropriate version of the “Newlywed Game” is a great way to share with each other. Consider asking some questions that have to do with Faith in God such as, “What would you say is your best talent?” “What is your favorite thing you have learned from the scriptures recently?” “What are you working on to be better?” “What is your favorite way to serve others?” Those questions are a little harder than, “What is your favorite color?” but they get into some deeper information about who these girls are and the kinds of things they should be thinking about in their lives.

Play a game that tests their knowledge of gospel principles, such as this Articles of Faith Memory Game.

7. HAVE GIRLS SET GOALS WITH THEIR FAMILY MEMBER

8. MENTOR THE GIRLS AS THEY CONDUCT THE ACTIVITY
Use the girls in as many places as you can during your activity. Mentor them as you plan out what they might need to say to conduct, give them a list of what they should say so they are successful and teach them how to stand in front of people and speak clearly. It is a great learning experience for these girls to “run the show.” Does someone play the piano and could plink out an opening song? Let them! Are the girls saying the prayers to start and finish the activity? They are more than capable.
Give them a chance to participate in as many aspects of the event as possible and they will gain confidence in their ability to share more in the future!

Let me know if you have ideas of your own for this list! The more these girls share their progress, the more confident they will feel and will be able to apply Faith in God categories into their lives. I challenge you to give it a try and then SHARE your ideas here!
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