FHE

This article originally appeared on lds.org. To see the original post, click here.

”In an article in the March 2013 New York Times entitled “The Stories That Bind Us,” author Bruce Feiler shared psychologists’ findings that the more children knew about their family history, the better they were able to handle stressful situations.  The reasons were that the children realized they were a part of something bigger than themselves, they understood their family overcame many ups and downs, and they believed they could overcome difficulties too.

These family home evening ideas will help your family learn more about your extended family and start building bonds with parents, grandparents, and ancestors.

How to prepare for a family home evening:

The following family home evening ideas take little or no preparation. The ideas can be combined to make a longer family home evening activity. You may want to assign members of your family to prepare a song, scripture, and spiritual thought to go with an activity.

FHE Idea #1: Can You Hear Them?

Purpose:

Connect with extended family through pictures.

Preparation:

1. You may want to download the video: Preserve Your Photos and Family Memories?
2. Make sure you can sign in on www.familysearch.org. You use the same username and password as on LDS.org. If you do not have an LDS Account, at the top right on FamilySearch.org, click Join for Free. You will need your Church membership record number. You can find this number on your temple recommend, or contact your ward clerk.

Activity:

1. Watch the video: Preserve Your Photos and Family Memories?

• What were the photos saying to the children?
• What might the people in the photos say to their grandkids or other family members?

2. Using your computer or tablet, look at photos of your family that others may have added to FamilySearch.org. To access the photos, sign in to FamilySearch.org. Under Memories, select People. To view your relationship to a person, click the yellow banner on the photo.

3. Discuss the photos:

2. Share stories that you and your family remember about yourselves, your parents, and your grandparents.

3. Write the stories in the booklet, My Family: Stories That Bring Us Together.

4. Glue photos of your family members into the correct places in the booklet.

5. Remember to add your photos and stories from the My Family: Stories That Bring Us Together booklet to FamilySearch.org, so you can share with others.

FHE Idea #3: Role Play a Family Story

Purpose:

Connect to extended family through stories.

Preparation:

1. You may want to download the video: He Was a Blacksmith
2. You may want to select a family story to role play, and gather costumes and props to use.

Activity:

1. Watch and discuss the video: He Was a Blacksmith

• Q: How can stories help with family history?
• A: They can help us understand who our ancestors were and in turn help us understand who we are. We create connections to them, which can inspire us to do temple work for our ancestors.2. List fun, exciting, or memorable family stories that your family remembers. If you have filled out My Family: Stories That Bring Us Together, you may want to refer to that booklet.

  3. Choose a story that your family could role play.

  4. After role playing, discuss your family story:

  • How does that story help you better understand your ancestors?
  • What character traits did your ancestors have that you see in yourself or other family members?

For the other Family History Lessons, click here.