We all have feral Primaries some days. Generally just prior to or during rain (for some unknown reason). I have put together a few of my resources that I have scribbled down over the years, and they are now part of my Singing Time folder.
Firstly, I found this site that gives a few pointers: Music Callings.com. They warn not to talk for too long to the kids or you will definitely lose them. Lots of visual aids are really helpful, especially for the little ones.
– You could whisper “If you can hear me, touch your nose” and wait for the children to respond.
– You could do the usual “hands on heads, hands on shoulders, hands on knees, hands on your cheeks, fold your arms” but that’s getting a bit outdated.
– You could hold up a sign that says ‘If you’re ready to pay attention, fold your arms and sit up straight”.
Sometimes those things work, but when the kids are REALLY restless, there’s no telling what mischief they could get up to!
These ones work for me. Most of them are from previous Primary lesson books: If children are restless or bored. Print a copy out and have it handy when you need it (ie in your Primary folder).
The link to ‘Don’t Clap This One Back’ is here. It is a great ‘game’ that teaches those valued aural skills children need for music. It also grabs their attention, and that of teachers and leaders in the room. Our Primary is very involved which is fantastic. We did manage to catch our Primary President out on this one last week though ;D For Primary, I print out the master sheet and have that laminated and with me all the time. I don’t worry about the little rhythm cards for this attention activity for Primary.
