If you’re looking for Primary activities to do during COVID, our Primary kids made it easy for you. We asked them what their favorite activities were that we did in the past year (most of which we had to do online over Zoom or Google Meet).
Here were some of their absolute favorite Primary activities:
- Water Wars (one activity was online and one was in person)
- Article of Faith coloring and cut-outs (sometimes online, sometimes in person)
- Cake Decorating (yes, we did it online and it worked out–check out this post for how to do it)
- Talent Share (works online or socially distanced)
- Scripture Rocks (we did it online–check out this post for more info)
- Pet Walking (you can stay socially distanced)
I’ll put a full list of the 73 activities we’ve done so far during COVID down below in hopes it will give you some ideas and spur some new ideas for you. First, let me give you a brief explanation about each of the activities I mentioned above and how we did it.
Primary Activity 1: Water Wars
We actually did two separate water war activities last year.
For our socially distanced water wars, we set up six-foot-apart locations for each girl. At each girl’s spot, we placed the necessary items for the games. We played water balloon target, water balloon air toss, bucket dash (water in a bucket, then they fill a sponge and run to squeeze the sponge out into their bowl at the other end of their space), and water gun fights (staying six feet apart, but running around).
For our online Zoom meeting water wars, we dropped off supplies for each girl. We played water gun target, water balance (who can balance a cup of water on their head the longest), water balloon squeeze (pop a water balloon without scissors, etc.), and water balloon toss (how high can you throw it and still catch it without popping).
Primary Activity 2: Article of Faith Coloring and Cut-outs
My awesome partner found Article of Faith graphics for the girls to color and cut out. Some make different shapes and some stay flat. This activity is nice for the girls because it’s quiet and relaxing, and we usually paired it with a more physical activity so they’d have variety and appreciate some quiet time too. You can just Google “Article of Faith coloring pages” to find lots of great stuff.
I also made a Bamboozle online Article of Faith game, which is kind of fun. First, check the simple tips on how to run the game since you’ll be the one clicking on things while you share your screen. Then, check out the game itself (and practice sharing it, if you need a little confidence): Articles of Faith 1-5 Game.
Primary Activity 3: Cake Decorating
It may seem too hard to do a cake decorating activity online, but we did it and the girls loved it. We did ask a parent to be on hand at home in case a Primary girl needed help. There were a couple of girls who needed a quick help from a parent, but for most of the activity, they did great on their own.
We had them make a cake in advance, and we gave them a recipe for frosting to make in advance too. That way, we could focus on using the tips and doing different designs. Everyone had their own tips or borrowed some. We provided disposable bags for those who needed them. You can also just use a baggie with the tips.
Primary Activity 4: Talent Share
This is an easy activity for the leaders! We told the girls to prepare a talent to share online (we have also done this in person, and it’s an easy one for staying socially distanced).
For the online talent share, we told the girls that if their talent was easier to record ahead of time, that was fine. I told them to have their parents send it to me ahead of time, then I played it during our meeting. For example, one girl wanted to show a tuck on a trampoline, so she pre-recorded it and I shared my screen and played her video. One girl showed her pogo stick skills, so she propped up her device and hopped on the pogo stick. Almost anything works!
For the socially-distanced talent share, one Primary girl pre-record a tumbling pass, since her mom didn’t want her doing it on the hard church floors–so it works in person too, although if you are socially distancing, you might need a decent size of screen to show it on. Alternatively, you could pass around a smaller screen if you aren’t worried about germs or the safety of your screen.
This was seriously one of the easiest activities we’ve done, and it has great benefits for the girls:
- It gives the girls motivation to practice something they want to get better at
- It’s a pretty low-key way to be in front of an audience if they aren’t comfortable with that yet
- It helps them learn to deal with the small amount of nerves they get while sharing their talent
- It gives the leaders a chance to encourage them
- It helps you see more sides of their personality, even if you already know their interests
Plus, the girls really loved it! I highly recommend this one unless you happen to have someone who would be mean to the other girls. Or, just do it while the less supportive girl is on vacation. 🙂 Bet yet, talk to her about being supportive and try out her new “supportive” skills on a less vulnerable activity, then if she handled it well, talk to her again before the talent activity and remind her of the rules, then praise how well she did last time. Hopefully, she’ll be great during the activity.
Primary Activity 5: Scripture Rocks
One of our girls had a goal to remember to read her scriptures more consistently. (We do really try to base all of our activities on actual goals the girls gave us–we just attempt to come up with fun ways to do that, which is sometimes challenging for us!)
We painted reminder rocks and then Sharpied “Read” onto them. Just for fun, we also did some other rocks with uplifting words.
To see more information on how we did this through Zoom, go here: Scripture Rocks
Primary Activity 6: Pet Walking
One of the girls wanted to do a better job of taking care of (and giving attention to) her family’s dog. She thought it might be fun if we all went on a walk with our dogs.
By chance, all of our girls had dogs when we did our pet walking activity. Last year, we only had five girls, so it wasn’t hard to stay on the same street. Now that we have seven girls, I don’t think we could stay together and socially distance enough, so we won’t be doing this activity unless COVID restrictions ease.
The activity was really simple and fun. We met at a park that was dog friendly, played a little there, cleaned up a doggie mess, and then we walked the dogs down a few streets. The girls really enjoyed being outdoors and seeing each other’s pets. I’d definitely recommend this activity if you don’t have very many girls. If someone doesn’t have a dog, they could walk someone else’s dog and be doing service at the same time!
Bonus Activities
Some other activities our Primary girls liked are discussed on these pages:
Let me know how it goes!
More Primary Activity Ideas
Also, here’s a list of all the activities we’ve done in the past year, in case it gives you some ideas or sparks some new ideas. If you have a moment to say in the comments what you’ve done or will do, give us all your insights below!
Before COVID
Online After COVID Began
When COVID Restrictions Loosened for a Bit
When We Went Back to Online Only
And here’s a list of what we have planned for the first months this year:
Meet individually and talk about goals
Lettering: Prayer reminder banner
Speed friendshipping
Make bread (online–it worked out alright)
Gymnastics (six feet apart, with lines on the floor for each girl)
Skill/talent share
Cook omelets
Origami scripture reminder
Cursive/lettering thank you notes
Pickleball (if allowed)
Handsew puppets
Puppet show (may have to wait until we can do in person)
Veggie art
Wooden frame for favorite scripture
Limbo/sprint/high jump
Clogging
Cake decorating
Soccer skills
Crochet twirly bookmark (ideally we’ll be able to meet together by the time we do this activity)
Money games
Mission planning
Hiking (if allowed)
I hope this has helped you plan your LDS Primary activities during COVID! Let me know how it goes or if you have any questions. Send me your own ideas or activities your girls have liked!
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