Lesson

The Commandments Help Us

Choose the Right 3
Purpose To help each child understand that Heavenly Father gave us commandments to
help us make right choices.

Preparation 1. Prayerfully study Mosiah 2:22.

2. Make a copy of the handout, Commandment Road Signs, for each child
(printed at the end of the lesson). Make an additional copy and mount it on
a piece of cardboard. Read the scriptures listed on the handout and be
prepared to explain any difficult words they contain.
3. Design a simple treasure hunt that allows the children to follow clues, signs,
or small pieces of paper that point the way to a treasure. The treasure might
be a copy of the Book of Mormon, a picture, or a CTR ring.
4. Prepare to sing Choose the Right Way (Childrens Songbook, p. 160); the
words are included at the back of this manual. Also prepare to sing Keep
the Commandments (Childrens Songbook, p. 146).
5. Materials needed:
a. A copy of the Book of Mormon for each child who can read. Have children
in your class who can read help with this lesson.
b. Chalkboard, chalk, and eraser (or some other writing surface).
c. Picture 3-3, Pre-earth Life; picture 3-4, A Boy and His Soccer Ball.
6. Make the necessary preparations for any enrichment activities that you will
be using.

Suggested
Lesson
Development Invite a child to give the opening prayer.
Follow up with the children if you encouraged them to do something during the
week.

The Commandments Help Us Choose the Right

Attention activity Allow the children to find the treasure using the clues that you have prepared.
Teacher Have the children imagine that you are sending them to someones house to
presentation pick up some important papers to bring back to you. Explain that the person
lives far away and that no one can go with the children to help them find the way.
What would help you find your way to the house?
If the path was marked with signs or arrows, could you find your way? Tell
the children that when Heavenly Father sent us to earth, he sent us on an
important errand. He wants us to find our way back to him.
Picture Show picture 3-3, Pre-earth Life, to the class.

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 Where did we live before we were born? (With Heavenly Father.)
Why did we leave Heavenly Father to come to earth?
Explain to the children that we left Heavenly Father so we could receive bodies,
have experiences, and learn to choose the right.
Teacher Explain that when Heavenly Father planned for us to leave him and live on this
presentation earth, he wanted all of us to return and live with him again. He knew that we
would have to make right choices in order to return to him and that choosing
the right would make us happy.
He gave us commandments to help us make the right choices.
What are commandments? (Things Heavenly Father has told us to do.)
What are some of the commandments?
Explain that the commandments are like road signs to help us find our way.
They show us the right path to follow to return to Heavenly Father.
Song Sing or say the words to Keep the Commandments:
Keep the commandments; keep the commandments!
In this there is safety; in this there is peace.
He will send blessings; He will send blessings.
Words of a prophet: Keep the commandments.
In this there is safety and peace.
Activity Display the chart Commandment Road Signs that you have prepared. Briefly
read or tell something about each of the scriptures or illustrations on the road
signs. Explain that you will describe a situation and then the children are to
decide which commandment on a road sign will help them choose the right.
Explain any words that are difficult for the children to understand. Let the children
take turns pointing to the different commandments that show the right way.
The following are suggested situations:
1. You are walking home from a friends house when another friend sees you.
He asks you to come to his house to play. But your mother had asked you to
come straight home, and you promised you would. Your friend tells you that
it wont hurt to be a little late getting home. What commandment would help
you choose the right?
2. You have been earning money to buy a ball by doing extra chores for your
parents. The store has the ball on sale, but you still dont have enough
money unless you borrow from your tithing. Which commandment would
help you choose the right?
3. Its late and your family has just returned home. You are tired and want to go
to bed. Then you remember that your family forgot to pray before everyone
went off to bed. What commandment will help you choose the right?
4. Your best friend invites you to go to a movie on Sunday. You have wanted to
see that movie for a long time. What commandment would help you choose
the right?
5. You are playing with your friends. A boy who has called you names comes
along and wants to play too. What commandment would help you choose
the right?

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 Lesson 3

6. You are with some friends and some of them want you to take a drink of
some alcohol that one of them brought from home. Your parents have
taught you that drinking alcohol is wrong. What commandment would
help you choose the right?
Compliment the children for their good answers.

When We Choose the Right, We Feel Good

Discussion Tell the children that choosing the right can give them a good feeling.
Review these situations by asking more questions. For example, the following
questions and discussions could come from the first two situations.
1. How do you think you would feel if you went home as your mother asked
instead of going to play with your friend?
You might have fun playing with your friend. But even while you were playing,
you might have an unhappy feeling about having broken your promise to
your mother. Even if it is hard to choose the right and to do what Jesus Christ
has asked you to do, if you do it anyway, you will feel good inside. You will
feel good about yourself for the choice you make.
2. How do you think you would feel if you bought a new ball by using some of
your tithing money? Would you feel good when you were playing with the ball?
You might have fun playing with your friends, but you would not feel good
about yourself because you did not choose to pay your tithing as Heavenly
Father commanded.
Review the other situations in the same way. Emphasize the good feeling the
children have inside when they obey a commandment of the Lordespecially
when it seems hard to do. Explain that that good feeling is the Holy Ghost
telling them that Heavenly Father is pleased with their actions.
Remind the children of the feeling they have when they make a wrong choice.
It is usually an empty, unhappy feeling. This feeling could also be the Holy
Ghost telling us to repent and make the right choice.
Picture and story Show picture 3-4, A Boy and His Soccer Ball.
Have the children listen to the story to see how choosing the right made
Julio feel:
When Julios Aunt Mara gave him a soccer ball, he could hardly believe it was
his. He knew that his Aunt Mara didnt have much money. But Julio knew that
she would feel badly if he didnt take the ball.
Thank you, he said softly. But why are you giving it to me?
Because you help me so much, Aunt Mara said. You run errands for me
and help me clean my yard. All I ask is that you always remember why it is
yours. Now go play.
As Julio kicked the ball down the sidewalk in front of himself, he wondered
about what Aunt Mara had said. Remember why it is yours, she had said.
Julio loved to play soccer, and he was good. Someday he hoped to play for
the national team of Brazil. Aunt Mara knows that, he thought. Maybe thats
why she gave me the ball.

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 Soon, Antonio came out to play with Julio. Before long, other boys joined
them, and soon there were enough to start a soccer game.
Julio saw a younger boy watching the soccer game from the sidewalk. Oh,
no, Antonio whispered to Julio. Paulo is coming. Dont let him play! He
always messes up the game. Well lose if he plays!
It was true that Paulo was not a good player. But Julio knew how much Paulo
liked to play.
Can I play? Paulo asked hopefully.
What would you say?
Julio didnt answer right away. He looked for a second at Aunt Maras window,
and he could see her there watching him. She looked concerned as she waited
for Julios answer.
Remember why it is yours. Her words came to Julios mind. Once more he
looked at Aunt Mara. He had shared his time and efforts to help her, and he
wondered if she were trying to tell him to keep sharing.
Julio looked away from Aunt Mara to Paulo and said, Sure, you can play.
Then he added, Antonio here is a good player, and hell help you learn more
about the game.
Antonio looked at Julio and smiled. Sure, Id be happy to! Well all teach you
to be a great soccer player, he said to Paulo. All of us would be glad to help
you learn.
All of the boys began to play again. Julio looked up at Aunt Maras window.
Aunt Mara was smiling. Then Julio knew why his aunt had given him a new
soccer ball. (Adapted from Sherrie Johnson, The Soccer Ball, Friend, June
1973, pp. 1012.)
Discussion How did Julio feel after he chose to share? (He felt happy and good inside.)
What might have happened if he had not shared? (He might have felt bad for
turning Paulo away; Paulo would have felt bad too.)
Did Julio do what Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ wanted him to do?
Explain that we will make many choices during our lifetimes. These choices
will make us feel either good or bad. Choosing to obey the commandments
will always make us feel good.

Summary
CTR shield and ring Show the children the CTR shield. Remind them that their CTR ring can help
them remember to choose the right.
Handout and Give a copy of the Commandment Road Signs to each child. Read together
discussion the commandments listed on the road signs. (For younger children, explain the
signs and what they mean.)
Tell the children that making the right choices isnt always easy and that some-
times we may go the wrong way. Heavenly Fathers commandments can help
us find the right way to go and give us a good feeling so that we know we are
making right choices. They will help us to return to our Heavenly Father. We will
be glad about our choices if we choose the right.

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 Lesson 3

Suggest that the children take their paper home and read the Book of Mormon
scriptures with their families. They may want to keep their paper to remind
them of some of the commandments.
Teacher testimony Bear your testimony of how important it is to read the Book of Mormon.
Studying it will help the children to always choose the right.
Song Sing Choose the Right Way with the children.
Invite a child to give the closing prayer and thank Heavenly Father for giving us
commandments to help us make right choices.

Enrichment
Activities Choose from the following activities those that will work best for your children.
You can use them in the lesson itself or as a review or summary. For additional
guidance, see Class Time in Helps for the Teacher.
1. Tie a cord, string, or rope between two objects in your classroom (the door
and a chair across the room, for example). Allow the children to take turns
using the cord to help them find their way across the room with their eyes
closed. You might have some reward for each child at the end of the cord.
Explain that just as this cord leads us across the room, the commandments
lead us back to Heavenly Father.
2. Briefly tell the story of Lehis dream as recorded in 1 Nephi 811 ( see
especially 1 Nephi 8:930; 11:125). Explain that the iron rod represents the
word of God. Explain that the tree of life represents the love of God, and
discuss how Gods commandments help us to feel his love.
3. Prepare a sheet of paper that is large enough to cover picture 3-5, Adam
and Eve Teaching Their Children. Cut the paper into nine equal pieces and
then tape each piece in place to cover the picture. Explain that hidden
behind the papers is a very important message. Each time the children
name a commandment that they can obey because their parents or another
adult has taught them, they can remove a piece of paper and try to discover
the message. When all of the pieces have been removed, discuss how
parents, teachers, and other leaders can help children learn to obey the
commandments.

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 Commandment Road Signs
Obey My Parents
(Mosiah 13:20)

Pay Tithing
(3 Nephi 24:10)

Pray Always
(2 Nephi 32:9)

Keep the Sabbath

Day Holy
(Mosiah 13:16)

Treat
Others Kindly
(3 Nephi 12:44)