Joseph Smith: The Book of Mormon
By Deborah Pace Rowley
Story: Moroni and the Gold Plates
Tell the family that you want to tell a story but you are not sure how it goes. You wrote down a note to remind yourself about the story. It has to do with the Angel Moroni and Joseph Smith. Your note says this: 1 night-3 visits-2 tired-4 years. See if the family can figure out what any of these numbers or words mean and work together to tell the story about Joseph Smith and the Angel Moroni. This is what the numbers mean: The Angel Moroni came to visit Joseph 1 night when he was in bed. He came 3 times that night and repeated the same message each time. The next day Joseph was 2 tired to work and he told his father about his experience. His father sent him home and the Angel Moroni appeared again. He asked Joseph to meet him each year for 4 years on the Hill Cumorah where the gold plates were buried. He received more instruction each time, then after four years he received the plates.
Activity: Translation Treasure Hunt
Once Joseph had the plates, he began to translate them from the reformed Egyptian language that the Nephites used to English. Tell the family they get to try a little bit of translating with a special treasure hunt. Prepare ahead by hiding a small box filled with candy in the washing machine. Make several copies of the Translation Treasure Hunt for the family. See the link below. Divide into two or three teams. Work together as a team to translate the three clues using the secret code. When you have the clues deciphered, run to find the treasure. Share the treat with the rest of the family.
Clue 1: Get Wet. Clue 2: Go in dirty, come out clean. Clue 3: Soapy Clothes.
Talk about what it was like to translate. Did you think you knew where the treasure was after one clue? Where you right? Did you need to translate all the clues to get the full picture? How did Joseph Smith translate the book of Mormon? Explain that Joseph used special stones to help him translate. They were called the Urim and Thumin. He didn’t have a code like we did to tell him how to translate each letter or picture. He needed to rely on the Holy Ghost to help him know what the words said.
Game: Book of Mormon Stories
When Joseph Smith was translating he read the same wonderful Book of Mormon stories that we know and love. He even read about himself in the scriptures. Read 2 Nephi 3:15. Who was the seer who had the same name as Joseph the ancient prophet? Joseph Smith. What was his father’s name? Joseph Smith Sr. What was the thing that he would bring forth by the power of the Lord that would bring salvation to his people? The Book of Mormon.
This is a game where you try to guess favorite Book of Mormon stories. Print out the Book of Mormon stories cards from the link below. To play this game, one person comes forward and draws a card. On the card is a Book of Mormon story. The person can say anything that that they want to help the family guess the correct story except for the forbidden words that are listed on the card. (This is similar to the game of Taboo.) You can’t say those four words or you are out and someone else gets to come up and draw a card. Continue to play until all the stories are guessed and all the cards have been used.
Game: Guard the Plates
Play this game as you would play “Capture the Flag”. Instead of having a flag at each end of the field for the opposing teams to capture, use two small boxes that you have wrapped in gold wrapping paper. These are the golden plates for each team to guard. After Joseph Smith was given the plates by Moroni, he had to guard the plates with his life. He was shot at and his home was broken into by wicked men trying to steal the plates. At different times Joseph hid the plates in a barrel, under the floor boards of his house, and in a hollowed out log in order to keep them safe. The team that is able to successfully keep their plates from being stolen is the winner.
Testimony:
Ask the family to share their testimonies of the Book of Mormon and their gratitude to Joseph Smith for bringing us this sacred record.
Treat: Build your own gold plates
For refreshments you can have the children build their own gold plates by stacking 4 graham cracker squares on top of each other with yellow frosting in the middle of each layer and on top. Then bite a pretzel in half (you don’t need the knot in the middle or the side in your mouth). This should make a C-shaped ring that you can stick onto the side of your plates with frosting.
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