General Conference ABC Comic Books and More

Honor and I are busy getting ready for General Conference weekend over here. Luckily, over the years, I've figured out how to save things in one basket to be pulled out and re-used from conference to conference.  Things like reusable/refillable notebooks and activities.

This makes prepping for Conference way easier.  All I have to do is switch out activities that are more age appropriate and add snacks, etc. Despite having a reliable routine, I still like to try out new ways of experiencing General Conference together, so I thought I'd share a few with you today:

General Conference Comic Books:

I remembered reading that The Friend released an updated version of their Special Witness Apostles Cards and sure enough, they did.  You can download them here:  Updated Special Witness Cards.  

In the past, we have used the cards to make Apostle blocks and to make "General Conference Smashbooks" but this time around I decided to print the cards out as stickers and use them in blank comic books that we have around the house.  

We order blank books from BareBooks, but since it's crunch time, you can easily download FREE comic book pages RIGHT HERE.  In fact, their pages look really fun, so I'll probably print out a bunch myself so the kids can get creative.

I thought it might add a little "Pow! Bang! Boom-factor!" into the weekend, especially for my son.  He can choose his own "power phrases" to doodle into or draw into his comic book.  I plan on having markers/stickers and working with him to make the comic book reflect the super-powered advice we'll be getting from our leaders this weekend.

General Conference ABCs:

This idea came to me as I was pushing Honor on the swings earlier today.  She loves to sing the alphabet right now and as a family we've learned a lot of things using the handy-dandy alphabet (see our Book of Mormon ABCs and Family Proclamation ABCs which you can print out and color during Conference)...so why not use the ABCs to help us take notes during #LDSConf and then to help us remember the teachings later on?

Here is a very simple printable that I whipped up.  You could print them off for each child OR simply post ABCs on pages on the wall and fill them in as a family whenever a phrase catches your attention.

My goal is to have the family listen for key words and phrases that begin with each letter and record it on the worksheet (with attribution if possible).  Little ones might be able to draw a picture of what they are hearing.  For bigger kids, this will be a nice way to keep them actively listening...and later, I'm hoping we'll be able to have a nice study guide and memory tool to learn from General Conference together. (You can download the printable below).

General Conference ABCs by jocelynhatch

Reverence Trays & Stations:

In the past, we have utilized Reverence Stations during General Conference, which has worked great.  It's easy to switch out activities and upgrade according to your children's growing interests over the years.  However, in recent conferences, my kids have liked working together on one project at their desks in the living room all together.

This time around, I decided to try Reverence Trays.  I picked up some simple trays at Michael's the other day that I will fill with little things Honor, my 3 year old, can do.  Knowing that my other kids will WANT to do something similar, I got three trays which will contain different activities.  This will (in my mind anyway) help separate the activities and contain any potential mess.  I'll also be able to keep a time limit on things.  We've definitely moved more toward listening and writing during conference, so I don't want to go backwards, but I now have a 3 year old who had different needs from her 10, 8, and 7 year old siblings.  Two activities I plan on having ready for her are dot-a-dot Conference printables and an old stand-by we used when the older children were just learning to read and write.  We put out ABC magnetic letters and the child can write out words they hear on a dry erase board (using their best alpha-guess~!) and then they can find the letters and write it out in magnets.

General Conference Note-taking Banner:

This really feels like enough to keep us happy, but I have my note-taking conference banner up and ready to go.  The way we use this is the kids can write their favorite quotes on the erase-able chalk banner pendants.  We string them up on the wall and have an instant reminder of General Conference.

Ok, I've got to run, but be sure to check out 

Our VERY BEST GENERAL CONFERENCE IDEAS PAGE for more ideas to help with General Conference-viewing with children and have a wonderful time together this weekend!!