SING-O! BING-O!

Who doesn't LOVE Bingo?  This is a fun version of it that I made up for singing time.  Easy to do!  Create a Bingo card with the letters S-I-N-G-O across the top.  Then under each letter are the numbers 1-5 in mixed up orders.  I made a card for each class.  Make sure no two cards are alike.

I have no printer ink, so I had to hand make my Bingo cards this time!!

You can use this to teach a new song or for review other songs.  I have in a jar pieces of paper to draw out after they sing what ever song or portion of a song I ask.  They get a number of letters based upon how well they sing.  I would draw any where form one bingo piece up to four!  The pieces were in a jar as follows;
S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, I1, I2, I3, I4, I5, N1, ...etc. I think you get the idea.  When I drew the pieces I would call out the coordinates.  The teachers had each been given a marker to mark them off.  Some teachers did it themselves, some let a child do it.

Here are some examples of how teachers marked them.

So...what do you win if you get a SING-O BING-O?  When a class gets a bingo they get to choose which song we sing.  I let them know this right at the start so that they would all be thinking of a song!

I was a lot of fun and an easy way to get A LOT of singing done!

Heart Attack!

Time for a day of review!  We did a good old fashioned heart-attack!  I decorated the board with a lot of small cut out hearts that were taped on.  Then I had some larger hearts with the following written on them:
Bradycardia
Atrial Fibrillation
Arrthymia
Murmur
Palpitations

THe point was that each song had an issue that needed to be fixed.  If they sang the song and fixed that "heart" issue, they could take 4-5 of the smaller hearts and give a teacher a Heart-Attack!!  When they gave teachers a heart attack they would stick the hearts on the teacher.  Our Sunbeam teacher ended up with hearts on his eyeglasses, nose and chin.  He looked so funny and the kids loved it.  He left it on during the ENTIRE singing time!!  Here is how I used each condition:

Bradycardia - heart beating too slow.  In our song when I am baptized we sing so slow and quiet that I sometimes feel sleepy.  Challenge was to speed up a touch and sing with more enthusiasm.

Atrial Fibrillation - very rapid heart beat.  In the song We'll Bring The World His Truth we sing the song so rapid that I sometimes can't understand each word.  If we want listeners to feel the spirit they must understand what we are saying.  Challenge was to slow down but still sing with the same power.

Arthymia - irregular heart beat.  When we sing As A Child of God, the chorus has more volume and enthusiasm than the verses.  Challenge was to even the song out, great volume and power throughout the entire songs.

Murmur - occasional beats cannot be detected or are skipped.  When we sing Choose the Right a lot of the words in the third verse are mumbled or skipped.  Challenge was to sing every word clearly!

Palpitations - racing heart beat.  When we sing Beautiful Savior we sing much too fast. This song is so beautiful.  Challenge is to slow it down!

Obviously you would need to adapt these to your songs and the things that you would like to work on in each song.  After the kids met the challenge, I drew a name out of the jar.  That child got to give a teacher a heart attack!  Sometimes I drew two kids and they each took 3 hearts.  It was a BIG hit and the teachers all left their hearts on with pride!

Truth or Consequences

This was adapted from the Ordinary Adventures of a Primary Chorister.  I have used it SO many times and it is always a BIG hit!  It is adapted from the 50's and 60's game show.  It is perfect for reviewing songs!  I like to use it when I have the whole time in primary on fifth Sundays.

It basically goes like this; I draw a child's name out of my choosing jar.  They get to pick a teacher to CHALLENGE.  Each contestant is given a question that relates to the song.  If you get your question right you receive a point for your team (kids vs. teachers).  If you get it wrong, you have a consequence.  What is great is they way the questions are, the kids NEVER get it wrong!  So the teachers do all of the consequences.  The kids LOVE to see their teacher's up front.  Our primary has GREAT, FUN, and ENTHUSIASTIC teachers who love to participate!

QUESTIONS: (The first one is for the kid, the second for the teacher)

For the song CHOOSE THE RIGHT:
1)  What abbreviation for Choose the Right do we use?  (CTR)
2)   What was the first CTR ring made of and how much did it cost? (Nickel and Platinum, $.35)

For the song  BEAUTIFUL SAVIOR:
1)  What is one thing in this song that is "fair:?  (sunshine, moonlight, Jesus, meadows, woodlands)
2)   This is a Silesian folk song, who wrote it?  (Anon.)

For the song  PRAISE TO THE MAN:
1)  Where did Joseph Smith go to pray?  (Sacred Grove)
2)  On what day of the week was the church organized?  (A Tuesday)

For the song ARMY OF HELAMAN:
1)  Who teaches you truth?  (goodly parents, mother, father)
2)   Janice Kapp Perry wrote this song, in what year as she born?  (1938)

For the song SCRIPTURE POWER:
1)  Name someone from the Book of Mormon?
2)  How many verses are in Mosiah chapter 15? (31)

For the song AS A CHILD OF GOD:
1)  What power did we come to earth with?  (Power to choose)
2)  How many babies are born in the USA every day?  (11,000)

It is obviously rigged so that the child's question is SUPER easy and the adults question is SUPER hard.  That is what makes it so much fun!  Now for the consequences.  They need to do these as everyone sings the song.

1)  Wear a sombrero and shake maracas
2)  Blow bubbles
3)  Hula Hoop
4)  Wear grass skirt and lei and do the hula
5)  Keep two inflated balloons in the air by hitting them lightly
6) March around like the leader of a parade

This is a very fun, energetic activity.  It's a great way to reward the kids for working so hard learning all of these program songs!

MUSICAL CHAIRS

This was a new, fun idea we used in Senior Primary.  They sometimes get tired of sitting and I felt they are old enough to be able to move around a bit without losing focus.  Note: I did NOT use this in Junior primary.

I made seven cards that were folded like tents and sitting on the front table.  We then would sing a verse, chorus or entire song in order to earn the chance to draw a card.  I used this to review all of the songs that we have learned thus far this year.  What ever was on the card is what we had to do before we sang the next song.  It was fun.  The kids really liked moving around to a new seat.  Here were the movements:

1)   Move two chairs to your right (if you are at the end of the row, go to the other end of the row)
2)   If you have ever gone to General Conference, switch chairs with someone else who has also gone.
3)   Teachers move 6 chairs to the left.  If there was a child in that seat they had to shift to make room for the teacher.
4)   If you have ever sang at someone's baptism, switch seats with someone else who also has.
5)   Move so everyone is sitting boy-girl.
6)   If you have ever given a Book of Mormon to someone, switch seats with someone else who has. (I was so thrilled to see how many children stood up!!)
7)  Teachers trade places with another teacher.

Having the movement was really fun and they sang great!

Remote Control Singing

So I saw several versions of using this concept in singing time.  I didn't want to have just a larger version of a remote control because I couldn't figure out how to push the buttons and conduct.  So I modified it a bit.  We did it today and the kids LOVED it!  Especially Junior Primary, for them it was a big hit!

I started by making my remote control buttons to be on signs that I could hold up.  I did a variety of signs.  We used today to review As A Child of God and Choose the Right.  This is because I was out sick one Sunday and then we had Stake Conference, so it had been 3 weeks since I had last heard them sing.  I thought a review would be wise, even if it put us behind schedule a bit.

Here are the signs:

PLAY:
This on is obvious.  To mix it up I had them lean and move the way i hold the sign, whether its left, right up or down.  That gets them in good practice of keeping their eyes on me.

FAST FORWARD:

This one was fun.  We sang Choose the Right as fast as the pianist played.  I emphasized to them that they were not to sing as fast as they could, but rather as fast as the piano went.  It was really good practice for them to follow me and to listen carefully to the piano.  When singing fast like this it is best to have the pianist only play the right hand.

REWIND:

This was not to sing the song backwards! Haha, though some kids wanted to try.  Instead when I held up the sign the turned around and faced the wall.  This way they couldn't see me do any of the hand signs that prompt them in the song As A Child of God.  When I made a beep noise they turned back and faced me.  I did this randomly throughout all three verses.

PAUSE:

After using this one I realized that a MUTE button would have made more sense.  When I held up this sign they paused their singing.  But the piano kept going.  This one caused them to really focus and me, the piano, and the words to the song.  One of my favorite ways to drill a song.

VOLUME:

Before beginning this one I always remind the children (especially the very little ones) that shouting is not singing.  Also, that even when they are singing as quiet as they can, I should still be able to hear them.  Then we began.  As I raised the sign up the increased in volume and as I went down they decreased.

RECORD:

My favorite of today.  I have never recorded the primary children singing.  So I explained to them that they need to hold still while they sang and not fidget so we would record only voices.  Then they sang the song to review.  When they were finished I played it back for them.  The senior liked it but the junior were astonished.  Their little faces just lit up as they heard themselves sing.  This was a great moment for them!




This turned out to be a very fun activity.  I chose to pick up the signs in the order I wanted and not have a helper hold them.  Sometimes the kids can make these types of activities too wild by switching the sign too quickly of too often.  I decided that I was in "control" of the remote control today.

SONG TITLE CODES

This will only work in Senior Primary....
We used a couple years for program song review.  The older kids and teachers LOVE it!  It is simple to prepare and so much fun to do!

On pieces of construction paper I write the first letter to each word in the title of a song.  For example when we did this in 2010 we used:
IBIC  (I believe in Christ)
IKTMSLM (I know that my Savior loves me)
HSHS  (He sent his Son)
TCOJC (The Church of Jesus Christ)
FTP  (Follow the Prophet)
TFIOG  (The Family is of God)
MEF (My Eternal Family)

It is so easy to do and can be used with ANY songs!

Start by reveling the first Song Title Code.  Remind the kids that if they know it they have to be quite not to say it out loud and give it away.  The version I like is to see which class can have everyone with their hands up first, including the teacher.  There is a variety of ways you could judge it.

After the right answer is discovered we then of course sing that song.  It needs to be sung well before I reveal the next Song Title Code.  Like everything fun I do in singing time, they have to earn it!

Primary Hospital

I am posting some activities that I have done over the past two years.  Primary Hospital was adapted from I think sugardoodle, but it was long ago I can't remember.

We started by having various adults dress with an ailment.  The children's job was to cure them with music.  I started out by explaining how when they sing I always feel happy and joy inside.  We talked about how good music can brighten your day, lessen your worries, and bring the spirit into our hearts.  So I told them I had some adults who needed be a cure through music.

1)SHOUTING FLU - this was caused by singing too loud.  To cure this ailment we had to sing the correct volume consistently throughout the entire song!  Remember shouting isn't singing.  My mom volunteer was holding a "barf" bowl as she walked in and pretended she may vomit on kids at any time.  She looked positively ill and was amazing at this!

2) TONE DEAF-ITIS - this was caused by not following the correct tune of the song.  It could only be cured by listening to the piano and those around us carefully as we sang.  This mom helper had a fever and walked in with a thermometer in her mouth, an ice bag on her forehead and a blanket on her shoulders.

3)  WEAK LYRIC LEG -  this was caused by sometimes mumbling the words and not pronouncing them clearly when singing.  The cure was to sing clearly so that we could understand each word of the song.  My dad volunteer came in on crutches with a leg brace on.

4)  NON MUSIC MEASLES - this was caused by not singing.  Sometimes someone won't sing and fidgets or distracts others.  The cure was for EVERY in the room to sing.  My dad volunteer had circle stickers stuck all over his face.  As they sang he slowly removed them.

5) TONGUE SPRAIN - this was caused by trying to sing the songs too fast!  The cure was to carefully follow the chorister.  This parent had an ace bandage wrapped around his mouth and chin.
 
 6) VOLUME FEVER - this was caused by singing too quietly.  Song songs are meant to have volume.  The cure is to sing with enthusiasm and energy (it helps to stand) and not to die off in volume at the end.  My parent volunteer for this one came in looking as ill as possible wearing an isolation flu mask.


Here is how it went.  My pianist and I were dressed in scrubs.  Then one of our parent volunteers came in.  As they weakly made their way towards me I commented on how terribly sick they appeared.  Then I had a child come up front to assist.  We put a nurses hat on them and they used a stethoscope to check the patient out.  Once they were done I revealed the illness and described how they caught it.  I had a jar filled with giant tongue depressors that had a program song written on each one.  They chose a stick and my child nurse helped me lead the song using the giant tongue depressor.  While we sang I watched and listened for whatever the cure needed to be.  Then it was up to the adult to say if they were cured or not.  I actually had one mom say she still didn't feel the best and needed them to sing it once more.  She was great!

I also had a large jar full of 6 lollipops.  When we cured each adult my nurse helper gave them a lollipop for being a good patient.  I had the exact amount so no child would beg for one of the "extras".

After that adult was done I chose a new nurse and the next patient came in.  This is a great way to review program songs!

Magic Water

This is a favorite, especially among the little ones.  I try to do it every other year so it is still a surprise!  I cannot remember on whose blog I originally saw this and cannot take credit for the water idea.

Start 5 pint jars 3/4 full of water and 1 pint jar 3/4 full of vinegar.  You will also need:
5 different food coloring colors
6 spoons
tray
baking soda




To prep this activity, place 2 drops of food coloring on a spoon followed by a teaspoon of baking soda.  This needs to be done right before singing time so the food coloring doesn't soak through.  Do this for each color.  This spoon should be just baking soda only to represent white.  Make sure you save this one for the end.

For today's activity I chose to make a large CTR shield which I then cut into puzzle pieces. 





On the back of each piece I placed a color that corresponds
to my food coloring choices.







You will notice I have one piece left.  This is my start piece.  The free piece so to speak.




Time to play!  The goal is to build the CTR shield.  They earn pieces by singing.  I am reviewing Choose the Right, the first verse.  I will mix up what they sin and how they will sin it each time.  If they sing it well, I will choose a child to come up and pick a spoon (making sure it is not the white one).  They then get to place the spoon in one of the jars of water and stir.  Magically the water will turn a color!  They love it! 

Whatever color the water turns that is the puzzle piece that they get to grab and place on the board.  This continues until all the pieces are chosen except the white one.  Now I will talk a little about what the color white represents, purity, peace, pure love, etc.  Choosing the right helps us to feel the spirit stronger each day.  We can be overflowing with the love of Christ.  To earn the last piece they will sing the first verse with chorus while standing up.  Afterward I will choose a child to do our last spoon which is the pure baking soda and jar of vinegar (i do not let the kids know it is not water).  When it is mixed the reaction overflows with bubbles (hence overflowing with God's love), this is when the tray comes in handy.  Make sure the jar is on the tray to prevent a terrible mess!

One last note, I never reveal my magical ways!

"Choose" a Balloon POP QUIZ!

I have done a "POP" Quiz before!  This time we are referring to it as "Choose" a Balloon since we are focusing on Choosing the Right this year.

**Please note** I do NOT do this activity in junior primary.  The popping of balloons can be a bit too much for some of the little ones.

To being with I have 12 questions that are rolled up and put into balloons of various sizes.  Here are the questions I will use.  We are emphasizing the songs Choose the Right and As a Child of God.

1)  Fill in the blanks:  When in the ______ your heart ___________. (from Choose the Right).
2)  How many times do we sing "Choose the Right" in the first verse and chorus?
3)  Fill in the blank:  Good choices ________ me and my family ______. (from As a Child of God)
4)  Sing 3rd verse and chorus of As a Child of God with loud and soft cards.
5)  Sing 3rd verse of Choose the Right with chorus.
6)  Boys only sing 1st verse and chorus of As a Child of God.
7)  Girls only sing 2nd verse and chorus of Choose the Right.
8)  What does the word "digression" mean in the 2nd verse of Choose the Right?
9)  What does the word "pursuing" mean in the 3rd verse of Choose the Right?
10) Sing Choose the Right in its entirety.  Stand/Sit each time we sing the word "right".
11) What important word is in each of the 3 verse (not counting the chorus) of As a Child of God.
12) Sing As a Child of God using Stop/Go cards.

I then thumb tacked each balloon to the back side of the moving chalk board.  This way I can have it all set up ahead of time without the kids knowing what we will do.

This is like a Pop quiz in school, at the and they will get a "grade".  They get a point if they get a question right and a point if they sing well.  (Example: 9 out of 12 will be a 75% or a C).  Their grade scale is as follows:

A = AWESOME!!  We have learned our songs well!!
B = we can do BETTER in our songs.  We need to keep at it.
C = Sister Meine is CONCERNED! We should know these by now!
D = DANGER!  Our songs are not where they should be!
F = Not even going to give this one a name because I know we won't be in this group!

Once I explain the rules and the grading scale, we will begin.  I will draw a name out of my choosing jar and that child will get to come up and pop a balloon.  We will do whatever it says inside in order to earn a point!  My goal is to get through all 12 balloons!

Project Primary!

A year and a half ago I got attacked by a dog while out on a run.  I was stuck in bed for several days.  While in bed there happened to be a Project Runway marathon on the satellite.  I had never seen this before but since I had nothing else to do or no where to go I watched.  So this week when I was planning my music lesson, memories of that show came back to me.

On 5th Sundays, our Primary Presidency gives me the entire time, no sharing time.  I love having the extra time for singing!!  I always use these as a review and remember day.  We review any program songs we have already learned and we remember songs that we learned years past.  This is a long explanation.  Sorry, I am trying to make sure it's detailed enough so it makes sense!! :)

To prepare for this activity I first made game cards.  The front said "Project Primary" and on the back was a question.  I made them about 5x7 in size. My questions were as follows:

JUNIOR:
In the song As a Child of God, what power did we come to earth with?
In the song Hinges, what would happen if we did not have any hinges?
In the song Listen, Listen, who do you listen to?
In the First Article of Faith, who are the three people we believe in?
In the song Scripture Power, what does scripture power keep you safe from?
In the song When I Am Baptized, what do you like to look for?
In the song As a Child of God, what does the Holy Ghost help you do?
In the song Stand For the Right, what words does the Prophet have for you?

SENIOR:
In the song As a Child of God, recite the third verse.
In the song When I am Baptized, what do you ponder on?
In the song Seek the Lord Early, where do you find the Lord?
In the song The Family is of God, what are the four things a mother teaches?
In the song I Pray in Faith, what is the third part of a prayer?
In the song Praise to the Man, who reveres him?
In the song As a Child of God, why do you feel so safe and happy?
In the song Stand For the Right, how many times do you sing the word "true'? (10 seconds)

I also had a garbage sack full of various "fashions":

South of the Border-- Sombrero and maracas
Sporty look--football jersey
Day on the town--red hat and cheetah shawl
Hit the Slopes--scarf, gloves, and ski goggles
Cow Poke-- cowboy hat and western vest
Pioneer-- Bonnet and apron
Island Days-- Grass skirt and lei
Bedtime wear-- robe and stuffed animal

To set up the activity I had all of the cards on the board, so that the words "Project Primary" were showing.  I explained to the kids that we were going to have fashion challenges and at the end of primary we would have a fashion show!!  Their models were anyone over 20 years old in the room.  This got a big laugh from the teachers when they realized it would be them! (side note here, I have very fun and cooperate teachers in our primary.  They are willing to do all kinds of crazy and funny things for me!)

I started by announcing the first "fashion challenge", for example Island days, and took out the corresponding attire from my sack.  Then I drew a child's name from the choosing jar.  That child got to come up and pick a card.  I read the question (in senior I let them read their own).  They had to then answer the question.  My pianist would play the song softly in the background to help.  If they were stumped they got ONE help from their class.

If they answered it correctly (which they do, we make sure they get to the right answer somehow) they then get to pick an adult model to come put on the fashion!  That teacher comes to the front of the room and puts on what matches that challenge, for example the grass skirt and lei.  They then stay p front with me while we sing the song that went with the  question.  The catch is, they have to sing clearly, with volume and then reverence when the song is over, to keep that teacher dressed this way!   This was how I enforced the reminder to be reverent.  If they passed, the teacher "model" sat down in their fashion.

We continued this until all the questions were asked or until we were almost out of time.  Then it was time for the fashion show!!  I used our new song As a Child of God for the show since that is the one we need to be reviewing the most.  As they sang the models walked around the room (some did so in a very silly way).  As long as we sang good the models kept walking.  If we mumbled our words or sang too quietly the models would stop.

I'm not sure who had the most fun, our models or the kids!  It was a big hit!!  We had a lot of fun and got a lot of good singing time in!  I definite one to do again another 5th Sunday!

SPIN THE TEACHER

Yesterday we did one of my all time favorite review activities.  I've seen it on lots of other blogs, so I can't remember who to give credit to.

This is a great activity to do once the kids have learned the verse of a new song and you want to reinforce that they understand the words and meanings of the songs.  I am blessed to have wonderful teachers in both our Junior and Senior primary who always willingly participate in my crazy ideas!

To start I have a swivel chair (borrowed from the clerk's office) and the numbers 1 through twelve placed around it like a clock.  I draw a child's name from my choosing jar.  That child gets to pick which teacher they want to spin.  The teacher sits on the chair and puts their legs out like a spinner.  When the piano music starts the child gets to spin the teacher matching the tempo of the song.  My pianist does a great job with this, really mixing it up.  When the piano stops so does the teacher.  Wherever their feet land is what number card the child picks up.

Each card has a different question or singing challenge. some of mine yesterday were:

1. Sing first verse and chorus of As A Child of God
2.  Fill in the blanks: I feel so _____ and _______because
3.  How do good choices bless your family

I think you get the idea.  The great thing about this activity is that it works for any song and my primary LOVES IT!!

Password

My ultimate favorite activity to play with senior primary!  Pick 5 songs to sing that day.  Then choose three words from each song!  That is all the planning that needs to go into this activity.  It's easy to prepare and my senior primary kids absolutely LOVE IT!

In our music time, we involve the teachers ALOT.  The kids enjoy having the teachers be a part of the activities and our teachers like it just as much.  Here is an example of one round of password.

I choose a teacher to be the first contestant.  They come up and sit in a chair.  Then I choose three students names from my choosing jar.  They each get one of the words that match the first song.  There is another chair facing the teacher.  Each child takes turns sitting in that chair.  They give the teacher clues and try to get them to say the word on their card.  We have rules on the clues such as; no sign language, no "sounds like", and no opposites.  Sometimes they get the word right away. Other times it does take the teacher awhile!

After the teacher has guessed all three clues, they then have to figure out what song it is.  The kids love it when they know and the teacher doesn't!  After the song is guessed we sing that song.  Then Round Two!  The next teacher comes up.

This is a great activity when you just want to review songs.  When we announce we are playing it, the kids almost let out a cheer! But then they remember they are at church and the hold it in! :)

If you need more explanation let me know!  Hope I explained it well enough!  Happy singing!

Daddy's Nail Salon!

What a fun day we had in primary today!  We invited a few dad's to join us for singing time.  I had 8 bottles of very wild and bright finger nail polish.  On the bottom of each bottle I put a number (1-8).  Each number corresponded with a song.  If they sang the song well, I chose a child ot come up and paint two of the dad's fingernails that color.  Our dad's knew ahead of time waht we had planned.  Then after all the nails were painted the dad's walked around the room "Modeling" their nails while the kids sang.  I had nail polish remover in the hallway for those who wanted to take it off.  A big hit for a review activity.  Thanks to my friend Angela for this idea!!

Primary Clue

I am TERRIBLE about updating this blog!  But today was so fun I had to make myself sit down and do it!  In primary today for review we played the game CLUE.  I told the kids that i heard "someone" singing "one" of their program songs in a certain "place". Their job was to figure out  1) who it was 2) what song was being sung 3) and where they were singing it.  On the board I had wordstrips with their choices:
SONGS:
Praise to the man
If I listen with my heart
Stand for the right
Scripture Power
I will follow God's Plan

PLACES:
garden
car
camping
temple
family home evening.

After I explained the rules of clue I introduced the people they could chose from.  (as a side note, our ward has a great deal of parents who LOVE to come in and join us for singing time.  We use parents quite often and they are very enthusiastic actors).  Each adult was in costume and ran in to the room when introduced in full character.

PEOPLE:
Cheerleader (wearing a lettermens jacket and shaking large pompoms)
Doctor (wearinf scrubs, a iso mask and a stethescope.  he listened to kids' hearts as he walked in)
Super hero (wearing a mask, cape, & a superman S.  she "flew" in a had her cape fly over kids heads)
 Football Player (wearing shoulder pads and carrying a football, ran in as if about to score)
Pioneer (waerinf a bonnet, skirt and apron,  she was late because her handcart broke down)

The game was simple.  To earn a guess the kids had to sing a verse or chorus of one of our program songs that we;ve learned so far.  I then selected someone who was singing their best to guess.  When they guessed the person they guessed acted in character.  For example the football player yelled and spiked the ball, the cheerleader kept making up cheers, the docotr threatened to give shots, the pioneer just kept asking to sit down and lost her shoe and the superhero lifted up chairs with one hand.  It was hilarious and the kids loved it.  After their guess i would tell them one thing that was wrong with their guess.  For example, if they guessed the DOCTOR was singing PRAISE TO THE MAN in the GARDEN, I would say...Not in the garden.  And then I would turn over the wordstrip that said garden.  Even if more than one part of their guess was wrong, I would only divulge one part.  If I told then it wasn't a certain adult, that adult sat down.  We had time to run through the game twice because it was fifth sunday and we have the entire time. 

This really was a HUGE hit!  Difficult to explain but hopefully you get it!
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