I’ve taught Primary off and on for a good chunk of my adult life. I don’t mind it in small doses (and it has gotten much easier since we switched to 2 hour church), but I can only handle it for a few years at a time before needing a break to interact with adults. I’m currently on a break from teaching Primary, but the break has lasted about 3 years, so I’m probably due for it again. I’m musical, but I’ve often said that the only calling in the church I would turn down is Primary chorister. Getting up and entertaining children for an extended period of time is so far outside my skill set and comfort zone that it would be miserable to me, even though I like music and I like children.
This summer I’ve had the opportunity to put that to the test by being the go-to substitute for the Primary chorister. His wife got a summer internship out of state as part of her graduate degree program, so he traveled out to see her several times over the summer. Since I’m the ward music chair, I’m the natural person to ask to be a substitute in Primary for the weeks he was gone. And even though I didn’t want to, I said yes, both because his wife is my friend and I wanted to help her out, but also because it’s revolutionary in Mormon circles for a married couple to choose to live apart for a few months in order to support the wife’s career development, and I wanted to support that.
The main thing I learned is that the kids want to understand why we do things the way we do. The first week I filled in, I was having difficulty getting participation. I decided to take a break and ask them why we sing in Primary. None of them knew, so I gave a brief devotional about how God asked Emma Smith to compile a hymn book because singing sacred music is a form of prayer. I got a lot more participation after that. I reinforced the message the next time (about a month later) by adding that we have an entire book of scripture, Psalms, that was an ancient hymnal, and singing is so important that it’s in the scriptures.
I also learned that making a fool of myself in front of half a dozen children isn’t the end of the world and I need to take myself less seriously. And the adults were just so happy that someone was willing to stand up there and entertain the children that they didn’t care that I made a fool of myself either!
And the final thing I learned is that it’s still a calling I definitely don’t want to have on a full-time basis.
The kids’ favorite Primary song, which is being added to the new hymnal, is Gethsemane, so I’m going to share it here today. I first learned it a few years ago on my last stint as a Primary teacher, and I like it. Anytime the hymnal gets more Jesus is something I celebrate.
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I think the best primary music chorister’a are the natural born performers – the ones who love a cried and being on stage. Maybe you’re just a member of the background cast, is all (that’s me too! 😅).