Elder Ronald A. Rasband (Oct. '21): "The Things of My Soul"

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 I enjoyed this talk quite a bit.  It covers important ground.  Most importantly, though, is Elder Rasband's invitation to consider how we would complete his list.  This is where this activity takes up.

The Activity:

  1. Read II Ne. 4:16
  2. Read par. 4 "Nephi's words raise . . . of your soul?'"
  3. Point out Elder Rasband's invitation for us to complete his list (maybe read par. 41:  "I close with . . . nine, and ten.").
  4. Ask class members to identify how they would finish the list.  Give them a couple of moments of silence to ponder this.
  5. Have them share with a one or two people close to them.
  6. After a couple of minutes to talk, come back together as a class and ask people to share things that others talked with them about that they feel could be important contributions to the list.

Using the Activity:

This activity makes use of some staples of my teaching-- time to ponder and small groups.  These are, as always, worthwhile practices because they increase the opportunity for revelation.  The final step, though, is also an good way to increase participation.  By asking people to report on what others said, it frees them up from taking direct ownership of the comments they make.  So, if someone is hesitant to share because they do not want to come across as egotistical ("look at what a great idea I had") or because they feel less than others in the room ("what could I possibly have to share?"), they do not need to worry about either sentiment.  Instead, they are simply reporting on something significant that someone else shared.

Also, one more comment about this activity and any other discussions you have:  whenever you ask a question and there is silence, resist the urge to fill that silence.  If you have asked a really good question, it probably takes some thought to answer it well.  So, silence is not always a sign of failure; instead, it can be a sign of success-- people are considering the question you asked. So, wait a couple of moments.  It sounds corny, but when I first began teaching school and this happened, I would repeat to myself "I am the world's greatest English teacher and I can wait for anyone."  Of course, that wasn't/isn't true, but it made me feel better about myself and I would say it three times.  So, I had a built in buffer before I started talking.  Try something similar.

I hope and pray that this is a worthwhile activity for you.  Please let me know how it goes and/or how I can make this site more useful.  God bless.

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