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Munch, Munch… Rain!

Hungry bugs gobble up everything, the people turn back to the Lord, and the rain makes it all grow again

  • 🛡️ CTR 4–7
  • Week 47
  • 📅 Sunday, November 22, 2026
🤔 Forehead Guess🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

The Lord loves me, and when I turn back to Him with all my heart, He helps good things grow in my life again.

I can turn to Jesus with all my heart, and He will help me start again.

Study it yourself firstRead Hosea 1–6; 10–14; Joel in Gospel LibraryCome, Follow Me manualOpen this week (Hosea 1–6; 10–14; Joel)
Know the chapters

Hosea and Joel are two short books near the end of the Old Testament. In Hosea, the Lord compares His covenant with His people to a marriage: He promised to love them faithfully, but they broke their promises and wandered away. He kept loving them and inviting them back. Little ones don’t need the family details, just the message: the Lord loves us and always wants us to come home to Him. “I will love them freely,” He says (14:4). He also says, “there is no saviour beside me” (13:4). Jesus Christ is our only Savior.

Hosea 10:12 uses farm words to teach: plant good seeds, gather mercy, and remember that “it is time to seek the LORD,” who will “rain righteousness upon you.” It is a great verse for acting out: plant, rain, grow, pick.

Joel tells about a swarm of locusts (grasshopper-like bugs) so huge it ate every crop in the land (Joel 1). Joel called everyone together with a trumpet, even the babies, and gave the Lord’s message: “turn ye even to me with all your heart” (2:12). The Lord cared for His people, sent the rain, and promised to give back “the years that the locust hath eaten” (2:23–25). That is what Jesus does when we repent: He helps good things grow again.

Joel 2:28 promises, “I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy.” The angel Moroni quoted it to Joseph Smith. For the 7-year-olds getting ready for baptism, this is their promise: after they are baptized, they will be confirmed and given the gift of the Holy Ghost, not just a drip, but poured out. Keep the locusts funny (they’re bugs, not monsters) and the rain joyful.

Only have 5 minutes?

Read Joel 1:4 and 2:12–28 so you can tell the story in your own words. Open the Story Drama on your phone or tablet and let the little ones be the locusts. Then do the Plant, Rain, Grow wiggle, the key verse with motions and Forehead Guess. Brought nothing? Tap “I brought nothing”: the bugs munch invisible leaves and the class makes a rainstorm with their hands.

What to bring4 items

Tick what you have. Forgot something? Every step that needs a supply has a no-supplies version in the plan below.

Before class

  1. Before class, hide or scatter the green paper leaves around the room: on chairs, under tables, on the windowsill.
  2. Set the cup on the tray with the towel under it. Fill the pitcher or water bottle.
  3. Add your kids’ names in the My Class tab so you can hand out roles with one tap. Give the part of Joel to a reader.

If your class is wild

  • The locust swarm is the most exciting part. Give it a clear stop: when you say “Rain!”, every locust freezes.
  • Water stays on the tray. Only the teacher pours; kids can each do one spoon drip.
  • Four-year-olds make great locusts and great raindrops. Six- and seven-year-olds make great Joels and Trumpet Blowers.
  • If the room gets loud, start the hand rainstorm quietly: finger taps first. They’ll copy you and settle.

The 25-minute plan25 min + bonus

Bonus steps are for when you have extra time. Steps that mention Teach Mode, the Sound Board or other class games refer to the Gospel Sparks app; on the web you can play Forehead Guess and Scripture Showdown from this page.

1. Hook

Hungry Bug Hunt

3 min

Everyone becomes a hungry locust and gobbles up the “leaves,” which sets up the story with a lot of giggles.

  1. SAY“Today you’re all tiny bugs called locusts. Locusts are like grasshoppers, and they are always HUNGRY!”
  2. SAY“There are green leaves hiding all over this room. When I say ‘Munch!’, hop around like a locust and gather as many as you can. When I say ‘Rain!’, freeze!”
  3. Say “Munch!” and let them hop and gather for about 30 seconds. Then say “Rain!”
  4. Count the leaves together. Say: “You ate everything! In our story today, a giant swarm of locusts ate ALL the food in the land. Let’s see how the Lord helped His people.”
  5. Collect the leaves in a pile; you’ll use them again in the story.
🌪️ Locusts hop, they don’t run. Anyone running becomes a sleepy locust for the rest of the round.

Class screen: 🦗 Munch! Hop like a hungry locust! · Munch! 🦗 · Rain! Freeze! 🌧️

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: 20–30 small squares of green paper (scrap paper works) to be the leaves and wheat

Invisible Leaf Munch

  1. SAY“Today you’re all tiny bugs called locusts. Locusts are like grasshoppers, and they are always HUNGRY!”
  2. SAY“When I say ‘Munch!’, hop in place and gobble up invisible leaves from the air. When I say ‘Rain!’, freeze!”
  3. Call out foods for the locusts to munch: “Leaves! Wheat! Grapes! Tree bark!” Everyone hop-munches each one. Then say “Rain!”
  4. SAY“You ate everything! In our story today, a giant swarm of locusts ate ALL the food in the land. Let’s see how the Lord helped His people.”

Class screen: 🦗 Munch! Hop like a hungry locust! · Munch! 🦗 · Rain! Freeze! 🌧️

2. Story

Story Drama: The Hungry Bugs and the Big Rain

7 min

Acting out Joel shows that when people turn back to the Lord, He helps good things grow again.

  1. Hand out the roles (tap Roles in Teach Mode). Give Joel to a reader. Lots of kids can be Locusts and Rain Crew.
  2. Read each scene and pause for the action. Let a reader read the big caption.
  3. In scene 5, everyone turns all the way around. Say: “Turning back to the Lord is called repenting.”
  4. In scene 7, let the Rain Crew lead everyone in a rainstorm: finger taps, then leg pats, then finger taps again.
  5. Ask: “What did the people do? What did the Lord do?” (They turned back to Him; He sent the rain and helped everything grow.)
🌪️ Locusts only munch the air. Anyone who munches a friend becomes a raindrop.

Class screen: 🎭 Story Drama time! · Everyone gets a part

3. Wiggle break

Plant, Rain, Grow, Pick!

2 min

Hosea 10:12 uses farm words to teach us to seek the Lord. Kids act it out and burn some energy.

  1. Teach four moves: Plant = crouch and poke seeds in the ground. Rain = wiggle fingers down from the sky. Grow = stand up slowly with arms high. Pick = reach up and pick fruit.
  2. Call them out in order, then faster, then mixed up.
  3. SAY“The prophet Hosea said, ‘It is time to seek the Lord.’ When we plant good choices, the Lord sends blessings like rain, and good things grow!”
🌪️ Last round is “slow motion.” Everybody plants, rains, grows and picks as slowly as a sleepy snail.

Class screen: 🌱 Plant! Rain! Grow! Pick! · 🌱 · 🌧️ · 🌳 · 🍎

4. Object lesson

A Drip or a Pour?

3 min

The difference between a drip and a pour helps kids picture the Lord’s promise to pour out His Spirit.

  1. Hold up the empty cup. Let two or three kids each add one spoonful drip of water. Ask: “Is it filling up fast?”
  2. SAY“Joel said the Lord promised, ‘I will pour out my spirit.’ Not just a drip. A POUR!” Pour the water in until the cup is full.
  3. SAY“After you’re baptized, you are confirmed. Someone with the priesthood lays their hands on your head, and you receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. He can be with you always.”
  4. Ask: “How can the Holy Ghost help you?” (He comforts us, helps us choose the right and tells us what’s true.)
  5. Point to a 7-year-old: “Joel said ‘your sons and your daughters.’ That means you!”
🌪️ Only the teacher pours. Anyone who splashes loses their next spoon turn.

Class screen: 💧 Not a drip… a POUR! · I will pour out my spirit

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A clear cup, a spoon, a pitcher or full water bottle, and a tray or dishpan with a towel

Rainstorm Hands

  1. SAY“Joel said the Lord promised, ‘I will pour out my spirit.’ Let’s show the difference between a drip and a pour.”
  2. Everyone taps one finger on their palm: “Drip… drip…” Then two fingers, then four, then pat legs fast for a pouring rain, and wave arms for a giant downpour!
  3. SAY“Not just a drip. A POUR! After you’re baptized, you are confirmed. Someone with the priesthood lays their hands on your head, and you receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. He can be with you always.”
  4. Ask: “How can the Holy Ghost help you?” (He comforts us, helps us choose the right and tells us what’s true.)
  5. Point to a 7-year-old: “Joel said ‘your sons and your daughters.’ That means you!”
5. Scripture

Big Love Verse: Hosea 14:4

3 min

Four short words with big motions teach that the Lord’s love is a gift we never have to earn.

  1. Show the verse on your phone or tablet. Ask a reader to read it. Then everyone reads it together (pre-readers repeat after you).
  2. Teach the motions. Say it five times, each time a little louder, then five times getting softer and softer.
  3. SAY“Freely means it’s a free gift. You don’t have to earn the Lord’s love. He loves you on good days and on hard days.”
  4. Ask: “When you make a mistake, does He stop loving you?” (Never!)

Class screen: 💖 I will love them freely · Hosea 14:4

6. Game

Forehead Guess: Bugs and Rain Edition

3 min

A Heads Up–style game reviews the story with easy picture words.

  1. Tap Forehead Guess. One child holds your phone or tablet on their forehead, screen facing the class.
  2. Classmates give clues or act it out without saying the word. The picture helps pre-readers.
  3. Tilt down for “got it,” up to pass. About 30 seconds per guesser.
  4. Pair younger guessers with an older buddy.
🌪️ Clue-givers stay seated and raise a hand. Acting is great: hop like a locust, toot a trumpet, make it rain.
▶ Play Forehead Guess on the web

Class screen: 🤔 Forehead Guess! · Give clues. Don’t say the word!

7. Talk it over

Turn Around!

2 min

Kids connect “turning back to the Lord” to repenting and the sacrament.

  1. Tap Name Spinner to pick who answers each question.
  2. Little ones can show their answer: turning around, praying, hugging.
  3. Share your own answer to one question.
💬 Ask the class
  • What did the people do when the bugs ate everything?
  • What can you do when you make a wrong choice?
  • How can the sacrament help you start fresh each week?
  • How can you show Heavenly Father and Jesus you love Them?
🎡 Name Spinner (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🔄 I can turn back to Jesus!

8. Testimony

Only One Savior

2 min

End calm with Hosea 13:4: many people help us, but only Jesus Christ can save us.

  1. Ask: “Who helps us when we’re in trouble?” Let kids name helpers: firefighters, doctors, lifeguards, moms and dads.
  2. SAY“Those are wonderful helpers. But the Lord said, ‘There is no saviour beside me.’ Only Jesus Christ can take away our sins and help us live again after we die.” Point to a picture of Jesus if you have one.
  3. Everyone puts both hands on their heart. Share a short testimony of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
  4. Invite a child to say the closing prayer.

Class screen: 💖 Jesus Christ is my Savior! · There is no saviour beside me

9. Game

Scripture Showdown

5 minBONUS

A team quiz reviews the lesson if you have extra time.

  1. Split into two teams: Team Rain and Team Wheat. Tap Scripture Showdown.
  2. Read each question and the choices out loud for the pre-readers.
  3. Teams whisper together, then point to an answer. Tap the team that got it right.
▶ Play Scripture Showdown on the web

Class screen: 🏆 Scripture Showdown!

10. Game

Mystery Picture: Chase the Bugs Away

3 minBONUS

Every right answer peels a tile off a hidden picture from the lesson.

  1. Tap Mystery Picture. Say: “The bugs are covering up a picture! Every right answer chases one away.”
  2. Ask a quick question from the story or the verse. For each right answer, remove a tile.
  3. Whoever guesses the hidden picture first gets to do a happy harvest dance.
🧩 Mystery Picture (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🖼️ What’s hiding under the bugs?

Story drama

The Hungry Bugs and the Big Rain

Joel 1–2 ↗

Parts to hand out

  • JoelThe prophet (a great part for a reader). Tells everyone the Lord’s message: “Turn to Him with all your heart!”
  • FarmersProudly show off their crops, then look sad when the bugs eat everything, then cheer when it grows back.
  • LocustsHop in, buzz loudly and munch, munch, munch everything in sight!
  • Trumpet BlowerBlows a pretend trumpet to call everyone together: “Toot-toot-toooot!”
  • Rain CrewTap fingers for drizzle, pat legs for a downpour, and wiggle fingers down for falling rain.
  • Wheat and GrapesStand tall and sway, flop down when they’re eaten, then slowly grow back up.

Scenes

  1. 🌾🍇☀️ A land full of yummy food

    Long ago in Israel, the fields were full of wheat for making bread. Grapes grew on the vines, and figs grew on the trees. The farmers were happy!

    🎬 The Wheat and Grapes stand tall and sway. The Farmers rub their tummies: “Mmm!”

  2. 🦗🦗🦗 Bzzz! Here come the bugs!

    Then the sky got dark. Here came a swarm of locusts! Locusts are bugs like grasshoppers, and there were more than anyone could count!

    🎬 The Locusts hop in and buzz: “Bzzzzz!” Everyone else looks up and points: “Whoa!”

  3. 🍂😮 Munch, munch… all gone!

    The locusts ate the wheat. They ate the grapes. They even chewed the bark off the trees! Soon there was nothing left.

    🎬 The Locusts munch, munch, munch. The Wheat and Grapes flop down. The Farmers say, “Oh no!”

  4. 🎺📣 Blow the trumpet! Everyone come!

    The prophet Joel said, “Blow the trumpet! Call everyone together!” Grandmas and grandpas, moms and dads, kids and even tiny babies all came to listen.

    🎬 The Trumpet Blower toots. Everyone gathers close and rocks a pretend baby.

  5. 🔄❤️ Turn to the Lord with all your heart!

    Joel gave them the Lord’s message: “Turn ye even to me with all your heart.” The Lord wanted His people to come back to Him. It wasn’t too late!

    🎬 Everyone turns all the way around in a circle, then puts both hands on their heart.

  6. 🙏💚 The people pray, and the Lord listens

    The people prayed, “Please help us, Lord!” And the Lord listened. He loved His people, and He answered them.

    🎬 Everyone folds arms and bows heads for three quiet seconds.

  7. 🌧️🌱 Rain, rain, glorious rain!

    The Lord sent the rain! First a little, then a lot. Green grass popped up. The trees grew leaves again. Everything started to grow!

    🎬 The Rain Crew taps fingers, then pats legs. The Wheat and Grapes slowly grow back up.

  8. 🌾🎉 More food than before!

    Soon the fields were full of wheat and grapes again, more than enough for everyone! The Lord promised to give back what the locusts ate. The people were so happy!

    🎬 The Farmers pile up pretend food and cheer. Everyone does a happy harvest dance!

Key verse

Hosea 14:4 ↗
“I will love them freely”
In kid words: The Lord says, “I love you, and you never have to earn it.”
🙌 “I will love” = hug yourself tight · “them” = point to everyone in the room · “freely” = fling your arms wide open like you’re giving a giant present.

More verses

Hosea 13:4 ↗
“there is no saviour beside me”
In kid words: Jesus Christ is our only Savior.
Hosea 10:12 ↗
“for it is time to seek the LORD”
In kid words: Now is the time to come to the Lord!
Joel 2:25 ↗
“I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten”
In kid words: The Lord will give back what the bugs ate.
Joel 2:28 ↗
“I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh”
In kid words: The Lord will pour out His Spirit on everyone.

Forehead Guess words16 words

  • 🦗 Locust
  • 🍇 Grapes
  • 🌾 Wheat
  • 🍞 Bread
  • 🎺 Trumpet
  • 🌧️ Rain
  • ☁️ Cloud
  • 🌱 Seed
  • 🧑‍🌾 Farmer
  • 👶 Baby
  • ❤️ Heart
  • ☂️ Umbrella
  • 🌳 Tree
  • 🕊️ Dove
  • 🙏 Pray
  • 💧 Water
Clues for each word
  • Locust: A hungry bug that hops like a grasshopper
  • Grapes: Little round purple fruit
  • Wheat: It grows in fields; we make bread from it
  • Bread: You make sandwiches with it
  • Trumpet: Toot toot! Joel said to blow it
  • Rain: Water falling from the clouds
  • Cloud: Fluffy and white in the sky
  • Seed: Plant it, and it grows
  • Farmer: Grows food on a farm
  • Baby: Tiny and cries, “Waaah!”
  • Heart: Turn to the Lord with all of it
  • Umbrella: Keeps you dry in the rain
  • Tree: Tall with leaves and branches
  • Dove: A white bird; a sign of the Holy Ghost
  • Pray: Talking to Heavenly Father
  • Water: You drink it and splash in it
▶ Play Forehead GuessFull screen, 60-second timer, works on any phone.

Scripture Showdown8 questions

  1. What ate up all the food in Joel’s story?
    • A. Elephants 🐘
    • B. Locusts 🦗
    • C. Hungry kids 🧒
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Locusts 🦗 A giant swarm of locusts. Munch, munch!

  2. What did Joel say to blow to call everyone together?
    • A. A trumpet 🎺
    • B. Bubbles 🫧
    • C. A whistle 😗
    Show answer

    ✅ A. A trumpet 🎺 Toot-toot! Everyone came, even the babies.

  3. The Lord said to turn to Him with all your…
    • A. Toes 🦶
    • B. Toys 🧸
    • C. Heart ❤️
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Heart ❤️ “Turn ye even to me with all your heart” (Joel 2:12).

  4. What did the Lord send to help everything grow again?
    • A. Snow ❄️
    • B. More bugs 🐛
    • C. Rain 🌧️
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Rain 🌧️ Rain, rain, glorious rain! And everything grew back.

  5. How does the Lord love you?
    • A. Freely 💖
    • B. Only if you’re perfect ⭐
    • C. Only on Sundays 📅
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Freely 💖 “I will love them freely.” You never have to earn it.

  6. What does the Lord promise to pour out?
    • A. Juice 🧃
    • B. His Spirit 🕊️
    • C. Sand 🏖️
    Show answer

    ✅ B. His Spirit 🕊️ “I will pour out my spirit.” You can have the Holy Ghost after baptism.

  7. Who is our only Savior?
    • A. Jesus Christ 💖
    • B. A superhero 🦸
    • C. A lifeguard 🛟
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Jesus Christ 💖 “There is no saviour beside me” (Hosea 13:4).

  8. What is turning back to the Lord called?
    • A. Running 🏃
    • B. Repenting 🔄
    • C. Sleeping 😴
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Repenting 🔄 When we repent, Jesus helps good things grow again.

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

Songs

  • Repentance Children’s Songbook, p. 98

    The people turned back to the Lord. That’s repenting! Find it ↗

  • The Holy Ghost Children’s Songbook, p. 105

    Goes with “A Drip or a Pour?” and the promise of the Holy Ghost after baptism. Find it ↗

  • I Feel My Savior’s Love Children’s Songbook, p. 74

    The Lord loves us freely. Sing it before the testimony. Find it ↗

This week’s challenge

Plant a Good Seed

Each day this week, “plant” one good choice: say a kind word, help without being asked, or say sorry when you need to. At bedtime, tell your family what grew!

Text the parents

Today in Primary we acted out Joel’s story of the hungry locusts that ate all the crops, and how the Lord sent rain and helped everything grow again when the people turned back to Him. We learned that the Lord will “love them freely” (Hosea 14:4) and that He pours out the Holy Ghost on His children. Ask your child: what did the people do, and what did the Lord do?

📝 After class

What worked? Who needs a check-in this week? Jot it here on a printed copy, or in the app’s private class notes.

Got extra time?

🌱 Grow a Seed · 4 min

  1. Give each child a damp paper towel and a dry bean in a zip bag, and seal it (dry beans are a choking hazard for little ones).
  2. SAY“When we turn to the Lord and make good choices, He helps good things grow in us.”
  3. Send the bags home to tape in a sunny window. Next week, ask who has a sprout!

🕐 Seek the Lord Clock · 4 min

  1. Draw a big clock on paper. Say: “Hosea said, ‘It is time to seek the Lord.’ When can we do that?”
  2. Kids call out times of day and something they can do: morning prayer, a scripture at breakfast, singing a Primary song in the car, bedtime prayer.
  3. Readers write them on the clock; little ones draw a picture.

🖼️ Who Is the Savior? · 3 min

  1. Lay out pictures of several people: a firefighter, a doctor, a teacher and Jesus Christ.
  2. Ask: “Who can help us when we’re sick? When there’s a fire?” Kids point to the right picture.
  3. Finish: “Who can save us from our sins and help us live again?” Everyone points to Jesus.

Sources

Scripture quotations are from the King James Version, the Bible used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Tap or click a reference to open it in Gospel Library. Start with the official Come, Follow Me manual; these ideas are here to help it come alive.

All CTR 4–7 lessons