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Little Seeds, Good Ground

A farmer scatters seeds, hungry birds swoop, and the seeds in good soft dirt grow tall

  • ☀️ Sunbeams
  • Week 12
  • 📅 Sunday, March 21, 2027
🤔 Forehead Guess🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart.

I can use my listening ears to learn about Jesus.

Study it yourself firstRead Matthew 13; Luke 8; 13 in Gospel LibraryCome, Follow Me manualOpen this week (Matthew 13; Luke 8; 13)
Know the chapters

Matthew 13 is full of parables: short stories Jesus told about everyday things like seeds, bread, treasure and pearls to teach about Heavenly Father’s kingdom. So many people came to hear Him by the sea that He sat in a boat and taught them from the water. Luke 8 tells the sower story too, and Luke 13 tells of Jesus healing a woman who had been bent over for eighteen years.

The story for Sunbeams is the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3–23). A farmer scattered seeds. Some fell on a hard path and birds ate them. Some fell on rocky ground, sprouted fast, then dried up in the hot sun. Some fell in thorns and got crowded out. But some fell on good ground and grew and grew. Then He said, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Later He explained that the seed is God’s word and the ground is our heart.

Your one tiny truth for today: I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart. Three-year-olds won’t follow every kind of ground, and that’s fine. They can be seeds that grow, birds that swoop, and the sun that shines, and they can learn that when we listen to Jesus in Primary, at home and in prayers, good things grow in us.

The little mustard seed that grows into a big tree (Matthew 13:31–32) and the hidden treasure (Matthew 13:44) are in the extras. They’re perfect if your class loves hunting for things.

Only have 5 minutes?

Show a tiny seed (or a pretend one), tell the sower story with your phone or tablet scenes (everyone is a seed and grows tall in the good ground), play Grow, Little Seed, say “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear” with listening-ear motions, and end by saying, “I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart. I know it’s true.”

What to bring6 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. Put the seeds in a small cup and hide it in your closed hand or pocket for the hook.
  2. Spread the green towel on the floor on one side of the room. That’s the good ground.
  3. Choose three other spots: a hard path (a strip of bare floor), rocky ground (by a chair) and thorns (a corner).
  4. Open this lesson in Teach Mode so the story pictures and the rain and cheer sounds are ready.

If your class is wild

  • Crying at the door? Let the parent stay a few minutes. Give the child a job: “Can you hold the seeds for me?” A job helps a lot. If tears keep going, a parent can sit in the back.
  • Potty breaks: have one grown-up (a class helper or a parent) take the child; never be alone out of sight with a child. Keep going with everyone else.
  • Your call-back for today: cup your hands behind your ears and say, “Who has ears to hear?” The children cup their ears and freeze. Use it whenever the room gets loud.
  • Real seeds can go in mouths and noses. Keep them in your hand or the cup, and let children look but not hold them.
  • If the birds get too swoopy, say, “These birds fly in slow motion!” and flap slowly yourself.

The 25-minute plan21 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

What’s in My Hand?

2 min

A tiny hidden seed makes everyone lean in and wonder.

  1. Hold out your closed fist. Whisper: “I have something tiny in my hand. Can you guess?”
  2. Let a few children guess. Open your hand slowly and show the seeds: “Seeds! Tiny, tiny seeds!”
  3. SAY“What happens when we put a seed in dirt and give it water and sun? It grows!” Everyone stretches up tall.
  4. SAY“Jesus told a story about seeds. Let’s use our listening ears!”
🌪️ If children grab for the seeds, close your hand and say, “Seeds are for looking with our eyes. Show me your looking eyes!”

Class screen: ✊ What’s in my hand?

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A few dry beans, sunflower seeds or apple seeds in a small cup

The Invisible Seed

  1. Hold out your closed fist. Whisper: “I have something tiny in my hand. Can you guess?”
  2. Open it slowly: “It’s a pretend seed! It’s so tiny you can’t even see it!” Let each child pretend to pick one up.
  3. SAY“What happens when we plant a seed? It grows!” Everyone stretches up tall.
  4. SAY“Jesus told a story about seeds. Let’s use our listening ears!”

Class screen: ✊ A pretend seed! Can you see it?

2. Story

Story: The Farmer and the Seeds

5 min

Every child is a seed, so they feel the difference between drooping and growing tall in good ground.

  1. Pick a Farmer Helper, two Bird Helpers and a Sun Helper. Say: “Everyone else is a little seed! Curl up small.”
  2. Show each scene on your phone or tablet and read the one or two sentences.
  3. Do each action together. Go slowly and make it big.
  4. In scene 7, have everyone move onto the green towel (the good ground) and grow up slowly while you tap the rain sound.
  5. End by saying the tiny truth together: “I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart!”
🌪️ If seeds start rolling around, say, “Seeds stay still in the ground! Can you be a quiet little seed?”
🔊 Sound Board (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🌱 Little seeds, grow tall! · 🐦 gobble · ☀️ droop · 🌱 grow!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A green towel, blanket or rug for the “good ground”

  1. Pick a Farmer Helper, two Bird Helpers and a Sun Helper. Say: “Everyone else is a little seed! Curl up small.”
  2. Show each scene on your phone or tablet and read the one or two sentences.
  3. Do each action together. Go slowly and make it big.
  4. In scene 7, say, “Good ground is right here by me!” Everyone scoots close to you and grows up slowly while you tap the rain sound.
  5. End by saying the tiny truth together: “I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart!”
3. Wiggle break

Grow, Little Seed

2 min

Burns energy and shows how a seed in good ground grows step by step.

  1. Everyone curls up small like a seed in the ground.
  2. Tap rain on the Sound Board: “Drip, drop! A little rain!” Wiggle one finger up like a sprout.
  3. SAY“Here comes the sun!” Grow up to your knees. “More rain!” Stand up. “More sun!” Stretch up tall with wiggly leaf fingers.
  4. SAY“Whoosh! A breeze!” Sway gently. Play 2 or 3 times.
🔊 Sound Board (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🌻 Grow, grow, grow!

4. Scripture

Key Words: “Who Hath Ears to Hear”

3 min

Short words with ear motions help the children remember to listen to Jesus.

  1. Hold up your scriptures. Say: “These words are from the Bible. Jesus said them after His seed story.”
  2. Say it slowly with the motions: “Who hath ears” (point to ears) “to hear” (cup ears) “let him hear” (touch heart, nod).
  3. Say it together three ways: in a whisper, in a big farmer voice, and in a tiny seed voice.
  4. SAY“Jesus wants us to listen. I can listen to Jesus with my ears and my heart!”

Class screen: 📖 “Who hath ears to hear” · 👂 Who hath ears · 🤲 to hear · 💛 let him hear

5. Game

Where Did the Seed Land?

3 min

Children hop to each kind of ground and act it out, ending in the good ground every time.

  1. Point to your four spots: the hard path, the rocks, the thorns and the good ground (the green towel).
  2. SAY“The seed landed on… the path!” Everyone hops there and flaps like hungry birds. “The rocks!” Everyone droops. “The thorns!” Everyone says, “Ouch!”
  3. Always end with: “The good ground!” Everyone hops to the towel and grows up tall.
  4. Play 3 rounds. Say: “When we listen to Jesus, we are like good ground!”
🌪️ If hopping gets wild, make it “tiptoe seeds” and move together as one line behind you.

Class screen: 🌱 Hop to the good ground! · 🐦 path · 🪨 rocks · 🌵 thorns · 🌱 good ground

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A green towel, blanket or rug for the “good ground”

  1. Point to four spots in the room: the hard path (the door), the rocks (a chair), the thorns (a corner) and the good ground (right by you).
  2. SAY“The seed landed on… the path!” Everyone hops there and flaps like hungry birds. “The rocks!” Everyone droops. “The thorns!” Everyone says, “Ouch!”
  3. Always end with: “The good ground!” Everyone hops to you and grows up tall.
  4. Play 3 rounds. Say: “When we listen to Jesus, we are like good ground!”
6. Song

Listening Song

2 min

A quiet listening song calms bodies after the hopping game.

  1. SAY“Let’s sit in the good ground and sing a listening song.”
  2. Sing “Listen, Listen” (Children’s Songbook, 107) softly, cupping your ears.
  3. Sing it once more in a whisper.

Class screen: 🎵 Cup your ears and sing!

7. Talk it over

My Listening Ears

2 min

Children name the places they listen to Jesus: Primary, home, prayers and scriptures.

  1. Hold up the picture of Jesus. Say: “Jesus told us to use our ears. Where can we listen to Jesus?”
  2. Ask the questions one at a time. Any answer, even a point or a nod, gets a smile and a “Yes!”
  3. SAY“Every time you listen, you are like good ground. Good things grow in you!”
💬 Ask the class
  • Show me your listening ears!
  • Where do you learn about Jesus? (Primary, home, family prayer)
  • Show me how a little seed grows tall.
  • Can you listen when your family reads scriptures?

Class screen: 👂 Where can I listen to Jesus?

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A picture of Jesus (from the Friend magazine, a printout from the Gospel Library app, or the ward library)

My Listening Ears

  1. Cup your hands behind your ears. Say: “Jesus told us to use our ears. Where can we listen to Jesus?”
  2. Ask the questions one at a time. After each answer, everyone cups their ears.
  3. SAY“Every time you listen, you are like good ground. Good things grow in you!”
8. Testimony

Quiet Little Seeds

2 min

A calm, loving moment where the teacher shares a simple testimony.

  1. SAY“Let’s be quiet little seeds, resting in the good ground. Fold your arms.”
  2. In a soft voice, say: “Jesus loves you. When you listen to Him, good things grow in your heart. I know that is true.”
  3. Name each child: “Eli, you are good ground. Rosie, you are good ground.” (Use your own class names.)
  4. Say a short closing prayer or help a child say one.

Class screen: 🌱 I can listen to Jesus.

9. Game

Seed Picture Quiz

3 minBONUS

Picture questions review the story, and every child gets a turn to point.

  1. Open Scripture Showdown. Read each question and point to each picture.
  2. Children point to the right picture or call it out. No teams needed: everyone wins.
  3. After every answer, everyone grows up tall like a plant.
▶ Play Scripture Showdown on the web

Class screen: 🌱 Point to the right picture!

10. Game

Mystery Picture: What’s Hiding?

3 minBONUS

A slow reveal keeps them guessing and names things from the story.

  1. Open Mystery Picture. Say: “Something is hiding! Let’s take the squares away.”
  2. Remove a square each time someone does a seed move: curl up, sprout, grow tall.
  3. When they guess, act it out: bird = flap, sun = shine, rain = drip, tree = sway.
🧩 Mystery Picture (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: ❓ What’s hiding?

11. Craft

Plant a Seed

4 minBONUS

A real seed to take home keeps the story growing all week.

  1. Give each child a paper cup with a spoonful of soil. Help them poke a hole with one finger.
  2. Hand each child their bean only when it’s time to plant it, and watch that no seeds go in mouths or noses. Drop it in and cover it up. Pat, pat, pat.
  3. SAY“Water it and put it in the sun. When it grows, remember: I can listen to Jesus, and good things grow in me!”

Class screen: 🪴 Plant your own seed!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: For the bonus craft: a paper cup per child, a spoonful of potting soil each and one bean seed each

Plant a Pretend Seed

  1. Everyone makes a cup with one hand. Poke a pretend hole with a finger.
  2. Drop in a pretend seed, cover it up and pat, pat, pat. Sprinkle pretend rain with wiggly fingers.
  3. SAY“Take your pretend garden home. When you see a real plant, remember: I can listen to Jesus!”

Story drama

The Farmer and the Seeds

Matthew 13:3–23 ↗

Parts to hand out

  • Everyone: Little SeedsCurl up small, then grow, droop or reach up tall depending on where they land.
  • Farmer HelperOne child walks around pretending to scatter seeds by hand.
  • Bird HelpersTwo children flap their wings and say, “Tweet! Tweet!” in scene 3.
  • Sun HelperOne child stretches their arms up in a big circle and shines in scene 5.

Scenes

  1. ⛵ Jesus tells a story

    Lots of people came to hear Jesus. He sat in a boat and told them a story about seeds.

    🎬 Sit down, cup your hands behind your ears and listen!

  2. 👨‍🌾 A farmer plants seeds

    A farmer went out to plant seeds. He threw them this way and that way.

    🎬 Pretend to throw seeds: this way, that way, all around!

  3. 🐦 Some seeds fall on the hard path

    Some seeds fell on the hard path. Birds swooped down and gobbled them up!

    🎬 Flap your wings and peck: “Tweet! Gobble, gobble!”

  4. 🪨 Some seeds fall on rocks

    Some seeds fell on rocky ground. They popped up fast, but they had no roots.

    🎬 Curl up small, then pop up fast like a little sprout!

  5. ☀️ Hot sun! Droopy plants

    The hot sun came out. The little plants had no water, and they drooped down.

    🎬 Wipe your forehead: “Hot!” Then droop your arms and flop over.

  6. 🌵 Some seeds fall in prickly thorns

    Some seeds fell in prickly thorns. The thorns grew so big that the little plants got squished.

    🎬 Make pokey fingers: “Ouch, ouch!” Then squish yourself small.

  7. 🌱 Some seeds fall in good ground

    But some seeds fell in good, soft ground. They grew slowly… taller… and taller!

    🎬 Curl up small, then grow slowly up, up, up, as tall as you can!

  8. 🌾 I can listen with my ears and heart

    Jesus said, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” When I listen to Jesus, good things grow in me!

    🎬 Cup your ears, touch your heart, then sway like tall wheat.

Key verse

Matthew 13:9 ↗
“Who hath ears to hear, let him hear”
In kid words: Jesus said, “If you have ears, use them to listen!”
🙌 “Who hath ears” = point to your ears · “to hear” = cup your hands behind your ears · “let him hear” = touch your heart and nod.

More verses

Matthew 13:16 ↗
“blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear”
In kid words: Jesus is happy when we use our eyes and ears to learn about Him.
Matthew 13:23 ↗
“he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word”
In kid words: Good ground is like a person who listens to God’s words.
Matthew 13:31–32 ↗
“a grain of mustard seed … becometh a tree”
In kid words: A tiny mustard seed can grow into a big tree.

Forehead Guess words12 words

  • 🌱 Seed
  • 👨‍🌾 Farmer
  • 🐦 Bird
  • 🪨 Rock
  • ☀️ Sun
  • 🌵 Thorns
  • 🌧️ Rain
  • 🌻 Flower
  • 🌳 Tree
  • 👂 Ears
  • 💎 Treasure
  • ⛵ Boat
Clues for each word
  • Seed: Tiny, and it grows
  • Farmer: He planted the seeds
  • Bird: Tweet! It gobbled the seeds
  • Rock: Hard, with not much dirt
  • Sun: Bright and hot in the sky
  • Thorns: Prickly! Ouch!
  • Rain: Drip, drop! Plants drink it
  • Flower: It grows in good ground
  • Tree: A tiny mustard seed grows into one
  • Ears: We listen with them
  • Treasure: Something special hidden in a field
  • Boat: Jesus sat in it to teach
▶ Play Forehead GuessFull screen, 60-second timer, works on any phone.

Scripture Showdown7 questions

  1. What did the farmer plant?
    • A. 🌱 Seeds
    • B. 🧦 Socks
    Show answer

    ✅ A. 🌱 Seeds The farmer threw seeds this way and that way!

  2. Who gobbled up the seeds on the path?
    • A. 🐄 A cow
    • B. 🐦 Birds
    • C. 🐟 A fish
    Show answer

    ✅ B. 🐦 Birds Tweet! The birds swooped down and gobbled them up.

  3. What made the little plants droop?
    • A. ☀️ The hot sun
    • B. 🎈 A balloon
    Show answer

    ✅ A. ☀️ The hot sun The hot sun came out, and they had no roots.

  4. Which one is prickly?
    • A. 🧸 A teddy bear
    • B. 🍰 Cake
    • C. 🌵 Thorns
    Show answer

    ✅ C. 🌵 Thorns Ouch! Thorns are prickly.

  5. Where did the seeds grow big and tall?
    • A. 🪨 On the rocks
    • B. 🌱 In good ground
    Show answer

    ✅ B. 🌱 In good ground In good, soft ground they grew and grew!

  6. What do we listen with?
    • A. 👂 Our ears
    • B. 👃 Our nose
    Show answer

    ✅ A. 👂 Our ears Jesus said, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

  7. Who can we listen to with our ears and hearts?
    • A. 🦖 A dinosaur
    • B. 🍌 A banana
    • C. 💛 Jesus
    Show answer

    ✅ C. 💛 Jesus When I listen to Jesus, good things grow in me.

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

Songs

  • Listen, Listen Children’s Songbook, p. 107

    A quiet song about using our listening ears. Find it ↗

  • Do As I’m Doing Children’s Songbook, p. 276

    An extra wiggle: plant, sprout, droop, grow tall, flap like a bird. Find it ↗

  • Search, Ponder, and Pray Children’s Songbook, p. 109

    Reading scriptures and praying help good things grow in us. Find it ↗

This week’s challenge

Good-Ground Ears

When your family reads scriptures or says prayers this week, cup your listening ears and be good ground!

Text the parents

Today in Sunbeams we heard Jesus’s story about a farmer’s seeds, and we learned that we can listen to Jesus with our ears and our hearts. Ask your child: “Where did the seeds grow tall?” (In the good ground!) Then read a short scripture story together and cheer for good listening ears.

📝 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?

🌳 Tiny Seed, Big Tree · 2 min

  1. Show the tiniest seed you have, or pinch pretend-tiny fingers together.
  2. SAY“Jesus said a tiny mustard seed grows into a big tree, and birds sit in its branches” (Matthew 13:31–32).
  3. Everyone curls up tiny, then grows into a giant tree with arms for branches. Two children flap in as birds and “sit” by the tree.

💎 Hidden Treasure Hunt · 3 min

  1. While the children cover their eyes, hide a small “treasure” (a shiny coin or a picture of Jesus) somewhere easy to find.
  2. Everyone tiptoes and looks. When someone finds it, everyone cheers.
  3. SAY“Jesus told a story about a treasure hidden in a field” (Matthew 13:44). “Learning about Jesus is the best treasure!” No treasure? Hide a child’s shoe and hunt for it.

🧍 Bent Over, Standing Tall · 2 min

  1. SAY“Jesus met a woman who was bent over for a long, long time. She couldn’t stand up straight” (Luke 13:11–13).
  2. Everyone bends over and walks slowly. Then say, “Jesus touched her, and she stood up straight!” Everyone stands up tall.
  3. SAY“Jesus can lift us up and help us too.”

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.

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