Ideas for hymn study

[Kidlit]

We've been using Hymns for a Kid's Heart volume 1, and essentially all we've done is listen to the hymn, read the bit about the composer one day, and then read the devotional bit another day. I'd like to add something to this because my girls enjoy it so much. I'm fresh out of ideas, though. My girls are 6 (1st grade) and 4 (K-ish). Any ideas?

[ladydusk]

Do you memorize the hymn? We do this by memorizing one verse each week (or approximately 1 hymn a month), a great way to do this is to use a CD without singing (although we use Hymns for a Kids Heart too for some of our hymns). I like Hymns for Kith and Kin, but I'm sure there are others. Then review, review, review. My kids are just getting good at All Glory Laud and Honor and Christ, the Lord, is Risen Today which we did around Ressurection Sunday. I try to mix favorites with ones we sing frequently at church with hymns appropriate for the season.

 

We also talk through each verse of the hymn, reading in chunks and "What does this mean?"

 

When I have all readers, we'll start looking in the hymnal and using some of the other helps there, finding other hymns with the same tune/composer/writer. Look at the Bible verse referenced at the top of the hymn. There are other books that tell the stories of hymns like 101 Hymn Stories (this is the first in a series) or Our Hymn Writers and their Hymns or Memoirs of Hymn Writers and Compilers

 

The Mr. Pipes books also seem popular, but we haven't yet read any of them.

 

Hope that helps.

[JMDRAD]

I was actually thinking about this during the song service at church tonight. So many of the old hymns are chock full of Bible references and phrases. I thought it would be fun to start at page one of our hymnal and do a study. We'd look up the Bible references and also study what led the composer/author to write this piece of music.