This is a song written by Tami J Creamer and Derena A Bell, and was put into the new hymnbook #1021. I taught this song when it came out in the Friend in the year 2002. I loved the message, and the children in my primary responded very well to it. The chorus of this song is especially powerful. You can learn more about the history of this song here.
Gospel Teaching
This song is a testimony builder of Christ’s love for children. You could review the scriptures in Matthew 19: 13-15 where the disciples turned the children away from approaching Christ. Jesus said, “Suffer little children and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven”. Then He blessed them.
The scripture story in 3 Nephi 17: 21-24 is also a great testimony of Christ’s love for children.
The chorus is a bold statement of what the children can know in their hearts and minds. It is a chance for them to sing confidently that they know He lives and that He loves them. This might be a good time to talk about how they might “know”.
Music Method
This song has a great melody and is written in a lovely range of notes for most singers.
There is an opportunity to introduce harmony on the ending tag if you choose to do so. Teaching harmony is fun, but challenging. I have found that the senior primary can achieve harmony with a lot of practice and patience. I have succeeded many times and failed many times. Don’t be afraid to try. If it doesn’t work out, you can always return to the melody. Harmony is a learned art to hear and sing, but introducing it in your primary is a great seed to plant in their ears.
At the beginning of my senior primary singing time, I warm their voices up using solfege. Solfege is singing a scale with numbers or with Do Re Me etc. I like using numbers because I can change them up very easily. The scale up and down would be sung, 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,1,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 or
Do Re Me Fa So La Tee Do
Then you could introduce intervals. Intervals are the spaces between the notes or tones. We have to use our voices to jump up and down.
1,2,1
1,3,1
1,4,1
1,5,1 etc.
Harmony is when two tones or notes are sung together, sound good and make the melody full and pleasant to the ear of the listener.
Solfege (voice training)
Here is the piano part for Solfege for your pianist!
When I am teaching harmony to my senior primary, I write the numbers to the notes I want them to sing on the board. On the tag for this song, I Know That My Savior Loves Me, the harmony numbers would be
(based on a F major scale, F being the number 1 tone)
Harmony: 5 (I),6 (know), 5 (that), 4 (my), 3,4 (Savior), 2 (loves),1(me)
Melody: 3 (I), 4 (know),3 (that), 2 (my), 1,2 (Savior), 7 (loves), 1(me)
I give them the 1 tone (F) and we sing up together to the 5th tone. Then they have the numbers to sing from there. When they get comfortable with the notes, change from the numbers to a basic sound, such as La or Do. Cupping their hands around their ears is a fun way for them to stay focused and listen to themselves, especially when I sing the melody and they sing the harmony.
If you want to skip this solfege idea altogether, you can teach the harmony notes to the senior primary and get them used to them. As they get very comfortable with those notes, you can practice with the teachers singing the melody and or you, the chorister, singing the melody. You could keep all the senior primary on the harmony and give the junior primary the melody. So many ways to try! Good luck with this! Always a challenge, but your primary might like the challenge and learning a bit about music!
Visual Aids
I teach this song using sign language. You do not have to sign EVERY word in a song. I had a lady in my ward who knows ASL help me with these signs. There are several variations for words, so if you find one you like better, do it! These are suggestions.
Sign Language for I Know that my Savior loves me
A great resource for sign language is Signing Savvy This site will give you a video to watch showing you how to perform the signs.
When I teach sign language, I use my LH to perform the signs as much as possible. That way, as the children mirror me, they are using their strong RH.
Here is a video to use as you practice your singing and signing!