Handouts seem to be a staple of many Relief Societies. There are handouts to announce activities, handouts on the lesson topics, and handouts to help you reach your goals or to remind you to visit teach. These handouts may seem like a good idea, but when you come home with so many different handouts they are less effective then they should be.
If you are using handouts to make your announcements or for Enrichment activities, consider switching to email announcements instead. You would still need to create a smaller number of handouts for the sisters who do not have an email address or the Internet, but you may be surprised at how much more effective email announcements are. I find that I can add them immediately to my online calendar so that I remember the activities better. Plus I don’t like throwing all that paper away when I don’t have to.
If you are considering a handout for a visiting teaching reminder or as an encouragement for goal setting, consider making it a more permanent handout, such as a refrigerator magnet. These are especially effective when they come with a clothespin or some other type of clip to attach papers too. This helps by giving your sisters an easy way to put the reminder in plain site.
It is not uncommon to receive handouts as a result of the lesson in Relief Society. These handouts are often the result of hours of work of the instructor. Often I find myself passing them by or throwing them away in a few days. As an instructor, it is important to realize that you do not need to make handouts each time you teach. The Young Women manuals have handout suggestions for nearly every lesson, but as adults we may not need the same tangible reminders. If you do decide to make a handout, then do it as simply as possible.
Related Articles:
Relief Society: Supporting the Enrichment Committee
Relief Society: First Sunday Lessons
Serving in the Relief Society: Teacher