Ten Commandments – Two-Minute Drills

I’m pretty excited about this one!

I want to do something to reinforce the Ten Commandments as we move in to this last unit on Morality. I also want to place more responsibility on the kids now that they are confirmed, so that they sense a difference between how I taught them before Confirmation and how they are learning now.

As a result, I’ve come up with something I call The Ten Commandments Two-Minute Drills! I’ve devised a short (2-3 minute) mini-session for each of the Ten Commandments that is comprised of an easy game or demonstration to illustrate the main point of that Commandment. Each Two-Minute Drill has a one-page script that I will assign to students (I have ten students, so if they all show, it should work out nicely). I’ll give them a few minutes to look over their script and I’ll go around to help them and to explain what they will be doing. I will be providing the materials that are mentioned in each script (I kept it to a minimum so that it’s not a burden on the catechist). Finally, I’ll have each student take their turn, teaching their little Two-Minute Drill on one of the Commandments!  

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No, not THAT kind of two-minute drill!

Ten Commandments Two-Minute Drills

This should be interesting! Of course, I’ll let you know how it goes! Wish me luck!

About Joe Paprocki 2742 Articles
Joe Paprocki, DMin, is National Consultant for Faith Formation at Loyola Press, where, in addition to his traveling/speaking responsibilities, he works on the development team for faith formation curriculum resources including Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts and God’s Gift: Reconciliation and Eucharist. Joe has more than 35 years of experience in ministry and has presented keynotes, presentations, and workshops in more than 100 dioceses in North America. Joe is a frequent presenter at national conferences including the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, and the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership. He is the author of numerous books, including the best seller The Catechist’s Toolbox, A Church on the Move, Under the Influence of Jesus, and Called to Be Catholic—a bilingual, foundational supplemental program that helps young people know their faith and grow in their relationship with God. Joe is also the series editor for the Effective Catechetical Leader and blogs about his experiences in faith formation at www.catechistsjourney.com.

19 Comments

  1. Good Afternoon Joe,

    I am just starting the 10 Commandments. Today, I will
    use your idea for the first Commandment. I teach third grade and will
    explain it in a simple manner so that they can understand.
    Thank you for your idea – I’m grateful to you for
    sharing ideas with the catechists.
    Peace,
    Kate

    • That’s great, Kate. I designed these in such a way as to be simple enough to adapt for various age levels which is what you are doing. Best wishes and let us know how it goes with your 3rd graders!

  2. Dear Joe,
    I just had the activites copied and will keep it just in case i’ll be handling a class with this very important topic… Am sure the students will have a wonderful time with these…and in a way, making the “commandments” more concrete in their consciousness…
    Here in the Philippines, we are in our final week of schooling (a sigh of joyful relief!!) This week, we’ll be holding our Baccalaureate Mass for the 4th year students (the graduating class)…
    In my final class, i asked them what moved them most during the entire Catechesis, and most of them were moved by the SONGS!!! Like: Give Thanks, Lead Me, Lord, and Power of Love. They said they felt closer to God, whenever we sung…even if they really were not giving time for Him… and even were not listening to my lessons… Indeed, singing or praising is twice praying, and it works!!!!

    Thank you so much Joe, for all the inspiring messages and lessons you shared with us, through the months.
    God bless.

    • Johnny, thanks for such a wonderful and inspiring report on your classes! It’s so great to hear that the children were moved by the songs…they are indeed musically inclined! Enjoy your rest during your time off and keep in touch as you move forward to next year’s classes!

      • Much thanks again Joe for being with us in our “journey”… In our language, we say “Maraming salamat po!” Yes, we’ll enjoy our summer vacation~rest… May God be with us all. And a most blessed Lent, too.

  3. I work with 6th graders and I like to do a hands-on activity. This has great possibilities for them. Thanks, I love the information.

  4. I want to thank you for this resource. I teach 6th graders and used this lesson last night and they LOVED this activity. It was a great way to teach them to look outside of the box.

    Thank you for inspiring me to continue even through the difficult classes.

  5. Joe: I’m so lucky that I’m teaching 4th grade and you have these great activities that reflect not just telling but showing !!! I love them. Keep up the great work. God Bless.

  6. I used this tonight and it was the best Faith Formation class I have ever taught. The students left the room saying “this was really fun, thank you”. I had written out the 10 commandments and had each students take notes and they wrote for a long time after each presentation. The bleach trick didn’t work for us and that was funnier than if it had. Thank you so much for bringing the 10 Commandments to life. I teach 9th graders and each student was excited to present.

  7. Thank you so much. I teach at a Lutheran Church, but we all read the same Bible! I was just trying to create this type of activity myself when yours popped up. You have saved me so much time and your ideas are such a blessing to help our students understand and remember these important words from God.

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