Let’s Give ‘Em Something to Talk About!

Catechists are always looking for ways to get parents talking with their kids about what they learned in faith formation. Here’s a simple idea I came up with that can help you to review the main points of your lesson and to provide parents with something they can ask their kids about when they pick them up. It’s a half sheet of paper that you can distribute to kids near the end of class. Have them fill in the theme/focus/big idea of the lesson in the top box and the vocabulary words they learned in the lower box. Kids can hand this to their parents when they get picked up, and parents can ask them to share what they learned. Here’s an example of what a fifth-grade student might fill in for chapter 17 of Finding God:

Ask Me About 3Here is a PDF of the handout with two copies on one sheet so that you can save paper when copying.

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.

2 Comments

  1. Love this idea, Joe. I like that you let the students “own” picking the main idea or faith vocabulary word that they feel comfortable speaking to their parents about. For our 6th grade Salvation History curriculum, I might adapt your form just a bit; instead of the “Today’s BIG idea”, we could use “Today’s BIG reveal” (i.e., what did God reveal to us in His Word today?).

    We know that sometimes the parents just “swoop in” and dash out when they pick up their son/daughter, or are still multi-tasking on their smartphone – having the student hand the paper to their parent might just break that routine. The Catechist could follow up with an email to the parents to reinforce that their son/daughter indeed has “something to talk about”! Thanks for sharing!

  2. What a great idea, Joe! It is simple with a great impact. I plan to use it next fall and share your idea with fellow catechists. Thank you for all you do to help us become the best catechists possible.

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