For a fresh approach to a Lenten calendar, explore a variety of values with young children this Lent. Our Lenten Countdown for Children invites children to choose a good value to practice each day, coloring and numbering circles as they go to track their progress. Values listed include sharing, patience, honesty, and more—all traits covered in the book A Whole Bunch of Values.
Denise Gorss is a catechist with more than 20 years experience, mostly in junior high. She appreciates the gifts of Ignatian spirituality and likes sharing various types of prayer with the young people in her groups. She enjoys seeing the world on pilgrimages and lives in the Chicago area, where she works as Web Editor at Loyola Press.
It’s time that we got past the idea of Lent as simply a season of “giving things up.” While that is a part of Lent, if it stops there, it is like someone joining a 12-step group and thinking that achieving abstinence from the addictive behavior is to be equated with sobriety. Abstinence from the addictive behavior is only the first step in what must be a holistic plan for recovery that addresses behaviors, emotions, and […]
On to our next Lenten activity which comes to us from the Christ Our Life program, grade 8 Catechist’s Guide. A Change-of-Heart Tree Have the young people make a Change-of-Heart Tree to show their progress in keeping their Lenten resolutions. Assign a group of young people to design the trunk and bare branches of a tree out of brown paper or felt. Have them glue it to a piece of white fabric or paper (about 3-foot […]
This is my 13th year of teaching Lent to third graders, and I’m in need of some fresh new projects and activities for my students. While I will still use my usual activities—they will still be new to this group of third graders—I have realized that adding new activities and projects helps keep me engaged and challenged. This year I will include my usual Ash Wednesday video that shows photos of our foreheads after receiving […]
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