Webinar Follow-up: Questions About Using Contemporary Music

During the Webinars on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, I received MANY questions about using contemporary music in a catechetical setting as a way to engage a young audience. Allow me to address some thoughts about that here (and as always, I invite you to weigh in as well). For young people, contemporary music is a huge part of their life. It speaks to them in a way that no other medium can. I often use […]

Videos for Religious Education

Here is a resource that you’ll find very helpful: it is a correlation of catechetical video resources for grades 1-8. While it is specifically correlated for the Finding God program, I have no doubt that the resource list will prove handy for folks using any curriculum. The list provides publisher and ISBN information to assist you in tracking down resources through your diocesan media center or directly from publishers.

Becoming a Catechist: What's YOUR Story?

At this time of the year, many people are being asked to consider the possibility of becoming a catechist for next year. This is a monumental responsibility of the catechetical leader: to discern which individuals God may be calling to this privileged vocation. By the same token, those who are invited to serve as catechists are faced with discerning whether or not this is their vocation. Part of that discernment is listening to the stories […]

Discussion Starters/Breaking the Ice

When we gather with our young people for religious education classes, it’s not always easy for them to make the transition from their day into “the sacred.” One strategy is to emply some discussion starters to break the ice: questions that are non-threatening, fun, and substantive. I recommend a product created by my friends Tom McGrath and Bret Nicholaus called The Meal Box. The Meal Box is a set of 52 cards featuring questions designed […]

"What Have You Learned, Dorothy?"

Near the end of the great movie, The Wizard of Oz, there’s a wonderful moment when the key players in the story reflect on what they’ve learned: The Tin Man: What have you learned, Dorothy? Dorothy: Well, I – I think that it – it wasn’t enough to just want to see Uncle Henry and Auntie Em – and it’s that – if I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look […]

Top Ten Little Things That Can Make a Big Difference for Catechists

Over the past year, I have picked up a number of handy suggestions from various catechists—little things they do in their classes that I think make a BIG difference. Here are the “top ten” things that you can do on a regular basis to help you become a more effective and engaging catechist right now—without adding tons of additional planning time to your preparation for class. Greet your students at the door each week with a task […]

End-of-the Year Reflection

This evening is our end-of-the-year catechist meeting. I was asked by our DRE, Arlene, to lead the other catechists in a reflective prayer (meditation). I will be using a meditation that I wrote a couple of years ago for this very blog. You’re welcome to use this for your own reflection or with a group of catechists. We often tell our learners to use their imaginations. Now it’s your turn. Use your imagination to reflect […]

Ending on a Good Note – A Summary of Last Night's Class

Last evening was the last teaching session for this year with my 8th graders. Next week, we gather for Mass, some presentations, and then pizza. I enjoyed last night and overall, I feel it went very nicely, a fitting ending to a good year with a good group of kids. Here are the highlights: I met the young people at the door as they arrived. I was holding a tray with their little vigil candles […]

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