Thanks so much for the great response to our Pop-Up Catechesis feature. We initiated the series at the beginning of the quarantine as a way of supporting parents with ideas for making faith come alive in the home. Due to the favorable feedback we’ve received, we are going to continue featuring Pop-Up Catechesis here on Catechist’s Journey, with some minor changes. We originally created three episodes per week of Pop-Up Catechesis to respond to the immediate need […]
Every fall, our parish hosts a catechists’ kickoff workshop. More than 100 catechists, substitutes, classroom helpers, and other catechetical volunteers get together for what is always a spirited day of swapping ideas, sharing knowledge, mentorship, and community prayer. Veteran catechists help new catechists, and we get to hear best-practices for each grade level and see how we can adapt them. On-the-spot conversations lead to new approaches for classroom management, teaching techniques, or creative lesson plans. […]
Like so many others, I get a lot of my news and information from social media these days. Navigating the terrain of social media requires no small amount of prudence, patience, and discernment in order to wade through the plethora of information and discover the various pearls of great value shared by reliable sources. One such “pearl” from a very reliable source (Loyola Press!) is the Catholic Faith Formation Facebook page that has been around […]
You don’t need to be a techie in order to effectively integrate audiovisual resources into your faith formation sessions. Watch the following video overview of how to use audiovisual resources in the classroom. Read the post that inspired this video (with the six goals): The Effective Use of Audiovisual Resources in Faith Formation.
I love showing videos when I teach. However, I have learned over the years that videos are to be a supplement to the lesson. This is especially true in faith formation since our faith is a living, incarnational faith transmitted by living people. Imagine if the Gospel of John said, “For God so loved the world that he sent a video of his only Son, Jesus…” No, Jesus came in the flesh and continues to share […]
Catechists and Catholic school teachers are responsible for what can seem like daunting tasks each liturgical season: being creative with lessons that get children excited and involved, and incorporating technology in the classroom. Keven Rinaman of Calvert Catholic Schools in Tiffin, OH, took an approach during Advent 2016 that included both efforts. As Director of Technology and former teacher at Calvert Catholic, Rinaman came up with an Advent calendar project after brainstorming with Barb Gilman […]
An important strategy for personal growth and success is to network with others. When my son Mike was bogged down working a job that didn’t always fulfill him as he had hoped, I encouraged him to network with clients, which he did. One of those connections led to a new job that he absolutely loves. As catechists, we benefit from networking with one another! As we all gear up for the start of the catechetical […]
A few months ago, a friend of mine told me she was going to use one of the videos I filmed for my book Little Lessons from the Saints at her next RCIA session. “Really?” “Yep. I’m leading a lesson on the communion of saints, so it’s perfect. Besides, I think they would get a kick out of seeing you on video.” “Either that or a good laugh.” “Probably both,” she said. A few days […]
Whenever I’m preparing to give a presentation and there’s some trouble with the projector or laptop or other technology, I jokingly ask those assisting me, “How did Aquinas survive without AV resources?” Of course, he and other great teachers did just fine without them! That doesn’t change the fact that, today, technology provides us with a myriad of ways to enhance our presentation of the Gospel and that most people—especially young people—are accustomed to accessing information through technology. […]
Not all of us are natural-born storytellers, as is illustrated by the following joke: once upon a time, a guy went on a tour of a story factory. As he walked through the factory, he heard a voice on the loudspeaker call out a number every few minutes. After each number was announced, there was a palpable reaction from the workers: laughter, tears, anger, or amazement. The guy asked his tour guide what was going […]
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