Last evening’s class went very nicely. I was especially grateful for the very relaxed rapport that the 8th graders seem to have developed with me. They are upbeat and pleasant, smiling and talking with one another and with me. They genuinely seem to enjoy being there and we seem to be very comfortable with each other. With Advent beginning, our focus was on the theme of HOPE. Because of the good vibes, we were able […]
Happy Advent! I hope that your Thanksgiving weekend was an opportunity to enjoy family, friends, and some recreation and renewal! Well, it’s back to “work” for me tonight, wrapping up the short unit on Church history. Here’s my plan: As the kids enter, I’ll give them pages from daily newspapers and set them to work finding examples of “bad news.” Each of the kids will share their examples of bad news stories with the group and I’ll talk […]
A great big THANK YOU to everyone who participated in the Advent Webinar! In that Webinar, I promised that I would make a number of resources available to you, so here you go! Preparing for Advent Lesson Overview and BIG IDEAS Advent Webinar Lesson Plans for Youth-Adult Activities Advent Webinar Lesson Plans for Children’s Activities Advent Prayer Service Here are links to Advent resources on the Loyola Press Website: Finding God Activity Finder (Advent) Christ […]
November is, of course, the month of all souls, a special time of the year for us to remember those who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith. To mark this special month, as part of our opening prayer last night, instead of having the kids offer prayers of thanksgiving or petitions for needs, I asked them each to share the name(s) of loved ones who have passed away so that we […]
For tonight’s class, my plan is to continue walking the young people through the story of salvation history in the Bible, setting the stage for the unit on Jesus that we are beginning. You may recall that two weeks ago (we were off last week for Columbus Day), I began walking them through the story of salvation history in the Bible and, because of a few interruptions (fire drill, etc.) only got as far as […]
This past Monday evening, Chicago lived up to its name as the “windy city” (although that name originated not as a description of the climate in Chicago but of the politics!) with wind gusts reaching 40-50 mph. A good night to be teaching about the Holy Spirit! Sure enough, just as I told the young people that we would be learning about the Holy Spirit, a huge gust of wind blew through an open window, […]
I had a very enjoyable session last night! Here are the highlights: We began in church with an opening prayer service with the pastor. I met my group out in the parking lot and they were jovial and polite. I had a full class with the 2 absentees from last week being present. The kids were very well behaved in church…I was quite pleased to see that. My aide Lucy was there as well and […]
Here’s my plan for tonight, the 2nd session of the year. I was away for a few days, so I didn’t get to plan for this session as early as I usually hope to. But don’t we all face this from time to time? Anyway, here’s the plan: The theme (BIG idea) is “God Reveals Himself to us through his Son, Jesus Christ.” I will emphasize the notion that Jesus reveals to us who God […]
I’ve summarized the first hour of my first session that took place on Monday evening, walking through the Engage, Explore, and Reflect steps. Now, the conclusion: the RESPOND step. The goal of the last step of the class is to challenge/invite them to a new kind of thinking and living, shaped by the Gospel. I said that we had just reflected on the goodness of God’s creation and that we can trust God to provide […]
So far, I’ve summarized the first 45-50 minutes of my first session with my 8th graders this past Monday evening, detailing the Engage and Explore steps of my lesson. Today, I’ll detail the REFLECT step which is designed to lead the young people to pray from within the truths they are learning. Here are the details: Before class began, I had set up on my prayer center, a circle of battery operated tea light candles (I […]
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