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Finding God in Galveston-Houston

Yesterday, I enjoyed a wonderful day with 4 of my Loyola Press colleagues in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston as we presented correlations between Finding God 2013 and the new curriculum guidelines and learning targets for the archdiocese. Thanks to all of the folks who so warmly received us and showed such great excitement for the new bilingual Finding God, the Adaptive Kits for children with special needs, our religion readiness programs, and our sacramental preparation […]

Great New Liturgy Apps!

Joe Paprocki

Here’s some information about some great new Apps on the Liturgy! The first is the My Picture Missal App from Loyola Press. This App, available in the iTunes store at this link: My Picture Missal App, was developed for children with special needs and for young children. The intent of this interactive app is to help children learn, understand, and fully experience the Mass. Children with special needs have spiritual lives and, with communication assistance, can […]

Everyone Has a Right to Faith Formation

Joe Paprocki

This is a guest post by David and Mercedes Rizzo. Around the time of our daughter’s fourth birthday, she was diagnosed with autism. We refer to this period as when the autism bomb dropped. When faced with a diagnosis like that many thoughts flood the mind. One of the thoughts we had was how would Danielle be able to make her First Holy Communion and her other sacraments? We were fortunate that a parish close […]

9/11 Prayers for Peace

Joe Paprocki

I received the following from Jennifer about what her class did on 9/11 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the tragedy and to pray for peace. Great job, Jennifer! Joe, I thought you might appreciate what my 8th grade CCD class did on September 11. I’ve copied the email sent to their parents. I’m so proud of them. Thanks, too, for The Catechist’s Toolbox and recent webinar on teaching jr. high classes which have been great […]

Final Installment of Q & A from 9/2/10 Webinar

Joe Paprocki

Here’s the last of the Q & A from our Getting Started as a Catechist Webinar last Thursday, September 2, 2010. ‑Rocio Q: how do you deal with parents who take the children to religious education out of tradition but themselves are not practicing catholics? A: Rocio, there’s not much a catechist can do individually other than try to maintain some level of communication by sending home resources that encourage parents to be more […]

More Q & A from 9/2/10 Webinar

Joe Paprocki

Here is more Q & A from the Getting Started as a Catechist Webinar that took place last Thursday, September 2, 2010. ________________________________________________________________ ‑Maria Q: I have a very unique class in my parish (2nd year First communion preparation) consisting of children from 2nd thru 6th grade. Any suggestions on how to be a more effective Catechist reaching out to this wide range age group? A: Maria, such a wide range of ages is […]

Thanks, Duluth!

Joe Paprocki

I had a great time Monday afternoon with a wonderful group of DREs, catechists, and pastors at the Minnesota Catholic Education Association. I did a 3-hour stranded session (tiring!) on The Catechist’s Toolbox. One of the most interesting ideas that came out of our discussion was a catechist who was teaching the concept of Church to her class. She arranged to take them on a field trip of sorts. She pre-arranged with 5 families in […]

It IS Possible to Have a Normal Conversation with an 8th Grader!

Joe Paprocki

I was absolutely delighted to have an enjoyable 10-minute conversation with one of my 8th graders before class last night! This doesn’t happen often for me. For one, the kids usually don’t arrive early or stay after class. Second, I don’t usually seek out conversations…it’s just not my style. Third, I’m very careful about not presenting myself as their “buddy” – I’m not seeking their friendship, just their apprenticeship. So, needless to say, I was […]

End-of-the Year Reflection

Joe Paprocki

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 […]

Catch-Up Catechesis – Kids Out of Sequence

Joe Paprocki

I hate the phrase “catch-up” catechesis but you know what I’m talking about…kids who come to R.E. programs having missed some years of R.E. and having missed reception of First Penance, First Communion, or Confirmation. Think this is a small problem for DREs? Think again. I recently asked a number of DREs to share some thoughts on this issue and here is a glimpse of what I got. You’re welcome to add your thoughts and […]