Welcome to another installment of Catechists in Action as we enter the classroom of 2nd grade catechist Katie Elwood (Most Holy Redeemer Parish, Evergreen Park, IL). Thanks Katie for inviting us in at the last moment (without warning!) when my planned filming in another class ran into an obstacle. Katie is so excited to be preparing her children for First Holy Communion. On the evening we filmed, she was introducing them to a new First […]
During the Hofinger Catechetical Conference in New Orleans last weekend, I had the pleasure of sitting in on a couple of excellent presentations given by my friend and colleague Tom McGrath, whose specialty is family faith. Tom distributed and made reference to a handout that he has developed called Forty Ways to Foster Prayer in Your Home which is drawn from his book Raising Faith-Filled Kids. Although I have seen this handout before, I was […]
In this segment of Catechists in Action, we see 7th grade catechist Dan Ward leading his class in a brief opening prayer. Watch for the following: Me settling my camera down! 🙂 Dan gently inquiring with one of his students about a special prayer intention. What I’ve been referring to as Dan’s “coach approach” – he talks to the kids as though he’s preparing them to “get into the game.” Dan expounds a bit on […]
Sports is HUGE with kids, so no doubt, kids are interested in the success of Tim Tebow and all the talk about the “miracles” associated with his success, including yesterday’s stunning overtime victory in the NFL playoffs. In case you’re not up-to-date on the whole Tebow phenomenon, here’s a quick summary. For kids, the question that the whole Tim Tebow experience raises is whether or not God answers our prayers when it comes to things […]
To help celebrate the 5th anniversary of my blog, The Catechist’s Journey, I’ve invited a number of people to be guest bloggers here over the course of a week! Today, I’m featuring Jared Dees, the creator of The Religion Teacher, where he shares practical resources, activities, lesson plans, and teaching strategies for catechists and Catholic school religion teachers. He is the Digital Publishing Specialist at Ave Maria Press, where he manages websites, eBooks, and eTextbooks. He […]
To celebrate the 5th anniversary of my blog, Catechist’s Journey, we’re hosting a little contest. Each day this week, I’m posting a video in which I ask a trivia question and, in order to correctly answer, you’ll need to go back and look at one of my posts. The first person to post a comment with the correct answer will win a prize! Here are the prizes: Monday: Three Children’s books by Amy Welborn: Book of […]
As we continue viewing 5th grade catechist Nick Yonto’s session, we now reach the point where class is formally beginning with prayer. Watch for the following: Nick’s aide arrives with the prayer cloth and they re-arrange the prayer table. The children gather around the prayer table for announcements and prayer (remember, I’m not showing children’s faces in order to protect their privacy) The prayer is led over the PA…the children’s responsorial response is printed on […]
Monday evening was my last class of the year with my 4th graders. I’m gonna miss these little guys…they were a very sweet class and we had a good experience together. We began with a closing Mass in church and, for the second year in a row, the organist chose to sing “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad” as the responsorial and for the 2nd year in […]
From time to time here on my blog, you’ve noticed me talking about the Daily Examen, a form of prayer promoted by St. Ignatius of Loyola. Now you have a great opportunity to learn how to pray the Examen by praying the Examen! Jim Manney, author of A Simple, Life-Changing Prayer, is offering an opportunity to experience the Examen online as he leads you step-by-step so that you can learn how to pray this way on […]
Here’s a nice Lenten idea shared by a catechist named Anna Marie. Thanks, Anna Marie! Here’s a Lenten idea that I have done in 7th-10th graders. The last day before we depart for Spring/Easter Break or during Holy Week, I create the classroom as a Retreat/Desert experience. Shades are pulled down, lights are dimmed if possible, and the window of the classroom door is covered. There is a sign placed outside the door: Â Do Not […]
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