saints Archives - Page 4 of 4 - Catechist's Journey

Catechists in Action – Nick Teaches the Lesson

We’ve been watching 5th grade catechist Nick Yonto as he did preparations for his lesson and then gathered the children for prayer. Now, watch as Nick jumps into his lesson which is on the Eucharist as: memorial, meal, and sacrifice. Watch for how Nick… begins with an engaging question, asking the kids to think of ways in their own lives that they try to remember things (setting the stage for talking about Eucharist as memorial). […]

Telling the Greatest Story Ever Told

Joe Paprocki

Yesterday was my last teaching class for this year! Next week, we’ll have a closing Mass and then a little time left in class for a small celebration and farewells. I was pleased as punch, then, to have had a wonderful class last night! Here’s the scoop. Seven of my students still needed to complete their final assessment so I had them go over to an empty classroom with my aide Daneen where they completed […]

Yesterday’s Class – Concern About Those Who Are Homeless

Joe Paprocki

Last evening’s session went very nicely as we looked at Jesus’ Law of Love (Love one another as I have loved you) and learned about how we are called to imitate Jesus’ love for others. Here’s a summary: We had a nice review of our last session which was 2 weeks ago. I held up a can of Play-Doh and asked, “Anyone remember what we learned?” and one girl said, “That we can shape our […]

Jesus’ Law of Love

Joe Paprocki

I’ve had a few ideas for my next class kind of percolating for a while but haven’t had a chance to sit down and create an actual lesson plan until now. Here’s what I have planned for this Monday (Oct. 18), Session 5: Theme: Jesus’ Law of Love Big Idea: We imitate Jesus’ love Review last session Show can of Play-Doh and ask what we learned last session (God can shape us into holy people; God […]

God Asks Us to Obey

Joe Paprocki

Here’s my plan for this coming Monday’s session: Monday, October 4, 2010 Theme: God Asks Us to Obey Big Idea: We shape and form our conscience so that we can know right from wrong and be faithful followers of Jesus Engage (15 mins) As kids enter, provide them with a small container of Play-doh and invite them to create a shape Opening prayer ritual Review of last session – show broken popsicle stick and rock […]

Passport to the Holy Land – Pics!

Joe Paprocki

You may recall that during Lent, I passed along some info about a friend of mine, Victor Valdez (DRE at St. Athanasius, Mountain View, CA), who was organizing a special event for his religious education program titled Passport to the Holy Land, 2010. Recently, Victor sent me an email reporting that the event came off very nicely and he sent along the following description with some very nice pics of the event. Enjoy! Passport to […]

November: Month of All Souls

Joe Paprocki

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 […]

40 Ideas for 40 Days—Lenten Activities: Silence Is Golden (In Honor of St. Joseph)

Joe Paprocki

March 19 is the Feast of Saint Joseph, and he serves as the inspiration for our next Lenten activity. One aspect of St. Joseph’s life is especially fitting for Lent, and that is his quiet nature. The Gospels reveal Joseph as a man of few words and he is revered for his “silence”—his quiet dedication to his family and to hard work. Here’s what Pope Benedict XVI said about Joseph back in 2005: The silence of Saint Joseph […]