Third Grade-December 16th Cancellation

Tonight's class has been cancelled due to inclement weather. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas.  I'll see you next year!  Our class will meet again on January 6th.

Kindergarten-December 12th Class

This week we covered chapter 8, God Made All People, in our text book.  We discussed how God made all of us and gave us a world filled with wonderful things to enjoy.  We talked about how God loves each and every one of us very much and how we should share God's love with others.

During circle time we discussed Flat Father Stanley's latest adventures.  He's been quite busy lately!  We also read two stories.  The first was the little booklet entitled "The People We See" and the second was a lovely book about the Christmas story called "The First Noel."

When circle time was finished, we worked on a little wreath craft that says "God Made All People."

The homework for this week is to pray the Hail Mary every day, and to complete the coloring page maze worksheet.

Next week we will have a small Christmas party during the second half of our class.  We will be covering chapter 14, Christmas, when we meet next week.

I hope you all have a lovely week.  See you next Sunday!

Third Grade- December 9th Class

This week we covered chapter 18, Celebrating Penance and Reconciliation, in our text book.  We talked about how we choose to love God and that when we sin we are not loving God as we should.  The class listened to the story of the prodigal son from Luke 15:11-32 and learned that God is our loving Father who is always ready to forgive us.  We then moved on to discuss the Sacrament of Reconciliation and it's four parts (contrition, confession, penance and absolution).

Just about all of the students were concerned about going to confession last night.  I explained to them that it gets easier and less nerve wracking to go to confession the more frequently you go.  Our class will go to confession again during Lent.  Hopefully they will feel a little more at ease with this sacrament next time.

For this week's decade of the rosary, the class learned about the second luminous mystery, the Wedding at Cana where Jesus performed his first public miracle.

Homework for this week is to complete the Project Disciple Pages found on pages 160 & 161.  Your child is responsible for the Show What You Know, Reality Check, Saint Stories and Make it Happen sections.

Next week we will be having a small Christmas celebration during the second half of our class.

Kindergarten-December 5th Class

We had a craft filled class this past Sunday.  To start, we made Mary and Joseph stick puppets.  The puppets can be used to talk about Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem where baby Jesus was born.  The children were also given a St. Nicholas coloring page since St. Nicholas' feast day was this past Monday, December 6th.

We covered chapter 13, Advent, in our text book.  We talked about how Advent is a season of waiting and preparing our hearts for Jesus' coming.  We discussed ways that we can share and show others that we care.

During circle time we read the final installment of the story of St. Therese from the Catholic Children's Treasure Box series.  We also read a short booklet about how Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem to be counted in the census. We discussed that baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

We concluded our class with an Advent wreath craft.  The children glued green tissue paper around the wreath to make leaves.  The children worked very hard to make their wreaths look just right.  I think they all came out looking beautiful.  To light the candles on this wreath simply pull the yellow tissue paper flame above the top of the tube.

This week's homework is to complete the Project Disciple activity on page 124 and to pray the Hail Mary every day.  Pretty soon we will start learning the Our Father.

Our next class is Sunday, December 12th.  See you then!

Third Grade-December 2nd Class

This week was our first class back after our long break.  We jumped right back into the swing of things and covered two chapters tonight (these chapters were considerably smaller than the normal chapters).  First we learned about the Liturgical, or Church Year.  Students made a color coded Church Year Wheel that names the six seasons of the liturgical year.  We discussed how the Church celebrates all sorts of feast days throughout the year.

Next we moved onto our chapter on Advent since we just entered this season on Sunday.  We discussed ways we can celebrate Advent.  After we completed the chapter, everyone made a flameless Advent wreath.  I think we have some very talented artists in our class.  I saw a lot of beautiful Advent wreaths go home tonight.

We discussed that St. Nicholas' feast day is celebrated on Monday, December 6th.  I told that class that some families celebrate this feast day by leaving their shoes out for St. Nicholas to fill with candy.  Many of the children wanted to know if they could do that.  I told them they needed to ask their parents.  Don't be surprised if some of your children want St. Nicholas to put candy in their shoes.

Our rosary mystery for this week was the first luminous mystery, the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River.  The class listened to a short story about this mystery from the Catholic Bible Stories for Children book.

Everyone was sent home with a Jesus manger craft that can be colored, cut out and glued together.  In our house my daughters perform good deeds to earn pieces of hay (yellow construction paper) that they can use to make a soft bed for baby Jesus.  It's a good way to teach your child to make sacrifices and perform good deeds for others.

Another activity that I sent the children home with is a set of Jesse Tree ornaments.  The ornaments each have a corresponding bible story that should be read prior to coloring in the ornament each day.  The Jesse tree is Jesus' family tree.  I told the children if they wanted to do this activity that they could ask you if they could hang the ornaments on the tree, or possibly make a tree out of construction paper than can be hung on a door.

Last week I put up a special post on the blog about a fun, free Advent activity provided by a company called Holy Heroes.  It's not too late to register for the daily Advent Adventure emails that contain links to videos, coloring pages and activities.  My children are big fans of the Holy Heros adventures and they learn a ton about their faith when they watch the videos.


The homework for this week is to do the chapter six worksheet and the Advent word search.  Next week all of the religious education classes in grades 3-8 will be going to confession.  Please remind your child so he or she isn't caught off guard.

See you all next week!

Kindergarten-November 14th and 21st Classes

I'm really sorry that I haven't updated about our class for the past two weeks.  Between illnesses in the family and all the craziness that comes with preparing for Thanksgiving and classroom Thanksgiving feasts and shows for my daughter's schools, I simply never got around to updating the blog.

On November 14th, we covered chapter 5, God Made the Animals, in our text book.  We talked about our favorite animals and how God wants us to care for all the wonderful animals he gave us.  We also listened to the story of Noah's Ark and colored a related coloring page.

During circle time we discussed Flat Father Stanley's latest adventures.  We also listened to the third installment of the story of St. Therese.

On November 21st, we covered chapter 6, The Church Year, in our text book.  We talked about all the ways we can celebrate God's love for us.  At the beginning of the class we colored a picture of the Blessed Mother holding a crowned infant Jesus and I told them about how the church was celebrating the solemnity of Christ the King that day.

During circle time we listened to the next installment of St. Therese's story from the Catholic Children's Treasure Box series.  Once we were finished with circle time we began to work on our Thankful Turkey project.  The children made turkeys by tracing their hands and cutting it out.  Then we added four feathers that listed things they were thankful to God for.

There is no class on November 27th.  The homework is to pray the Hail Mary every day.  Pretty soon we will begin learning the Our Father.

Advent begins this Sunday, November 28th.  Check out this post for an excellent way to celebrate the season of Advent with your child.

Get Ready For Advent!

Advent starts tomorrow and it is the perfect time of year to teach your child the true meaning of Christmas.  I particularly love Advent because there are so many different activities you can do with your children to help them experience the richness of our faith.

Holy Heros is a company that offers Advent, Lenten and Summer Faith Adventures for free each year.  Last year was the first year that our family participated in any of Holy Heros adventures and I was incredibly impressed with how much my children learned from their programs.  I strongly encourage all of you to sign up for the Holy Heros Advent Adventure.  Don't worry if you come across this post a few days into Advent, you can still sign up.

A great thing about the Holy Heros Advent Adventure is that it is suitable for a wide age range.  It's perfect for preschoolers and school aged children.

Here's a video Holy Heros put together to tell you about the Advent Adventure.

Kindergarten-October 31st Class

This week we talked about All Saints Day in class.  The children colored an All Saints Day coloring page when they arrived at class.

We covered chapter 7, We Learn About Ordinary Time, in our textbook.  We talked about how those who shared God's love and did what He wanted them to do became saints.  We discussed the ways that people in our lives show their love for us and God, and we discussed the ways we can share Gods love with those around us.

During circle time we read a story about St. Joseph.  We also read the next installment of the story about St. Therese the Little flower.

We did a Halloween Jack O Lantern craft and finished our class with a little Halloween party when we were surprised with cupcakes.

This week's  homework is to continue praying the Hail Mary each day.

There is no class next week.  We will meet again for class on November 14th.  I hope you all have a safe and fun Halloween.  See you in two weeks!

Third Grade -October 28th Class

Sorry it's taken so long to get an update on this past Thursday's class on the blog.  I've been busy with other obligations that prevented me from taking time to blog.

This past Thursday we presented the "Think First and Stay Safe" child lures prevention class.  The students who were present learned about various child lures that people may try to use on them to lead them into a harmful situation.  We discussed ways to avoid getting caught in these lures.

Because we do not meet for class during the month of November a letter was sent home detailing the three lessons you need to review with your child over our break.  Chapters 1, 2 and 4 are the lessons that I would like everyone to review.  A packet with three corresponding worksheets were also sent home.  These puzzles are the homework for the month of November.

A letter was sent home with your child from the Religious Education department regarding food donations for the Thanksgiving food drive.  Because we do not meet for class, please drop off your food donations at the church or the school (during another religious education session).  I teach a class on Sunday at 9AM in room 1A.  Any student who wishes to bring their donation to my Sunday morning class will earn a reward sticker.

Each Thursday I will be posting an extra credit assignment that can be completed for a reward sticker.  Check back each week for this assignment.

Also, confessions will be the second week of December.  Please see that your child remembers the Act of Contrition.

Kindergarten-October 24th Class

This week we covered the Child Safety Lures Prevention lesson during class.  We discussed as a class who are people we can trust.  We talked about some ways in which strangers may try to lure children and how to think first and stay safe.  Everyone was sent home with a coloring page packet that covers the main ideas that were covered in this lesson.

Check your child's folder for the Thanksgiving food collection sheet that was sent out by the religious education office. Starting the week of November 1st, your child may bring in canned goods and non-perishables to help the needy in our community.

This week's homework is to pray the Hail Mary daily.  I'm hoping that everyone will know this prayer by December so we can start learning the Our Father.  If your child says this prayer with you once a day he or she will pick it up very quickly.

Third Grade-October 21st Class

This week we covered chapter 5, We Learn About the Early Church.  In this chapter the students learned that the Apostles led the church.  We discussed how the disciples of Jesus spread the Gospel, or good news.  We also learned about how many early Christians were martyred for their faith.    And we talked about how the saints are our ancestors in faith who provide good examples of holiness.

This week's key words are: Act of the Apostles, Gospel, and martyrs.  Students are responsible for knowing these terms.  They can show up on a pop quiz at any time.  It's also good to know these terms because they will come up in future trivia games.

During our rosary time we talked about the fifth Joyful Mystery, the Finding of Jesus in the Temple.  We talked about how St. Joseph and St. Mary must have felt when they realized that the child Jesus was missing, and how happy they must have been when they found him in the temple.

We learned about the Jesus fish symbol or Ichthus in tonight's lesson and we colored and cut out an Ichthus.

This week's homework is the Chapter 5 project disciple activities on pages 56 and 57.

Next week we will be presenting the Child Lures Prevention class.  A letter regarding this class was sent home a few weeks ago.

See you all next week!

Kindergarten-October 17th Class

This week we covered chapter 4, God Gives Us the Land, in our text book.  We talked about all the wonderful things that fill the earth from flowers and trees to mountains and oceans.

When students arrived at class this week we began working on a craft project that had a nice autumn feel to it.  While the students colored the little wreath that says "God, thank you" we discussed that God likes it when we thank Him for the many blessings he gives us.  I also read the children the story of the Ten Lepers from the book Catholic Bible Stories for Children.  This was the same story from the gospel at Sunday Mass the week before (October 10th).

During circle time we read two stories.  The first was about St. Rose of Lima and the second was the first installment of a story about St. Therese the little flower from The Catholic Children's Treasure Box Series.  We also listened to the story of Flat Father Stanley's adventures with another member of our class.  On his last adventure Flat Fr. got to go to Mass (He was thrilled!), decorated a house for Halloween and even got to play on a playground.  He had a great week and is now off on yet another adventure.  We also prayed the Sign of the Cross and the Hail Mary.  Keep working on those prayers with your children.  They're getting closer to knowing it by heart each week.

Homework this week is the cut and paste activity sheet that you will find on the left hand side of your child's folder.  Also note that a revised calendar is in the folder, as well.

Next week we will be presenting the Child Lures Prevention Class, Think First and Stay Safe during class.  A letter regarding this class was sent home with your child the week of October 3rd.

See you all next week!

Third Grade-October 14th Class

This week we covered chapter 4, The Church Begins, in our text book.  The class learned about the beginnings of the church.  We discussed the Ascension of Jesus and his promise to his Apostles to send the Holy Spirit.  We read a story about Pentecost, the day when disciples received the Holy Spirt.  Since everyone loves a birthday, I pointed out to the class that Pentecost is regarded as the birthday of the Church.

This week five new key words were introduced.  They are: mission, Ascension, Pentecost, Church, Christians.  Students are responsible for knowing the meanings of these words.  It is important that they understand the meanings of these words because they will appear in their religious ed texts year after year.

Tonight I introduced the fourth joyful myestery of the rosary: The presentation of Jesus at the temple.  Students were given a coloring page representing this mystery and asked to tell their families about it.

Fourth Joyful Mystery: The Presentation of Jesus

A sheet of prayers you child is expected to know was sent home tonight.  Three of the prayers your child should already know.  They are the Hail Mary, Our Father and the Glory Be.  If your child does not know these prayers please help him or her to learn them.  We are using them every week in class when we pray a decade of the rosary so it's important that they know them.  This year the students are expected to learn the Apostles' Creed.  Help your child to learn this prayer by having them say it every day.  Once your child has learned this prayer he or she may recite it to me before or after class to earn a sticker for his/her reward card.

Some of you may have noticed that we now have a stop light in the front of the class.  Our first few weeks of class have been filled with a lot of out of turn talking and calling out that has prevented the class from getting to the fun games and activities that I had planned.  Each week everyone will start out on the green light.  Students who break our posted class rules (they're on the front board) will see their clip moved from green to yellow to red.  If your child winds up on the red light you will receive a note telling you why.  Students who make a habit of winding up on red will be referred to the office.    Please remind your son or daughter to make every effort to be considerate of others in class and refrain from talking out of turn.  I'd like our class time to be fun and productive.

This was our first week with the stop light system and I have to say the class was totally different.  We even had enough time to play Saint Search, which is a bingo type of game where the students learn about the saints.

This week's homework: Project Disciple pages 48 and 49.


Have a wonderful weekend!  See you all next week!

Third Grade-October 7th Class

This week we had a pop quiz on the key words from chapters 1 and 2.  The quizzes need to be signed by a parent and returned next Thursday.  If your child did not do well on today's quiz please stress the importance of paying attention during class.  I often ask the class to underline the definition of the key words when we come across them in the text; and I ALWAYS reiterate the meaning of the word and follow up by asking a member of the class to tell me the definition.  The key words are also highlighted in the activities and end of chapter test.  Those who pay attention during class and utilize the study guides that are on the website for our text book should have no problem retaining this information.

We covered chapter 3, Christ Will Come Again,  in our book tonight.  Three new key words were introduced tonight: second coming, Last Judgement and Heaven.  Please see that your child knows the meaning of these key words.  They will likely show up in a pop quiz in the near future.  The first three questions of the chapter 3 test on page 42 would be an excellent study help for learning the definitions of these terms.  We did the chapter test as a class, so everyone should have the correct answers written down in their text book.

Tonight we learned about the third joyful mystery of the rosary, the birth of Jesus.  Everyone was given a coloring page that illustrates this mystery and asked to tell their families about it.

Third Joyful Mystery: The Birth of Jesus

We played Build the Church tonight using key words.  I had wanted to play a fun bingo type of game called Saint Search but the class was too interested in talking in fooling around during lesson time and that ate up the time allocated for our game.


Homework for this week is the Project Disciple portion of the chapter, pages 40 and 41. The activities on these pages correlate to what we learned in class tonight.  

Kindergarten-October 3rd Class

This week we covered chapter 3, God Gives Us Water, in class.  We talked about how water feels, the ways we use it, and where we can find it.  We talked about how water is a wonderful gift from God.

At the start of class we listened to a bible story about Noah and his ark.

During circle time we discussed some of the ways we experience God's gift of water in nature (snow, rain, and the ocean).  We listened to the story and looked at the pictures from Flat Father Stanley's first adventure.  Then we concluded our circle time by saying the Hail Mary.

This week our class merged with the kindergarten class from room 1B so we have more friends which means more fun!

Homework for the next two weeks is to continue learning the Sign of the Cross and Hail Mary.  


Please note that our class does not meet again until October 17th.   

Third Grade-September 30th Class

Class is cancelled tonight due to a power outage at the school.  We will meet again next week.

In the meantime, your child still has opportunities to earn reward stickers.   Keep going to Mass and doing extra credit activities online to earn reward stickers.

This week would be the perfect opportunity to make sure your child knows the key words from chapters 1 and 2.  A vocabulary quiz will be popping up very soon!

See you next week!

Kindergarten-September 26th Class

We had a great time in class today.  We colored a picture of St. Michael the Archangel and listened to a story about him from Catholic Children's Treasure Box Series #18.  The story told us about how God made all the angels and it described the battle between the good and bad angels led by St. Michael the Archangel.  The children were told that St. Michael the Archangel's feast day this Wednesday, September 29th.  If you'd like, you can click on the links and find craft ideas and coloring sheets.

We covered chapter 2, God Gives Us Light in our We Believe textbook.  We discussed how God loves us so much that he made the sun and moon to light our world.  We drew pictures in our books to show our favorite ways to enjoy the sun and the moon.  While we colored a worksheet about how God's gifts of the sun and rain create a rainbow, we listened to and sang a song thanking God for the sun and the moon.  In our Project Disciple portion of the class (page 34 in the textbook), we identified the things that give us light.

During circle time we listened to a story entitled "God Made the World" from the Catholic Children's Treasure Box series #19.  We learned that God made the world out of nothing so that we could enjoy it and all the wonderful things he gives us.  Afterwards, we prayed the Sign of the Cross and the Hail Mary together.  Flat Father Stanley chose his first friend of the year to visit.  We look forward to hearing all about his adventure during circle time next week.

We made a Jesus fish craft at the end of the class.  It was a fun little project for everyone.

Homework: Check your child's folder for this week's coloring pages and homework. Our homework is a coloring page that ties into what we learned in our textbook this week.  You will also find two brightly colored prayer cards paper clipped into your child's folder.  Please pray the Sign of the Cross and the Hail Mary with your child each day so he or she can learn these prayers.

This week's homework.

I hope you all have a wonderful week.  I look forward to seeing everyone in class next Sunday.  Our class is truly a delightful bunch of kids.  It is a pleasure to teach them!

Third Grade-September 23rd Class

This week we covered chapter 2, Jesus Teaches Us About God's Love, in our text book.  The faith words for this week are: bible, Kingdom of God, faith, crucified, and Resurrection.  Please see that your child knows these terms.  They are very likely to show up on a pop quiz in the future.

We learned about the second joyful mystery of the rosary, the visitation, this week.  Each student was given a coloring page that represents this mystery.  Ask your child to tell you about it.

Second Joyful Mystery: The Visitation

Students received their reward cards for the class incentive program in class today.  Please see the post from last week to see how your child can earn stickers each week.  Children who came to class this week without the necessary materials (pencil, textbook, and folder) and their homework were very upset that they did not earn a sticker.

Each week the sign out sheet will list the homework assignment for the week.  These assignments are based on the lesson covered in class.  In many cases, it will be a page in the textbook.  The assignments are not difficult and can easily be done in 15 to 20 minutes.

This week's homework assignment is the crossword puzzle page 32.

Note: If you have not turned in the Getting to Know You Survey, please do so next week.

See you all next week!

Kindergarten-September 19th Class

Our first week of class was a lot of fun.  We had a lot of fun learning about each other and learning about God.  We covered the first chapter in our book and learned that God made the world.  We discussed all of the wonderful things God made for us.

Each week during class your child will have a coloring page that is related to the lesson or a story that will be told in class.  This week, we colored a picture of God's name and listened to two stories about God's creation of the world.

During circle time the class met our class mascot, Flat Father Stanley.  Flat Father Stanley likes to go on adventures and starting next week he will go home with someone in the class for one week.  When he is visiting with each family I ask that you take some pictures and write a paragraph or two to tell us about his week.  We will discuss his adventures during circle time.  At the end of the year everyone will get a DVD with the story of his adventures.  Because our class is so small, I anticipate Flat Father Stanley going home with everyone for two one week visits.  His travels will be spread out over the school year.

Each child was sent home with a blue folder and their workbook.  Please make sure your child comes to class each week with his or her folder, workbook and a pencil.  This week your child's folder should have contained the coloring sheet of the week, a welcome letter and a getting to know you survey.  Please fill out the survey and return it to me next week.

During next week's class I will be sending home a copy of the Hail Mary.  Each week during circle time we will be saying this prayer.  Over the next few months we will be working on learning the Hail Mary and becoming familiar with making the sign of the cross before and after we pray.  The best way for your child to learn this prayer is to say it with him or her every day.  In class I will say a line and have the class repeat after me until they are comfortable with saying it on their own.

I look forward to seeing you all next week.  Have a great week!

Third Grade-September 16th Class

We had a great first class together on Wednesday night.  The vast majority of the children came to class ready to learn, and I think most of them enjoyed our first class quite a lot.

We covered chapter one in our text book.  This chapter talked about how God sent his own Son to become one of us.  This week's key words are: Blessed Trinity, Incarnation, prophet, public ministry, repent, disciples, and Apostle.  Make sure your child is familiar with these terms and knows their definitions.  Definitions of all key words can be found in the glossary in the back of your child's text book.  I like to give pop quizzes so tell them to be prepared.

Part of class each week will involve the introduction of a new mystery of the rosary.  Each week your child will come home with a coloring page that represents a different mystery of the rosary.  Before we pray a decade of the rosary meditating on the mystery of the week, I introduce the name of the mystery and give an explanation of mystery.  I ask the children to come home and share what they have learned with their family.  Engage your child and ask him or her which mystery we covered in class and see if they can tell you what it is about.  For the next four classes we will continue to learn about the joyful mysteries of the rosary.

This week's homework assignment is to color in the first joyful mystery coloring page.  The page is about the annunciation.  This particular mystery tied in nicely with the chapter we covered this week, since we talked about the incarnation of our Lord.  Students were asked to color the page and share what they learned about the annunciation with their families.

First Joyful Mystery: The Annunciation

I spoke briefly to the class about the incentive program I will be starting at our next class.  When your child earns 20 stickers on his or her reward card he or she will get to pick a prize.  Stickers can be earned several different ways:

• Attend Mass and bring back a copy of the bulletin.
• Come to class prepared with your text book, folder,  a sharpened pencil and homework assignment.
• Complete an activity listed under the Third Grade tab on this webpage. (Limit of one activity for a sticker per week.)
• Score a 90 or above on a pop quiz.
• Learn the Apostle's creed and recite it to me. (Limit one, but student can keep trying once a week until he or she has it.)
• Prove to me that you know the prayers required for second grade (Glory Be, Our Father, Hail Mary, Act of Contrition).  Links to these prayers can be found under the Third Grade tab on this webpage.  I will award one sticker for each prayer.  (Limit one sticker per prayer.)

Next class we will be covering chapter two in our text book and we will learn about the second joyful mystery of the rosary.  If time allows we will either play a bible trivia game or saint search bingo.  Either game will help your child to come to a deeper understanding of our faith.

Please complete and return the Getting to Know You Survey that was stapled to the colorful letter in your child's folder.

I look forward to seeing all of you next week!

Welcome

I'm thrilled that you have taken the time to check out the classroom blog resource I have compiled for your son or daughter's religious education class.  I would like to give you a brief overview of how this blog is set up and how you can use it to enrich your child's faith life.

First and foremost, I have set up this blog as a way of communicating what your child is learning in their religious education class with me each week.  I teach two separate classes/grade levels.  On Thursday nights at 5PM I have the privilege of teaching a third grade class, and on Sunday mornings at 9AM I have the delight of teaching a Kindergarten class.  I will blog about our Catholic Faith Adventures in each class once a week.  It is my hope that an account of the Sunday class will have a synopsis up on the blog by Tuesday at the latest, and the Thursday class will have theirs up by Saturday.

I have created two different pages filled with activities for the students.  One page contains activities to challenge the older children, and the other contains coloring pages for the younger children.  I have also provided a parents page filled with suggestions for enriching your child's faith formation.  Imparting the treasure of our Catholic faith to our children is one of our most important duties as parents.  It is my hope that I will be able to help you in doing so during the current school year.

Along the sidebar of this blog you will find links to various Catholic sites or products or resources.  Some of them are to Catholic storesand others are items that I either use in our classroom or use with my own children at home.  In the case of books, there may be a link to a review I have written on that particular book on my personal blog.