Week 1: Missionary Childhood:
St. John Paul II & Poland
Missionary Childhood
- Missionary Childhood Lesson on John Paul II and Poland!
- Click here for the assignments that go with the Missionary Childhood Lesson
Main Ideas
- Meet St. John Paul II, who was a pope in our lifetime! Since then, the Church has declared him a saint.
- John Paul II began the World Youth Day events, and took them to many countries, usually hosting a couple million youth at each event!
- John Paul II is well known for his Theology of the Body talks, that began as radio segments and developed into a book and organized teachings about how our bodies teach us about God and lead us closer to him.
Watch
- Watch this Lukas Storyteller video about St. John Paul II – “Pope as a Child“
Coloring
- Coloring page of St. John Paul II that you can print out and color.
Cooking
- Try a recipe or two from St. Pope John Paul II’s homeland of Poland!
Week 2: God's Love,
the Wedding at Cana,
& Lenten Activities
Main Ideas
- The miracle of turning water into wine at the wedding at Cana was Jesus’ first public miracle!
- The great quantity of wine shows us the generosity of God – it was far more than they needed.
- The quality of the wine teaches us that God gives us the very best!
- Make preparations for Lent. Ash Wednesday is February 17th this year.
- Lenten Rice Bowls can be picked up in the parish office.
Watch
- God shows his love for us in many ways. Enjoy this video from Lukas Storyteller on St. Valentine and “Friendship.”
- This is a great video that explains some of the things components of Lent, like Ash Wednesday, and the practices of Lent.
- You can watch the story of Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding in Cana here. You can also read it for yourselves in the Gospel of John 2:1-11.
Planning for Lent
- Now make a plan for Lent as a family. What will you give up that keeps you from God? What new spiritual practice will you commit to, to grow closer to him? When will you go to Confession? What about giving alms? Prayers? For children especially, it helps to keep a chart of record of some sort for your progress and to help you to remember your Lenten commitments. You will find some ideas here, although I was not able to print out the Lenten calendar. There are Friday meal ideas since we don’t eat meat on Fridays during Lent, and other things to consider that will remind us every day that it is Lent. https://www.catholicicing.com/lenten-activities-for-children/
- Here is a Lenten roadmap to help keep children on track for Lent!
Crafts and Coloring
Here is a great craft idea to help children re-tell the story about Jesus’ first miracle. It is very easy to do! If you need any supplies, please let me know – we are happy to provide them for you!
For younger children, there are three coloring pages they can color and use to re-tell the story.
Week 3: Jesus Calms a Storm,
Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray
Main Ideas
- Jesus calms a storm on the sea. Reassure your child that even when things seem scary – like a storm – God is always with us. Jesus is in control.
- It was on the stormy sea that Jesus disciples really got to know that he really is God. How has God shown you who he is? Talk about this with your child.
- Jesus teaches his friends “The Lord’s Prayer” – also called the “Our Father.
Watch
- Watch this video of the account of Jesus calming the storm on the sea.
- Watch and listen to this story about the Kingdom of God told and recorded by Allison Mustar: “The Suitcase“
Craft
- Optional craft for helping the children re-tell the Bible story can be found here from “Crafting the Word of God” webpage. When finished, children will be able to show the rocking of the coat in the storm. You will notice that the template is for creating two of these crafts.
Pray
- Teach your child about the Lord’s Prayer. What do the words mean? Here is a recording we’ve done to help you. (Link coming soon!!)
- Is practicing the praters getting tedious? Try this recommendation from Phoebe, one of our first grade catechists! Let the whole family say the prayer, but each person sys only just one word at a time. The next person would say the next word, until the whole prayer is said! This is a great way of making sure they are learning and having fun, too!
Week 4: Missionary Childhood
The Blessed Virgin Mary & the Philippines
Main Ideas
- Our Blessed Mother, Mary is deep in the hearts of the people of the Philippines.
- Locate the Philippines on a map
- Learn about how Mary has appeared to people all over the world
- Sing Joyful Praise
Watch
- Watch this video about St. Bernadette and how Mary appeared to her.
Coloring
- Try this coloring page of our Blessed Mother and St. Bernadette
Missionary Childhood
- Missionary childhood lesson – coming soon!!
Joyful Praise
Even during Lent, we sing songs of praise to our God. These are some songs that I thought would help lead the children during Lent. YouTube limits our ability to create a playlist for you on some songs that are designated for children, so here are the individual links.
https://youtu.be/PsWfBQvStno – The Lent Song (easy & fun for little ones!)
https://youtu.be/n3iG1gkW9R0 – A Gift to You
https://youtu.be/1dgwu0V4K5U – Ashes – not especially for children, for the old familiar Ash Wednesday hymn that we sing as we are receiving ashes on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday.
https://youtu.be/4iW9MN7vMpQ – God made Me
https://youtu.be/pEYz4i2SL2k – Thank You Lord for Making Me
Try a New Recipe!
- Enjoy a couple of recipes from the Philippines!
Share!
Email me your success stories! Photos are most welcome; we like to get excited about your successes, too!