The Religion Teacher’s Jesse Tree Kit is a special set of resources that can be used by catechists, teachers, and parents to prepare their children for the coming of Christ throughout the month of December. This Jesse Tree kit includes twenty-four Jesse Tree ornaments and symbols. All twenty-four ornaments in The Religion Teacher’s Jesse Tree Kit come…
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Catholic Mass Activities for Kids
There are so many fun ways to teach kids about the Catholic Mass. This collection of Catholic Mass activities should help you plan your next lesson about the mass or help prepare students for school or parishes masses throughout the year. Whether you are teaching students about the liturgy or specifically about the Eucharist, try…
Introduction to the Catechism Lesson Plan
The Year of Faith is the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the twentieth anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. While many students have never seen or heard of the Catechism, others can become so intimidated by the size, small print, paragraphs, notes, and numbers…
“Ask Me About” Printable Handout for Parents
This is a guest post by my wife, Jennifer Dees, who currently works for the Alliance for Catholic Education. Jen taught fourth grade in Nashville for four years and since then has helped out with Catechesis of the Good Shepherd at our parish. Like every good parent, when my kids jump into the car after a…
The Five Finger Prayer Method for Kids
As religious educators we are always looking for prayer ideas and activities that involve movement and hand motions for our children to participate more fully in their faith. As Christians we are programmed to pray with our hands usually held together tightly. The five finger prayer method is a great way for children to literally…
Year of Faith Activities and Ideas for Religious Educators
On October 11, 2012 the Catholic Church will begin a celebration of the “Year of Faith” to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the twentieth anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The year will be quite busy, beginning with a Synod on “The New Evangelization for…
Lesson Plan: Jesus as a Boy in the Temple
Very little is known about Jesus’ life when he was a boy. We have only one story about Jesus between his birth and life as an adult. In the Gospel of Luke, the boy Jesus is accidentally left in Jerusalem by his parents. They later find him listening and teaching in the temple as if…
4 Ways to Help Students Learn the Books of the Bible
Every year that I teach young people, I’m amazed by how little they know about the Bible. I’ll say, “turn to Luke, chapter fifteen” and wait for four or five minutes for students to find the right page. It doesn’t matter what age group it is. High school juniors seem to take just as long…
The Chalk Talk Teaching Strategy
One of my favorite teaching strategies is chalk talk. I can’t help but think that the reason I like it so much is the fact that it gets the students thinking rather than talking out. Chalk Talk is simple. The #1 rule is no talking. Students talk with the chalk. Various students are given chalk (markers)…
This Summer at The Religion Teacher
I don’t share personal updates at The Religion Teacher very often, but there is a lot going on right now and I want to explain why you’ve seen so few new resources, activities, lesson plans, and videos. For almost a year and a half now I’ve been waking up at 5:00am to get work done….
