God's Big Ten

In November, we had a session on the 10 Commandments.  First, I presented the actual commandments; each was printed on a poster board "stone tablet," and 10 kids came up at each session to hold up the posters while I explained the meaning of each Commandment.  Because some of the Commandments are rather adult-oriented (i.e. adultery!), I broke down the basic, core message of each one (i.e. keeping promises).
Our theme this year is "Catch the Spirit," a sports/sports fan theme.  So, for our art project, I got creative with Big Ten sports logos.  The kids colored these 17x11 place mats, and we ran them through the laminator before they took them home:

This project was a big hit, even if a lot of the kids didn't know all of the logos.  They did all recognize the Minnesota Gophers, of course!  Obviously, I made it clear that these are not the actual 10 Commandments, but rather a breakdown of the basic messages of them.  It's also worth noting that these are based on the "Catholic" 10 Commandments, which are numbered a bit differently than other versions.  You could also skip the laminating and call it a poster, but I like to make things that can be used at home as much as possible.  Click here for a link to the place mat.

Fishing For People

For our final lesson of 2014/15, I wanted to do something special.  Our topic was discipleship, and I was using the "I will make you fish for people" passage from Matthew.  So, I designed these cool Tshirts for the kids to color with fabric markers.  It was a huge hit!  Feel free to copy & personalize the design for your own use, and spread the Good News!

Eucharist Means Thanksgiving

We did this lesson in February of 2015, but it will work at any time of the year when you're learning about the Eucharist.

I walked kids quickly through the order of Mass, and I wrote 1 word or short phrase on the white board for each part as we discussed it:
Introductory Rites: Together
Liturgy of the Word: Hear
Penitential Rites: Ask forgiveness
Prayer of the Faithful: Needs
Eucharist: Know Jesus is with us
Closing Rites: Sent

I then pointed out that the first letter of each of the above spells out "Thanks."  We talked about the Mass as thanksgiving, and the kids made these cut-out cards.  Each letter represents one of the words above:

I also handed out these prayer cards that kids could take to Mass with them.  On the back were the instructions on coloring the Thanks cards:

Click here for a PDF of the prayer card

Enjoy!

Beatitudes Lesson and Fun Project

For our lesson on the Beatitudes this month, we started by having kids & parents brainstorm at their tables about the things they thought people sometimes think will make them happy.  Then, I had kids bring up posters that I had placed on the tables.  These were numbered on the back, so that all of the "I could be happy if..." posters came up first, followed by all of the corresponding Beatitudes.  I taped them up and discussed each one.  I taped the Beatitudes over top of the other posters.  Here is an example of 2 posters that went together:

You can download a pdf of all 16 posters by clicking here.


For our project, staying with our "Detectives" theme, we made what I called "Beaticlues" games.  This is basically just a baggie of rice with small hidden objects in it.  Each object corresponds to one of the Beatitudes, which are listed on the label.  I ordered some cool striped vinyl tape at Amazon to make it look more like a real evidence bag.  Also, this good, strong tape helps ensure that the rice will stay in the bag!  Kids can have fun playing "I Spy" with the objects by moving the rice around inside the baggie.  Most of my purchased objects came from Oriental Trading, although the tear-drop shaped beads were from JoAnn ETC.  The pennies and pebbles I just found at home.  Here's a finished project:

Here are some pics from how I set up the project assembly line:

After labeling the bags, the items went in.  Then the rice, scooping over the bowl to avoid spills.

Finally, we ended with a prayer I wrote based on the Beatitudes.

Click here to download the Beaticlues game labels.

Click here to download the prayer.

The Evidence Lab

Because the "Art & Snack" portion of GIFT is self-directed, some kids finish their projects quickly and have extra time on their hands.  So to keep them busy, I have a table in the back with an assortment of optional activities to choose from.  In keeping with our Faith Detectives theme this year, that table is called the "Evidence Lab."  The Lab always contains books related to that month's topic, a simple craft item for kids who like to make stuff, activity sheets such as word finds or mazes, and some special activities.  Here are photos of some of the activities from the Lab:

The photos on the sign are actually from our Sanctuary

Kids are invited to add prayer requests to the box.  

We do not open it or read them out loud, we just pray over the box.

The papers are printed on one side with teeny-tiny Bible verses that kids use the magnifying glass to read.  The other side has discussion questions for the kids & parents to talk about the verse.

These cross-shaped puzzles from OTC will premier in the Lab in January

November GIFT: Incarnation & Paschal Mystery

Yes, these are big topics for first-through-fourth graders; they are even big topics for the parents!  But a game and a (somewhat time-consuming) art project helped make these mysteries more accessible.

The Game: Incarnation Clue Hunt
     I posted "clues" on different colors of paper around the room.  The were just printed on a 1/4 sheet of paper and folded over, so kids could lift the flap to read them.  Staying with their parents, they needed to find 10 different colors of paper around the room (I had 2 of each color hanging to avoid traffic jams) and read the clues.  Each student had a tally sheet with 2 columns: God & Human.  For each clue, they marked a tally for whether it was evidence that Jesus was human or evidence that Jesus is God.  The clues were:
1. We pray to Jesus
2. Jesus died
3. Jesus felt pain
4. Jesus rose from the dead
5. Jesus walked on water
6. Jesus healed the blind, sick, & lame
7. Jesus turned water into wine
8. Jesus was born on Earth
9. Jesus got hungry and thirsty
10. Jesus had parents that he lived with while growing up
     Most of the kids decided that 5 of those were "human" clues, and 5 of them were "God" clues.  This was the introduction to our first Mystery: the Incarnation.  We talked about Mysteries as things in our faith that we believe but can't fully explain, and we read a simple definition of the Incarnation as Jesus becoming human but still being God.  Not half and half, but fully both.  We remembered that last month when we talked about Creation, we read that God said, "Let us create people in our image."  So Jesus as God has always existed and never stopped existing, but at the Incarnation Jesus also became human.  But why?  Well, for a clue to that answer, we went to the "end" of the story (or the new beginning, as it were): we talked about the Paschal Mystery of Jesus suffering, dying, rising, and ascending to bring us forgiveness & eternal life with God.
     OK, this part gets a little tough to explain, as Mysteries tend to do.  So I used this analogy with the kids (realizing it is imperfect): Have you ever been using a set of paints, and you try to use the white paint, but your brush isn't 100% clean, and you get a murky, icky color instead?  Well, God is like the white paint; God is perfect and without sin.  People are not perfect; we all make poor choices and do things we know are wrong - even the Pope sins!  Our imperfection can not live with God's perfection, or it wouldn't be perfection anymore - we would be like the dirty brush messing up the white paint.  When Jesus died but then rose from the dead and ascended to heaven, he gave us a path to God that forgives all of our sin and "cleans our brushes."  Because of Jesus, we can live with our perfect God!
 
The Project: Life of Jesus Symbol Book
     For our art this month, we made a book that gives the "highlights" of the story of Jesus, emphasizing the Incarnation and Paschal Mystery.  To fit with our overall Faith Detectives theme of the year, I gave the cover the look of a mystery novel:

As I mentioned, the book was a pretty involved project.  It is 2 sheets of construction paper folded in the middle, making 6 interior pages.  For each page, the kids had text to cut out & paste in, as well as 2 symbols per page to make & mount on paperclips.  The tops of the text boxes were left unglued, so the symbols could be clipped on like this:

On the last page, they glue an envelope to hold all of the symbols:

To make this project, you need to download the instructions page, which also contains the cover, the text page, and the symbols for kids to color.  You also need 2 sheets of construction paper, sticky foam or felt harts (2 per child), sandpaper, and red and orange or yellow tissue squares.  We used both double-stick tape and glue sticks for adhesives (see instructions).  The instructions can be printed on regular weight paper, but the other 2 pages should be on card stock weight.

Finally, we ended with a prayer reflecting on some of Jesus' "I am" statements from the Gospel of John.  Click here to get the pdf of the prayer.

GIFT 2014/15: Family Faith Detectives!

October Lesson: Mystery of Creation
This month, we kicked off a brand new theme for GIFT: Family Faith Detectives.  I have lots of fun spy-themed projects and activities for the families to do this year, and to start us out, every child got a "decoder ring."  I found some foam decoders at Oriental Trading Company, which as of the date of this post are still available.  But it would be quite easy to make your own!  You just need a symbol for each letter of the alphabet.  (With the OTC version, I pre-assembled just the ring part, saving the clip & magnet for some future project and discarding the pre-printed clue.)  Here's the photo and link from their website:


http://www.orientaltrading.com/agents-of-truth-clip-magnet-vbs-craft-kit-a2-13647851.fltr?Ntt=agent

I also made "Detective's Guide" booklets for each grade, which they received with their textbooks.  In the Guides are there homework schedules, the clue page for each month (to go with the decoder ring), and an extra activity page in case they need more to do while waiting for the program to begin.  For October, we learned about Creation, so the clue spelled out: "All Life Comes From God."  After letting one of the children share the answer, we talked about the 2 Creation stories in the Bible, and then I showed a fossil sample and talked about what science has told us about how the Earth was formed.  So here was our first mystery for the year: Which of these 3 stories is true?  The answer - they all are!  The Biblical creation stories are myths that teach us some very important Truths about God, Life, and humankind's place in the world and in relation to our God.  We talked about how being made in God's image means we can all "show" God to others through our actions, and we can look for signs of God in the people around us.  We started doing just that in our own little GIFT community, playing the game "Getting to Know You BINGO"

Click here to download a pdf of Getting to Know You BINGO



Security Badges with a Secret Message

As everyone arrived, they made Security Badges for each family member at GIFT.  These are basically just clip-on name tags that they wear each month, so I can call on people by name.  But I like to make them fit the theme, so this year they are Security Badges.  After playing the BINGO game, I asked the kids to take a closer look and find the "secret message" hidden on their badges!

Click here to download a pdf of the Security Badges



Progressive Craft
A progressive craft is one that we begin at our first session, and then we add to it each month.  By the end of the year, the project is complete.  This year, we are making Braided Bookmarks.  We made the braid and added the first charm - the globe - this month.  We will add the other charms as the year goes on, for a total of 6 charms.