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As difficult as it may be to believe it, Lent begins this week. Ash Wednesday is February 17. As we invite and guide the children in our care to prepare their hearts for Easter through age-appropriate increases in prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we must give thought to our own Lenten preparation for Easter.
In his 2021 Lenten reflection booklet Embrace This Holy Season, Father Joseph Sica wrote: “This Lent, roll up your sleeves, open your heart, and walk side by side with Jesus.” May we follow his advice and welcome this sacred time with open arms.
If you missed the post last week about planning ahead for Valentine’s Day and Lent, you can find it here.
Every week in the GROW newsletter, you will find a helpful tip for teaching your Gospel Weeklies lesson, a reflection on the Sunday Gospel, and information about our online resources and seasonal activities. Here are tips for teaching the Gospel Weeklies lessons this week:
Seeds
Lesson Theme: Jesus is Good News.
If the children bring valentines, make sure they include every child in the class. Valentine’s Day can be a chance for the children to tell the good news of how they care for others and how others care for them.
For this lesson, we suggest you prepare in advance for the “Jesus loves us all” activity on pages 3–4. Make sure you bring enough ribbons for each child and that you cut them to 16″ strips beforehand. We also recommend that you cut the hearts and fold them to cut the slits as shown in the illustration on page 4. It is a good idea to have one or two helpers to aid the children in threading the ribbon through their hearts.
Promise
Lesson Theme: Jesus cares for everyone.
If the children bring valentines, make sure they include every child in the class. Valentine’s Day can be a chance for the children to tell the good news of how they care for others and how others care for them.
For the “What’s Your Favorite?” activity, you will need a large ball that bounces—a kickball or basketball will work.
For the Catechism handbook activity “Jesus Wants Us to Do the Right Thing” (page 22, bottom), encourage the children to draw things they really do, not things they may do someday.
You may need an aide to assist with the “Jesus Cares Valentine” (pages 3–4) activity. Make sure that the children keep the “scraps” left after cutting to take home.
Good News
Lesson Theme: We show love by reaching out.
If the children bring valentines, make sure they include every child in the class. Valentine’s Day can be a chance for the children to tell the good news of how they care for others and how others care for them.
For the Gathering Prayer, bring a big paper heart. You will pass the heart around the prayer circle. The person
holding the heart will offer a prayer to thank God for people who love them and help them grow.
For the saint story “Father Damien Reached Out to Lepers” (page 2) you may wish to point out the location of Molokai on a world map, globe, or a US map with Hawaii inset.
If you don’t expect to have time to complete the Catechism handbook activity “The Church Year” (page 25) in class, make photocopies of the page to send home with the children.
Venture
Lesson Theme: Jesus shows us that God’s love is for everyone.
In the two-part activity, “Gospel Booklet: Jesus Begins His Ministry” on pages 7–8, the children will open and close the book from opposite sites to follow the story in order (i.e., turn to Day 1, read it, close; turn to Day 2 (Sabbath morning, on left), read and close; Day 2 (noon, on right), read and close; and so on. See a photo of the completed booklet here.
Give the children time to work on the cover activity independently but be ready to give clues to stave off frustration. Encourage them to look at illustrations.
Make sure that the children understand that in the Gospel, Jesus is not just curing an illness (leprosy), he is welcoming and including someone who was on the outside of friends and family due to his contagious condition. His healing action restores the leper to the community.
Visions
Lesson Theme: Jesus shows that God’s love is for everyone.
We recommend that you cut in advance your set of cards for the “What Does ‘Do Not Lie’ Really Mean?” activity on pages 6–7. You will only need one set of cards for the whole class. Encourage the young people to play this game at home with their family and friends.
DON’T FORGET to check out our Unit 3 Overview Webinars. You can find them in English and in Spanish here.
Image credit: Corinne SIMON/CIRIC
