Back to School in Religion Class: Seven Tips
Back to School in Religion Class
It would be great if all the students came back to school after a summer of attending Mass, praying family rosaries, and taking time daily for prayer and bible study. Realistically–I might have ONE student in that category and many more students who have barely thought about church since I saw them last. And, that one student isn’t my own kiddo. So, students are coming back to school needing reminders about faith just as they will about all other school subjects. Here are seven tips to get those students back into religion and faith-based mindsets!
1) Pray for Back to School in Religion Class
Start your day with prayer–praying for your students and other teachers. Then, start the class period off with a SHORT prayer. The first day isn’t the time for meditation or choral prayer–just a quick reminder that this is a RELIGION class and we are here to pray.
2) Expectations for Religion Class
Tell the students what you expect every step of the way. I assume that every student has heard the traditional “classroom rules” speech in every classroom, every year of their education, but they don’t know exactly what you want to see. I’m also not a fan of the “create your own classroom rules” activity–because I have specific things that I want to see. So–instead of a long lecture on expectations, go step by step. When I start the class with prayer–I first remind students of the “Pray Posture.” When it’s time to listen to instructions, I start by explaining and expecting students to put their feet on the floor, sit up straight, look at me, and even nod occasionally so I know that they are listening. Then–I also redirect the one student that decides to nod constantly to attention seek…eye roll.
3) Start Simple for Back to School
Take some time to review prayers. It’s easy to forget the words of the Hail Mary or the Our Father–or remember the words but forget the meaning. I like to start off by reintroducing some prayers so I know that ALL students are ready to participate in class prayers. I always project the words of the prayers so students can read along if they don’t remember the words.
Catholic Prayers: Handwriting and Mazes is one of the most popular items. I like it because it helps my kiddos learn the WORDS to the prayers instead of mumbling through some of those tricky lines. My kids like it because there are mazes included and they love the challenge. It doesn’t take much introduction or instructions–so it’s an easy activity get started.
4) Review Expectations AGAIN
Keep going back to those rules and expectations. I don’t expect students to learn academic content after one exposure, I also don’t expect them to remember what a prayer posture is without reminding them again for closing prayer, and reminding them again tomorrow, and again next week.
5) Address Volume for Religion Class & Prayer Time
Students have probably been using their outdoor voice most of the summer–and I want them to keep that excitement in class, but I also want them to respect others in the room. I review voice volume with my students–both young and old. Younger students might need more education on the HOW for keeping a quiet voice. Older students may need more discussion on the WHY (respecting others in the classroom/hallway/next door, etc.) I hang up posters to refer to throughout the year when we’re doing activities so students can quickly remember the expectations. This is similar to a regular classroom, but for back to school in a religion classroom, you’ll also want to remind students how to pray TOGETHER. Choral prayer is a SKILL and it’s DIFFICULT for some kids! (Click here to see the whole set of rules and expectations with cute emojis, colors, and fonts for adorable-ness).
6) Break the Ice…in non-embarrassing ways
We play name games during the first few classes such as students introducing themselves with their name and an animal that starts with the same name and remembering the animals of others. I don’t play these competitively…it’s more of a group challenge to see how many we can remember. I also ask students to list their names along with a favorite prayer, saint, or candy. Then, after each student has shared, I quiz the students as a group and ask them to point to someone who prays the Hail Mary, or someone who loves Saint Anthony. This engages the students without putting people on the spot to be embarrassed.
7) Let Students Volunteer
Eventually, I will expect all my students to lead prayer, participate in class discussions, and even occasionally read out loud. But—not right away. In the first week or two, I ask for volunteers for prayer and activities. Students who lead the prayer will choose the formal prayer from a list that is available on a PowerPoint. This post has 5 easy ideas to teach students how to lead prayer and get them comfortable with volunteering to pray.
I especially like to give those students who want the attention a chance to act and be a little goofy. I use Saint Stories for this. These are short plays to help even the most reluctant reader to engage with the stories of our saints. The reading level of these stories is easy enough for 3rd graders, but my Seniors still love it when they ‘have’ to read one in class. The readers’ theater format keeps the kids focused on the story, and they remember so many details about the Saint’s life. Click these links to see a few of the favorites: Saint Anthony of Padua, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, Saint Gianna Molla, and Saint John Bosco, or you can click here to see a bundle with all the stories that are available.
Hi Theresa,
I’ve been providing our parish kids with your “Catholic Kids” for a few years. Everyone loves them! This summer since we couldn’t do Vacation Bible Camp we used the “Catholic Kids” and did a Zoom Vacation Music Camp. We focused on the Mass using the Mass parts at the top of the “pew page”. We enlarged the symbols, put them on the wall. I had one of our cantors who is a teacher come up with a lesson to teach kids the sung music responses, along with the parts of the Mass. She used the Emmaus readings since it lends itself to the Eucharist. Every day she presented the Gospel story in a different way. The kids were excited every day to see how she was going to do it. By the end of the week the kids really had a handle on the Mass parts, the songs, the names of the objects in church, etc. It was a GREAT week. Thanks for your “Catholic Kids”!
Oh my gosh–that sounds awesome! Thanks for sharing and teaching!