Stations of the Cross and Practicing Communion

On Saturday we did Chapter 14. We also did the Stations of the Cross in the Worship space.

During Stations of the Cross:

We talked about what was happening in each one and read our papers (that we brought home).

You can go through the Stations of the Cross with your child right here:

Stations of the Cross for Kids

Why Stations of the Cross?

From the website:

Stations are places where people wait while they are going from one place to another. A school-bus stop is like a station. People wait at train stations or bus stations or airports. Think of some stations where you have been.

Stations are also places where people take time to think about Jesus as he went to die on a cross. They are “Stations of the Cross.” They show us how much Jesus loved us.
You do not have to think of all of the Stations of the Cross on one day. You may want to stay at one Station with Jesus for a few days before you move to another Station. Whatever you decide, Jesus is with you and he loves you.
As you "visit" each station on the website with your child, look at the picture and ask him or her "What is happening here?"
At church we looked at each painting around the church and talked about what was happening.

The most anticipated part of the class today was having the chance to taste the bread and wine before our first communions. EVERYBODY tried the bread AND the wine. Miss Stephanie was very proud of us.  She said we were her first class ever that were respectful the WHOLE time. No one said "gross"!

We practiced the important parts of taking communion:

-stand quietly in line thinking about Jesus
-hold your hands together in front of your chest (left over right)
-bow your head before you receive communion
-say "Amen" after the minister says "The Body of Christ"

-pick up the host with your right hand and put the WHOLE thing in your mouth.
-say "Amen" after the minister says "The Blood of Christ"

-take a small sip out of the chalice
-sit down in your seat quietly and say a prayer

We encourage everyone to take the wine during the First Communion. Everyone did great during class! We talked about how some people "dip" the host in the wine, but technically that isn't allowed. Some people are worried about germs, but it is actually less santitary to dip because a lot of people accidentally get their fingers in the the cup, and fingers are proven to be more filled with germs than mouths! (Just something to think about!)

Pictures of us practicing here:

Homework:
169-172 in the book
Finish Reconciliation books

Wishes and Prayers

This week we did Chapter 12 about prayers for others.

O God, hear me and answer my prayer. 
Based on Psalm 17:6

We took time to think of wishes we had. We thought of wishes we would want for ourselves, wishes we would want for our neighbors and family, and wishes we would want for the world.

Here you can see us sharing about our wishes. The kids did a great job being creative and thoughtful. What a caring group of kids we have!





When we pray we can tell God about the needs of other people. We trust God to bring them comfort.

After reading the chapter, we broke into groups of 4. Each group came up with a prayer scenario. They worked together in their groups to think of the situation, write out notes, and decide parts. Then we all sat down to watch the performances. There was a lot of thoughtful discussion about when people need prayers and how we can pray for them.

Make sure to let your kids see the video! They were so excited about their performances!



We learned about Jesus and prayer. We also learned about the Prayer of the Faithful: the last part of the Liturgy of the Word at Mass, when we pray for the needs of people everywhere.

Now we know...
Jesus is with us when we pray for others. 
Jesus asked God to help his friends tell others about God's love.

Homework
Pages 147-148 (review of chapter 12)
Pages 151-152 (preparing for chapter 14)