Heaven is a very abstract concept for children to understand. We don't even fully comprehend it as adults! However, Jesus does give us some very clear and beautiful descriptions about our hope of eternity with Him. In this lesson, I try to make heaven as tangible and real as possible. I also emphasize to my little preschoolers that the best part about heaven is that we will finally be able to really see Jesus and be with Him forever! Bible Truth: I have a forever home in Heaven. Bible Story: Jesus went back to Heaven to prepare a home for us. Bible Study: John 14:1-6; Acts 1:9-11; I Thessalonians 4:15-17; Revelation 21:22-27 teach I like using our flannel graph set to visually show Jesus ascending up into heaven as I tell this story. Then I use a gold gift bag that I call my "Heaven Bag" to describe the kind of home that the Bible says Jesus is preparing for us. Below is a list of items that I have in the bag. I pull each item out one by one, and talk about whether or not we will have and/or need it in heaven. If it will be in heaven I keep it in the gold bag. If not, I throw it into a trash bag, which I usually ask one of the children to hold for me. Items to represent what will be in heaven include: gold (coins or jewelry) crown jewels small musical instrument (worship) piece of fruit (we will have a feast in heaven) picture of Jesus (the best part about heaven is we will see Jesus!) Items that will not be in heaven include: band-aids medicine flashlight tissues (to wipe tears) black heart (sin) sing Heaven is a Happy Place - I have colored various pictures from coloring books to illustrate each verse of this song. You could also hold up objects from the lesson above that correspond with each verse of this song. Follow the link for the tune and lyrics. craft up in a cloud This craft helps the children remember, and retell the story of Jesus' ascension. You will need: these print outs (I suggest printing the first page on card stock for stability and ease of operation.) scissors tape yarn hole-punch cotton balls glue crayons To prepare, cut out the large clouds, and pictures of Jesus for each child. Punch a hole in the center top and bottom of the activity page, and thread a piece of yarn (approximately 20 inches long) through each hole. Tie off the ends of the yarn in the back near to the top hole. Tape Jesus to the piece of yarn. In class, children can color their page and glue cotton balls the clouds. Help them put glue on the opposite ends of the large cloud, and attach it to their pages in a way that allows for Jesus to easily be pulled up behind it. Children pull the string in the back to move Jesus from standing on the ground with His disciples, to ascend up to heaven in a cloud. 'h' is for heaven This is simple, low prep craft. Print this activity sheet onto cloud stationery paper. I purchased mine from Wal-Mart. Give the children small cotton balls, or pull larger cotton balls apart, to glue onto the letter 'H'. a beautiful home Another simple craft is to provide children with craft jewels and sequins to decorate a picture like this. See this post for more activities to teach your child about Heaven at home this week!

In my journey to learn more about the history of quilting and fiber arts, I have discovered some incredible makers, artists, thinkers and leaders. A couple weeks ago we talked about one of our founding Quilt Mothers, Nancy Crow, Marti Michell, Rachel Clark and Judith Scott. Today, I bring you someone who is not justContinue Reading...

This was a collaborative project I did with one of the Science teachers at my school. He was teaching his kids about food chains and wanted an art project to go along with it. He found THIS image via Pinterest as initial inspiration for the project. UPDATE: The poster was designed by art director and illustrator Dhanashri Ubhayakar for the magazine Sanctuary Asia, an Indian nature and wildlife conservation magazine. I turned the digital image into a collage project using construction paper. I used 12 x 18" construction paper. Have a background colour (in my case, turquoise). Then start with your largest animal (the top predator, I guess... the Science teacher explained this part to the kids, heh, heh) I folded my paper vertically so I only had to draw half the polar bear and it also made it symmetrical. I collaged on the eyes, nose and teeth from scraps of paper. Then make all the other animals slightly smaller... My messy workspace below.... Ok- once you have all the animals (our students were required to have 3 animals plus a plant) it's time to layer them and glue it all together. This took some fiddling and such, but I found it easiest to lay it all out and then start from gluing the smallest middle part first (the plant- I lost my mini tree) and work your way up. I used dots of white glue. It went faster than using a glue stick. Grade 7 student results!

Here's some photos from a project any Science teachers (and Art!) out there might find interesting. We have a very creative Science tea...

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Today's lesson is Moses and the Bronze Serpent. I have a MOSES booklet that I used as a review for Moses since this is the last lesson for ...

Christian crafts for kids: ideas for Sunday school, vacation Bible school, CCD classes and home school.

Did I ever mention that Faith Ringgold is one of my favorite artists? I love the messages in her story quilts: community, heritage, harmony... Ever since I walked into the Chicago Cultural Center back in 2000 to view her quilt exhibit, I was hooked on her quilts. I was even a great honor to shake her hand after receiving my bachelor's diploma at my commencement ceremony at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago back in 2001. And yes, I've met her again since then. My students think it's cool that I've met a famous artist. When I show them the picture, they always say, "You met her? That is so cool!" or I'll even get, "She's real?" Yes...I get that. I like to introduce a project inspired by Faith Ringgold's community quilts around the end of February/beginning of March. I tie in Black History Month and continue with Women's History Month since this project could take a few weeks. Before the students know what the project is about, we spend time reading a story written by Faith Ringgold called "How the People Became Color Blind." The link takes you directly to her website with a story you can print out and read to your class. After we read the story, the students and I have a discussion about the story, asking questions about how we would feel if the world was all one color. Here are the materials for the project: -10.5" x 10.5" white paper, 60lb. (thin paper will rip from the paint) -12" x 12" color paper (if you frame each picture) -pencils -paper plates (my palettes) -multicultural tempura paints for skin and hair -tempura paint -brushes -water and water bowls -black markers When I'm ready to start the project, I go over step by step how to draw the face. This project is also my main portrait project with 4th grade, so many of them are starting to draw faces for the first time (my district has a high transient rate). I start with the oval face, then show where to draw the guidelines for the eyes, nose, mouth, and hairline. The students are always fascinated that their ears start and end on their nose lines too! Here are two print-outs I found on Pinterest that can be used as guides for the students: After showing the students how to draw the face and shoulders, I encourage students to draw other details that would define who they are (for example, flags that represent pride and heritage, or drawings that represent what the student likes and cares about). The point is to have all the students create painting of their individual selves, then combine them together to show our school community. Day 1 of painting is for the neutrals and flesh tones. I put out a plate of different peaches, browns, and tans, along with black and white. I tell the students to paint their face, leaving the eyes open (sometimes the students paint over the eyes!), and to not forget the ears and neck (yeah, that happens too!). I also encourage students to paint their hair color, and if they have brown eyes. Day 2 of painting is for the other colors of the rainbow, which can be used for clothing, background, eyes, and jewelry. Day 3 is for touch ups. It's a pain trying to carry ALL those colors on a cart or to pour ALL the colors for the students who were absent or behind, but it has to happen. I normally have a bin for neutrals/flesh tone paints and a bin for the other colors, and I have students carry the bins for me back to the storage room. Also, don't pour every single color out on the plates, it takes too much time and not every student needs all the colors! Instead, I have the students at each table tell me what colors they need and I can pour it twice as fast as I would pouring all the colors out. Many students may be done with painting on this day too, so I have them trace their pictures with black markers. This helps bring the eyes, noses, and mouths back from painting over them. Day 4 is for final tracing and display. You can choose to have each picture framed themselves, or you can display the paintings together as a "quilt" by gluing each block onto a sheet of kraft paper from the big tools. I also trim strips of colored paper to add a top frame to each project (which protects the paintings from students bumping into the displays on the walls in the hallway). Here are some close-ups of student projects from past displays!

These charming 'portraits with shadows' were made by Gr.3 students. I found the idea at the elementary art blog: "An Art Room Filled with Fauves". The supplies you'll need are: white drawing paper strips (1-2") of colored paper black paper (for the shadow) colored paper (for the background) glue stick, scissors, pencils colored pencils or markers So start off with the kids drawing a full figure person- you could make it a self-portrait lesson, or kids might research a famous historical person (to link with Social Studies), whatever. I gave the kids free reign to choose whomever they liked. Draw this lightly in pencil, then colour with media of your choice; we used colored pencils. Carefully cut out the figure. Place upside-down onto black paper and slowly trace with a light colored pencil. This will be the shadow- cut out. Decide where is the best placement for the shadow- I found it works slightly above or below to either the left or the right hand side. For the border, I pre-cut a bunch of construction paper using a paper cutter- it went really fast. These were about 1 inch thick or so. Kids will cut these into squares and glue them around their background paper to create a simple border. Ta da!

"…They called the church together and reported what God had done with them and how he had opened the door of faith..." ~Acts 14:27 Last October, Pope Benedict declared that a "Year of Faith" will be celebrated from October 11, 2012 to November 24, 2013. With this overarching theme, some fellow DREs and I decided to run with the idea by providing resources surrounding the Creed at our upcoming training night. So, I am working on creating some activities that emphasize what we believe based on the Nicene Creed. Project One: A mobile that draws attention to the Trinity in the structure of the Creed. It contains the entire text, and shows what we believe about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Directions: 1. Print out the document linked below on cardstock, one set for each child. 2. It is easier to copy the circles back to back, but if you can't do that, cut them out and glue them together. 3. Color all of the pieces. The top piece gets folded in half. 4. Then use a small hole punch to add a hole everywhere there is an X. 5. Cut out the center circle of a paper plate and punch five holes in it according to this diagram: 6. Two holes equally spaced along the inner circle are where you attach the top triangle: 7. Three holes spaced like an equilateral triangle along the outside circle are where you attach the three circles. It should balanced when you hang it. Here are the links to the printables:

Over the last several months we taught our kiddos about the life of Jesus from the cradle to the cross. In this lesson, we review the good news about Jesus, and introduce the word gospel into our preschoolers' vocabulary. We even sneak in some beginning geography skills! Bible Truth: Jesus teaches me to share the gospel. Bible Story: Before Jesus went back to heaven, He told His friends to preach the gospel. Bible Study: Matthew 28:18-19; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:1-8; Romans 1:16-17 teach show and TELL An inflatable globe is a great, preschool-friendly visual. Both the visual and tactical elements help develop some of a child's first geographical concepts. Since the children can safely handle the globe, it can also be used in games like the one I describe below. I picked mine up from Hobby Lobby for under $10. Holding my Bible open, I explain that before Jesus went back to heaven, He commanded us to go into all the world and preach the gospel. Then, I hold up the globe as we talk about the world. I point out where we live, and point out a few other continents or countries, especially those where we have missionaries that we support. I point out that the blue parts are water, and the other colored parts are land where people live. I explain that Jesus wants everyone in the whole world to hear the gospel and know that He loves them. An echo microphone brings a fun audio element to this lesson. I speak into it as I teach the meaning of the word gospel. The gospel is the good news about Jesus! I hold up a picture or object to illustrate each point of the good news. Jesus came to save us. Jesus died on the cross for our sin. Jesus is alive. Jesus is making a home for us in heaven. Jesus loves you. Then, I give each child a turn to stand up and use the microphone to say, "Jesus loves you!" Older children may have more to say about Jesus. read "I've Got a Job To Do" by Dandi Daley Mackall - Through the daily life of a little girl, the author demonstrates practical ways to share the gospel at school, dance class, the beach, and everywhere we go. The title of the book is a refrain that is repeated in each scenario, as the little girl shares the love of Jesus with everyone around her. "Every Child Everywhere" by Debby Anderson - I'm a huge fan of Debby Anderson's books. Endearing photography and illustrations of children from many countries, along with the message of God's love for them, help little ones understand that there are children all over the world who need to know the good news about Jesus. sing Go! from Little Praise Party: Happy Day Everyday is a fun upbeat song about going into all the world to tell the good news. You could teach the song to the children with simple actions, use it as a puppet song, or use it in the game as I describe below. Jesus Loves the Little Children from Veggie Tales is another great song for this lesson. I like this version because it includes the lyrics, "Jesus came to save the children..." play around the world This is another scripture pass game, similar to ones I have described before. Gather the children to sit in a circle. Play the song, "Go!" from above as they pass around the inflatable globe. Randomly pause the music. The child holding the globe when the music stops, stands up. Hold the echo microphone for each of you to speak into as they repeat Mark 16:15 after you, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel." Play the music, and continue passing the globe. craft the good news gospel Children will share the gospel as they talk about each picture on this activity page. You will need: this activity page (globe graphics included) scissors glue sticks crayons optional stickers and craft items To prepare, print out the activity page and cut out enough globe graphics for each child. In class, help children glue their globe to the circle on the activity page. Provide crayons for children to color, You may consider adding various craft items stickers, or cutouts that you have on hand to the graphics. For example: heart stickers to the heart, foamie crosses to the cross, and/or sequins to the heaven graphic, etc. gospel megaphone Here is a simple craft, with a fun way to practice the memory verse. You will need: colorful paper cups pipe cleaners a razor blade this scripture print out scissors glue stickers To prepare, use the razor blade to cut out the bottoms of the cups. Print, and cut out the scripture tags. Use the razor blade or other sharp object to poke holes in the cup, and cut the pipe cleaners in half. In class, help the children assemble their megaphones. Insert the ends of the pipe cleaners into the holes you made, and bend the ends inside the cup. Glue the scripture tags to the megaphones, and provide stickers to decorate. Practice saying the memory verse using their megaphones. globe mosaic This low-prep mosaic craft is a great visual reminder of this lesson, and promotes beginning geography skills as preschoolers create land masses separated by water. This is an open-ended craft (my favorite!), however I suggest making an example first to demonstrate to the children how to create land masses separated by water like you see on the globe. You will need: blue paper plates green construction paper this scripture print out glue (see this suggestion for using glue!) smiley stickers hole punch ribbon To prepare, print and cut out the scripture tags. You may choose to tear pieces of construction paper ahead of time, or if time allows, give the children strips of green paper to tear in class. In class, provide glue sticks for the children to glue down their mosaic pieces and their scripture tags. Add smiley stickers, representing different people all over the world that need to hear the gospel. Punch a hole at the top of the plate, and add a ribbon to hang. (Or in my case, the other half of the pipe cleaner that just happened to be sitting on my desk. Ha!) See this post for more ideas to teach your child at home about sharing the gospel of Jesus!

Lesson idea from Art. Paper. Scissors. Glue! 3rd graders started a conversation about what textile arts are by reading the book "Tar Beach" by author and artist Faith Ringgold. We talked about how the book and its illustrations were actually inspired by a story quilt that Ringgold created (the original work is pictured in the back of the book I had). The story in the book brought up the themes of both inequality (which works well since February is Black History Month) and imagination. The book's main character 3rd grader Cassie Louise Lightfoot discovers she has the ability to fly and in doing so, finds a sense of power and ownership over whatever she flies. She flies over the George Washington Bridge (a structure her father helped to build), an ice cream factory, and the Union Building (a building which housed an organization her father was not allowed to join because of his skin color). After reading and discussing the themes in the book, I asked my 3rd graders "Where would you go if you could fly (real or imaginary) and why?" This question was the inspiration for our very own patches on our 3rd grade story quilt. Students created their own "story patches" by creating a border using squares of 1.5"x1.5" decorative paper along the edge of a 12" x 12" piece of white drawing paper. Students then attached a strip of grey paper to the bottom of their picture squares and wrote about where they would go and why. Then in the remaining space, they used colored pencils to illustrate their ideas. I got a huge range of responses from Candyland (naturally to eat a ton of candy), to Columbia (to visit friends and family), to the Twin Towers in New York City (which prompted an entirely difference conversation). Students really enjoyed working on this project (which took between 4-5 class periods -- including one day for sketching ideas). I really love the finished product - and even more so when they are all hung together to make a giant story quilt! :)

I came across some ideas for crayon melting on Pinterest recently and couldn't resist having a go! Click here for the original idea on The Kinder Kid. Here is my take on crayon melting with a message... I happened to have a silicone mould with people shapes that I'd picked up at the pound shop, though really any kind of mould would be fine. Silicone worked with no mess, but I'm probably not ever going to be using it for baking again! Break or cut crayons into small pieces and get children to arrange various colours in the moulds. Don't fill right to the top or you may have spillage!. Talk about the different colours representing different skills and gifts that different people within the church or within the group have. Children might choose specific colours to represent what they know of certain people. Now put the mould into a preheated oven at about 200 degrees (e.g.quite hot!) and bake for anything between 5 and 8 minutes. Keep an eye on the melting and when it looks as though everything has melted with no lumps, take out the mould and let it cool. When the mould has cooled down, pop the melts out! Each child can take their melt and see how the colours that were once individual have now formed into one unit and can not be separated without causing serious damage. Every colour can still be seen, but it is strongly linked to the other colours. Talk about the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12: 12-31) and how we come with our different gifts to make up the whole body. The individual parts can all be seen, but each part is equally as important to making up the family of God.

Nōtan (濃淡) is a Japanese design concept involving the play and placement of light and dark elements as they are placed next to the other in the composition of art. This use of light and dark translates shape and form into flat shapes on a two-dimensional surface. Nōtan is traditionally presented in paint, ink, or cut paper, but it is relevant to a host of modern-day image-making techniques, such as lithography in printmaking, and rotoscoping in animation. We can also look at it in terms of positive and negative space. These were created by junior high students. The biggest challenge is keeping track of all the small pieces and not losing them! They create a large heart shape from coloured paper. Then they cut out shapes from the edges and flip them over and glue them in a mirror image outside of the heart shape. I found the idea for the project HERE on the Apex Elementary Art blog. Some finished notans:

Eucharist craft idea that is perfect for teaching about Holy Communion or the Seven Sacraments. This craft connects our liturgy on earth to the heavenly liturgy.

As part of the tie-in with our thematic unit on oceans and beaches, we have been learning about the story of Jesus helping his disciples fish. "'I'm going

Children can absolutely glean lessons from Joseph's story about keeping a good attitude when they are treated unfairly, and forgiving those who don't deserve it, but the ultimate goal of every Biblical account of someone's life is to teach us something of God, and His character. Through the twists and turns of Joseph's life, we see God's goodness, God's faithfulness, and His ability to work all things out for our good (Romans 8:28). As you teach the story of Joseph, point your children towards God and His goodness. Here are some ways to help you do just that! Bible Truth: Joseph shared God's goodness. Bible Story: Joseph's brothers were mean to him, but God was good to him. Joseph forgave his brothers and helped his family. Bible Study: Genesis 37-45 teach show-and-tell As with most Bible stories, I will use a Children's Bible Storybook, or flannel graph for visuals, but I always try to add another tangible element to bring the story alive! There are a lot of details in the story of Joseph, but since we are teaching this lesson to young children in one service, I focus on the big picture of Joseph's life, emphasizing that God was watching over Joseph wherever he went. No matter where Joseph was, or how he felt, he trusted and obeyed God. These items help me stay on track, and illustrate each of these points in the story. colorful scarf / cloth - Joseph had eleven brothers. Can you count to eleven? Joseph was his father's favorite son. His father, Jacob, gave him a very special, beautiful, colorful coat. This made Joseph's brothers jealous, because they didn't get a special coat. Joseph also had special dreams like that the sun, moon and eleven stars bowed down to Joseph. The dreams seemed to mean that Joseph's father, mother and eleven brothers would bow down to him. Dreams like this made Joseph's brothers mad at him. rope - One day Joseph's brothers stole his coat and threw him into a pit, a dark hole in the ground. They were trying decide what to do with him, when some travelers who sold expensive spices and oils passed by. They sold Joseph to the travelers, so that they could sell Joseph as a slave. How do you think Joseph felt when his brothers treated him this way? hand towel and money - The travelers sold Joseph to the captain of the army in Egypt. Joseph took very good care of the captain's house. God was with Joseph, and He became the one in charge of everything in the captain' house, even all of his money. How do you think Joseph felt now? handcuffs - One day, the captain's wife told a lie about Joseph. She told her husband that Joseph tried to hurt her. The captain believed his wife's lie and threw Joseph into prison. How do you think Joseph felt in prison? Even in prison, God was with Joseph, and he became the one in charge of all the prisoners. Sometimes the prisoners had strange dreams, and God helped Joseph explain the meaning of their dreams. Egyptian headdress (Follow the link for a template. This could also be a craft for the kids to make!) - One day, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had a strange dream. He called Joseph out of prison, and God helped Joseph explain the meaning of Pharaoh's dream. Pharaoh listened to Joseph and made him ruler over the land of Egypt. How do you think Joseph felt now? bag of rice, oats or any other grain - After seven years there was a terrible famine. There was no food in all the land, and people were very hungry. But as the ruler of Egypt, Joseph had stored up lots of grain, so people all over the land came to Joseph to get grain to eat. One day, Joseph's brothers came to Egypt to ask for grain. They came before Joseph and bowed down to him. Joseph recognized them, but they didn't know that it was Joseph. Joseph's dream came true! His brothers were bowing down to him! Joseph had lots of power. He could throw them into prison, or even kill them, if he wanted to get back at them for the horrible way that they treated him. But Joseph didn't do that. He started to cry, and said to them, "Brothers, it's me Joseph. You tried to hurt me, but God was taking care of me. He brought me here, and made me the ruler so that I can help you. I forgive you for the way that you treated me." He hugged them, gave them all the food that they needed. Then all of Joseph's family came to live with him Egypt. How do you think Joseph felt now? binoculars - God was watching Joseph everywhere that he went. He saw Joseph proudly wear his colorful, handsome coat. He saw Joseph when his brothers stole his coat, threw him in a pit, and sold him as a slave. He saw Joseph take good care of the captain's house, and he saw him get thrown into prison when he didn't deserve it. He saw him become the ruler of Egypt, and forgive his brothers. God was always watching Joseph. Joseph kept a happy heart, and kept believing and trusting God. God took care of Joseph. He made the bad things in his life turn out to be good things. God is always watching and taking care of you too! sing Watching Over You - God was watching over Joseph everywhere that he went, and God is watching over you too! Here is a video to see suggested actions for this song. When I'm Sad - God was with Joseph when he felt sad, hurt, scared and mad. Joseph believed that God was with him, and knew that God was helping him. Here's a great visual to go with this song! If you have ever attended one of my seminars, you've likely seen me do this song. I suggest printing on card stock for durability. Print page three on the back of page one. Print page four on the back of page two. Then cut each page lengthwise, fold and attach each pair of faces to a file folder as shown below. Add a small bandage to the hurt red face. Lift each flap as you sing each part of the song. I'm telling you, this song is anointed! The kids loooove it, and it has a very applicable message for their lives. play i spy Play the classic game of "I Spy" with your class to imagine all the beautiful colors that were on Joseph's coat! Use your binoculars to spy an object in the room. Say, "I spy with my little eye something that is ___________ (color of object)". Give the children three guesses to find your object. Let the children take turns to spy objects too. craft coat of many colors You will need: this activity page chenille stems in various colors wire cutters glue crayons To prepare, print the activity page, and use wire cutters to cut chenille stems the length of Joseph's coat. In class, provide crayons for the children to color. Help the children apply glue, and choose chenille stems to press onto Joseph's coat. God is watching binoculars If you use binoculars, as suggested to wrap up the story, your kids will want to look through the binoculars as well. They will love having their own pair to take home that will help them remember both the story of Joseph, and that God is always watching over them! You will need: this print out scissors cardboard (toilet paper) tubes colored tape crayons yarn or lacing hole punch clear tape To prepare, print and cut the binocular cover print out. Place two cardboard tubes side by side, and wrap colored tape around the top and the bottom to connect them, and give them a finished look. Cut yarn, or lacing, to approximately thirty inch lengths. In class, provide crayons for the children to color their binocular covers. Use clear tape to secure the covers around each pair of cardboard rolls. Punch a hole on either side of the binoculars. Tie yarn or lacing through each hole to complete the binoculars.

Instant empathy worksheets PDF activity book to teach kids or students all about empathy and being kind to others.

This Jonah and the whale craft teaches a lesson on obedience. I believe in teaching our kids about the importance of obedience. Here is why! Obedience is one of the 52 words in my character development series. Although I want my kids to fully understand God’s grace and mercy first and foremost, I want them...Read More

Most people are familiar with 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 that says, “Love is patient; love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not…

Since I've been doing lots of homeschool notebooking recently I thought I would share what I'm doing. In this post I'll show our religion pages so far. This is a work in progress. One of the things I like about lapbooks/notebooks is that you can build them slowly. You can have an overview of the basic material on the first page, and then put details on later pages. OR you can start with a detail and then build up to the overview. There are so many ways to go! I tried making a couple of regular file-folder type lapbooks and was quite happy with how they turned out. (here is one). However, while I was researching online and thinking about it, I decided that I preferred the notebook binder format to the file folder format. You can easily put any mini-book (or file folder game, or mini-office) on a card-stock page in a binder and this (to me) allows for a lot of flexibility and yet continuity. You can rearrange the papers in the order that seems best. You can migrate just one or two into a smaller binder. You can use them as dividers for regular notebooking pages. The possibilities again are endless. You can even use the cardstock pages as extensions in a future lapbook, if you decide you prefer that format. And they are compatible with regular notebooking pages. So that's what this post shows. Materials I Used: Cardstock Fiskar Paper Cutter (I love this thing, wow, and it is affordable too) Scrapbooking paper I had around the house. Glue Sticks I had around the house. Colored and white printing paper I had around the house. Our printer (I don't have a colored printer so I go for black and white images for printables) This is another thing I like about this craft. You can use almost everything that comes into the house that has a visual element. I totally am going to cut up church bulletins and wrapping paper now. My goal with the religious notebooking is to build pages which supplement the catechetical resources we are using. We use a variety of resources depending on what I want my child to learn. Some core resources: Faith and Life (Ignatius PRess). There are some downloadable scopes and sequences at this site which are useful. Living My Religion. St Joseph Baltimore Catechism. These are probably my most-used catechisms by a long shot. ThatResourceSite has a lot of free foldable/lapbook type resources for Catholics (they call them F3 Folders). They also have all kinds of interesting printables. Unless otherwise noted, the resources I link to in this post are from that site. What I love about notebooks is that they can be homemade customized reference books. So even if you are using several different things, you don't have to get confused. I. Liturgical Calendar Page Materials Used: Michele Quigley's Liturgical Wheel graphic (HT Valerie Malott's blog) Color the Seasons Liturgical Wheel (PDF) Learn about the Chasuble and Liturgical Seasons (We printed the vestments out in small -form, then glued them to little cross booklets which I made of cardstock so we can put more information inside) 2. Liturgical Dedication of the Months I have always wanted to follow the dedication of the months of the year. I found this post More on dedication of the months of the year which showed a way to do this in a lapbook format. So here is my version. The page I linked to has printable color pictures to put inside the little booklets. I don't have access to a color printer, so I collected some black and white pictures (I did my best to choose public domain images but if you notice a copyrighted picture, let me know). Dedication of the Months Smaller Dedication of the Months It took two pages of the notebook as you can see. I haven't labelled the front of the booklets yet. I made match-book style booklets. This page shows you how to make matchbooks. Here's a picture showing the inside of a couple of the matchbooks. On the back of the second page, I am planning to do something similar with the dedication of the days of the week. But I haven't done this yet. 3. Perfections of God For this page, I simply downloaded the F3 Folder Lesson on the Perfections of GOd. I printed it out half-size so I could get more on a page. 4. The Blessed Trinity I am not finished with this page yet. Unfortunately, the lighting wasn't good here. It looks better in real life. The stained glass picture comes from this site: Color the Bible. You can find memory verses about the Trinity there. I am probably going to print out the verses for a different notebook page. You can find images of the Shield of the Trinity here. More Trinity symbols here. There is also a Holy Trinity Poster at Thatresourcesite. See the three little folded things in the picture above? I used a T-fold which I just cut out myself, but you can see the form here at HomeschoolHelper. I had some religious scrapbooking cardstock which turned out to be perfect (though the picture is lousy). Here's another picture from later on. Inside you can see cards which I made using this Know and Go Trinity game. You can see below how the little wallets fold out into a cross shape, and I glued the "Person of the Trinity" cards inside, but left the other ones free. 5. Future Plans Salvation History. There are lots and lots of Bible lapbooks on display online. Just go to Pinterest! I didn't get around to doing a Jesse Tree with my kids this year. But all my key catechetical resources bring in the Old Testament stories and I thought that if we worked on those between Christmas and Lent, we would have notebook pages ready to review easily for next Advent. Then in Lent, we can study the life of our Savior leading up to the events of Holy Week. Prayer pages. I am going to display the prayers that my boys already know on the first pages, and then add prayers I want them to learn. Catholic Lists. I am fascinated by lists of things Christians should know. When I first converted, I used to pore over these, but they are challenging to present to kids, because, you know, they are just lists of things. But they look like great material for foldables and notebook pages. Since I wrote this I have made several more pages for the Catechism Notebook. You can find them under the Catholic Notebooking label.

Brittany Balke shares step-by-step instructions for a toddler-friendly, sturdy and inexpensive Divine Liturgy book.

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It’s that time of year again! Do you know someone preparing to make their First Reconciliation? The Sacrament of Reconciliation is incredible!! Where else can we hand over our burdens and struggles and receive complete ABSOLUTION; the very MERCY of JESUS poured over our bruised and battered little souls? It really is a wonderful gift, but prep […]

Introducing our new coloring page printable that is sure to be loved by parents of young children. This printable features adorable and age-appropriate images that will captivate and engage little ones.

Today we start the new Catholic preschool curriculum- Catholic ABC's! Yay! For the first week, we are learning the number 1. Here's the craft we made (this craft is a good one for preschoolers with

Our parish priests put forth so much effort for us! They have a life of sacrifice, stress, and heartache with very little appreciation from we parishioners. We need to show these devout men that we are thankful for their sacrifice and living witness. How? Host a Card Shower! For those who don't know what a card shower

I have wanted to try making a St. Brigid's cross for years, but never got around to it until now. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, and we had a lot

I've been working hard on something that I'm so excited to release to you today: A whole alphabet of Saints, ready for you and your kids to craft! The best part is, they're printable, and

In my journey to learn more about the history of quilting and fiber arts, I have discovered some incredible makers, artists, thinkers and leaders. A couple weeks ago we talked about one of our founding Quilt Mothers, Nancy Crow, Marti Michell, Rachel Clark and Judith Scott. Today, I bring you someone who is not justContinue Reading...

A collaborative blog by Pre K and Kindergarten specialists. Child growth and development, information, free printables.

A Catholic Church worksheet is a valuable tool that can enhance your understanding of the rich history, rituals, and beliefs associated with this ancient institution. Designed for individuals seeking a deeper connection with their faith, these worksheets provide a structured approach to explore various aspects of Catholicism, allowing you to engage with its teachings in a meaningful and enlightening way.

Pick something off this list of family-friendly volunteer opportunities to spread kindness and participate in community service projects with your kids.

multiple hair styles, hats, corded belt, sherpherd's crook, and pottery…

Ten Commandment Craft for kids using the Catholic translation

Luke 9: 28-36 When reading this lesson, the first craft idea that came to my mind was string art. You know, that cool method of tying string to nails on a board to highlight a shape? Here's a link to an example: string art. I would have loved to do it that way; however, that would have taken more prep and class time than I had available. So, I took that basic idea and found a way to do something similar. The only difference in the two methods I will discuss is that one is achieved with oil pastels and is suitable for smaller children, and the other uses string and a craft needle, better suited for older children. Materials Needed for 1st - 3rd Grade Version Colored Card Stock Glitter Paper Oil Pastels (yellow & white) Pen Glue Scissors Outline of Jesus (free download) Paper Towel Before Class Prep: The first thing to do is draw a silhouette of Jesus. It doesn't have to be prefect. Any basic outline is fine. You may download mine (above) if you'd like. Cutout the shape. Next, on the back of the glitter paper (found in the scrapbook section of Hobby Lobby or Michael's), trace the outline of Jesus. Cut out one Jesus silhouette for each child. Class Instructions: 1. Begin with a sheet of colored card stock and the yellow oil pastel. Starting at the center of the page,draw several lines going from the center out to the edges of the paper. 2. Using the paper towel, rub (or smear) the crayon to give it a fuzzy look. 3. Draw a few more lines with the white oil pastel and rub it to blend. Note: Oil pastels work really well for this. They smear easily, as opposed to regular crayons. The down side is they can be slightly messy. Remind the kids not to drag their sleeves across the paper. Likewise, if you are worried about the color getting onto the tabletop, drape a cheap tablecloth or butcher paper over the tables before class. 4. Glue one Jesus silhouette onto the center. 5. The bible verse may also be written on the page if desired. Materials Needed for 4th - 6th Grade Version: Foam Sheets Glitter Paper Pen Scissors Glue Craft Needle Outline of Jesus (free download) Embroidery Floss (yellow - 2 or 3 per person) Before Class Prep: As with the 1st - 3rd grade craft, the first thing to do is draw a silhouette of Jesus. It doesn't have to be prefect. Any basic outline is fine. You may download mine (above) if you'd like. Cutout the shape. Next, on the back of the glitter paper (found in the scrapbook section of Hobby Lobby or Michael's), trace the outline of Jesus. Cut out one Jesus silhouette for each child. Two extra steps are needed for this version. On the back of each Foam Sheet, trace the silhouette with dots as shown below. Next, add random dots, some along the edges and some closer in, all the way around. Class Instructions: 1. Thread the needle with a long strand of floss-but not too long! Using the dots for needle placement, stitch from the silhouette dots to the surrounding dots. When one strand ends, tie a new strand to it until the entire picture is covered as pictured below. 2. Glue the silhouette of Jesus in the center. NOTE: All images, text and printables contained herein are copyright protected. This material is for your personal use only. I encourage you to print or pin from this site whenever you would like as long as it is credited and linked back to EasyBreezySundaySchool.blogspot.com. Failure to link back and credit my site constitutes a copyright violation. Thanks so much!

Lesson: Jesus gives life (Luke 8:40-56; Mark 5:21-42) 1. Story: Tell the story of Jesus raising Jairus' daughter from Luke 8:40-56 and ...