“Curriculum in religious education must encompass more than the schooling context if it is to fulfill its aim of integrating persons into the life of the Church. Three contexts have been indentified as centers of focus for intentional religious education: the church (worship), the school (formal teaching), and the family/community (praxis). It is the interrelationship and integration of education in these three contexts thats leads to wholeness.”
– Constance Tarasar, A Process Model for the Design of Curriculum for Orthodox Christian Religious Education
Church School
Curricula
for Pre-K to 12th Grade
We cannot understand our worship without knowing the Scriptures. Yet the same is true vice versa: The meaning of the Scriptures is disclosed in worship.
– Fr. Alexander Schmemann
“Liturgy & Life”
One Year with the Divine Liturgy
Gospel of Luke (This year, lessons are being posted here as they are written.)
Gospel of John (in development for the 2024-2025 school year)
Church School
Retreats
- Candy Bomber Lunch Sacks – airplane pdf
- Candy Bomber Lunch Sacks – sticker pdf
- Our Sack Lunch
Guide for
Vacation Church School
Great Lent & Pascha Lesson
A handout to send home with your students at the beginning of Lent
Journey to Pascha Poster
Use the poster to write in your parish’s Lenten services. When are the services? What are the different services about? Hang the poster on your classroom wall to visually see the progression towards Pascha!
Lenten Almsgiving
A handout to send home with your students at the beginning of Lent
Basil
Use as a resource for planning your lesson about basil or St. Helen or as a handout to send home with your students
Mustard Seeds
Use as a resource for planning your lesson about the Biblical meaning of mustard seeds or as a handout to send home with your students
Panagia's Tears
Use as a resource for planning your lesson about prayer ropes, prayer beads, and Panagia’s Tears or as a handout to send home with your students
Basil Seed Packet Printable
Print your own seed packets on 8.5 x 11 paper on your home computer to share the story of basil with your students, friends, godchildren, and more! Simply print, cut, fold, and glue – then fill with as many basil seeds as you’d like to give them. (Basil seeds can be found & purchased through a general online search.)
Mustard Seed Packet Printable
Print your own seed packets on 8.5 x 11 paper on your home computer to share the story of mustard seeds with your students, friends, godchildren, and more! Simply print, cut, fold, and glue – then fill with as many mustard seeds as you’d like to give them. (Mustard seeds can be found & purchased through a general online search.)
Panagia's Tears Seed Packet Printable
Print your own seed packets on 8.5 x 11 paper on your home computer to share the story of Panagia’s Tears with your students, friends, godchildren, and more! Simply print, cut, fold, and glue – then fill with as many of Panagia’s Tears seeds as you’d like to give them. (These seeds can be found & purchased through a general online search for Coix Lacryma-jobi.)
YouTube: Divine Liturgy - Teaching the Two Main Parts to Children
This is an example of a resource I created to teach children about the two main parts of the Divine Liturgy: Liturgy of the Word and Liturgy of the Faithful.
Lessons & Activities for "Sweet Song: A Story of Saint Romanos the Melodist"
Printable lesson plans are available for this story
Lessons & Activities for "Pascha at the Duckpond"
Printable lesson plans are available for this Lenten story
This is a great way to teach young children or special needs children how to make the sign of the cross.
This provides a concrete visual, as well as, breaks it down into steps – which allows the children to understand what they are trying to achieve.
1. Place three of the same color stickers on the child’s right thumb, forefinger, and middle finger
2. Place two stickers on the palm of their right hand, under their ring and pinky fingers, to indicate where they will fold down their fingers
3. Ask the child to pinch their three right fingers with stickers on them together. This symbolizes the Trinity: Father, Son, Holy Spirit – separate, but One. You can explain to the child(ren) that there are some aspects of life that we don’t fully understand, and the mystery of the Holy Trinity is the greatest of these.
4. Ask the child to fold down their right ring finger and pinky finger into their palm. This symbolizes Christ coming down from Heaven to earth. It also represents His two natures: fully God, fully human.
5. We touch our forehead first (We love God with all our mind), then to our chest (We love God with all our heart), and then to our right shoulder followed by our left shoulder (We love God with all our strength).