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To proclaim the Gospel to children in Kindergarten through Fifth Grade in a warm, welcoming, creative environment so that they may experience Biblical truths, faith stories, and traditions in ways that will empower them to respond to God's love in order to live and share with others the Love of Christ. To appreciate children's abilities and readiness to represent Christ and his church, to bear witness to him wherever they may be, and according to gifts given them, to carry on Christ's work of reconciliation in the world, and to take their place in the life, worship, and governance of the church. (Ministry of the Laity- pg. 855 BCP)
Catch the Faith is the name of our Church School program for children in Kindergarten through fifth grade. At St. James', the children hear and experience the Biblical stories and our faith traditions in wonderfully creative learning environments that include the Temple Room, the Sea of Galilee Art Room, and the Bedouin Camp.
Using the workshop rotation model of teaching and the theory of multi-intelligences, a selected Biblical story is told over a period of four to five weeks as the children rotate through "workshops" such as art, games, drama, movement, music, cooking, video, and science. By returning to the story over several weeks and providing experiences for the children to process information, seeds of faith are grown. The goal of transformation, not just the relaying of information and facts is accomplished by providing a place where encounters with God are made possible and where experiences with God can be felt.
K-5 Workshop Rotation Calendar
March 7 – March 21 Crucifixion & Resurrection
Mary and Martha’s Bed and Breakfast - The children will hear from Joanna, who will share how the blood of Christ forged a new covenant between God and humankind. Individual banners will be created.
Bible Improv - Students will discover the differences between the Old and New Covenants. They will create a variety of ads to publicize the “new and improved” version of the Covenant.
Created by the Spirit - Paper embedded with seeds will be made by the students as a reminder of Jesus’ death and resurrection, Old and New Covenants, and how they are each a seedling that God nurtures into his/her full potential.
March 28 Palm Sunday –
Celebration - Through the creation of different “musical” and movement activities, children will come to a deeper understanding of the development of God’s covenant with Israel and the establishment of the New Covenant through Jesus.
April 4 – Easter – No Classes
April 11 – April 25 Parables
Puppetry - A Bunraku puppetry show, where children stand behind and move life sized puppets, will be performed to tell the story of the Good Samaritan.
Where in the World is? - Students will examine the history of the difficult relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans at the time of Jesus. They will make connections to those who are “invisible” in today’s society and how we, as Christians, should respond.
Eat your way thru the Bible - The students become servants of the Prodigal son’s family, preparing the feast. As they cook or bake, they will be encouraged to voice the opinions of the various family members about the event.
May 2 - Parables Celebration
May 9 – May 23 Early Church
Video Live - Students will look at a car engine to discover how all of the parts work together to make the car run. They will read scripture to discover how all the people of a church work together to make the church run. They will make a video of the scripture using the car engine as an analogy.
Mary and Martha’s Bed and Breakfast - Priscella, a tentmaker who was also a friend of Paul, will visit the children. She will share her experiences of founding and nurturing the church in Cornith. Students will make a leather craft to connect tent making o the body of Christ.
Puppetry - The children will explore how the human body works as an analogy to Paul’s reference to the Body of Christ. A puppet show will be performed to portray this scripture.
May 30 – End of the Year Celebration
June 6 – Youth Sunday – Everyone is in Church |
