St. Joseph Catholic Church School of Religion

St. Joseph Catholic Church School of Religion 4th Grade Lesson Plans 2014-15

Dear Students and Parents,

Welcome to our 4th Grade CCD class!

We are blessed to have your children participate with our class.

Fourth grade students will be aware of basic prayers such as The Sign of the Cross, Our Father,

Hail Mary, Glory Be to the Father, Apostles Creed, and Act of Contrition, and we will include them in our classes. Please be sure to include them in your family prayer time at home.

We will introduce additional prayers such as Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love(Charity). We will study the lives of saints, religious art prints, and Bible excerpts as they appear in our book. Our discussions will also include the Beatitudes, and The Ten Commandments.

The following schedule of class dates will help your family plan for a good attendance record and know which dates we do not have class. Sunday Mass: 9:30 A.M. CCD Class: 10:30-11:30 A.M.

Each lesson will be based on a main theme which will be a great discussion starter at home.

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We will stay on schedule with the following lessons unless our activities, such as prayer practice or Stations of the Cross, etc., cause us to vary somewhat.

Text: Finding God, Our Response to God's Gifts

August 24: 1st Day of class. We will practice our prayers and create name art to help us know more about each other.

August 31: No Class - Labor Day Holiday.

September 7: Unit 1 God, Our Creator and Father

Session 1: God Creates the World

God is our Creator and Father and prayer helps bring us closer to him.

Saint Teresa of Avila is remembered because she dedicated her life to prayer.

September 14: Creation is a gift from God and we are called to give thanks for this wonderful gift. Humans are God's most amazing creation. We have a spiritual nature called our soul. Our ability to make correct choices in taking care of God's creation comes from our free will.

September 21: Session 2: Our Father in Heaven

God listens to our prayers. When we pray the Lord's Prayer, we are praying for the coming of God's kingdom. Faith, Hope, and Charity are the Theological Virtues. They are gifts from God that help us develop a strong relationship with God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

September 28: Session 3 God's Plan for Salvation

The story of Adam and Eve helps us learn about how sin entered the world and how God saves us from sin. God will not abandon us when we use our free will and turn away from Him and give in to temptation. He offers us the gift of Salvation which is the forgiveness of sins and the restoration of friendship with God.

October 5: Session 4 God Calls Us to Obey

God helps us know the importance of making good choices. Good behaviors help us follow God's plan for us. The virtue of Prudence helps us see the good in every situation and make good choices.

The Fruits of the Holy Spirit that guide us are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. The Sacrament of Reconciliation begins with Examination of Conscience. When we Examine our Conscience before we celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we think about our relationships with God and with others and about how we are growing as Christians.

October 12: Session 5 Celebrating Ordinary Time

We celebrate the season of Ordinary Time twice a year - between Christmas and Ash Wednesday and after Easter season until Advent season.

During Ordinary Time, we grow in faith and reflect on how Jesus wants us to live. We practice the virtues: honesty, charity, patience, prudence, joy, hope, justice, courage, faith, temperance, and self control. Scripture readings include a call to discipleship to believe in and follow Jesus' teachings.

October 19: Unit 2: Jesus, Our Lord and Savior

Session 6: Jesus' Law of Love

We learn about the new commandment we received from Jesus to love God and to love others.

Saint John Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests. He showed his concern for people by listening to their concerns. October 26: Session 7 The Beatitudes

The teachings called the Beatitudes were revealed in the Sermon on the Mount.

The Beatitudes are prayers for the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. The Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi is called the Peace Prayer.

November 2: (Time Change) Unit 3: The Church, Our Community in the Spirit

Session 11: The People of God

Jesus instructed the disciples to teach others to follow God. We become full members of Jesus' Church through the sacraments of Initiation - Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation. We belong to a universal Church which is a community of believers that is open to everyone.

Saint Louis IX is the patron saint of parents and large families. He made fair laws and protected his people from unjust treatment by officials.

November 9: Session 12: The Church Teaches Us

The pope and the bishops are the successors of Saint Peter and the apostles. The leaders of the Church have given us the Precepts of the Church to describe the minimum effort we are called to make in prayer and living a moral life: Participate in Holy Mass, Confession, Holy Communion, fast and abstinence, and providing for the needs of the church.

November 16: Session 13: God Is Our Friend

We celebrate God's forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We can read the parable about the Prodigal Son, page 241, for an example of a father's forgiveness. Because of Original Sin, we live in a world of temptation. Mortal sin is a decision to turn away from God by doing something we know is wrong. Venial sin is a less serious break from God and others. Capital sins can lead us to commit more serious sins: pride, sloth, envy. We examine our conscience to consider the things we will say to the priest in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

November 23: Session 10: Celebrating Advent Seasonal Sessions.

The Advent Season begins on the 1st Sunday of Advent - November 29, 2014.

We prepare for the fulfillment of God's plan for our Salvation - Jesus' birth. Advent is a season of hope that begins a new liturgical year. The Angelus is a prayer of devotion to Mary in honor of her yes to God to become the Mother of Jesus November 30: No Class - Thanksgiving Holiday

December 7: Session 14: Serving God and Others We can serve God's kingdom by sharing our talents with others. We can serve God by following Mary's example. Mary became the first disciple at the Annunciation when she accepted God's request to be the Mother of Jesus. We are called to solidarity with the whole world because all people have dignity because they are the children of God. We are all equal before God. December 14: Session 15: Celebrating Christmas Seasonal Sessions

The Christmas season includes Advent, the Feast of the Nativity, the Feast of the Holy Family, the Epiphany, and the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.

December 21: No Class - Christmas Holiday December 28: No Class - Christmas Holiday

January 4: Unit 4: Sacraments, Our Way of Life Session 16: Celebrating Reconciliation We celebrate the joy of God's forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We can read the parable of the lost sheep, page 244, as an example of God's love and forgiveness. We express our sorrow to God for our sins when we pray the Act of Contrition.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola was inspired to change his life after reading about Jesus and the saints. He founded the religious community of priests and brothers called the Society of Jesus.

January 11: Session 17: The Sacrament of the Eucharist

We share the Eucharist when bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. This is an important meal we share with our family of faith. We gather as a community on Sunday to remember Jesus' Resurrection. There are six Holy Days of Obligation that celebrate important events in the lives of Jesus, Mary, and the saints. We are reminded in the Precepts of the Church to attend Mass on Holy Days of Obligation.

January 18: Session 18: Anointing of the Sick The Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick brings Jesus' healing to those who are sick. We give comfort to people who are ill to share Jesus' love with others. The priest will anoint a sick person with oil of the sick. We can pray prayers of intercession for the sick.

January 25: Unit 5: Morality, Our Lived Faith

Session 21: The Ten Commandments. Page 212.

God instructed Moses to lead the Hebrews across the Red Sea to Mount Sinai where they entered into a special relationship with God. When Moses climbed Mount Sinai, he received the Ten Commandments from God as instructions for how to live in relationship with him and with one another. The people agreed to live by the Ten Commandments and God promised to be faithful to the Hebrews and to give them a home.

Saint Francis Xavier is the patron saint of missionaries to foreign lands. He joined Saint Ignatius of Loyola as one of the first members of the Society of Jesus.

February 1: Session 22: Loving God Above All

The first three Commandments help us grow in our relationship with God. We must love God first to be able to see the rest of life in its proper context. This helps us to develop a deeper relationship with God in following all Ten Commandments.

We can pray the Divine Praises to honor the name of God, members of the Holy Family, and all the angels and saints.

February 8: Session 23: Loving Our Family

The fourth, fifth, and sixth Commandments help us live in loving relationships with our families.

Saint Thomas More was beheaded by King Henry VIII because he would not accept the divorce and remarriage of the King. St. Thomas More is the patron Saint of lawyers.

February 15: Session 20: Celebrating Lent and Holy Week. Page 161 Seasonal Session

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 18, 2015, and ends with Holy Week including Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. During Lent, we prepare to celebrate Jesus' Resurrection at Easter. We remember Jesus' suffering and death by preparing to celebrate the fullness of God's love and grace with prayers and sacraments.

February 22: Session 24: Jesus Calls Us to Love Others

The seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth Commandments help us to live together peacefully with family, friends, and neighbors.

March 1: Lent, Stations of the Cross, Holy Week Seasonal Sessions. March 8: Easter, Pentecost Seasonal Sessions.

March 15: No Class - Spring Break

March 22: No Class - Spring Break

March 29: Palm Sunday. Session 25: Celebrating Easter.

During Easter season we celebrate Jesus' Resurrection. After his Resurrection, Jesus shared the gift of peace with his disciples.

April 5: No Class - Easter

April 12: Session 8: Jesus Our Redeemer

Jesus shares his life with us through the Holy Spirit. We celebrate the Jesus' life, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension. We pray the Apostles' Creed to express our faith in God and in the teachings of the Church.

April 19: Session 9: Jesus Sends the Spirit

The Holy Spirit came to the Apostles on Pentecost which is 50 days after Easter.

We can show our love for Jesus and others through Corporal Works of Mercy and Spiritual Works of Mercy. Mercy can be called compassion, kindness, and charity.

April 26: Confirmation

May 3: 1st Holy Communion

May 10: Last Class for CCD

God Bless our children and families!

Helen Park

4th Grade CCD teacher

Email: [email protected]

Cell phone: 903-453-4126

Please call if you have questions.