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Happy Easter! Remember that Easter is a season of fifty days, so continue to celebrate it and greet one another by saying, “Happy Easter!”
The World Day of Prayer for Vocations is observed on Sunday, April 21, which is also known as Good Shepherd Sunday. The purpose of this day is to publicly fulfill the Lord’s instruction to “pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:38; Luke 10:2).
Please pray that young men and women hear and respond generously to the Lord’s call to the priesthood, diaconate, religious life, societies of apostolic life, or secular institutes. Please also pray for all young people, that they may know the personal love of the Lord for them and respond with open and generous hearts. Find ideas and tools to help promote vocations offered by Serra International.
Every week in the GROW newsletter, you will find helpful tips for teaching your Gospel Weeklies lesson, a reflection on the Sunday Gospel, and information about our online resources and seasonal activities. Here are tips for teaching the Gospel Weeklies lessons this week:
Videos of Sunday’s Gospel
Use these videos as you discuss today’s Gospel. Please preview all videos you plan to share with your class:
Gospel Reading and Reflection for Kids
Holy Heroes
Parable of the Good Shepherd
Seeds
Lesson Theme: Jesus is the Good Shepherd.
For this lesson, you will need pencils or crayons; scissors; envelopes; and a Church Year calendar.
Help children grasp the Gospel message by explaining why Jesus speaks about sheep. You might mention that where Jesus lived, there were lots of sheep. People made clothes and blankets from sheep wool. Sheep were important, and people wanted to keep them safe and healthy. People who care for sheep are called shepherds.
While you share the Gospel (printed in the Teaching Guide on page TG4-26), you might have the children close their eyes and imagine Jesus saying these words to them.
We encourage you to read over the game directions in advance so you can explain it confidently. Have envelopes ready so that each child can bring home the game/puzzle pieces. (As children leave for the day, you might tape the envelopes to the Seeds copies to keep everything together.) You might also send home a short note encouraging families to have their children explain how to play the game. Remind families that the backs of the game pieces form a puzzle that the children can put together.
Teaching Guide
Parent Teaching Pages
Parent/Grandparent Assistance for Home Study
Extending Activities
The Gospel at Home
Weekly Review Template
Word of the Week
Seasonal Resources
Videos
Gospel Reflection and Saint of the Week with Miss Heidi
Bible Bag: Kid-Sized Lessons on the Sunday Gospel with Mrs. Cole
Promise
Lesson Theme: Jesus cares for us and all of Creation.
For this lesson, gather scissors, crayons, drawing paper, an image of Pope Francis, small pieces of paper, glue or tape, and a Church Year calendar. If you have a favorite statue or image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, this lesson is a great opportunity to share it with the children. You may also wish to enlist the help of an aide or aide(s) to assist with the cutting activity.
For the activity on page 3–4, we suggest that you make one Good Shepherd cutout ahead of time to model how the finished activity will look. Make sure the children save the “scrap” piece with the Eucharist quote on it from their cutouts. To keep the quotes from getting lost, you might have the children glue or tape them to a larger piece of paper. Have the children write their family names on their quotes as a reminder to share them with their families at home.
Teaching Guide
Parent Teaching Pages
Parent/Grandparent Assistance for Home Study
Extending Activities
The Gospel at Home
Weekly Review Template
Lesson Assessment
Word of the Week
Seasonal Resources
Videos
Gospel Reflection and Saint of the Week with Miss Heidi
Bible Bag: Kid-Sized Lessons on the Sunday Gospel with Mrs. Cole
Good News
Lesson Theme: Jesus is our Good Shepherd.
For this lesson, gather an image of Jesus as Good Shepherd, pencils, crayons, scissors, dice (one per pair of children), flashcards about Church shepherds, and a Church Year calendar.
After your opening prayer, we suggest that you begin your lesson on page 4 of Good News. Talk about the children’s experiences of caring for pets or other animals. Relate this to what they know about sheep and the job of shepherds. Have crayons available for children to color the picture of the shepherd and his sheep.
The answer key for cover activity (hidden wolves) can be found here.
For the game on pages 2–3, each child will need a pair of scissors for cutting apart the happy earth symbols. Note that the happy earth symbols on page 3 should have dashed lines to indicate cutting lines. The children will each need a pencil to print their initials on their earth cutouts. Every pair of students will also need one die. If you don’t have dice, you can have children flip a coin. Heads can equal one move on the board; tails could equal two moves.
Teaching Guide
Parent Teaching Pages
Parent/Grandparent Assistance for Home Study
The Gospel at Home
Weekly Review Template
Lesson Assessment
Seasonal Resources
Video
Catholic Social Teaching 101: Care for Creation
Venture
Lesson Theme: Jesus is the Good Shepherd.
As you work on the cover activity (Jesus Is Our Good Shepherd), you may wish to have the children read the KidTalk feature on page 8 before brainstorming ideas.
If you would like to do the guided meditation printed in the Teaching Guide on page TG4-27 but do not have access to an open area, you might try having students move someplace other than their usual places—on the floor, near a window, etc. Invite everyone to sit comfortably. Dim the lights. Invite the children to close their eyes and take some slow, deep breaths. Breathe deeply to model how this is done. Read the meditation slowly, pausing often to allow the children to visualize the images. When you have finished the meditation, invite the children to share their reactions to the experience.
Have the children complete the water use survey on page 6 at home and have them bring it back next week.
Teaching Guide
Parent Teaching Pages
Parent/Grandparent Assistance for Home Study
The Gospel at Home
Weekly Review Template
Lesson Assessment
Seasonal Resources
Videos
2024 Earth Day: Healing Our Throwaway Culture
Vatican Unseen: Castel Gandolfo
Catholic Social Teaching 101: Care for Creation
This Is Pope Francis’ Favorite Food
Visions
Lesson Theme: Jesus is the Good Shepherd.
The article in this lesson is about the founder of the Knights of Columbus, Blessed Michael McGivney. You may wish to invite a member of the Knights of Columbus or their spouse to speak to the young people about this organization’s activities in your parish.
As students complete the activity on pages 6–7, they might find themselves in more than one group. If so, simply have them choose the group that most appeals to them.
Teaching Guide
Parent Teaching Pages
Parent/Grandparent Assistance for Home Study
The Gospel at Home
Weekly Review Template
Lesson Assessment
Seasonal Resources
Video
2024 Earth Day: Healing Our Throwaway Culture
Image credit: josetoro/Cathopic.com
