Cover art credit: Warling Studios, mikimad/DigitalVision Vectors/Getty Images, Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock/Getty, thinkomatic/iStock/Getty Images. p. xi image credit: CSA Images/CSA Images/Getty Images.
ISBN: 978-0-8294-5885-5
Library of Congress Control Number: 2024950424
Preface: Can Robots Replace Catechists?................................ xi
Introduction: New Tools for New Mentalities......................... xiii
Chapter 1 Shoptalk: The Language of Catechesis .......................................1
Ch apter 2 Blueprints: Planning and Preparation .......................................9
Ch apter 3 Infrared Thermometer: Creating the Right Climate ............. 17
Ch apter 4 Assembly Instructions: The Catechetical Process ............... 25
Ch apter 5 Socket and Wrench Set: Finding Activities That Fit .............
Ch apter 6 Different Types of Wood: Adapting to Learning Styles, Disabilities, and Diversity ...........................................................
Ch apter 8 Scrapers: Asking Questions to Get beneath the Surface ... 65
Ch apter 9 A Power Source: Plugging into the Power of Prayer ........... 75 Ch apter 10 Sandpaper: Smoothing Out Discipline Problems.................. 83
Chapter 11 Primer and Paint: Evangelization and Catechesis ................
Ch
Chapter
Preface: Can Robots Replace Catechists?
“Can robots replace catechists?” Some years ago, I asked this question on my blog, The Catechist’s Journey.
Unlike you, a robot cannot give authentic witness.
Indeed, the twenty-first century has seen and will continue to see the proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI). Along with that proliferation come many questions about the appropriate use of AI. Truth be told, if catechesis is primarily about transmitting content, then we might as well let robots do the work. They would be very efficient and more consistently accurate. Catechesis, however, is not primarily about transmitting information; it is about transformation . As a catechist, you are not a teacher of a subject. Rather, you are a facilitator of transformative encounters with Jesus Christ. A robot can speak to the head. But as a catechist, you speak not only to the head, but also to the heart. Unlike you, a robot cannot give authentic witness. So the answer to the question, “Can robots replace catechists?” is a definitive no !
And yet, we live in a new age shaped by technology. Those we teach were born on the “digital continent” and speak its native tongue. Our task as twenty-first century catechists is to combine the very best of new technologies with good old-fashioned human warmth, wisdom, and wonder.
Robots aside, even within human ranks, please know that as a catechist, you are not easily replaced. Although there may be several hundred thousand volunteer catechists in the United States alone, that amounts to fewer than 1 percent of all the Catholics in the country. You are part of a select community of people in the Church who have been called to form disciples of Jesus Christ in a faith formation program. Through your ministry you are carrying out Jesus’s Great Commission to “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, . . . teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20).
Thank you for all that you do to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ!
For home improvements, new tools are often lighter, faster, and more efficient, durable, powerful, versatile, and ergonomic. Likewise, catechists benefit from new tools to meet new challenges.
New Mentalities
So . . . why the need for an updated retooled edition of this book? The Catechist’s Toolbox first appeared on the scene in 2007, a year in which many significant things occurred in pop history: Prince performed at the Super Bowl halftime show; Tiger Woods won his fourth PGA Championship; The Sopranos TV show came to an end while Keeping Up with the Kardashians premiered; R.E.M. was voted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; and Barry Bonds surpassed Hank Aaron as the all-time MLB home run leader. Most significantly, however, in 2007, Steve Jobs and Apple introduced the iPhone, which enabled people to carry with them a multimedia device that was not only a phone but also an MP3 player and Internet browser. And the world has not been the same since.
[The ecclesial community] will be eager to get inside those junctures of existence, anthropological environments, and modern areopagi where cultural tendencies are created and new mentalities are shaped.
—Directory for c atechesis , 324
Why was this technological milestone so significant? In her book Generations, researcher, psychology professor, and author Dr. Jean Twenge asserts that generational behaviors and attitudes are most significantly shaped by technological advances, even more so than other seismic events such as war, a terrorist attack, or an economic crisis such as the Great Depression. And few technological advances have had as immediate, momentous, and significant an impact as the smartphone and social media, which exploded onto the scene in 2007.
According to Twenge, “The smartphone brought about a planetary rewiring of human interaction. As smartphones became common, they transformed peer relationships, family relationships and the texture of daily life for everyone” (Haidt and Twenge, 2021). The impact that smartphone technology has had on learning in the twenty-first century has been and will continue to be profound. In essence, how we think and learn has changed. Learners’ brains have been rewired in a number of ways. So, as catechists, what new tools do we need to address new mentalities?
Retooling the Catechist’s Toolbox
In essence, how we think and learn has changed. Learners’ brains have been rewired in a number of ways.
In response to these changes in how we think and learn, those who teach, including catechists, must retool to effectively engage the minds and hearts of learners in the twenty-first century. Long gone is the one-size-fits-all approach of the early twentieth-century Baltimore Catechism (which served well for a world that ceased to exist decades ago), where the catechist was the source of all knowledge and students were expected to passively absorb information like a sponge.
The Four Cs of Twenty-First Century Learning Skills
In 2002, the Partnership for 21st Century Learning, a collaboration of teachers, education experts, and business leaders that is also known as P21, was formed to put twenty-first century skills at the center of learning. As part of their work, P21 has identified four broad categories of life skills and personality traits that young people will need to succeed in the twenty-first century. Known as the Four Cs, these skills are:
> Collaboration
> Communication
> Creativity
> Critical Thinking
BECAUSE twenty-first century learner s . . .
. . . are accustomed to switching tasks frequently and find it difficult to avoid distractions and maintain attention for longer periods of intense concentration, catechists must respond by “chunking”—dividing faith formation sessions into a variety of eight- to ten-minute chunks of time and incorporating various learning activities that allow for a shift in energy and enable learners to maintain attention. Displaying a brief agenda or lesson plan for the session can help learners prepare mentally for and get excited about the variety of things they’ll be doing.
. . . are accustomed to intense visual and audio stimuli, catechists must respond by regularly integrating informative audiovisual information and inspiration through multiple forms of media to effectively capture the imagination and attention of learners.
. . . are accustomed to instant, easy access to abundant information and content, catechists must respond by occasionally allowing the use of smartphones or tablets to access content. In addition, catechists can utilize a flipped classroom approach that invites learners to access content before the faith formation session so that the session itself can provide ample opportunities (such as through small groups working on projects, discussing essential questions, or praying together) for learners to apply content to their daily lives and to reflect on how God is active in their lives.
“Your furnace is pretty outdated. I can see the footprints of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.”
. . . are more demanding and critical of the learning experiences they participate in, catechists must respond by giving options and choices with regard to learning activities while also giving learners opportunities to give feedback on the activity(ies) they most enjoy and find most helpful.
. . . expect their learning experiences to be customized to meet their needs, catechists must respond by providing opportunities for learners to identify and share their learning styles (see chapter 6). Catechists can also permit learners to present their work in uniquely personalized ways, including digital storytelling, podcasts, infographics, photo essays, slide presentations, artistic expression, and so on.
Catechists must respond by providing opportunities for learners to identify and share their learning styles.
. . . face greater uncertainty because of the rapidity of change in the world, catechists must respond by identifying and affirming learners’ gifts and talents while encouraging them to focus on hope, confidence, and trusting that God’s plan for them is to prosper. In addition, catechists can offer accompaniment while inviting learners to encounter/enter into mystery as a reality that includes uncertainty but invites a deeper experience of life.
. . . are exposed to social fragmentation and polarization, catechists must respond by emphasizing solidarity and common ground. Likewise, to increase a sense of connectivity to the larger society, catechists can arrange for virtual (video or Zoom) or real-life access to experts (guest speakers from the parish, community, diocese, world) on themes they are exploring in their faith formation sessions.
. . . expect to interact with content and expect the content to be relevant and useful in their daily lives, catechists must respond by giving learners time to both reflect on what they can “do” with what they’re learning and also grapple with open-ended essential questions about how what they’re learning relates to the real world and their real lives. Catechists can also encourage the use of technology to
Jesus and Satan were arguing about who had more computer proficiency. God the Father was tired of all the bickering and said, “Let’s settle this once and for all. You each have sixty minutes to reveal all your computer skills. Ready? Go!” The two typed away feverishly at their keyboards for fifty-nine minutes, but then the power went out. Satan cursed furiously, but Jesus just sighed and sat calmly until the power came back on. Each restarted their computers, but Satan started screaming frantically, “Oh no! I lost everything when the power went out!” Meanwhile, Jesus calmly started printing out all the work he had completed. Satan observed this and became irate, yelling, “Wait! He cheated—how did he do it?” God the Father smiled, shrugged, and said, “Jesus saves.”
enable learners to put their work out into the world. Examples include sharing ideas, projects, and achievements with a larger audience such as their parish, local community, or another parish or school in another part of the country or even the world.
If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.
—John Dewey
. . . often feel alone and disconnected (for many different reasons including family situations, self-esteem issues, bullying, fear, lack of authentic relationships, and so on), catechists must respond by creating and maintaining an authentic welcoming community, and then allowing learners to engage with each other in pairs or small groups on short tasks (cooperative learning, or collaboration). In addition, catechists can view learners as young “peers” whom they are called to accompany, mentor, and apprentice along the journey rather than seeing them as students who are to be taught a subject. Catechetical programs can also gravitate toward faith formation approaches that involve families rather than adhering to the traditional school model.
. . . consider artificial intelligence (AI) as a normative part of their cognitive process, catechists must respond by providing both the necessary principles for critical thinking, decision-making, and discernment as well as opportunities to put such principles into practice.
. . . are experiencing digital burnout or overload, catechists must respond by providing multimodal learning that includes breaks from screen time, including making connections with nature, encounters with beauty in the form of art and music, quiet time, creative expression, and reading/engaging with print materials and other tactile resources.
. . . are exposed to seemingly endless sources of information that may not be dependable, catechists must respond by identifying reliable and trustworthy sources of information about the Catholic faith and by providing a life-giving narrative that is shared by all followers of Jesus Christ.
The Catechist’s Toolbox 2.0 is not a call to make faith formation a digital reality, nor is it a nostalgic call to get rid of technology and return to simpler times. Rather, it is a call to recognize how technology is creating new ways of learning and how we as catechists need effective strategies— tools—to address these new realities and to deepen encounters with Jesus Christ while guarding against some of technology’s more harmful or even toxic effects.
As catechists, we are called to forge deeper into the twenty-first century, confident that the Holy Spirit provides us with the tools we need to effectively proclaim the Good News of Jesus to today’s learners. Thank you for responding to God’s call to serve as a catechist! Now, let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work . . . and let God get to work on us!
Chapter One Shoptalk: The Language of Catechesis
When looking for a gizmo, gadget, or thingamajig at the local home improvement or hardware store, it helps to know the correct name of the tool you need. Likewise, as a catechist, it is good to know the language of faith formation.
Knowing the Language of Faith Formation
Home improvement has a language of its own. The same is true of faith formation. In fact, in many ways, the Church has a language of its own. For our purposes, we need to become more familiar with the language of faith formation, or catechetical language. Even as we move deeper into the twenty-first century and have new words being added to our vocabulary all the time (I saw the word qubit for the first time recently . . . and I still can’t tell you what it means!), much of the language of faith formation is actually quite ancient, even if the words seem new to us.
The Church teaches us the language of faith in order to introduce us to the understanding and the life of faith.
The Church seems to like big words. Here are a few you probably don’t use in everyday conversation:
> Ecclesiology > Episcopacy
> Evangelization > Sanctification
> Magisterium > Ecumenism
> Transubstantiation
In decades past, the Church did such a good job of teaching a language of faith formation for children—CCD—that we are still having a difficult time putting that acronym to rest, even though few people even know what the letters stand for. (For the answer, see the upsidedown feature to the side.)
In recent years, the Church has been emphasizing a different set of words, including kerygma , catechesis, evangelization , mystagogy, and missionary discipleship, in relation to faith formation or religious education. Notice that I did not refer to these words as new. The fact is, the words the Church is now using when it comes to faith formation have been around for centuries. They may seem new to many of us, but to the Church, they are more like family heirlooms.
Let’s start our vocabulary lesson with the words listed in the graphic below. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that all these words derive from the same root word—the Greek word katakein , meaning “to echo” or “to sound again.” When one person echoes another, it means that he or she is imitating or reflecting back what was said or done.
So what do each of these words mean?
Confraternity of Christian Doctrine Do you know what CCD stands for?
A catechism is a written summary of the Church’s understanding of God’s word as revealed through Scripture and Tradition. In a sense, a catechism is the what of our beliefs as Catholics. In recent centuries, it was customary for children to learn their catechism using a question-and-answer format known as the Baltimore Catechism. Today, the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2000) is the official source intended as the principal reference for bishops and catechetical ministers for Catholic doctrine. Catechesis is the process of transmitting the gospel. To help us understand this process, the Church has given us the Directory for Catechesis (2020) and the National Directory for Catechesis (2005). These Church documents help us to understand how we form people in faith.
By words we learn thoughts, and by thoughts we learn life.
—Jean Baptiste Girard
A catechumen is an adult (or child of catechetical age, generally considered the age of seven) who is preparing to receive the sacrament of baptism. Under the guidance of catechists and sponsors, catechumens engage in a process of preparation over an appropriate period of time (usually one or two years) leading to the celebration of baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist at the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday.
The catechumenate is the formal period of preparation for catechumens who are preparing for the sacraments of initiation—baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist. Through the catechumenate (also known as the OCIA; on the next page, see the side feature “Ever heard of the OCIA?”), those preparing for initiation into the Church receive formation and catechesis from catechists and sponsors, who help them enter more deeply into the Catholic way of life.
A catechist is a person (like you!) who is called by the Church to facilitate the process of faith formation in either a parish catechetical program or a Catholic school. Catechists help adults, families, adolescents, and children live lives of discipleship.
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO CCD?
So, why use the term catechesis when people grew so accustomed to using the term CCD? The fact is, CCD primarily referred to something that was for children, as well as something that one completes after a given time of study. Today, we have retrieved the notion of catechesis to capture the broader mission of the Church to proclaim the gospel to all people—adults, youth, and children—in order to “put people in communion with Jesus Christ” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 426), which is a lifelong task.
In recent decades, the Church has made it quite clear that to be a catechist is to have a vocation. The Directory for Catechesis tells us, “The catechist is a Christian who receives a particular calling from God that, when accepted in faith, empowers him for the service of the transmission of faith and for the task of initiating others into the Christian life” (DC , 112). Throughout this book, I use the term catechist to refer to those who serve in the parish religious education program as well as those who serve as teachers of religion in Catholic schools.
Ever heard of the OCIA?
This acronym stands for the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. The OCIA is another name for the catechumenate.
The Instituted Ministry of Catechist
In 2021, Pope Francis, in an effort to heighten awareness of the importance of catechesis, announced that the role of catechist is now to be recognized as a formal instituted ministry in the Church. In the United States, not everyone who serves as a parish catechist is called to be formally recognized in the instituted ministry of catechist. Rather, those people recognized by the bishop as having leadership roles in catechetical ministry (and having fulfilled formation requirements for such a role) are called to be recognized in this formal manner. The presence of a formal, instituted Ministry of Catechist in the diocese does not preclude using the term catechist for all those who, like you, serve in this role in the parish (whether parish religious education or Catholic school teachers), nor should it end the practice of parishes commissioning all catechists at the beginning of the catechetical year (usually on Catechetical Sunday, which, in the United States, is the third Sunday of September).
If you are a Catholic schoolteacher, you are responsible for teaching a variety of subjects throughout the day. Faith formation, however, is more than a subject to be taught—it is an opportunity to facilitate encounters with Christ. By referring to you as a catechist, I want to recognize and affirm your vocation to form disciples of Jesus. To be referred to as a catechist is an honor that the Church bestows only on those who pursue this vocation.
A Catechist’s Role Description
Faith formation, however, is more than a subject to be taught—it is an opportunity to facilitate encounters with Christ.
As a twenty-first-century learner yourself, you’ll enjoy scanning this QR code to view a brief video of Joe sharing an example of a catechist’s role description.
A Few More Words to Learn: Missionary Discipleship, Evangelization, Kerygma, and Mystagogy
Before we venture further, there are a few more words that every catechist should include in their faith formation vocabulary.
Missionary Discipleship— Missionary discipleship is a lifestyle characterized by an intentional commitment to walk with Jesus and invite others to do so. It is not so much about what you do as it is about who you are. As catechists, our primary objective is to form missionary disciples—to call others to a lifestyle change that places Jesus at the center of their lives. To be missionary is to have an outward focus, meaning that discipleship is not a “me and Jesus” reality but rather a call to bring God’s mercy and compassion to others, especially those in need.
Evangelization— Evangelization is an invitation to have one’s life transformed by an ever-deepening relationship with Jesus Christ. This is an ongoing process, not a once-and-done experience, for all followers of Jesus. Nor is it a program to increase church attendance at the parish. Evangelization and catechesis go hand in hand. As catechists, we are always about the task of inviting others to deepen their relationship with Jesus (evangelization), and one of the ways we deepen a relationship with anyone is by learning more about them (catechesis). In essence, evangelization without catechesis would just be a feel-good experience, while catechesis without evangelization would be lifeless and without purpose.
Kerygma—The kerygma (ki-RIG-muh) is the core message of the gospel: that through the life, words, and actions (especially the death and Resurrection) of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we are rescued from sin, restored to our relationship with the Father, and reassured of the presence of the Holy Spirit. I call these the three Rs of our salvation narrative: rescue, restoration, and reassurance. It is the Good News in a nutshell. All of our teaching flows from the kerygma and must contain
The Church exists in order to evangelize.
—Pope Paul VI
A young man attended a retreat at his parish and got fired up about evangelization. When he went back to work at the horse stable where he gave riding lessons, he decided he could evangelize the folks who came for riding lessons. So he taught all the horses to gallop when he said, “Praise the Lord!” and to stop when he said, “Amen!” Those riding with him were amazed to see their horses gallop when he called out, “Praise the Lord!” and come to a stop when he called out, “Amen!” At one point, however, when the young man noticed that the horses were leading the group too close to the edge of a cliff on a narrow mountain trail, the young man hurriedly yelled, “Whoa!” but the horses kept going. Then he remembered and called out, “Amen!” Thankfully, the horses stopped just short of the edge. That is, until a relieved and thankful rider called out, “Praise the Lord!” and communicate the spirit of the kerygma. In other words, as catechists, we are called to be “kerygmatic.” Think of the kerygma as your elevator pitch—the most concise way you could answer the question, “So what is the Good News?” within the time frame of riding an elevator (usually less than thirty seconds).
Mystagogy— Mystagogy (MISS-tuh-go-ghee) simply means “reflection on mystery.” In short, the emphasis on mystagogy is a reminder that we are not teachers of a subject but rather are facilitators of an encounter with Divine Mystery. When mystagogy is practiced in faith formation, the experience looks and feels less like a classroom (less academic) and more like a liturgical experience that includes Scripture, reflection, sharing, music and singing, sign, symbol, ritual, movement, gesture, and silence—all of which are elements of what I like to call a “language of mystery.” It also means that, as a catechist, you are not only a teacher, you are also a mystagogue, or someone who leads others into mystery. More about both in ensuing chapters.
As a catechist, you are not only a teacher, you are also a mystagogue.
John 3:16
One of the most popular examples of a kerygmatic statement can be found in John 3:16—“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” Bam! First floor! Going up!
Expanding Our Vocabulary
Words are immensely powerful. The Gospel of John refers to Jesus as “the Word” that “became flesh” (John 1:14). The language of faith formation is not just a matter of semantics. By using the most appropriate words to describe who we are and what we do, we deepen our own understanding of our share in Jesus’s ministry. As catechists, we partner with pastors and bishops in guiding people to a living faith. This living faith has a language all its own. We can begin to learn the language of faith by referring to who we are and what we do with the proper terms.
Scripture
“As you see on your handouts, today’s topic is original sin.”
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . . And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. JOHN 1:1, 14
Prayer
Lord Jesus, Word made flesh, thank you for inviting me to proclaim you to others. Thank you for filling my life with your word. Help me speak a language of faith that will help others recognize you in their lives and deepen their relationship with you. May your word echo within my heart and within the hearts of those I teach. Amen.
Chapter Two Blueprints: Planning and Preparation
A builder would never attempt to construct a house without first looking at the blueprints. As catechists, if we are going to build a foundation of faith for those we teach, we must prepare and follow a plan.
Planning and Preparation in Catechesis
Some of the most important work that a catechist does takes place before he or she sets foot in the learning space. Planning and preparation—which do not hinder spontaneity but rather enhance and even anticipate it—create a structure, pattern, and flow for a faith formation experience.
The pedagogical formation of the catechist should develop several attitudes in him including . . . t he capacity to prepare an itinerary of faith.
Directory for c atechesis , 149e
Preparing and planning your faith formation experience can be thought of like preparing to have guests for a special dinner. You would plan out the menu; go food shopping; check that you have enough plates, cups, and silverware for everyone who will attend; arrange the table; put out appetizers; provide drinks; and decide what to wear. You may even plan a few topics of conversation! If our guests arrived for dinner and found us running around at the last minute throwing things together on the table and looking through the freezer to find something to toss in the microwave, the success of the evening—and the state of our friendships—would be in jeopardy.
Putting in the Hours
Surveys show that the average full-time teacher puts in between ten and fifteen hours per week preparing lessons. By comparison, then, a catechist should put in between one and two hours of planning per week for teaching one weekly session. With today’s technology, catechists can do much of this preparation on interactive Web sites provided by the publisher of their catechetical curriculum.
Why couldn’t Noah catch many fish?
He didn’t plan ahead. He only brought two worms.
When we entertain, we do all the planning and preparation because we want our guests to know that we care about them and delight in their presence. The same approach should be kept in mind when preparing and planning as a catechist. We want to communicate to those we teach that something incredibly special is about to happen here. Likewise, we want them to know that we care about them and value the relationship we share with them. As a student teacher, I was taught that planning and preparation make up 70 percent of the total act of teaching a lesson. Of course, there may be no way to accurately prove that percentage, but after many years of teaching and serving as a catechist, I have personally found it to be a very valid estimate. Thorough planning and preparation create a framework for the catechist to move forward in the most effective manner, while avoiding or preempting many problems, especially in maintaining discipline. An effective catechist examines the blueprint for the lesson, visualizes every possible scenario, and prepares for it. Let’s take a closer look at preparation and planning.
Long-Range
Planning and preparation make up 70 percent of the total act of teaching a lesson.
Planning— Each session you plan is only part of an overarching plan for the whole year. Make sure you get a sense of the whole calendar year and, even more important, the Church’s liturgical year, to see how all the pieces fit into the bigger picture. Anticipate how each lesson can connect with the seasons and feasts
of the liturgical year as well as how each lesson can build from the previous one and lay a foundation for the next.
Become Familiar with the Catechetical Resource(s) You’ll Be Using— Do a deep dive into the resources you will be using (text series, video series, online resources, etc.), especially their philosophy, strategies, approaches, strengths, and weaknesses. Zero in on a set of lessons or a unit to see how each lesson fits in with the whole program.
Get to Know Your Learners— Learn about the age group you will be teaching and adjust as needed to meet their unique needs. Here’s a quick look at characteristics of various age groups:
• Early Childhood (ages 3–5), preschool and kindergarten— In general, children at this age learn through their senses; are enormously curious; love to ask questions; have vivid imaginations; love to sing, move, rhyme, and dance; need structure and routine; have rapidly expanding cognitive abilities but short attention spans; and express themselves symbolically through play as well as through color and design.
• Primary Grades (ages 6-9), grades 1 through 3— In general, children at this age are filled with curiosity and are eager to explore the world around them; are experiencing rapid growth and have boundless energy; have endless imaginations and a natural sense of wonder; are just beginning to form a conscience; are the center of their own world; are motivated to do good and avoid punishment; need a good deal of affirmation, security, and structure; are capable of reflecting for brief periods of time; can take simple prayers to heart (to memory) and can pray spontaneously; and are naturally drawn to ritual.
• Intermediate Grades (ages 9-11), grades 4 through 6— Children at these ages are less literal and less fantasy-oriented; are experiencing rapid cognitive growth; are highly influenced by their peers; are into “hero worship”; tend to be rabid readers; are more aware of adult issues and current events; tend to be idealistic and concerned about fairness; are eager to be helpful to others; want to please their parents and enjoy family time but are also growing in independence; are capable of reflecting for slightly longer periods of time; are more prone to bullying; and are becoming obsessed with self-identity and self-image.
Junior highs will cheerfully comply with their leaders’ requests not to stand on the chairs.
• Junior High (ages 12-14), grades 7 and 8—Young people at this age experience rapid growth and profound changes (both physically and emotionally); can be awkward socially and physically; can be inconsistent, moody, and jumpy; need support, guidance, attention, and reassurance; are capable of abstract thought and critical thinking; are beginning to discern gifts, talents, and even vocation; are easily bored and distracted and tend to “push the envelope”; are hungry for active learning experiences; begin to reject childhood notions of faith; are grappling with more complex moral issues and decisions; want guidance and yet push back against authority; are increasingly paradoxical (e.g., wanting freedom but needing and craving structure); and respond well to being treated as adults.
• High School (ages 14-18), grades 9 through 12— Most young people at this age are moving from concrete to abstract thinking; are developing the capacity to be self-reflective; are experimenting and exploring; are in search of identity; are influenced by peers and by popular culture; fluctuate between a demand for independence and a need for guidance; experience mood swings as well as swings from restlessness to fatigue to increased energy; have a developing sexual awareness; are preoccupied with changes in body size and shape; are eager for change and impatient with the pace of it; often perceive their own problems, feelings, and experiences as being unique to themselves; often lack impulse control; and make decisions based on feelings rather than a rational thought process.
Adolescence is not a pathology we must combat. It is a normal, natural part of growing up, of the life of our young people.
Science teaches us that, as adolescents mature, their brains go through intensive remodeling, and the last part of the brain to develop is the prefrontal cortex, which is the decision-making part of the brain. As a result, when it comes to making decisions, teens tend to rely on the part of the brain that is associated with emotions and impulses. As a catechist, this knowledge can help you understand the behavior of teens, which can often be impulsive and lacking in awareness of consequences, while, at the same time, you are helping to lay the foundation for this very development to take place.
• Adult— In general, adult learners are self-directed; desire ownership of their learning experiences; expect practical, real-life connections to all learning; expect to grow and see tangible results from learning; expect to achieve a specific goal and learn things that will help them cope with life tasks and life changes; do not want to be “talked at” but prefer experiential learning; prefer to engage in meaningful conversation and meaningful action; expect to be treated as equals; expect to be invited to share their wisdom and experience; and expect learning to be a social experience that affords them an opportunity to interact with others.
Examine the Leader Materials and Ancillary Online Resources—A leader guide or catechist manual is often a catechist’s best friend. Most catechetical programs provide leader resources or catechist manuals that lay out the lesson and offer step-by-step instructions. The more you familiarize yourself with the leader resources as well as ancillary online resources, the better you will be able to facilitate your session and still leave room for spontaneity.
Pray—As you sit down to plan a session, take some time to pause and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. Do your planning and preparation in a prayerful environment. Light a candle. Put on some instrumental music. Place a Bible on the table next to you. Ask the Holy Spirit to inspire and guide you, and to give you the help you need to be focused, loving, and creative.
Do your planning and preparation in a prayerful environment.
Identify the Big Idea of Your Session—As you do your planning, a good question to ask yourself is What’s the Big Idea? of your session. In most cases, you can find the Big Idea stated clearly in your catechist’s manual or leader guide, often embedded in the chapter title or theme. Once you know what your one-sentence Big Idea is, you’ll be able to announce it to your learners and return to it over and over throughout the lesson so that learners can repeat it to their parents when they are asked to share a takeaway from the lesson. Find ways to announce the Big Idea of your session boldly, clearly, and repetitively, writing it on the board, including it in the PowerPoint presentation, printing it on handouts, and, of course, returning to it as your discussion progresses.
Know Your Learning Outcomes— Have a clear knowledge of what your learners are supposed to know and be able to do because of the session. Learning outcomes focus on what the learners will know and do, not on what you are going to do. Likewise, they must be stated in measurable terms so that you will be able to assess whether the outcomes have been achieved or not. (For more on learning outcomes, see chapter 7.)
Prepare to Follow a Catechetical Process—Think of your session as a movement: you want to move your learners from where they are to where Jesus invites them to be. This movement, called the catechetical process, involves four steps (drawn from the Finding God curriculum by Loyola Press):
1. Engage the life experiences of the learners.
2. Explore the concepts and content.
3. Reflect prayerfully on how the concepts connect with life experience.
4. Respond with ideas and strategies for a new way of living.
Simply put, you take learners from where they are and move them closer to Jesus. St. Ignatius of Loyola described this as “enter through their door but be sure to leave through your door,” which means a “door” that enables them to step closer to Jesus. More about the catechetical process in chapter 4 , “Assembly Instructions: The Catechetical Process.”
Ignatius the Catechist
St. Ignatius, who believed firmly in the importance of education, and especially education in the faith, often assumed the role of catechist. He would stand on a street corner ringing a bell to summon children for their catechism lesson!
Visualize Yourself Leading the Session— Use your imagination to visualize the session you are preparing to lead. Imagine every possible scenario and your reactions. Keep a notepad to jot down thoughts or ideas that can now become part of your overall plan. Write down a list of materials you will need for certain situations and activities. Imagine problems that might arise and visualize how you may best handle them. With this visualization complete, you will feel as though you’ve already led this session once and are now building upon it.
If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.
—Yogi Berra
Get Your Materials Ready— B e sure that you have all the materials you will need to facilitate the session effectively. There’s nothing worse than reaching a point in the session when you tell learners to cut pictures out of magazines only to find out that you don’t have scissors (or magazines).
Have Plan B Ready— In the course of visualizing the session ahead of time, you may discover that what you’re hoping to accomplish may not work. Always have another option ready in case something falls flat or just isn’t working the way you hoped it would. Develop the habit of taking notes afterward about what worked and what didn’t work so that next time you can be more effective.
The Catechist’s PhD: It’s not unusual to see catechists heading to their learning space laden down with supplies and resources. A catechist I know once referred to this as her PhD: Pull, Haul, and Drag!
