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Perspectives on Sex
This handout provides several comments from teenagers about sex. It can be used as a discussion starter or writing prompt.
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Three Perspectives on Drugs
This handout provides three different comments from teens about their drug and alcohol usage. This can be used as a discussion starter.
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Cases to Examine: What Are We Afraid Of?
Students read several real-life scenarios and explore the many fears, anxieties, and pressures that influence decisions.
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What Can a Person Do?
This article gives several suggestions of how an individual can bring about distributive justice.
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The Plight of the Worlds' Children
This handout provides several statistics and pieces of information about the alarming needs of children in our world.
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Correlation to Curriculum Framework
Correlation to Curriculum Framework Course IV: Jesus Christ’s Mission Continues in the Church from The Church: Christ in the World Today.
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Matrimony (Why Make it Catholic)
A short video from Busted Halo that explains the Sacrament of Marriage.
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The Trinity - 3 in 1
A short video that uses the three forms of water (solid, liquid, gas) to explain the trinity.
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Tradition – Who We Are
A brief explanation of tradition versus Tradition. A short video about how Catholic traditions that have been handed down help God reveal himself to us.
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The Paschal Mystery
A personal reflection on how Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ascension save us from sin and death and bring us to new life in him.
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Asking the Saints and Mary for Prayers
A personal reflection on why Catholics ask the saints and Mary for prayers.
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Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory
An easy-to-understand explanation of what Catholics believe about Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory.
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Jesus’ Unconditional Love
A personal story about turning to Jesus for help and loving others unconditionally, just as Jesus loves us.
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What is Catholic Social Teaching?
A personal story about living out the principles of Catholic Social Teaching.
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Catholicism is Universal
A personal story about discovering how Catholicism is truly universal.
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Confirmation (Why We're Confirmed)
A short video, from Busted Halo, that explains the Sacrament of Confirmation.
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How the Trinity is Like an Apple Tree
A wonderful analogy on how the Trinity is like an apple tree.
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Chapter 44 Summary: Respecting Sexuality
A nice summary of the Sixth and Ninth Commandments, and how God wants us to conduct ourselves in sexual matters.
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Handbook Session Overviews
Overviews of the five sections in the Catholic Connections Handbook for Middle Schoolers, Second Edition.
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Catechist Guide Overviews
As stated in other sections of this online resource, three catechist guides accompany the sessions presented in The Catholic Connections Handbook for Middle School- ers, Second Edition (CCH). Each session in the CCH is supported by a session in the …
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Program Scheduling
A guide for how to schedule programs based on the Catholic Connections program.
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Getting Started
This segment will help you to get started with Catholic Connections. First it de- scribes details about the program and section features. Then it describes specific “getting started” tasks and provides a checklist for your planning.
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Catechist Tip Sheet 6: Using Scripture
A tip sheet for catechists focusing on using scripture.
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Catechist Tip Sheet 5: Helping Young Adolescents to Pay Attention
A tip sheet for catechists focusing on helping young adolescents to pay attention.
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Catechist Tip Sheet 4: Effective Group Management
A tip sheet for catechists focusing on effective group management.
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Catechist Tip Sheet 3: Effective Storytelling
A tip sheet for catechists focusing on effective storytelling.
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Catechist Tip Sheet 2: Active Learning and Faith Formation
A tip sheet for catechists focusing on active learning and faith formation.
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Hearing the Voice of God
A personal story about tuning out the noise and tuning in to God through prayer and quiet reflection.
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Touching the Lives of Others
A personal story about the mission and ministry of those in consecrated life.
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Recognizing the Presence of God
A personal story about recognizing the presence of God, and answering his call with confidence and joy.
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Celebrating Life: The Human Person and the Rules of God
A personal story about the life affirming ‘yeses’ within the Church.
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The Gift of Catholic Education: A Treasure to Inherit
A personal story about Catholic education.
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Unity Under Christ
A personal story about being open in sharing our faith and receiving the faith of others.
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Bad News Becomes Good
A personal story about the Parable of the Fig Tree from the Gospel of Luke.
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Use Your Imagination
A personal story about experiencing the stories of the New Testament in new ways through imagination.
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Make a Connection with People in Need
A personal story about having a spirit of solidarity with those in need.
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What are you Called to do?
A personal story about actively living out the principles of social justice.
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The Wise Old Man on the Porch
A personal story about seeing the Church as a wise elder sitting on a porch.
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It's Never Too Late to Claim Chastity
A personal story about how it’s never too late to recommit to chastity.
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Obedience to God's Will: Our Greatest Happiness
A personal story about how rules are created out of love and how obedience to those rules ensures lasting happiness.
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Fall in Love With God
A personal story about being intentional about our Christian discipleship.
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Find the Source of Salvation
A personal story about the mission of the Church to share the good news of salvation with others.
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Three Renewal Movements
Work with your group to complete the section of this handout that corresponds to your assigned topic.
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Living in a Material World
A worksheet where students are asked to rank items on their necessity for living a happy life.
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What Do Sisters Do?
An article that discusses the roles and responsibilities of religious sisters.
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The Formation of a Priest
A PowerPoint about a priest’s formation through their family, discernment, the vocations director, minor seminary, and theology studies.
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The Formation of a Priest
While watching the PowerPoint “The Formation of a Priest”, the students must fill out this worksheet by filling in the blanks.
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Catholic / catholic
A worksheet that visually explores the differences between Catholic and catholic.
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The Holy Trinity
A short video explaining the Holy Trinity and the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity.
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Jesus and Mary Compared to Adam and Eve
A brief clip on the similarities and differences between Adam and Eve, and Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary.
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Does Excommunication Condemn Someone to Hell?
A brief discussion on if excommunication condemns someone to Hell.
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The Cardinal Virtues
A handout on defining the Cardinal Virtues and describing how a person who exhibits the Cardinal Virtues acts.
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The Ten Commandments
A worksheet focused on what the Ten Commandments teach us about living in right relationship with God and with our neighbors.
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Interview Questions for Family Members
Several interview questions for family members on family life and the Fourth Commandment.
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Honoring God
A worksheet on honoring God based on students’ knowledge of the first three Commandments.
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What Makes Something Moral?
Two scenarios that involve people making moral choices. Students are asked to identify the object, intention, and circumstances surrounding the act in the scenario and indicate whether the choice is morally good or morally bad.
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Vocabulary for Unit 5
A list of vocabulary terms and definitions for Unit 5 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 5
A grading rubric for the final performance task project options for Unit 5 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 5
Several final performance task project options for Unit 5 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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Just a Closer Walk with Thee
A worksheet where students are asked to read and reflect on the Gospel of Luke’s powerful image of how Christ is present in the celebration of the Eucharist through the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus.
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What Is a Symbol?
A worksheet on symbols, their abstract meanings, and how they are integral parts of Church liturgies.
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Sacred Time: The Liturgical Calendar
A worksheet where students are asked to fill in information on the liturgical calendar.
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Sacraments as Privileged Encounters with Jesus Christ
A worksheet that looks at the seven Sacraments.
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Vocabulary for Unit 4
A list of vocabulary terms and definitions from Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 4
An evaluation rubric for the project ideas from Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 4
Several project ideas that coincide with Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth, Third Edition.
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World Religions and the Catholic Church
An activity where students are asked to research several religious traditions, complete a comparison chart, and then reflect on their findings.
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Marks of the Church
A chart that students are asked to fill in with at least two examples of ways the Church models the four marks of the Church, and at least two examples of ways they model the four marks of the Church.
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Five Models of the Church
An activity where students are given a chart containing the meanings, strengths, and limitations of each of the five models of the Church and asked to answer related questions.
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Vocabulary for Unit 4
Vocabulary terms, and their definitions, for Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth Teacher Guide.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 4
An evaluation rubric for the final performance task options for Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth Teacher Guide.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 4
Several final performance tasks options for Unit 4 of The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth Teacher Guide.
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Interview Questions for a Practicing Catholic
A list of interview questions to ask a practicing Catholic.
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Chalk Talk
Steps on how to facilitate a silent conversation in writing in response to a topic or question posed.
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Bloom's Taxonomy
A short reading where the six levels of Bloom’s taxonomy of the cognitive domain are explained.
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Sustained Silent Reading
An article on how to use sustained silent reading as an effective tool in the classroom.
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Learning about Learning
A review of students’ understanding of unit material and their learning experiences. This review consists of several questions and encourages additional written feedback from students.
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Socratic Seminar Observation Form - Student
A student observation form for the Socratic seminar debate method.
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Socratic Seminar Symbol Codes
Socratic seminar symbol codes to help quickly evaluate a seminar speaker.
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The Socratic Seminar
A reading on the process and expectations for the Socratic Seminar debate.
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Expert Groups
A reading on how expert groups are a valuable classroom instructional strategy that helps to build student confidence, class collaboration, and expertise in chosen topics.
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Using Graphic Organizers
A reading on how to use graphic organizers as learning tools to deepen understanding.
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Audits: Point of Inquiry
This document explains the educational benefits of an audit, instructions on how to assign an audit, and an example of an audit handout.
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Justice Conversation Starters
A list of several conversation starters or self-reflection questions on the topic of justice.
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Sabbath Reflection Grid
An organizational grid to help students reflect on how they spent their Sabbath.
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Using Multiple Intelligences in the Educational Process
A reading on using multiple intelligences in the educational process, including a chart on ways to use each intelligence in religious education.
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Vocabulary for Unit 1
Vocabulary terms for Unit 1 of "The Sacraments: Encounters with Christ."
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Finding Meaning: Applying Gospel Values at Work
A discussion among Notre Dame staff regarding ways in which we can live gospel values while working.
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Thomas Merton - What is Contemplation?
A montage of pictures during which an excerpt of Thomas Merton's definition of 'contemplation' is read. Click above to access this online resource for Live Jesus in Our Hearts: Revelation and the Old Testament. Revelation and the Old Testament is …
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Community in the Catholic Church
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the social nature of the Catholic Church, especially with reference to community and salvation.
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Guidelines for Assigning and Assessing PowerPoint Presentations
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses how to assign and how to assess PowerPoint Presentations in the classroom, including a grading rubric.
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The Fishbowl Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. Teachers may use it as a guide for a Fishbowl discussion technique.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 6
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers various project ideas for students who have recently studied ecclesiology, especially ecumenism and interreligious dialogue.
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"Tools of Evangelization" Word Search
Please note that this document is only available as a PDF.
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WebQuest
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using WebQuests as a classroom learning tool.
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Creating Photo Stories
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It gives ideas for using PhotoStory in the classroom, available for free download.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 4
This resource is part o the Living in Christ Series. It offers ideas for final assessment activities for students studying apostolic succession, sacraments, and the four marks of the Church.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 3
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for assessing students on projects that communicate key ideas about the Catholic Church and its nature.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 3
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers various project ideas for students who have recently studied eccesiology, especially the nature and role of the Catholic Church.
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Using the A to Z Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the A-Z Method of pre- and post- assessment.
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The Holy Spirit
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a brief introduction to the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.
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Using Small Group Hands On Experiences
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using small group, hands-on activities in the classroom.
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Media Literacy
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses several modes of communication and the importance of media literacy education.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 1
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for assessing students on projects that communicate various important ideas about the Church in the world today.
Presentation
The Mystery of Suffering - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. Rather than a philosophical or theological discussion of the mystery of suffering, this resource asks students to meditate and think about Jesus' example of suffering for people he loves.
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Symbols of the Paschal Mystery - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It uses vivid images to discuss the various signs and symbols that represent the Paschal Mystery. Students are asked to reflect on why a certain symbol is significant.
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What the Incarnation Is and Is Not - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a number of statements about common ideas or misconceptions about the Incarnation. Students can answer 'true' or 'false', following which, the teacher or catechist can explain the correct answer.
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Effects of Grace - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It presents information on the effects of sin and the effects of grace on human relationships with God, others, and self.
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Written Conversations
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It explains the use of written conversations to facilitate classroom learning and dialogue.
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Service and Justice: A Conversion of Heart
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses 5 stages in introducing service learning to a classrooom setting.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 6
This resource is from the Living in Christ Series. It offers various project ideas for students who have recently studied the Paschal Mystery, especially the themes of redemptive suffering and grace.
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Treating Sensitive Topics
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses and gives tips on how to approach sensitive topics in a classroom environment.
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The Interfaith Classroom
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses techniques and challenges for teaching Catholic themes in an interfaith classroom environment.
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The Powerful Symbol of the Cross
This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can reflect the difference between symbols and signs, and do a project to create their own symbol of the Cross.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 4
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. Teachers may use this guide to assess students for communicating key ideas from the Paschal Mystery in a project that the teacher assigns.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 4
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. If offers various project ideas for students who have recently studied the Paschal Mystery and the redemptive nature of Jesus' suffering.
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I Know, I Think I Know, I Want to Know
This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can classify information being introduced into categories of their own knowledge level.
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Written Conversations
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of classroom discussions as well as suggesting new styles of this method.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 3
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for assessing students on projects about the Paschal Mystery, especially the accounts of Jesus' public ministry in the New Testament.
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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 3
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers project ideas for students who have recently studied the Paschal Mystery, especially the life and ministry of Jesus Christ in the Gospels.
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Word Splash
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses and explains the value of using a Word Splash for classroom learning.
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Hevruta: Learning Together
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It explains the classroom discussion method of Hevruta, an ancient Jewish practice of reading aloud and discovering that each text has several layers of meaning. It can also be used with …
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Training Students to Read Aloud
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for helping students become comfortable with reading aloud.
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Critical Questioning Method of Engaging with Texts
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It discusses methods for encouraging students to engage texts they are reading on a deeper level to benefit their learning and the classroom dialogue.
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Using Primary Sources
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using primary source texts in the classroom.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 2
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for assessing students for projects on the Paschal Mystery, especially the notion of covenant throughout the New and Old Testaments.
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Rubric for Final Performance Tasks for Unit 1
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a guide for assessing student projects that communicate some basic ideas of the Paschal Mystery: the Fall, the need for salvation, and the redemptive acts of Jesus Christ.
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Preassessment Statements
This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers several statements with which students may agree or disagree as a preassessment tool for teaching the Paschal Mystery.
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Introduction to Salvation History - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint presentation is part of the Living in Christ Series. It explores salvation history, the transmission of Divine Revelation, and the role of the Magisterium.
Presentation
Jesus - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It explores the terms Savior and Redeemer, as well as other images used in the New Testament, to understand who Jesus Christ is.
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Introducing the Trinity: God Is Three-in-One - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses various imagery and scriptural passages that highlight the distinct persons of the Trinity.
Presentation
The Development of Catholic Trinitarian Theology - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It gives an overview of the development of Trinitarian theology in the Cathlic Church, including the context and the main heresies to be opposed in the early Church.
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Introducing the Trinity: Central Mystery of Faith - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. Using imagery, scripture and analogy, it explores the central mystery of the Christian faith: the belief in the Trinity.
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The Paschal Mystery
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers an introduction to the Paschal Mystery including the root of the words, its effects, and theories of how the salvation of mankind precisely transpires through Jesus' suffering, death …
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3 Week Discipleship Integration Plan
This resource is a part of the Living in Christ Series. The 3 Week Discipleship Integration Plan is a helpful tool for setting goals and charting progress in various areas of discipleship.
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Definitions and Application of Theological Terms
This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can use this chart to fill in the definiton of various terms, then find a practical application for their life.
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Portfolio Instruction
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers instruction to students who must put together a portfolio of their readings, writings and assignments from lessons on Jesus and Christology.
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Student Notes for Unit 8
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can review main ideas from studying Jesus Christ, especially faith and discipleship.
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Cross the Line
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It introduces a method of classroom discussion that is interactive and a part of the bodily-kinesthetic learning method. Students move to indicate their responses to various questions.
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Review of Concepts for Jesus Chirst: God's Love Made Visible
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can review key concepts about the person of Jesus Christ.
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Review of Concepts for Jesus Chirst: God's Love Made Visible
This handout is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can review the main ideas from studying the person of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
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Using Venn Diagrams
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using Venn Diagrams for classroom learning.
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Using a Wiki for Group Projects
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the use of Wikis for classroom group projects, including some suggestions and caveats.
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Review of Concepts for Jesus Chirst: God's Love Made Visible
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may use it to review key concepts about the person of Jesus Christ, his disciples, and his mother Mary.
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Review of Concepts for Jesus Chirst: God's Love Made Visible
This review is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may use it to review key ideas from studying the person of Jesus Christ.
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A Gallery Walk - Discussion Technique
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It is an instructional article for teachers to learn how to administer a "Gallery Walk" discussion technique.
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Salvation: Different Theories
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers an overview of some of the main theories of salvation, including the Prophetic, Sacrificial, Ransom, Divinization, Vicarious, Moral Exemplar, and Penal Substitution models.
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Introduction to Revelation
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers an overview and introduction to the Revelation in the Catholic Church, including Natural and Divine Revelation and information the Church Father and the Second Vatican Council.
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Socratic Seminar Symbol Codes
This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers a standard for assessing student participation in a socratic seminar and/or class discussion.
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Using the Think-Pair-Share Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the Think-Pair-Share Method of classroom learning and discussion.
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Using a Mind Map
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It introduces and explains the concept and method of Mind Maps as a classroom tool.
Presentation
Finding God and Being Found by God - PowerPoint
This PowerPoint is part of the Living in Christ Series. It is a great introduction to what God desires from humans and why God chooses to reveal Himself to us.
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Using Rubrics to Assess Work
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It explains the value of using rubrics to assess student work.
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Using Final Performance Tasks to Assess Understanding
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using Final Performance Tasks to assess students.
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Rubric for an Oral Presentation
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. Teachers may use this as a guide for assessing students on oral presentations.
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Student Evaluation for the Socratic Seminar
This rubric is part of the Living in Christ Series. Teachers may use it to evaluate students on their participation in a Socratic Seminar.
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The Socratic Seminar
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. Teachers may use it as a guide to using the Socratic Method in classroom discussion.
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Gospel Comparison Chart
This chart helps teachers and students observe the differences between the various contexts, themes, audiences, and time frames of the four Gospels.
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Blogging and Beyond
This article is from the Living in Christ Series. It offers an overview of what blogging is and how it can be integrated in the classroom. Several suggested blogs are featured at the end of the article.
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Setting Up a Blog
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It gives an introduction and overview of blogging and its educational value.
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Compare and Contrast: Abraham and Moses
In this exercise the students compare and contrast the covenant experiences of Abraham and Moses to gain a deeper understanding of the role of covenant in the history of the Jewish people.
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Using Quotations
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It explains the value of using quotations to facilitate classroom discussions.
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Using Google Earth
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers an introduction to the use of Google Earth in the classroom.
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Using the Found-Read Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the "Found-Read" Method to facilitate classroom learning and discussion.
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Using the Take-a-Stand Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the Take-a-Stand Method.
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Check Your Understanding
This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. It serves as a review of several important terms and asks students to define, associate, and put the term into the context of Salvation History.
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Using the Barometer Method
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the Barometer method to facilitate classroom discussion.
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Using the Jigsaw Process
This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the value of using the Jigsaw Process to facilitate classroom learning and discussion.
