Catechist Discussion (for middle school age kids): Do You Ever Feel Like It's an Uphill Battle

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billy15 said:
So, I kind of want to use this as a sounding board. This is my first full year as being a catechist. I’m in my late 20’s, I feel on fire for my faith, and as my wife and I just moved to a new parish, I wanted to do something to get involved. I wanted to be a good witness to others and teach others about Christ; so I figured I’d become a catechist, even though the prospect frightened me… and still kind of does.

Unfortunately, sometimes I don’t know if I’m reaching these sixth graders. Some of them seem to be paying attention, but out of the nine kids in my class, only two seem to regularly attend Mass each Sunday. Then, today, I asked who had heard of the Immaculate Conception. Two had heard of it, but didn’t have a clue what it was about, the other seven all said they had no idea an had never heard of it in their lives. Which led to the next question: what’s a Holy Day of Obligation. Three kids had heard of the term, but they said they could not explain it. The other six had never heard of the term before.

Are all parents of CCD children derelict in their duties? Sometimes I feel like everything I’m doing goes over their heads, but then there’s other times where things really seem to be clicking for them. However, they just aren’t getting to Mass. And there’s hardly any accountability aside from Mass reflection sheets, which I’ve made mandatory. No idea what the other teachers, save one, is doing with them. In 2 weeks, I plan on showing them a 25-minute edited video of Fr. Larry Richards “The Mass Explained”. He’s so dynamic I’m hoping this wakes some of the kids up.

So, i dunno… it’d be nice of this could be a place for other catechists to vent, give advice, talk. Just because outside my wife, I really have no one to discuss these things with. Hopefully something fruitful can come from this thread. I guess with that being sad, I ask for prayers for these 9 children, their families, and me to teach them something that sticks…
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I was one of those kids who got sent to catechism class but was essentially raised as an atheist. Never went to mass and had parents who were and still are at times anti-Catholic.

The seeds that were planted would grow but were mowed down before it had a chance to grow a few leaves. When I started getting curious about the Church and the faith it taught, those seeds may still have been viable because they sprouted again.

So have faith. You can only do your part but trust God to hear your prayers. I am now trying my best to nurture those plants that have grown from those seeds and by God’s grace they would at times bear fruit.
 
I’m sorry if this is something you’d prefer not to read, but had you considered that you may be part of the problem? I had a deep and and meaningful religious education while attending public school and growing up in a broken, secular home in which neither parent attended mass. I was blessed with CCD teachers who engaged me in religious and moral discussions and brought the church to life for me.

I found this post after searching on ‘CCD curriculum’ because I’m concerned that my own kids are not having the same experience. Many of the responses to the original post clearly demonstrated that there are still catechists who are working to create this same connection, but so many others saddened me. Turning a conversation about faith into a graded assignment? Substituting a video for human connection? This is very much the CCD experience my kids are having. I am grateful to those who give up their time to teach CCD, but do we you really think this will pull kids towards the Church?
 
Re above comment, yeah, but it’s the OP’s first year, and who knows what standards are set for him by the parish system regarding attendance, homework, tests. I’m with you about no videos, etc. too, but again, the first year can tough and a lot of 1st year catechists spend the whole time just trying not to drown. It’s a tough gig, and while few are called, even fewer are chosen.

I’m lucky to have a supportive DRE that doesn’t make me do homework, tests, games, crafts, videos, or anything else I don’t think is very effective, but I bet I’m in a minority in that respect.
 
kkollwitz said:
Re above comment, yeah, but it’s the OP’s first year, and who knows what standards are set for him by the parish system regarding attendance, homework, tests. I’m with you about no videos, etc. too, but again, the first year can tough and a lot of 1st year catechists spend the whole time just trying not to drown. It’s a tough gig, and while few are called, even fewer are chosen.

I’m lucky to have a supportive DRE that doesn’t make me do homework, tests, games, crafts, videos, or anything else I don’t think is very effective, but I bet I’m in a minority in that respect.
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So what do you do that is effective?
 
Evangelize the kids with the Bible. They have no textbook, no homework, nothing but them, me, a whiteboard and a Bible. But this might not work for everybody- other things may be more effective for other folks. But nobody should be stuck with doing what’s ineffective.
 
Thank you for your response; and for taking the time to work with the ‘source material’. It seems like there’s a great deal of effort being made to engage with kids either via artifice (crafts) or authority (homework) when we’ve been given what is almost unarguably the most engaging text in human history. Things don’t hang around for two millennia because they are uninteresting.
 
Yes to above. I changed my catechizing to using only the Bible in my class about 8 years ago and it has been terrific. Like some famous saint said: Ignorance of Scripture is Ignorance of Christ,
 
TomAquino said:
I’m sorry if this is something you’d prefer not to read, but had you considered that you may be part of the problem? I had a deep and and meaningful religious education while attending public school and growing up in a broken, secular home in which neither parent attended mass. I was blessed with CCD teachers who engaged me in religious and moral discussions and brought the church to life for me.

I found this post after searching on ‘CCD curriculum’ because I’m concerned that my own kids are not having the same experience. Many of the responses to the original post clearly demonstrated that there are still catechists who are working to create this same connection, but so many others saddened me. Turning a conversation about faith into a graded assignment? Substituting a video for human connection? This is very much the CCD experience my kids are having. I am grateful to those who give up their time to teach CCD, but do we you really think this will pull kids towards the Church?
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I certainly hope I’m not part of the problem, because that would make me feel like absolute ****, to be honest. In your view, what way would I be part of the problem, and by “problem”, are you referring to the problem of the kids not paying attention, or how the parents are derelict in their duties as examples of the Faith?

I always try to engage the kids and moral or religious discussion, but the group of 6th graders I have aren’t the most talkative. It’s hard to get a real back and forth discussion going on issue, and I end up talking way more than the kids. I also don’t give homework. All they get to take home each week are their Sunday Mass reflection sheets that are required for every grade in our program. And I don’t feel like I’m substituting a video for human connection… some kids are visual and react better to videos like this than me just talking to them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcB7Uem00n4

I gave them a really nice testimonial today on how and why the Eucharist was important to me, and recounted a time where i was working 7/12s for a few months, and could only get to Mass a couple of those Saturday evenings when I was let out after 10 hours. It was my hope that a testimonial, from my life, would do some good. Then, a little later we watched some of Fr. Larry’s video, which I prefaced with saying we would have a discussion following the video. A few kids really liked the fact that Fr. stressed the Real Presence so much. The Real Presence is not something their past teachers have really focused on since second grade. The discussion didn’t last as long since we ran out of time, but I had the kids write down some important things they learned, and questions they had. I have at least 10 or 12 REALLY GOOD questions I have to answer, and plan to address next week. This will involve me talking a lot to answer them. My only concern is how to go about this without boring them, because I can see their eyes glaze over when I talk too long. Then, when I try to get discussion going, it only comes from a few of the kids. So I understand the importance of being personal, but what I struggle with, is how to do so without the kids checking out?
Re above comment, yeah, but it’s the OP’s first year, and who knows what standards are set for him by the parish system regarding attendance, homework, tests. I’m with you about no videos, etc. too, but again, the first year can tough and a lot of 1st year catechists spend the whole time just trying not to drown. It’s a tough gig, and while few are called, even fewer are chosen.
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I’m lucky to have a supportive DRE that doesn’t make me do homework, tests, games, crafts, videos, or anything else I don’t think is very effective, but I bet I’m in a minority in that respect.
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Thank you for understanding it is my first year. The thing is, and I learned this at our catechist’s “meeting” earlier this week… there’s some sense of uniformity in the curriculum, but in other aspects, such as the actual CONTENT being taught… it’s all over the board. It’s hard for me to know how much these kids know until I specifically ask them. And I’ve been trying anything and everything so far in regards to methods of teaching. Like I said, sometimes videos, sometimes talking, sometimes reading the text/Scripture, sometimes discussion, sometimes praying the rosary/Divine Mercy, or sometimes something spontaneous like I mentioned earlier:
… such as yesterday where I had everyone get up and walk around the room in a line pretending they were a train. We just read how God revealed himself as the Creator to Moses in the burning bush; that God was I AM. I wanted to drive home the point that God was the Creator of all things, and thought this would be a good moment to explain St. Thomas Aquinas’ First Way.
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I drew some pictures on the board too.

But I’m not a teacher by trade. I just want to spread the Good News and do whatever God’s Will is. It sounds like kkollwitz has a lot of experience; I don’t. Which is why I’m open to all these suggestions. I think I’m going to do a form of Jeopardy next week to get the kids a good review in on topics from recent chapters in our curriculum. This was a game I remember being fun from my grade school days some of my teachers would often do. I also plan to make use of the suggestion to take the kids into church within the next couple weeks. Explain some things that are going on, or maybe have the pastor waiting in there to answer questions.
 
kkollwitz said:
Evangelize the kids with the Bible. They have no textbook, no homework, nothing but them, me, a whiteboard and a Bible. But this might not work for everybody- other things may be more effective for other folks. But nobody should be stuck with doing what’s ineffective.
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But kkollwitz, maybe you can answer me why games are such a bad idea. I don’t do crafts at all. Or singing, which some teachers do. Every other teacher at the school (it seems) says games help their class immensely, and recommend I do more. I also want to ask you, how do you talk to the kids without boring them. If I were to stand up there with just a Bible and whiteboard for 90 minutes, those kids would be asleep. Actually, I did this once in a shortened 45 minute class… it didn’t work too well, even when we had some discussion going. I know you acknowledged this might not work for everyone, and it would seem so in my case. I’m still curious how you make it work though. How old are the kids you’re teaching?
 
billy15 said:
I certainly hope I’m not part of the problem, because that would make me feel like absolute ****, to be honest.
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You are not part of the problem. The thing is, you asked perfect strangers to tell you how to do your job better, and that is going to yield a mixture of good and bad advice. The way that our pastors and catechists teach the faith brings out very strong opinions in Catholics, but we don’t know your kids, their parents, or anything about your situation.

This is your first year. Your job at this point is to throw a whole lot of things at the wall and see what sticks. Some of your ideas will go down in flames and you’ll have to throw them away. Others will really connect with the kids. If you’re never failing, then you’re not doing your job properly. Be self-reflective and open to change, talk to your pastor about his vision, and pray a lot. The opinions of anonymous people on an internet forum is of dubious value at best, if we’re really being honest.

One resource I will mention that my students really love is a program called Kahoot: getkahoot.com/ . You can design your own quizzes and the kids use their smartphones or tablets to play. My students love this thing and beg me to let them play it.
 
Games can work well for others. I have over time eliminated everything that isn’t directly discussing the Bible, Jesus, and his Church. That sounds like no fun, but the the kids thrive and enjoy what we do. I teach 6th graders. Honestly none of them even ask if we’re going to have games, or watch a vid, or anything like that. Here’s a short bit we did last night:

“Hey, I need two sturdy volunteers, you and you get up here, I volunteered you…no whining. OK, now daughter, you volunteer next. Lie down over there on the floor. What? Lie down, it’s carpet, it’s clean. Don’t be fastidious. What’s fastidious? It means fussy. Lie down. Why? You’re paralyzed, all you can do is lie down, stop arguing with Jesus. You aren’t Jesus! That’s right, but I’m playing Jesus right now. Hey y’all, what is this story we’re about to do? When Jesus heals the paralyzed man! That’s right! So you’re the paralyzed man, lie down. But I’m a girl! Yes I know…you’re light so these two friends of yours can pick you up. C’mon y’all, why do they pick him up? To put him through the roof! Yes. OK you two, get ready to pick up your friend…don’t pick him up yet! You’re still outside the house where Jesus is…”

platytera.blogspot.com/2011/01/right-through-roof.html
 
My sad story of instruction in the Faith:

I was Charistmated in a Maronite Parish at birth, so, I dropped out before Confirmation year… What did I get out of PSR(CCD), as a non-practicing, bored kid? Time to talk with my friend. We even did this in the pews.

We were made to feel guilty if not going to Mass(not on purpose), rather than having it’s importance explained to us; we read the drone paragraphs. My fondest memory is the Adoration chapel.

Where did this get me? A struggle with every world belief system, from atheism to Sikhism to Protestantism, and everything in between.

To be fair, my instructors were nice, and they tried, but I was worried about playing video games. My parents, they would have gotten even less through. The problem is that even with the right intentions, without the right approach, CCD doesn’t help too much. I am not trying to criticize my instructors or parents, but the way things are taught in CCD.

Please, instructors, make sure that kids don’t get turned off to the Faith. It hurts me to remember talking loudly in the pews, struggling to find things to confess(I don’t have any trouble with that now a days), and missing all of the lessons’ importance. I wish that no other kid has to go through this struggle of faith I am now going through.
 
billy15 said:
or how the parents are derelict in their duties as examples of the Faith?

You’ve written this at least twice in this thread. Do you believe your judgement of the parents is helpful? Would Christ spend any energy judging the parents, or would he simply connect with and teach the children?

I think it is admirable that you give your time and energy to this and your post indicates that you are looking for answers. I’m simply suggesting you look into your own heart for some of them. I don’t know you, but a portion of what you’ve written seems to come from negative place. Kids are surprisingly intuitive, are you sure they are ‘feeling the (your) love’?

Do you think this guy has time to worry about how he has to deal with the parents’ failures?

homeboyindustries.org/fatherg/

I wont post again because, as a previous poster indicated, anything specific I might offer would be naive of your specific circumstances and questionable value. As someone above said, please talk through this with your pastor…not just the specific issue, but how you feel about the kids and their parents and what you are trying to accomplish.
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Re above, I never worry about where kids or parents are in their faith. For me it’s this simple: are you here with me? Let’s make the most of this hour together.
 
Tom, that was posted twice because I was repeating myself from my initial post. I was trying to figure out exactly what you meant by “problem”, so I referred back to what I had previously written. I appreciate the insight, because yes, I am looking for answers. However, please know that I am not judging the parents. I recognize this is something only God can do. This does not mean that I cannot judge one’s actions.

We have a real problem with Mass attendance in this religious education program. This seems to be coming to a head with the pastor and DRE meeting with the parents on the issue in the coming weeks. The teachers have gotten many letters from parents this year (some nice like the one I received, others not so nice) asking that the teachers stop asking the kids to go to Mass so often. One teacher was told in a letter that “We have decided as a family that we do not need to attend Mass on Sunday”. With this type of thinking, I do think it’s fair to note that this action is not in the spirit of being a witness to the Faith for one’s child. I have taken the baptismal promises I made for my own child very seriously. I only wish that some of these parents would do the same. In that respect, I do believe that Christ would spend energy judging the actions of those parents, since Christ desires us all to be close to Him and join Him in everlasting life, while at the same time teaching the children.

I am not coming from a negative place, so no, you don’t know me, and I’m sorry if what I’ve written in this thread has led you to believe or given the appearance that I am coming from somewhere negative. Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to make this thread for the reasons Hicks pointed out. I appreciate the insight of all that posted, but this will probably be the last post I make on this topic, unless we can post some more things that are working for us in our classes like kkollwitz did recently. I agree with kkollwitz though, I want to make the most out of the time I have with the students. Wherever the kids are with their faith, I meet them there. I do what I can to show them the richness of the Catholic faith and the love of Christ. I do so imperfectly, but I hope, God-willing, to get better as time goes on.
 
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