What should a 3 yr old know about God?

[annb]

Just wondering your thoughts on the knowledge a 3 yr old should have of God, prayer, and church. How do you go about teaching this and helping them understand at such a young age?

 

[leaner]

Good luck toya there…I had the same question a year ago. We’ve been talking about it since then whenever the opportunity presents itself – this I will say…children are so open, that you really don’t need to worry about them “believing” what faith requires of adults, kwim? It’s like you can skip the whole “no waaay!!!” part. That’s God, and He’s everywhere; He can hear you when you pray, even if you’re not saying the words – that’s how incredible he is. He’s stronger than any Rescue Hero in your toybox, stronger than Daddy. He made us all. Stick with the broader concepts and go further if asked (but ONLY if asked…lol!) – There are some wonderful books – talk to your CWOC or women’s league at church – they should be able to recommend some good “toddler books” about God. It’s such a scary place to be, knowing you’re forming the basis…but God wouldn’t have given you your three year old if He didn’t know you could do it! Trust yourself, and speak from your heart.

 

[spanky]

annb:

…the knowledge a 3 yr old should have of God, prayer, and church.

God made you, mommy and daddy (and everything)! He loves you very much! He wants you to be a good boy/girl by doing what mommy and daddy tell you.

Prayer at this age should thank God for everything. It’s also a good time to recite common prayers. If you keep at it, in a year or two he/she should know the Sign of the Cross, Our Father, Hail Mary, Gloria Be, common prayers before meals, etc.

Church is quiet time…just work on that concept for now and it’ll come with time. See if your church offers Catechesis of the Good Shepard…a nice program for tots and gets them familiar with what’s going on at Mass.

Good luck!

 

[NFPfamily]

I think the best way to teach about God is to model it. Pray with your child and make it familiar language. Say “Dear God, thank you for my dolly, mommy, daddy, ice cream,” etc. I usually include, “help me to make good choices” or something to that effect. My 2 1/2 year old will repeat what I say or try to babble her own. Then I recite an Our Father or Hail Mary to familiarize her with hearing them. She knows the sign of the cross and says “Jesus” pointing to a cross. She also recognizes Mary in statues or pictures. We have read her religious childrens books and there are also videos available. During Church, sometimes I whisper to her “look at Fr. so and so” or point out flowers or anything to guide her attention to the altar. I also include her in the service by letting her hold her own book to follow along, etc. I also use her baby brother to help- I’ll ask if she can show him how to pray, etc.

If you want to incorporate God into morals and discipline, I would say something like “that makes God sad when you do that” or something like that. On the contrary, say that “that makes God very happy” when the child makes a good choice or especially when they help someone else. Overall, I would just try to make the connection of common day to day things with God so the child realizes that God is connected with everything around them.

 

[crobynb]

I think every child is different - and with that you will have varying results with each child.

I have no children of my own yet, but I do take my niece and nephew to Church with me and my husband quite frequently. They both just turned 5. They can say some of the Our Father and Hail Mary. They sing along with most of the hymns. They can sing Jesus Loves Me and some other little ditty’s by heart. They like to cross themselves and talk about how Jesus is their best friend, Mary is His mommy, and Jesus is in Heaven now . . . I am proud of how they hold still and pay attention at Mass. They always ask questions on the way home and tell their mommy and daddy what they learned that day.

Maybe some think that is not enough for 5 year olds - but I think it is pretty good for children who do not have a lot of home exposure to religion. We are working on that though!!! I think I have my two sisters and their hubbies almost ready to be in action with the Catholic Church ( I said “I”, but really it is the work of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - I cannot truly take the credit!!) So, Woo-hoo!!! Here we go . . . .

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

All these are pretty good lines to follow.

Just watch out for the reward of the unexpected. We had the Great Preschool v. Kindergarten debate of when Father is himself, and when he is “God”. Preschool said always, and Kindergarten allowed in persona christi only when Father was wearing his “tablecloth with the hole in it”. Preschool has not been convinced, and when she leaves Sunday Mass, always says “Hi, God. How ya doin’” as she shakes Father’s hand.

 

[NickyCW]

My boys are 4 and 3 years old. Like many have mentioned, modeling common prayers and inviting them to be thankful is important. We also started talking about forgiveness (asking them to say “I forgive you”) when one says they are sorry to the other. We refer to the Eucharist as the body of Jesus and that it gives us strength to be good. We talk about heaven being the most wonderful place in the whole universe. We talk about how, just like mommy and daddy’s rules are meant to protect them and keep them safe, God has rules that will allow us be truly happy. We also talk about things that are yucky for our bodies (eating too many sweets, cigarettes, drugs, etc) don’t make God happy because he wants us to take care of our bodies. Honestly, I think our 4 year old is really starting to get it. Our 3 year old is still just soaking up and I don’t know what he really gets yet!