As we continue to explore the seven Sacraments in my 5th grade class, we are currently studying the Sacrament of Vocation. Last week we covered Holy Orders, with a special emphasis on what it means to be a Bishop. (You can visit this post for the printable notes we used on both topics, as well as how we incorporated making origami miters!)
I would be remiss to not talk about Fulton Sheen's role as a Bishop during this portion of our study, so we also spent a class exploring Sheen's coat of arms. The kids enjoyed figuring out that every symbol and color had specific meaning.
"Coat of Arms?" you may be wondering...You can read all about Ecclesiastical Heraldry here.
This was Sheen's coat of arms, and we were able to talk about the meaning of his Latin motto, the double barred cross signifying his role as an Archbishop, the dove and globe as a nod to the meaning of his name as well as a desire for peace in the world, etc.
Click here for a set of coloring notes with details about the meanings of the symbols on FJS's coat of arms:
(my info on the symbols was taken from a book that we use in our classroom called Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, a Man for All Media.)
Click here for the plain coloring notes without the written details: (this would be if you just want the kids to color in the coat of arms, or if they will have to copy their own notes like mine did...because I am a big meanie)
I am going to use this as a springboard for an enrichment activity for some of my students. After learning about the meaning of a bishop's coat of arms and specifically looking at Fulton Sheen's, I am going to send them on a quest to find the meaning behind our own Bishop's heraldry. You could easily do the same, and have your students share what they find with their classmates. It also would be interesting to look for similarities and differences them. They could also think about what would be included on their own personal coat of arms if they were able to create one. Lots of possibilities!
For example, here is where I will send my students to start researching Bishop Daniel Jenky's Coat of Arms (from our home Diocese of Peoria).
Here is an exploring sheet with some guiding questions for them to look for as they research: (You could make something very similar for your own Bishop if you are not from the Diocese of Peoria)
Click here for the key to that document:
You also could have the students design their own coat of arms. Here is a blank outline to start with (this one happens to be for an Archbishop) or they could make their own. Encourage them to use symbols and colors that would represent the kind of leader that they would want to be. Have them come up with a motto from a favorite Scripture verse or quote. Then have them present it to you or the class and explain their choices!
(originally posted February 17, 2014 here)
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Feasting with Archbishop Sheen
Today marks the unofficial feast day celebrating Venerable Fulton J. Sheen's birth into heaven. While not yet named a Blessed or Saint, God willing, Sheen will be declared as such by the Church very soon, at which time his feast day would become official. At the very least, we can honor him now as a man who loved Christ and His Church and desired for all souls to have that same love. So while unofficial, I will still be celebrating today!
Bonnie at A Knotted Life has been posting a novena leading up to Sheen's Feast Day, and hosting several guests who share a love for Sheen. Bonnie and Sheen are pretty tight, considering she and her family believe that it was through his intercession that God miraculously healed their stillborn (pulseless for 61 minutes) son. You can read all about that here (trust me, you have to hear this story!).
Bonnie and I are good friends in real life, and while I knew about Sheen and had read a book or two of his before, my desire to "meet" him was kindled in the witness of what God worked in their infant son. In the past few years, I have read many of his books, watched his You Tube videos, listed to Mp3s and CDs of his talks, and I have gotten to the point where I feel like we are friends. That friendship between the people of God's Church here on earth and in heaven is something that I am so grateful to have an understanding of. And last year, it became something that I wanted to share with my 5th grade students. I created a curriculum to teach them about his life and about the things that he taught. Today, this year's class of kids is going to begin their Fulton Sheen Notebooks and get an introduction on the upcoming journey that we will share with Archbishop Sheen.
Bonnie asked me to come over and be a guest (her first) on her very fun new blog video series, which she is calling the "Knot Bad" Videos. I love it. Kuddos to Bonnie for making this video so professional looking, because between a lost and found camera, lots of dead batteries, an ipod, two laptops, five kids, five non-overlapping nap times, and about five hours (not really), I was pretty sure she was going to call me later to say we had to do it ALL again. She did an awesome job, and I appreciate her asking me to share some ideas for celebrating Sheen's Feast Day as a family or classroom.
So give the video a watch, visit Bonnie, and maybe try some of the crafts that I mention in the video: A Sheen Lapbook, the Pop-up Marian Shrine, the Monstrance Craft, and lots and lots more.
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, Pray for us!
(originally posted December 9, 2013 here)
Footsteps of Fulton Sheen Field Trip Pilgrimage- Scavenger Hunt Clues
Back in this post, I showed all of the places that my class visited in the Peoria area to learn more about the life of Venerable Fulton Sheen. What I didn't mention in that post was that the whole thing was a student led scavenger hunt. Yes, I had a plan, and the bus driver had directions to where we were going, but the kids got on the bus in the morning not knowing where we were going or who we were going to meet. It was so much work to plan, but so much fun for the kids! :)
They were all split up into four groups, to foster some teamwork. Nothing about the scavenger hunt was a competition- just friendly challenges. They received clues that looked like this on one side from their group leaders:
...and each had a rhyming clue on the back. I got lots of help writing the clues from an awesome coworker who was a rhyming-poem-making-machine. It may have had something to do with the fact that she had just finished directing Seussical the Musical...but regardless, she was awesome help.
After the group decided on the correct answer to the clue, they got to open the inside of the clue. (They were sealed with little stickers to prevent peeking). Here there were directions/challenges/things to look for/etc. It was all about what the kids personally wanted to do. Some of them diligently checked off as many of the items on the list as they could, and others just went with the flow. I knew that it would be impossible to predict if they could finish the scavenger hunt (we honestly packed too much into the day) but I needed a fall back if any of the kids were causing trouble/paying no attention/putting forth no effort/you get the idea. Fortunately, everything was so fast paced and the kids were so interested, that I didn't have an issues with them staying on task. It. Was. Incredible.
After they used them, the kids collected all of the clues in an envelope we had added to their Sheen Notebooks. I heard later that many of them went home, dumped the envelope, and then proceeded to read the clues to their families to see if they could figure out where we had gone!
We spent quite a bit of time on the bus between stops, so I created some Bus Challenge Games that required no materials and would keep the kids occupied if necessary. Again, I was trying to be over prepared and ready for trouble. It wasn't really necessary, but most of the kids played the games and seemed to enjoy them. Some of the games have a Fulton Sheen twist, but you could easily adapt them to a similar topic.
Here are the links to the printables from our scavenger hunt. I know that the chances that someone could just print these and use them just like this is nil, but I think that they could be usable or at least give ideas for any old roadtrip, or pilgrimage, or just maybe a field trip about Fulton Sheen (yay!).
Here are the bus games:
And here are the scavenger hunt clues:
If you are really interested in reusing these and would like them in another format so that they are editable, just contact me in the comment box!
(originally posted July 26, 2013 here)
They were all split up into four groups, to foster some teamwork. Nothing about the scavenger hunt was a competition- just friendly challenges. They received clues that looked like this on one side from their group leaders:
...and each had a rhyming clue on the back. I got lots of help writing the clues from an awesome coworker who was a rhyming-poem-making-machine. It may have had something to do with the fact that she had just finished directing Seussical the Musical...but regardless, she was awesome help.
After the group decided on the correct answer to the clue, they got to open the inside of the clue. (They were sealed with little stickers to prevent peeking). Here there were directions/challenges/things to look for/etc. It was all about what the kids personally wanted to do. Some of them diligently checked off as many of the items on the list as they could, and others just went with the flow. I knew that it would be impossible to predict if they could finish the scavenger hunt (we honestly packed too much into the day) but I needed a fall back if any of the kids were causing trouble/paying no attention/putting forth no effort/you get the idea. Fortunately, everything was so fast paced and the kids were so interested, that I didn't have an issues with them staying on task. It. Was. Incredible.
After they used them, the kids collected all of the clues in an envelope we had added to their Sheen Notebooks. I heard later that many of them went home, dumped the envelope, and then proceeded to read the clues to their families to see if they could figure out where we had gone!
We spent quite a bit of time on the bus between stops, so I created some Bus Challenge Games that required no materials and would keep the kids occupied if necessary. Again, I was trying to be over prepared and ready for trouble. It wasn't really necessary, but most of the kids played the games and seemed to enjoy them. Some of the games have a Fulton Sheen twist, but you could easily adapt them to a similar topic.
Here are the links to the printables from our scavenger hunt. I know that the chances that someone could just print these and use them just like this is nil, but I think that they could be usable or at least give ideas for any old roadtrip, or pilgrimage, or just maybe a field trip about Fulton Sheen (yay!).
Here are the bus games:
And here are the scavenger hunt clues:
If you are really interested in reusing these and would like them in another format so that they are editable, just contact me in the comment box!
(originally posted July 26, 2013 here)
Footsteps of Fulton Sheen Field Trip Pilgrimage
After all of my students' hard work this year learning about Venerable Fulton Sheen, we of course had to take a field trip to see all of the places in the Peoria area significant to his life.
(Check out the scavenger hunt clues the kids collected on this trip in this post.)
We started in El Paso,at the location of the birthplace of Sheen, which was above a hardware store that burned down in his childhood.
We then went to St. Mary's Church, which is the parish of Sheen's baptism. The current church was actually built a few years after he was baptized, but it is the same parish and Sheen came back to visit and said Mass in the current church.
Original St. Mary's:
Current St. Mary's:
We then roadtripped it to Peoria, stopping at the Spalding Pastoral Center, which is connected to the original Spalding High School, where Sheen was a student. We were greeted outside by Bishop Jenky, who posed for a picture with the kids. :)
We then visited the Sheen Museum, complete with the Sisters as tour guides and several other guests. The kids LOVED having the Sisters and a Monsignor and a few others as their captive audiences for them to talk about Sheen. They got questions answered, told their stories, showed off their projects, and poured over the Sheen artifacts in the museum.
Next, we went just down the street to the Cathedral of St. Mary, where Sheen was an altar server and was ordained a priest.
Inside, we visited the Chapel of St. Thomas More, which holds hundreds of relics including one of Fulton Sheen's purificators.
The kids then received a custom tour of the Cathedral, where they got to ask all kinds of questions and see all kinds of beautiful things and grow in respect and love with their faith and identity as a Catholic in the Diocese of Peoria.
On the way home, we were going to swing by the church building which was formerly St. Patrick's Catholic Church, which was Sheen's first and only parish assignment as a priest. The church is no longer a Catholic parish, but we were just going to check out the building. However, between no one wanting to leave the Cathedral and construction, we ran out of time.
The kids said that it was the best field trip ever :) I hope that it sticks in their heads as a memorable pilgrimage that showed them the footsteps of a soon-to-be Saint who lived in their own backyard!
(originally posted July 26, 2013 here)
(Check out the scavenger hunt clues the kids collected on this trip in this post.)
We started in El Paso,at the location of the birthplace of Sheen, which was above a hardware store that burned down in his childhood.
We then went to St. Mary's Church, which is the parish of Sheen's baptism. The current church was actually built a few years after he was baptized, but it is the same parish and Sheen came back to visit and said Mass in the current church.
Original St. Mary's:
Current St. Mary's:
We then roadtripped it to Peoria, stopping at the Spalding Pastoral Center, which is connected to the original Spalding High School, where Sheen was a student. We were greeted outside by Bishop Jenky, who posed for a picture with the kids. :)
We then visited the Sheen Museum, complete with the Sisters as tour guides and several other guests. The kids LOVED having the Sisters and a Monsignor and a few others as their captive audiences for them to talk about Sheen. They got questions answered, told their stories, showed off their projects, and poured over the Sheen artifacts in the museum.
Next, we went just down the street to the Cathedral of St. Mary, where Sheen was an altar server and was ordained a priest.
Inside, we visited the Chapel of St. Thomas More, which holds hundreds of relics including one of Fulton Sheen's purificators.
The kids then received a custom tour of the Cathedral, where they got to ask all kinds of questions and see all kinds of beautiful things and grow in respect and love with their faith and identity as a Catholic in the Diocese of Peoria.
On the way home, we were going to swing by the church building which was formerly St. Patrick's Catholic Church, which was Sheen's first and only parish assignment as a priest. The church is no longer a Catholic parish, but we were just going to check out the building. However, between no one wanting to leave the Cathedral and construction, we ran out of time.
The kids said that it was the best field trip ever :) I hope that it sticks in their heads as a memorable pilgrimage that showed them the footsteps of a soon-to-be Saint who lived in their own backyard!
(originally posted July 26, 2013 here)
Fulton Sheen Graphic Novel
In my journey this year teaching about Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, my students and I really enjoying using this graphic novel called Life is Worth Living: The Life of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.
It combines photographs and graphic-novel style illustrations...
...and chronicles FJS's whole life, with highlights, quotes, and stories.
I used several copies of this graphic novel as a small group activity after I had already introduced my students to FJS through the documentary about his life. However, I think that it could be used to teach about him from the beginning, and would be best for grades 3rd and up. Since they already knew a little, my students enjoyed reinforcing their knowledge and finding some of their favorite stories within the pages.
This graphic novel could easily support some of the Fulton Sheen Journal Writing activities from my earlier post, especially the post-it note activities. It packs a lot of info into a small amount of text and has great companion illustrations, making it awesome for reluctant or struggling readers.
To get your own copies of the graphic novel, contact the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation.
***UPDATE***
The Foundation also has a matching coloring book to go along with the graphic novel now!
To get it or the novel, click on the link above or contact them at:
The Archbishop Fulton John Sheen Foundation
419 NE Madison Ave, Peoria, IL 61603
PHONE: 309-671-1550 or 877-71-SHEEN
FAX: 309-677-1573
EMAIL: info@sheencause.org
(originally posted July 25, 2013 here)
It combines photographs and graphic-novel style illustrations...
...and chronicles FJS's whole life, with highlights, quotes, and stories.
I used several copies of this graphic novel as a small group activity after I had already introduced my students to FJS through the documentary about his life. However, I think that it could be used to teach about him from the beginning, and would be best for grades 3rd and up. Since they already knew a little, my students enjoyed reinforcing their knowledge and finding some of their favorite stories within the pages.
This graphic novel could easily support some of the Fulton Sheen Journal Writing activities from my earlier post, especially the post-it note activities. It packs a lot of info into a small amount of text and has great companion illustrations, making it awesome for reluctant or struggling readers.
To get your own copies of the graphic novel, contact the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation.
***UPDATE***
The Foundation also has a matching coloring book to go along with the graphic novel now!
To get it or the novel, click on the link above or contact them at:
The Archbishop Fulton John Sheen Foundation
419 NE Madison Ave, Peoria, IL 61603
PHONE: 309-671-1550 or 877-71-SHEEN
FAX: 309-677-1573
EMAIL: info@sheencause.org
(originally posted July 25, 2013 here)
More Journal Writing About Fulton Sheen
I love using this simple tool in my classroom. This post shows how I created the board and used it for our virtue formation project. Back in this post, I explained one way that I use this simple poster-board-and-plastic-sleeve created tool for student discussion and evaluation after watching videos in the classroom. Here is another quick way to use it to promote discussion before a writing assignment.
This example was from some brainstorming for a journal writing assignment based around the question "Why Should Fulton Sheen be a Saint?" I have several other Fulton Sheen related journal ideas and a printable posted here.
To get the kids thinking, I posted the journal writing question using the plastic sleeve at the top of the poster board. We set the goal of them creating five reasons why they thought Sheen would create a great example for the Church. I happened to have these great post its with room for a list of five (from the dollar bin in Target), so it was easy for them to organize their ideas.
When they were finished, they shared their reasons with the class and stuck their post it on their square. We instantly had an anchor poster for our discussion and I had an evaluation tool.
The following day when we were ready to write, the kids pulled their post it off the poster, stuck it in their writing notebook, and used the ideas for the details in their journaling assignment.
I'd love to hear how other classrooms use this same idea!
(originally posted July 2, 2014 here)
This example was from some brainstorming for a journal writing assignment based around the question "Why Should Fulton Sheen be a Saint?" I have several other Fulton Sheen related journal ideas and a printable posted here.
To get the kids thinking, I posted the journal writing question using the plastic sleeve at the top of the poster board. We set the goal of them creating five reasons why they thought Sheen would create a great example for the Church. I happened to have these great post its with room for a list of five (from the dollar bin in Target), so it was easy for them to organize their ideas.
When they were finished, they shared their reasons with the class and stuck their post it on their square. We instantly had an anchor poster for our discussion and I had an evaluation tool.
The following day when we were ready to write, the kids pulled their post it off the poster, stuck it in their writing notebook, and used the ideas for the details in their journaling assignment.
I'd love to hear how other classrooms use this same idea!
(originally posted July 2, 2014 here)
Friday, July 29, 2016
Fulton Sheen Journal Writing
What better way to get students thinking about what they have learned then to get them to write about it? Journal writing, reflections, summative evaluations, whatever you call it, getting thoughts on paper is a necessary skill for kids. Here are some of the journal writing activities I used along the way during our Fulton Sheen Unit. At the end of the post is a printable with topic cards you can use yourself.
(First off, before we get started with ideas, I think that journal writing should be in some kind of a notebook or binder. If we want kids to be good readers, we have them read all the time. If we want kids to be good writers, we need to have them write all of the time. Part of that process is being able to look at writing from the past (even the recent past) and seeing room for growth and change. It is also important to include writing about other content that students are learning. Stick that reflective paragraph right in there with your review pages, worksheets, notes, and quizzes, and see how the kids are able to incorporate their writing skills in other subject matter. They'll have to do it in real life, so writing should never be constrained to canned prompts only in language class.)
So, clearly we included this journalling in our Sheen Notebooks, using their writing to help document the journey.
Here was one journal starter that was set up like a picture. The kids likes putting this in their notebook, and it had a cool connection to the unit on light that we were talking about in Science.
Here are some topics that I had written up on the board that we used as station activities:
I love post-it notes as graphic organizers or thought-gathers before writing. I found these awesome notes in the dollar bins at Target. You could do the same sort of idea with plain post its, but they would not be nearly as cute. :)
This one was done after reading a new article about Sheen. The had to write a new fact, a question that the still had, and one thing that they couldn't believe about Sheen (something that was incredible, inspiring, etc.) This would function as a great exit activity for an assignment that wouldn't require a lot of time for the kids or grading for the teacher.
This post it note we used to make a list of the top five reasons why each student thought that Sheen should be declared a Saint. We then used those five reasons and organized it into a short persuasive essay. They surprised me with how specific, strong, and valid their reasons were. Not that I expected fluff, but they just surpassed what I had imagined. Don't you love when that happens?
Here is an example of how I set up a longer journal writing assignment that all of the kids had to work on.
I started with this giant post it on the board. I do love my SmartBoard, but there is also a place for teacher created posters that can stay up and be referenced easily.
(originally posted June 11, 2013 here)
(First off, before we get started with ideas, I think that journal writing should be in some kind of a notebook or binder. If we want kids to be good readers, we have them read all the time. If we want kids to be good writers, we need to have them write all of the time. Part of that process is being able to look at writing from the past (even the recent past) and seeing room for growth and change. It is also important to include writing about other content that students are learning. Stick that reflective paragraph right in there with your review pages, worksheets, notes, and quizzes, and see how the kids are able to incorporate their writing skills in other subject matter. They'll have to do it in real life, so writing should never be constrained to canned prompts only in language class.)
So, clearly we included this journalling in our Sheen Notebooks, using their writing to help document the journey.
Here was one journal starter that was set up like a picture. The kids likes putting this in their notebook, and it had a cool connection to the unit on light that we were talking about in Science.
Here are some topics that I had written up on the board that we used as station activities:
I love post-it notes as graphic organizers or thought-gathers before writing. I found these awesome notes in the dollar bins at Target. You could do the same sort of idea with plain post its, but they would not be nearly as cute. :)
This one was done after reading a new article about Sheen. The had to write a new fact, a question that the still had, and one thing that they couldn't believe about Sheen (something that was incredible, inspiring, etc.) This would function as a great exit activity for an assignment that wouldn't require a lot of time for the kids or grading for the teacher.
This post it note we used to make a list of the top five reasons why each student thought that Sheen should be declared a Saint. We then used those five reasons and organized it into a short persuasive essay. They surprised me with how specific, strong, and valid their reasons were. Not that I expected fluff, but they just surpassed what I had imagined. Don't you love when that happens?
Here is an example of how I set up a longer journal writing assignment that all of the kids had to work on.
I started with this giant post it on the board. I do love my SmartBoard, but there is also a place for teacher created posters that can stay up and be referenced easily.
They copied this into their notebooks, complete with the instructional notes and the topic.
On the board, I included a quick checklist of the expectations for the writing assignment. Detailed? No. But we talked about them orally, and this gave the kids a visual to come back to as they were writing.
So, just a few ideas for how to use them, but click below for the journal starters matching what we did in our classroom:
(originally posted June 11, 2013 here)
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