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Different than most pages on this site, Links for Teachers is one long post that will be added to as I stumble upon new and noteworthy links.

Check it by date to see what’s new.

October, 2015

Rhythm and Beads Growing up post-Vatican II as we did, the rosaries in our home lay dusty on shelves or deeply buried in drawers. Jeffery Esssmann’s reflection is part memory and part re-discovery, and struck close to home. Recalling the role (and non-role) of the rosary in his own life, it’s Essmann’s experience in an Alzheimer’s unit that offers the true epiphany: the Hail Mary, if “pursued long enough, cherished long enough, could actually become part of your biology, a marvelous incarnation.”

September, 2015

Dear Pope Francis…  Two hundred and twenty-five Catholic women from 16 high schools, colleges, and universities wrote Pope Francis letters sharing their love for the Church and ideas to help her reach out effectively to young women. This article is a summary.

July, 2015

Catholics Care About Gays?: The Myth Debunked  Life Teen blog that answers some common questions and debunks some common misconceptions about the what the Catholic Church teaches about homosexuality and gay marriage.

June, 2015

The Gospel According To the ‘Nones’ The rapidly growing population of self-reporting “spiritual but no religious affiliation” Americans simultaneously report a deep attraction to Jesus and the Gospels. Read how the ‘nones’ remind us about the real power of our faith.

May, 2015

5 Reasons Millennials Stay Connected to the Church Research-based, easy to read article that illuminates what is working —and what we can do to engage the young church. While today’s teens aren’t “Millennials,” they are living in a culture that is increasingly driven by them.

7 Reasons Why Young Adults Quit the Church  Food for thought about mindsets we need to be ready to receive, welcome, and evangelize!

A Closer Look at America’s Rapidly Growing Religious Nones Check out the statistics over the last few decades. The status quo in religious education isn’t working. Our teens need something different than what our schools and churches are offering if we are going to cause a shift in this trajectory! Go here if you want to see the Pew Research Center’s 2014 Religious Landscape Study in its entirety.

Four Questions About College  A brief article outlining the four questions nobody asks, but should, of the college-bound senior. The questions address “the core meaning of a student’s education and development.”

Life Long Faith Journal  Free online journal covering the best thinking and practices in faith formation across the whole life span. Each issue focuses on a particular aspect of lifelong faith formation and includes major articles by national experts, book reviews, and practical strategies and program models.

Life Teen  Terrific webpage for teens but great fodder for the catechist. Blogs about faith, prayer, relationships, and culture. You can also use the search engine to find something specific (for example, saints for guys, adoration, pornography, why go to confession)

Living Easter  For your own personal reflection as you approach Holy Week. Just beautiful.

Furious Mysteries  James Martin, S.J. postulates a new set of rosary mysteries that meditate on the times Jesus became angry. Awesomeness. Help your teens frame anger within a faith context.

Navigating the Tween Years  Year-by-year developmental overview of tweens. Good for teachers, catechists and parents.

Take Up Your Cross   Anexcerpt from James Martin, S.J.’s “Jesus: A Pilgrimage.” He is truly gifted at making the mysterious somehow imaginable and approachable.

The ‘Nones’ Are Alright Brief article considering what we can learn from a generation of seekers.

Whom Do You Follow?  Terrific little article about Christian life in the age of Social Media. A must read.

Why Hands-on Learning Works  Though written about earlier learners, this begs the question: “Why do we think that older learners don’t need this stuff anymore?”

Group Juggle

A fun way to start working together. Can be used to learn names or develop a sense of interconnectedness, group responsibility, collaboration, problem solving.

You will need:

6-8 small, hollow plastic balls (approximately 4″ in diameter) per group

Set up and instructions

Arrange 8-12 participants in a circle, standing a bit less than arms length apart
Include yourself in the circle

1st round of juggling

Explain that you are going to throw a ball to someone – pick someone out & ask their name, then say, “Hi Freddy, my name is James…here you go!” (underarm throw a ball to Freddy)
Freddy then says, “Thank you James,” picks someone else and says, “Hi X, my name is Freddy…here you go!”
The new receiver says, “Thank you, Freddy,” and on we go.

• If you’re not trying to learn names, skip the naming part & just throw!

• The challenge from here is simply to get the ball thrown around to everyone in the circle with no repeats, and finally back to the trainer.

2nd round of group juggling

Then say, “Right, well done, now let’s see if we can do that again – making sure we use the same order, and using each other’s names. Remember to say the name of the person you are throwing to, and thank the person, by name, for throwing it to you, OK?”

On the second round, most people will be challenged to remember who to throw it to, and the two names! Take it slow, help the group out, so that each person has a successful second round.

3rd round of group juggling

Then say, “Good, so how about we do it again, but this time, let’s let’s see how fast we can do it, OK? Here we go…Hi Freddy, my name is James….” [throw]

It will go pretty fast this time, and the group will probably feel quite pleased with themselves.

4th round of group juggling – introducing more balls

I then say, “That’s great, but I think you can do faster than that. Come on, let’s see how we can really go…” [I then throw and say the name with super fast enthusiasm to set the tone!

After the first ball has passed through a few hands, I take a 2nd ball out of my pocket (surprise!), and casually, but earnestly say “Hi Freddy….” [throw].

By now everyone is so well trained, the 2nd ball will automatically keep going, and there will be a detectable sense of challenge/excitement.

After a bit, introduce a 3rd and 4th ball, up to about 6 balls.

A group of 12 adults can usually handle 4 to 6 quite well. It builds a sense of achievement and group cohesiveness.

Once the group is competent, gradually then introduce more balls, or maybe a few unexpected objects (e.g., kids soft toys).

See “WARP SPEED” for the next level of Group Juggle.