| Christ Jesus, the Way
Home and Family
What is My Child Learning?: Third Grade
Unit 1
Chapter 1 Good News
Your child is exploring the idea that there are many kinds of good news in everyday life. People like to hear good news and are eager to share good news with others. Your child is hearing Jesus' message that the news about God's love is so great that it has to be shared. Jesus is the Good News, the Messiah that the people were waiting for. Jesus reveals the way to God and commands us to love one another. Jesus asks his followers to spread the gospel, the Good News. Your child is discovering many different ways to be Good News for others. As Christians, we are friends of Jesus. Who needs to hear Good News from you today?
Chapter 2 Faith Stories
Your child is learning that the Bible is full of stories about God, about the people of God, and about the story of our faith. Your child is also learning that the Church tells the stories and explains the message. The people in the Bible are family. The stories of God's family help us make sense of life, and the stories themselves become a map leading us closer to God. How often do you read Bible stories to your child and talk about God?
Chapter 3 Families
Your child is learning that the Christian family is called to be a community of love and that a family helps its members grow in faith, hope and love. Whenever family members live out their Christian values — whenever they show their love for each other, whenever they forgive each other, whenever they are loyal, truthful, patient or helpful — they are a holy family. Your child is learning that family living is a growing process. God made people to live in families so that they could be nurtured, cherished, inspired and helped to mature spiritually. How does your family grow in love?
Chapter 4 Friends
Your child is being invited into the heart of what it means to be Catholic: What does God expect of me? What does it take to belong to the Church? The Church is a community of people who love and care for one another. The Church is called to show Jesus to the world. Jesus' words and actions are signs of God's love and the Church is a sign of God's love for the world. This lesson is helping your child better understand how to be a full member of the Church. Your child is also reflecting on what it takes to be a good friend and how we can hold Jesus as a friend in our hearts. Which of Jesus' words and actions calls you to recognize God in the world?
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Unit 2
Chapter 5 Faith Grows
Your child is learning that, faith, like a seed prospers when the conditions are right. The seed of faith has been planted and nurtured by God's grace, which allows it to grow. Your child learns that family, friends, teachers and the Church community encourage the growth of faith. Your child is discovering that faith builds strength and a loving spirit. Your child will also learn the faith story of Pope John XXIII. How do you help your child's faith grow?
Chapter 6 I Believe
Your child is beginning to understand that Christian faith is belief in everything that God revealed through Jesus. At this age, your child is aware of what loyalty to a friend or a teacher means. Children can relate to their faith in the same manner. Your child will learn what it means to be a part of the Church as a community of faith. Your child will learn that the Apostles' Creed contains the truths of the Catholic faith. What steps can you take to help your child understand more about faith?
Chapter 7 Living Faith
Your child is learning that everyone has gifts and skills and they all count. Your child will learn to realize that gifts and talents need to be developed. Your child will learn that gifts and talents grow and mature as they change over the years. Your child will begin to see that adults use their gifts for the good of the parish. This modeling will help your child understand his or her responsibility to the Church now and in the future. How do you use your gifts to support your parish?
Chapter 8 Prayer
Your child is learning about the important role that prayer plays in faith life. Your child will learn that prayer is lifting hearts and minds to God. Your child will learn about the four types of prayer; contrition, petition, thanksgiving, and praise. He or she will learn that these prayers are found in the Mass. Your child will learn to see Jesus as the perfect model for how to pray. Your child is encouraged to set aside a few minutes each day for prayer. How do you make prayer important in your home?
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Unit 3
Chapter 9 Living in Love
Your child is learning that love is the foundation and the pinnacle of faith. Your child will learn that Jesus sacrificed himself out of love so that his followers can love others the same way. Your child will learn that acts of kindness build up the kingdom of God and that service is a Christian attitude that, once planted, needs to be carefully tended. How have you shared a gift of love today?
Chapter 10 Saying "I?m Sorry"
Your child will begin learning about forgiveness by talking about why it is important to say I?m sorry. Your child will explore the concept of kindness as it is lived out in actions toward friends. Talking about sorrow and forgiveness with the starting point of his or her own experience will prepare your child for the message of Jesus. What is one way that you have practiced forgiveness recently?
Chapter 11 Being Healed
Your child will learn about the concept of healing. Your child will discover how the sacrament of Reconciliation is a sign of God?s mercy and love, and how the Anointing of the Sick helps the person who is ill, elderly, or dying experience the love of Jesus. Your child will have the opportunity to explore ways to make a fresh start, to turn back to Jesus when he or she done something wrong. Your child will also learn about ways to comfort sick people. Where have you looked lately for the signs of God?s love?
Chapter 12 Trusting the Spirit
Your child will be introduced to the concept of the Holy Spirit as a helper. Your child will learn that the Holy Spirit gave the Apostles a clear understanding of who Jesus was and what they were supposed to do. Your child will learn that the Holy Spirit graced the apostles with the ability to share Jesus? message and the courage to face all obstacles. Which gift of the Holy Spirit have you made the most use of?
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Unit 4
Chapter 13 A Gathering Church
Your child will be introduced to the concept with which he or she should be very familiar: gathering. In fact, third graders like nothing better than to get together, whether it is with friends, family, classmates, or the soccer team. Your child will learn how the Church is the place where the People of God gather to know, love and serve God—together. How has the Church been a gathering place where you can experience the love of God?
Chapter 14 Marks of the Church
In this chapter your child will continue learning about the Church. Your child will study the four marks of the Church--- one, holy, catholic and apostolic, and read Scripture related to each mark. Your child will join in a discussion about the fish as an early Christian symbol and have the opportunity to creatively make his or her own symbols that mark him or her as followers of Christ. Your child will also explore scriptural images for the Church. What are signs of marks of the Spirit's presence in your life?
Chapter 15 A Missionary Church
Your child will explore the missionary Church in this chapter. Beginning with the concept of Good News and the idea that there is good news to share your child will enter the world of Saint Paul and his missionary journeys. He or she will become familiar with several of his epistles and with the Good News he spread to so many people. How do you spread the Good News in your own community?
Chapter 16 A Saintly Church
As your child studies this chapter, he or she will discover what it is to belong to a saintly Church. Your child will understand that saints are people who use the gifts that the Spirit has given to them. Your child will pause to consider his or her own gifts and how these gifts are meant to be used for the good of everyone. What gifts do you have to give for the good of all?
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Unit 5
Chapter 17 Gathering
In this chapter, your child is learning about Sunday. The third commandment is to keep holy the Sabbath. Your child is discovering the Old Testament origins of the Lord’s Day of rest and the New Testament’s celebration of the Sabbath as the day of Jesus’ resurrection. What do you do as a family do to keep Sunday holy? Is it a day of rest?
Chapter 18 Belonging
Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist are the sacraments of initiation. In this chapter your child is discovering what initiation means and how important hospitality and welcome are to the life of the Church. Your child will be discussing what it means to be a member of a family and a member of the Church family. How would you explain the importance of your membership in the Church to your child?
Chapter 19 Remembering
By gathering for a special meal, the Mass, Catholics remember the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. In this chapter your child is exploring the central meaning and actions of the Mass: gathering, asking forgiveness, listening to God’s Word, praying for others, offertory, Eucharistic Prayer, Lord’s Prayer, Communion and going forth. How often does your family gather at home for a meal together?
Chapter 20 Celebrating
In this chapter your child is studying the seasons of the Church year: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, Ordinary Time. Your child is learning that, like a spiral, the cycle of the liturgical seasons invites him or her again and again into a deeper understanding of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Which liturgical season has particular meaning in your life?
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Unit 6
Chapter 21 Sent
Your child is learning that Jesus came to bring good news to the poor and that, as a member of the Church, he or she is sent to do the same. By reading about the early Christians and their efforts to bring the light of Christ to all the world, your child will learn to name his or her own opportunities to serve others. How has the light of Christ been shining through you lately?
Chapter 22 The Mission
Your child is exploring ways that he or she is a part of the mission of Jesus and shares in the mission of the Church. Your child is also learning about the important Christian concept of “solidarity,” which is the ability to stand next to other people in their need and help them. In what ways do you show solidarity with others in need?
Chapter 23 Serve Others!
Service to others is not a burden, but something we do to bring us happiness. Discovering how to give of one’s self is life’s greatest adventure. This adventure, our Christian vocation, entails uncovering the gifts that God has given us to share with others. Your child is exploring how to serve others through the gifts that he or she has been given. He or she is also learning about service in the Church as lay people, religious sisters or brothers, deacons and priests. How do you serve others in God’s name?
Chapter 24 Share the Joy!
Christians are joyful people. Your child is reading about Peter and John from the Book of Acts in the Bible and discussing why Peter and John felt so much joy. The Holy Spirit lived within their hearts, so that their lives bore great fruit. Your child is learning about the fruits of the Holy Spirit and how those fruits are growing within him or her everyday! Can you remember a time when you have experienced profound joy?
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