Advent Suggestions Years 1-6

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People wait for many things.

We can get very excited while we wait.

Sometimes we feel we cant wait a minute longer.

A mysterious parcel

Make a beautifully wrapped parcel with a bright bow containing enough holy cards, bookmarks or other appropriate gifts to be shared by the students. Ensure the parcel is wrapped in several sheets of paper in a similar fashion to when playing Pass the Parcel. You could add messages such as Youre getting closer, nearly there, or one more to go in between each layer. Attach a card to the parcel which reads: This is for Year 1. It is a special parcel to say Thank You for being really great kids. This parcel must be opened slowly and carefully making sure to unwrap only one layer of paper at a time. Wait for half an hour before unwrapping the next layer.

Put the parcel in a prominent place in the classroom, possibly in the prayer place ready for morning prayer. Make sure it is there ready for the beginning of the school day. When several children have noticed it and wondered about it, pick it up and bring it to the attention of the whole class. Read the attached card and say I wonder what it could be?

After a brief time of wondering, invite one of the children to come and carefully unwrap the first layer of paper. Put the parcel back in its place and promise to unwrap the next layer later on.

Every half an hour or so invite one of the children to unwrap another layer of paper. Encourage the children to continue wondering about the parcel or share how they are feeling about what might be in the parcel.

Continue unwrapping throughout the day until the final layer is reached. Use your own judgment for how long to keep the experience happening.

After the contents of the parcel are finally revealed and shared, encourage students to wonder about the experience of waiting using I wonder statements such as: I wonder how you felt when you first saw the parcel this morning? I wonder how you felt as you had to keep waiting for each layer to be unwrapped? I wonder how you felt as we got closer to the gift? I wonder how you felt when the parcel was finally unwrapped?

Students could journal about the experience of the special parcel.

K.8 Advent and Christmas Unit Outline Sydney CEO

To know, worship and love Prep/Kindergarten ch 18 pp 134-139.

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We can wait a very long time for a seed to grow into a tree.

Families wait for a long time for a new baby to be born.

Have you ever waited for a long time for something to happen?

What are some of the things you wait for your birthday, school holidays, a party, Christmas?

How do you feel waiting for something important to happen?

Have you ever waited for the birth of a baby brother or sister?

How did you feel when the baby was born?

We are waiting to celebrate Jesus birthday at Christmas.

Advent is the special time when we prepare for Christmas.

How do you feel waiting to celebrate Jesus birthday?

Engage students in talking, drawing and writing about how they might get ready for Christmas. Students complete the stem: I will get ready for Christmas by. Make into scrolls and display around a banner Advent - We are waiting for Christmas

Learn a hymn such as Christmas is Coming or Wait in Hope

As One Voice For Kids

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During Advent, we remember Mary preparing for the birth of Jesus.

Mary is a model for us

The students could set up an altar in honour of Mary in the classroom.

Read a story that has the theme of waiting

Explore scenarios of waiting for something. Students placed into groups of three or four and role play times of waiting and anticipation, eg waiting for a bus, waiting in line at the tuckshop, waiting for food to cook, waiting for the birth of a baby, waiting for a holiday, waiting for school to break up, waiting for a birthday or special celebration, waiting at the doctors surgery.

Discuss expressions, words and feelings associated with waiting. Display associated words - anxious, excited, hopeful, nervous, frustrated, eager, energized, keen, restless, keyed up, confident, expectant, optimistic, positive, heartened, encouraged. Dramatise each word with body movements and facial expressions. What do our hands do when we are ? What do our faces do when we are ?

Invite an expectant mother to come in and talk about waiting for the birth of her baby.

I wonder:

How did Mary feel as she waited for the birth of Jesus?

What sorts of things would Mary do to prepare for his birth?

Is there anything we need to do to be ready to celebrate Jesus birth at Christmas?

Davids Waiting Day by Bernadette Watts

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Advent is a preparation time before Christmas.

It begins a new year in the Churchs calendar.

There are always four Sundays in Advent but not always four full weeks.

Advent calendars

Collect a variety of calendars or ask the class to bring in calendars from home.

Ask the children to be detectives and see if anyone can find the word Christmas on a calendar.

Ask the children to be detectives and see if anyone can find the word Advent on a calendar. Hopefully on a Catholic calendar, they will find the word Advent several times. Ask how many Sundays have the word Advent written on them. Count how many days have the word Advent.

You could make a large class calendar for Advent to count down the days. The picture on this site can be cut up into 24 pieces. They could number each piece of the puzzle on the back and then each day the student could glue one more piece onto the puzzle

http://lds.about.com/library/bl/puzzles/christmas_advent_calendar.pdf

Some of the scripture readings in this sample are a bit difficult so you might like to use your own or just focus on the activity suggested for each day on this calendar:

http://www.loyolapress.com/assets/advent/children-advent-calendar.pdf

(Note for teachers: There are usually several commercial Advent calendars available for sale. Be aware that many of them will emphasise Santa and snow etc. Most of these calendars count 24 or 25 days beginning on the first of December whether or not this is the first day of Advent.)

To know, worship and love Book 3 p 142

Columban calendar

Christmas time is near Antoinette Jameson As one voice for kids

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The Advent wreath helps us to mark the time during Advent. The circle of greenery reminds us of Gods unending love. The candles mark the week. There are three purple candles and one rose coloured candle. We light the rose candle on the third Sunday of Advent.

At Mass each Sunday during Advent, we hear Gods call to make a new start in the way we live.

In Advent we prepare to welcome Jesus into our hearts at Christmas. We make changes in the way we live our lives who that we can me more like Jesus. It is a joyful time.

Create an advent wreath.

Teacher information on the Advent Wreath can be found here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=je4V1Hl4H-E

Make an Advent Wreath using a circle of greenery, three purple candles and one pink candle. Decorate it with berries or ribbons.

Ask:

How does an Advent wreathe help us to prepare for Christmas?

Collect photos of Advent wreathes in churches or homes

Explain that one candle is lit each week leading up to Christmas with the pink one being lit on the third week of Advent as a sign of hope that Christmas is nearly here. The lighting of the candles of the Advent Wreath reminds us of the coming of Jesus who was the light of the world.

Use the Advent Wreath for morning prayer. Light candles each day according to the weeks of Advent and use a prayer. Each day as you light the appropriate candles you might also recall some of the people who waited for the coming of the Jesus.

There are some prayers on this site:

http://www.loyolapress.com/prayer-for-lighting-the-advent-wreath-candles.htm

Students could make their own Advent Wreath to take home or a 2D version where they add a flame to the candle each week.

To know, worship and love Book 4 pp 144,149

K.8 Advent and Christmas Sydney CEO

Wait in hope Nathaniel Ford As one voice for kids

Advent chant Elaine Kirkland & Phil Porter As one voice for kids

KWL ch 18, p139

Creative Activities for the Liturgical Year: Preparatory Level has a related student activity in Advent Year A Student Resource 1

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In Advent we hear about Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Mary waited patiently in hope, looking forward to the joy of the birth of her Son.

In Advent we might take time to prepare for the festival of the birth of Jesus by listening to special music, reading stories or making gifts we could give to others. In particular we can give to poor, lonely and sad people at Christmas. We should try to share all the good things God gives us with those who are in need. This shows we are people of love.

Advent is a time for us to prepare, wait and share in faith, hope and love.

We prepare for Christmas by celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation and setting aside some extra time for prayer. This shows we are people of faith.

Students recognize images and icons of Mary in the church and the school.

Examine ways in which we might respond to the needs of various people and groups within the community this Advent.

Invite a member of the local St Vincent de Paul Society to talk about the challenges many people and families are faced with, especially around Christmas time.

Students discuss as a class one challenge they can carry out together to show their care and concern for others. eg (a) Contribute items for hampers for distribution by St Vincent de Paul; (b) Prepare to entertain residents at a local nursing home. Make cards, prepare songs for short concert; bring along items to share for morning tea.

This poster suggests 30 ways to have a Stress free Advent and Christmas http://www.osv.com/Portals/0/pdf/30Things_AdventPoster.pdf

This youtube clip Advent in 2 minutes also highlights the really important messages about Advent

http://bustedhalo.com/video/advent-in-two-minutes

Invite the students to make their own poster/multi-media presentation with their ideas, suggestions and illustrations.

You could review the rite for the Sacrament of Penance and advertise times for Reconciliation in the parish.

To know, worship and love Book 5 pp 185 186

Come Lord Jesus Come Michael Mangan from Sing your joy

Like Mary Gerry Holmes As one voice for kids

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Advent begins the Churchs liturgical year and prepares us to celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas. It gives us time to reflect and rejoice in the coming of Christ.

As we prepare for Advent and Christmas, we remember the people who played a part in the story of the coming and birth of Jesus. They waited in hope.

Mary was a young Jewish girl who awaited the coming of the Saviour.

Joseph was chosen to be the foster father of Jesus. Joseph was kind and gentle and a strong protector of Mary whom he loved dearly. He loved and cared for Jesus and lived his life as a carpenter and taught Jesus to also be a carpenter.

Read Matthew 1:18-24The Birth of Jesus

Only two of the four gospels tell of the circumstances surrounding Jesus birth and both are different. Luke focuses very much on Mary, while here in Matthews gospel Mary is passive and the Annunciation is to Joseph in a dream. It would seem that both writers are in their own way making sense of the Churchs traditional belief that Joseph was not the natural father of Jesus; rather, Jesus was conceived through the Holy Spirit.

Marys pregnancy is presented as unexpected. Both gospels agree that Mary and Joseph are betrothed at the time of her pregnancy. Betrothal means husband and wife in fact, although they had not come to live together. Betrothals were often made while the couple were very young, especially the woman. So their living together did not take place until the woman was sexually mature generally about twelve years of age. So was Mary twelve? Possibly. According to the law Joseph could divorce her for her apparent infidelity to him. This was, of course, very hard for the woman who becomes virtually unmarriageable and thus has no hope of children or financial support. The pregnancy is explained to Joseph in a dream by an angel. Matthew quotes from the Hebrew scriptures and here he quotes the prophet Isaiah. The eighth century prophet Isaiah and the people of his time were hoping for a king from the Davidic royal family to lead them to greatness as David had done. It must be remembered that the writers of these infancy narratives of Jesus in Matthew and Luke were certainly not eyewitnesses to the events and are relying heavily on the oral tradition as handed down to them. They also bring their own understanding of this oral tradition into their accounts.

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A Jesse Tree

Ask the students if they have learned about family trees and their ancestors

Explain that the gospel of Matthew 1: 1-17 begins with The Genealogy of Jesus the family tree of Joseph also known as the Jesse Tree

The Jesse Tree is a symbol from the Middle Ages. It comes from the words A shoot shall come up from the stump of Jesse, and from its roots a branch will bear fruit (Isaiah 11:1). Jesse was the father of King David and the Bible tells us that Jesus will be born of the house of David. By going back to Davids father, Jesse, and his ancestors, the Jesse Tree can be thought of as Jesus family tree. Each symbol used on the Jesse tree depicts a story or person of faith from the Old Testament leading towards the fulfilment of the prophecy of the coming of a Saviour. The Scripture stories tell us of the preparation of the people of God throughout history for the coming of Jesus.

Invite the class to research some of the names in the genealogy eg

Abraham

King David

Solomon

Ruth

Mary

Joseph

And to make a visual symbol/image for that person to place on a branch Jesse tree

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