(Note: This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting us if you have any purchases to make today. Please read our full disclosure if you wish.)
Materials
- a bowl with water
- a small pitcher
- a small container of scented oil
- a basket
- a doll (in the basket)
- a white garment (for the doll)
- a cloth
- a white candle
- a smaller candle (or several)
- 3 white paper (or cloth) circles
- matches
- To explore the Sacrament of Baptism in a concrete way.
- To describe the signs and symbols of Baptism.
- To recall our own baptisms and discuss the meaning of it
- Invite children to gather around the tray you have put together.
- Briefly introduce the Sacrament of Baptism by recalling the children’s own baptisms, a recent or upcoming baptism you’ll attend, Baptism stories in the Bible or similar.
- Present the tray by tweaking scripts found in Moira Farrell's Home Catechesis Manual or through online sources to suit you and your children. (A helpful online source is the Baptism pdf found when scrolling down this page or the youtube video found here.)
- Put all the materials back carefully on the tray, just as they were when you began your presentation.
- Invite children to explore with the tray, listening to them present as you did if they wish you to.
- Place the tray in a “home” and allow children to explore it further.
- Extend learning with other activities if you wish.
- Faith (role playing what happens during the Sacrament of Baptism; understanding symbols and significance of Baptism)
- Early Literacy (storytelling, sequencing)
- Practical Life (filling, pouring, dressing, undressing, etc.)
- Focus (concentrating on pouring and on remembering sequence)
- Of course, open flame can be dangerous around young children. Use matches and candles with caution. Do not leave the matches out to be used without supervision. Depending on the children you are working with, you may wish to use battery-operated “candles”.
- The paper circles we used got wet and had to be recycled fairly quickly. You may wish to use cloth ones or to have another tray nearby for tracing and cutting paper circles, which would be a great go-along for fine motor work.
Homeschool Method/Approaches Connections
- Montessori: Our tray was directly inspired by Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and Godly Play, which are both Montessori-influenced faith formation programs
- Unschooling: When/if children ask about Baptism – its significance, what actually happens at it, etc., you could easily put together a tray like this to help them discover answers.
- Reggio: Skip the demonstration, leave the tray out at as a provocation/invitation and see where the children take things.
- Sensory Smart: This tray inherently contains strong tactile and olfactory input. Depending on how a particular child reacts to the sensation of getting wet, or to the scent you choose for the oil oil, this activity can be used as a calming and focusing one or as an alerting one.
- Moira Farrell's Home Catechesis Manual
- a wonderful Godly Play Baptism Script pdf that I found after scrolling though this page
- various online images and blogs; some of which I pinned for my future reference and for yours, if you like.
- a helpful pdf on Baptism from the Sacred Heart of Jesus parish in Hopedale, MA which I can no longer find online
I’d love to hear about it or to have you share links in the comments here.
Want to be inspired with others' Montessori ideas and work? Click on over to Montessori Monday and enjoy.
(If you receive this post via email and cannot see the linky, be sure to actually click over to the blog to read browse the rich catalog of ideas there.)
Training Happy Hearts:
A Call to Faith Formation for Young Children
You are invited link up anytime with posts -- old or new -- that share your ideas, wisdom, reflections, activities and practical tips and tales about training up young children so that they may have happy hearts, united with God. Henceforth, this link-up will be posted anew each Sunday, but will contain all linked ideas to date, creating, in effect, a library of ideas for sharing our faith with little ones. Enjoy browsing the links as well as adding new ones each week. Thank you and God bless!
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
2 comments:
What a lovely post, Martianne! Thanks so much for sharing the details of your baptism tray. I featured your post at the Living Montessori Now Facebook page and pinned it to my Godly Play and Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Pinterest Board.
I used this activity for our Children's Liturgy group at mass this morning. They loved it!!! My kids have been baptizing all the princesses and Star wars figures in our house....Everyone needs Jesus!! LOL!!Such a great idea...Thanks for sharing!
Post a Comment