The following activity is taken from the Leader's Manual for Send Out Your Spirit a Confirmation preparation program from Ave Maria Press. Apply the activity to any lesson or discussion on the Ten Commandments.
Call on one student to come before the class and be interviewed "on the spot" with questions related to applying the Ten Commandments in day-to-day living. Ask the teen one or two of the following questions. Then call on another teen to answer the same or different questions.
Questions
How do the Ten Commandments play a part in your moral decision-making? Give an example.
What are some other gods you have been tempted to worship in your life?
How do you respond when someone around you uses God's name in vain?
Describe behavior you consider appropriate and inappropriate for Sunday.
How do you honor your parents now? How do you think you will honor them when you are an adult?
How strong is the commitment to save sex until marriage among your peers?
How does society promote an attitude of disrespect for the body and for sexual behavior?
When was a time you told a lie that did damage to another person? How did you repair that damage?
What does it mean to dress modestly?
How is cheating in school an offense against the Seventh Commandment?
How can you practice loyalty and commitment in relationships now to help you prepare for the same when and if you are married?
When students graduate from high school, they should know their preferred learning styles. If so, they can choose higher education that best suits these styles as well as classes and study environments that help rather than hinder their learning.
Just posing the question, “How do you learn best?” may not yield answers immediately. Try using some images from Classroom Portraits by Julian Germain, captured in the article, “How Children Learn: A World Tour of Class Portraits,” by Maria Popova ,
Putting some or all of these images in front of the students may result in some of the following type of comments.
“I couldn’t learn in a classroom with fifty or sixty people!”
“I couldn’t learn standing up”
“Those desks look uncomfortable”
“I couldn’t concentrate with a dog in the classroom”
“I wouldn’t want to be only with other girls” or “I like single-sex classes”
“I wish my desk was that big!”
“I am glad that our uniform does not require a tie!” or “I would hate a uniform!”
“How could a teacher teach all of those boys at once?”
These types of comments can then lead to reflection or conversation about these topics. I learn best . . .
Alone or with lots of people
In a quiet classroom or a lively one
With space or crammed in with others
With or without distractions – opposite sex, a dog in the classroom
Wearing my own clothes or with a uniform
Sitting or standing
Listening or talking
This could move on to discussions such as . . .
I find that music helps me concentrate or distracts me
Doodling during lectures helps me listen
Taking down notes helps me learn the material
I prefer group work to solitary work
I find myself thinking through test material while running
Helping students learn how they best do homework, study for tests, research, or take tests is valuable knowledge both for them and for you. Students can also share ideas about how they discovered their own best environments. The idea that the quiet bedroom is the ideal study place may work for some students, may not work for others, or may not be an option for still others.
The Diocese of Springfield has prepared several helpful free resources to accompany Fr.Robert Barron's acclaimed Catholicism film series. The resources include:
a Journal Book
a Prayer Book for each participant
an Additional Resources Book for group and parish leaders
Extra liturgical catechesis handouts and prayers
Check out this link for information on the resources. Information on the Catholicism film series can be reviewed at Fr. Barron's Word on Fire site.
The Eighth Commandment is an important one for your students to consider at the start of a school year. It involves telling the truth. Use a short lesson on the Eighth Commandment—"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor"—to explain why truth-telling and obedience to this Commandment involves keeping an honest relationship between friends. It prohibits calumny, that is speaking falsely and negatively about others. It also condemns belittling or ridiculing others. Lying itself undermines a person's relationship with others. Lies offend God who wants us to live honestly with others.
Share the following case study on truth telling. It involves the difficult choice a person must make between keeping a confidence of a friend and respecting the privacy of a conversation with the possible danger the friend may face if the confidence is not revealed. This case study and others around the Ten Commandments are included in the book The Ten Commandments: Case Studies in Catholic Morality.
Case Study: Keeping a Friend’s Secret
Sharon and Katie have been close friends since grade school. They are now high school sophomores. Katie began gaining weight in middle school, and she ignored her eating habits for a few years. Some classmates made remarks about Katie’s weight, but most said nothing about it, at least not so that she could hear them. Sharon never belittled Katie or made her weight an issue and, because of her understanding and loyalty,
Katie considers Sharon her best friend.
At the beginning of sophomore year, Katie began to be concerned about her weight and went on a diet. She was very strict with herself, and she managed to get to her goal weight in three months. True to form, Sharon did all the things a friend should do when Katie was dieting. She encouraged her, and she never once suggested that Katie go off the diet and enjoy a high-calorie treat. Sharon felt proud of Katie and happy for her when she lost the extra pounds.
Recently, Sharon has become concerned about Katie because Katie’s disposition has changed and because she has been eating junk food items and then vomiting to get rid of them. Sharon asks Katie why she spends so much time in the bathroom and asks, “You’re throwing up what you eat. Right?” Katie starts to cry and admits that she has developed a problem with eating and purging (bulimia), and she tells Sharon that this is to be a secret just between the two of them. Katie tells Sharon that she is her friend because Sharon has always been loyal and has never done anything that would hurt Katie.
Sharon is confused. She wants to respect Katie’s privacy, but she has heard that bulimia is a serious disorder, and she thinks that Katie may need professional help to stop her self-destructive behavior.
Evaluation
Katie and Sharon are friends and, generally speaking, friends should keep secrets. What are some exceptions to this rule?
What should Sharon do in this situation? Should she keep her knowledge about Katie’s problem to herself, or should she share this information?
If Sharon should tell someone, who should that someone be? Why?
Speculate on the reasons Katie is eating and purging, and consider constructive advice that you might give her.
