The Religion Teacher s Rosary Worksheets for Kids Meditations on the Mysteries of the Rosary By Jared Dees The Religion Teacher www.thereligionteacher.com 2013 All Rights Reserved.
Introduction When the recitation of the Rosary combines all elements needed for an effective meditation... it can present a significant catechetical opportunity... John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 17 As religious educators, our ultimate goal and purpose is to help our students not only come to know Jesus Christ, but to enter into communion, into intimacy with him (Catechesi Tradendae, 5). In other words, teaching concepts and ideas about Christ, his life, Salvation History, and the teachings of the Church are very important because they help our young people come to know their Lord. But if we only teach ideas, we will never achieve our true purpose in doing the work of religious education. In addition to teaching our young people to know about God, we need to teach them how to know God personally. We need to teach them to be holy. Praying the Rosary is one of the best ways to accomplish this goal. John Paul II called the Rosary an educational opportunity for personal contemplation (Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 3). The most important reason for strongly encouraging the practice of the Rosary, he wrote, is that it represents a most effective means of fostering [a] commitment to the contemplation of the Christian mystery (RVM, 4). When we pray the Rosary we step into the school of Mary and learn how to contemplate the face of Christ (RVM, 4). It is a prayer that is focused on Christ through the meditation of the mysteries of his life and Mary s life with him. By praying the Rosary we come into greater unity with our Lord, just as Mary was united with him in constant contemplation. From Prayers to Meditation Many people, when they experience the Rosary for the first time, consider it to be just a mindless repetition of the same prayers over and over again. When we introduce the Rosary to young people for the first time, this will most likely be their first impression of the prayer. This is why it is so important that we help our young people learn to contemplate the mysteries of the Rosary while they recite the prayers. As Pope Paul VI wrote, Without contemplation, the Rosary is a body without a soul, and its recitation runs the risk of becoming a mechanical repetition of formulas, a violation of the admonition of Christ (Marialis Cultus, 47). This collection of handouts is meant to help you teach young people to not just pray the Rosary, but to meditate on the life of Christ while they pray the Rosary.
How to Pray the Rosary With a simple web search, you can find dozens upon dozens of resources to learn how to recite the prayers of the Rosary. There are many handouts with a step-by-step listings of the prayers we pray: Apostles Creed, Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, Fatima Prayer, and Hail Holy Queen. Understanding when to pray each prayer on the rosary beads is important, but if we stop there in introducing children to the Rosary, we have made a big mistake. The Rosary is a prayer of contemplation. We contemplate the mysteries of Christ s life with his mother Mary. Therefore, when we teach young people to pray the Rosary, we must teach them how to meditate on the sacred mysteries as well as recite the prayers. While praying the Rosary, there are four sets of mysteries to contemplate during each day of the week: Joyful Mysteries (Monday, Saturday) Sorrowful Mysteries (Tuesday, Friday) Glorious Mysteries (Wednesday, Sunday) Luminous Mysteries (Thursday) When we pray a decade (set of ten beads) of the Rosary, we are meant to focus our minds and our hearts on remembering a specific event of Christ and Mary s lives. When we remember these events, we make them present to us today and connect them with what is happening in our lives today. They become a part of us and guide us through our days. How to Pray the Rosary with these Meditation Worksheets If the Rosary is well presented, I am sure that young people will once more surprise adults by the way they make this prayer their own... John Paul II, RVM, 42 Since meditation on the mysteries of Christ s life is likely to be new to the young people you teach, the handouts in this packet are meant to train them to do meditation. Each mystery comes with a handout to help relate it to one s life today. These handouts are like scaffolding along the side a building, they help us learn to do meditation but eventually will be removed. For many of the students, the mysteries and Bible stories of the Rosary will be completely new. These handouts will help them learn and remember the stories so that later when they do their meditations, they will remember the events and the key Scripture passages. This can only happen through reading, repetition, and meditation.
You can use these handouts in a variety of ways, including: Pray one mystery of the Rosary and use one handout each week. Spend the entire class praying the Rosary, dividing your lesson into the five mysteries and the five handouts for the day. Create five Rosary centers by dividing the room into five parts and having the class move from one center to the next completing the handout and praying the Rosary. This method will resemble a living Rosary. From a practical standpoint, after the students complete the worksheet meditations, have them pray the decade of the Rosary keeping in mind the thoughts, feelings, and life connections that surfaced during their meditations. Praying the prayers while meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary takes practice so the only way to help the students get more comfortable with Rosary meditations is to repeat the process again and again. Share Your Experiences My goal is to continually provide the best, most practical resources to help religious educators evangelize and catechize the students they teach. I am always seeking feedback on the resources available at The Religion Teacher. Please share with me your feedback or share your students experiences using these resources by emailing me at jared@thereligionteacher.com. Make sure you mention this packet of Rosary Worksheets for Kids in the subject line of your email. I look forward to hearing from you. Prayer Hail Mary, full of grace the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Joyful: The Annunciation Directions: During the Annunciation, Mary met the angel Gabriel and agreed to become the Mother of God. Read Luke 1:26-38 and imagine you are Mary in the story. What questions do you think you would ask the angel and how might he respond? MARY: GABRIEL: MARY: GABRIEL: MARY: GABRIEL:
Joyful: The Visitation Directions: When Mary went to visit her cousin, Elizabeth, the child in her womb leaped with joy. Read Luke 1:39-45 and draw and label pictures of the gifts from God that make you jump for joy.
Joyful: The Nativity Directions: Many new parents send birth announcements to friends and family with pictures of their newborn children. Imagine you were Joseph and Mary. Read Luke 2:1-14 and design your birth announcement, taking into consideration the circumstances and events of Jesus birth.
Joyful: The Presentation in the Temple Directions: Simeon and Anna waited a long time for God to come to help their people. This story of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple shows their immediate reaction to meeting Jesus, but what do you think they said to God afterward? Read Luke 2:22-38 and pick either Simeon or Anna. Write a prayer that they might have prayed to God after these events unfolded.
Joyful: The Finding of Jesus in the Temple Directions: When Jesus was a boy, Mary and Joseph found him in the Temple exchanging questions and answers about God with a group of teachers (Luke 2:46-47). If you were there with Jesus, what questions would you ask him and how do you think he would respond? YOU: JESUS: YOU: JESUS: YOU: JESUS:
Sorrowful: The Agony in the Garden Directions: On the night before he died, Jesus took some of his disciples to a garden where he prayed for God s will to be done. Every time he came back from praying to see his disciples, he found them asleep. Read Matthew 26:36-46 and imagine you were there with the disciples. In the space provided, write what you would say or do to keep them awake.
Sorrowful: The Scourging at the Pillar Directions: The governor, Pontius Pilate, gave the Jewish people the option to release Jesus or another criminal. They chose to crucify Jesus and release the other criminal. Then, he was brutally whipped before his crucifixion. Read Matthew 27:15-26 and complete this handout. 1. Describe a time when you felt rejected by your friends, classmates, teammates, or family. 2. Imagine Jesus was sitting or standing before you. What would he say to you about his experience of rejection? Write what he would say below.
Sorrowful: The Crowing of Thorns Directions: The Roman soldiers bullied Jesus. They crowned him with thorns and made fun of him for claiming to be a king. Step in and do something about it! Read Matthew 27:27-31 and complete this handout. 1. Imagine you were able to stand up to the Roman soldiers who made fun of Jesus. What would you say to them? What would you do to stop the bullying? 2. Have you ever been in a situation where you saw someone being bullied? What did you do? What could you have done instead? 3. Draw a picture below of a bullying situation with you doing something to stop it:
Sorrowful: The Carrying of the Cross Directions: What is the hardest thing you have to do in your life right now? Imagine that doing it will help Jesus carry his cross like Simon helped Jesus carry the cross. Read Luke 23:26 and complete this handout. My Biggest Challenge Today Imagine you are able to talk to Jesus about this challenge in your life. What would he say to you to give you comfort and strength?
Sorrowful: The Crucifixion Directions: In the box below, draw a picture of the crucifixion. Imagine you were one of the people there and write an eyewitness account of the event. Read Matthew 27:33-44, Mark, 15:22-32, Luke 23:33-43, or John 19:17-27 and complete this handout. Eyewitness Account: Imagine you were one of these people at the crucifixion. What would you have seen, heard, and experienced. Describe what happened from your point of view below.
Glorious: The Resurrection Directions: We often sing in celebration of great events. Read Matthew 28:1-10 and compose a song in celebration of the Resurrection. Use the tune of a song you know (like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or the birthday song) as the music for your lyrics.
Glorious: The Ascension Directions: Imagine if Jesus were to send a postcard from heaven. What would he say to his disciples about what is in store for them? Read Acts 1:6-12 and create the postcard below.
Glorious: The Coming of the Holy Spirit Directions: The Apostles were leaders. They had the help of the Holy Spirit. You are a leader and you can turn to the Holy Spirit for help. Read Acts 2:1-3, then complete this handout. 1. Write one example of where you are a leader (home, family, friends, sports, etc.) or where you want to be a leader. 2. List all of people who follow you. 3. Which gifts of the Holy Spirit (wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, or fear of the Lord) could help you be a better leader and why? Prayer: In closing, quietly say to yourself this simple prayer: Come, Holy Spirit. Say it repeatedly asking for the gift of the Holy Spirit you need the most.
Glorious: The Assumption of Mary Directions: Jesus loved his mother so much that he brought her up to heaven to be with him at the end of her earthly life. How can you show your parents or guardians how much you love them and are grateful for them? Pick one person to complete this exercise. 1. I can show, I love them by... 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2. Ask for Mary to pray for this person as you pray a decade of the Rosary.
Glorious: The Coronation of Mary Directions: Mary was crowned the Queen of Heaven, not because of her accomplishments, but because she was humble and served God. Read Luke 1:46-55, then as you color this crown think of all the ways that you serve God in your life. Reflection: How can you better serve God today?
Luminous: The Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River Directions: Through our baptism, we became sons and daughters of God just like Jesus. Read Mark 1:9-11 and imagine God s voice from heaven is speaking to you saying, You are my beloved daughter (or, You are my beloved son), with whom I am well pleased. 1. Imagine that this voice of God describing for you the parts of your life that pleases him the most. What would he say? 2. How would you respond to the God s words? 3. Draw a picture of your baptism in the box below.
Luminous: The Wedding Feast at Cana Directions: At a wedding feast in Cana, Jesus performed one of his first miracles in response to a suggestion from his mother. Read John 2:1-11 and list the instructions your parents often give you and why you should listen to them. Parent Instructions: Why I Should Listen: _ Parent Instructions: Why I Should Listen: _ Parent Instructions: Why I Should Listen: _ Parent Instructions: Why I Should Listen: _ Parent Instructions: Why I Should Listen: _
Luminous: The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God Directions: Jesus speaks about the Kingdom of God in many different parables. Choose one of the parables about the Kingdom below and draw a picture of what Jesus describes. Then explain how you can pursue the Kingdom of God in your life based on this parable. The Sower (Mt 13:1-9) Weeds among the Wheat (Mt 13:24-30) Mustard Seed (Mt 13:31-32) Yeast (Mt 13:33) Treasure in the Field (Mt 13:44) Merchant and Pearls (Mt 13:45-46) Fishing Net (Mt 13:47-50) Workers in the Vineyard (Mt 20:1-16) The Tenants (Mt 21:33-46) Wedding Feast (Mt 22:1-14) The Ten Virgins (Mt 25:1-13) The Five Talents (Mt 25:14-30) 1. Draw a picture of this parable: 2. Based on this parable, what do you think the Kingdom of God is like?
Luminous: The Transfiguration of Jesus Directions: Read about the Transfiguration Mark 9:2-8. Jesus appears in radiant light along with the Old Testament heroes Elijah and Moses. According to Mark, they had a conversation. What do you think they might have said to Jesus? JESUS: ELIJAH: MOSES: JESUS: ELIJAH: MOSES: Directions: Answer the following question. If you were there, how would you respond? ME:
Luminous: The Institution of the Eucharist Directions: Read Matthew 26:26-30 and complete this handout. The Bread 1. Jesus took the bread, gave thanks, and said, Take and eat; this is my body. Food gives us strength. The Eucharist is bread that gives us strength in unity with Christ. Where do you need Christ s strength the most today and why? The Wine 2. Jesus took the cup, gave thanks, and said, Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins. Have you done anything wrong that you would like to confess to Christ? Tell Jesus what you are sorry for below and then imagine him saying, I forgive you.