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chool nvironmentEach teacher contributes to the overall school environment because each classroom isa significant segment of the school. Consider the physical and attitudinal aspects ofenvironment.Physical EnvironmentMaking a classroom physically Catholic means to remind students visually of their faithand its teachings. Let posters and bulletin boards reflect the diversity of God's creation. Be sensitive toracial balance and body styles. . Affirm positive messages on posters and bulletin boards. Keep a neat classroom. God's universe is orderly. Establish a prayer corner with contemporary statuary. Create subtle reminders with banners on classroom computers: Make God Smile,Jesus Is Present, or God Will Always Love You. Create a hero bulletin board with the biography of a saint. Post the parish or school mission statement. Post daily or weekly special prayer intentions. Position the Bible prominently in the classroom.

ttitudinal EnvIronmentThe attitudinal environment of a classroom i;; a direct reflection of the teacher'sphilosophy and spiritual formation. The right attitude will create a classroom in whichstudents disagree appropriately greet others respect themselves and others respect others' property accept no handle anger appropriately cooperate with others are patient are comfortable asking for help prayDeveloping a code of conduct will support teachers in maintaining a classroom thatexpresses a Catholic attitude. This is best done at the beginning of the school yearwhen students are eager and perceive themselves as perfect. An age-appropriatediscussion of the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit should lead into discussion of correctbehavior and consequences for violation of that behavior.The teacher can help students adhere to the code through prayer at the beginning andconclusion of each day and at additional times. Both the code and the prayers shouldbe posted as prompters.Excellent handout Reclaiming th Catholic Classroom doc 2

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Teachers in Catholic schools will find it difficult to nurture a Catholic environmentwithout self-nurturing. Keep abreast of news, debates, and trends by reading Catholicperiodicals, attending regional or diocesan workshops, and participating in studygroups.

The Seasonsdvent

The four weeks of Advent begin the Church's liturgical year. Each week represents athousand years of Israelite history, a time of longing for the Messiah.- Make an Advent wreath and say a prayer of preparation at the beginning of each dayor class period.- Emphasize waiting in any way that is appropriate for your class. For younger students,it may mean spending 30 seconds in silence before snack time. For high schoolstudents, it could be waiting an extra day for test results.- Allow students to draw names to become Advent Sponsors for each other. AdventSponsors spend four weeks praying for their secret special classmate. Sponsors areidentified during a Christmas card exchange just befoJe school dismisses for theChristmas holiday.- Clothing and nonperishable food drives are popular at this time of year, but sometimesa more personal approach attracts children. Students might adopt students from anearby school and prepare stockings filled with school supplies for the second half ofthe school year.- Tell the story of St. Nicholas on his feast, December 6 Traditionally, children leavetheir shoes outside on the eve of his feast and find them filled with treats the followingmorning. Sponsor a shoe or sock drive through a local organization.hristmas

The Christmas season extends from Christmas day until the feast of the Lord's Baptismon January 12. The Feasts of the HolY Family and the Epiphany are included in theChristmas season. The Christmas season is a time of joy and peace. While studentsspend little of this time in school, some classroom activities can enhance its celebration.In prayer and curriculum choices, emphasize issues of a global nature.- Research the value and signi'ficance of the gifts of the magi: gold, frankincense, myrrh.- Research the Church's attitude toward astrology.- Discuss three significant gifts that might be offered to a king today.LentLent is a penitential season, a time to reflect on the need for us to "die to ourselves,"sacrificing and attempting to better ourselves spiritually.-Incorporate the Stations of the Cross into your class prayer life.- Talk about the physical and mental suffering Jesus endured. As you speak, drop nails

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into a tin pail. During Lent, students may remove one nail from the pail on each day theydeliberately perform a good deed in the name of Jesus. Have students prepare a bulletin board with lyrics from Lenten hymns. List Jesus' I am statements from the Gospel of John (John 6:35; 8:12; 10:7; 10:11;11 :25; 14:6; 15:5). Have students compose additional I am statements appropriate totheir current work in various school subjects.asterThe Easter season extends from Easter Sunday until the Feast of Pentecost andincludes the Feast of the Ascension. Proclaim a special no homework nighr in recognition of the joy of the Resurrection. Display the word Alleluia on bulletin boards for this time. Jesus is the Living Water. Study the image of water. Make holy water, blessed by apriest, available to students. If school policy allows, have students wear white one day since this color is a symbolof resurrection. Butterflies, eggs, spring flowers, and rabbits are symbols of new life. Use thesesymbols in discipline- appropriate ways.Curriculum reasine rts

Drafting, music, and art offer many opportunities to incorporate Catholic tradition,teaching, and attitudes. Most music classes include liturgical music, but few include Gregorian qhant. Introduceyour students to this important aspect of the history of the Church. Art classes could easily use chapels or parish churches as springboards for lessonson perspective. Drafting classes might research great basilicas and cathedrals. Designing a Catholicchurch would require students to research the historical shapes of church structures.Interviews with local pastors could acquaint students with current liturgical trends. Invitea local religious or priest with a demonstrated art talent to address the class. Because the fine arts is, by definition, an integrated curriculum area, it can easily serveto make the classroom demonstrably Catholic. Encourage students to go beyond theclassroom, interact with others, research, and interview.oreign Languages

,Teachers of foreign languages (Latin as well as contemporary languages) can enhancethe Catholic identity of students in ways such as these: Teach students rote prayers (Our Father, Hail Mary, Sign of the Cross) in the foreignlanguage. Offer guided religious meditations in the foreign tongue.

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Study canonized saints of the countries of that language. Translate familiar hymns to the language.anguage rts

Virtually all of language arts can reclaim the Catholic classroom. Handwriting-Have students copy rote prayers, classroom prayers, or classroomconduct rules. Assign special verses from Scripture. Spelling-When administering tests, use examples that support Catholic teaching andattitudes. Speech-Use moral issues as topiCS. Assign students to interview priests andreligious. Reading-Include Catholic authors of the literary period, style, or theme under study.Take time in May, the month of Mary, to look at women in literature who exemplifyMary's qualities. . Writing-Assign for journaling: "Who was the 'Jesus' in my life yesterday?" Relate thestory of a saint and have students write in first person at a poignant moment in thesaint's life. Search for similes and metaphors in Psalms. Use the diocesan newspaperfor exercises in editing.MathematicsComposing story problems that incorporate Catholicity is an obvious way for mathteachers to reclaim the classroom, but there are other ways as well. Use religious objects to assist young children in counting and sorting, e.g., a Rosary,prayer cards with pictures, medals, pews in church. Have students research numbers with which to work when studying fractions,percentages, graphs, or sets. Examples could include parish or diocesan statistics,number of students in the school, or student demographics. Introduce geometric figures with their Catholic significance, e.g., the equilateraltriangle as a symbol of the Trinity, the circle as a symbol of the Eternal God. Periodically offer young students a number with special significance, e.g., 1 God, 3Persons in God, 7 days of creation, 8 Beatitudes, 10 Commandments.ScienceThe sciences offer unique opportunities to reclaim the Catholic classroom. While some. claim that religion and science are in conflict, science actually supports our Faith inmany ways. Chemistry-Lent and Easter time provide a perfect opportunity to observe the scienceof yeast; unleavened bread and the Eucharist are the focus of our liturgical celebration.Research the cause of Moses' burning bush. Physics-Challenge the class to determine what it would require for a human to walkon water or appear to walk on water, as opposed to Jesus, who was fully human andfully divine and was capable of walking on water. Jesus repeatedly used and referred tothe forces of nature, and Scripture abounds with references to nature.

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Biology The Gospel of St. Luke includes many references to Jesus' healing powers.Incorporate these stories into your class. Invite a priest or religious to speak to the classabout bioethics. Assign students to search the Gospels for Jesus' mention of animals and otheraspects of God's creation. Organize a service project to conserve resources and educate others aboutconservation. Assign students to prepare an exhibit of prominent Catholic scientists.Social Studies Occasionally incorporate the diocesan newspaper into your study of current events. Periodically assign students to locate Jesus in the News, an article' that highlights aperson who has acted out the Gospel values. Adopt a Catholic parish or school from an area or country that the class is studying. Use missionary magazines as resources when studying other countries. Assign students to research patron saints of countries studied. Arrange for Catholic pen pals from countries under study. Compose a prayer of praise for God's gifts to a state or country under study.Elissa Greenburg has spent 25 years in the educational ministry o the Gatholic Churchas an elementary and secondary teacher and an elementary school administrator. Sheis also a writer of children s literature; manyo her works were published for classroomuse by the Denali Project while several novellas appear as e-books and are available atwww.zeus publications.com.Source: Today's Catholic Teacher, August/September 2003

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