I begin the lesson by talking with the children about Baptisms they have been a part of, as many of them have younger cousins or brothers or sisters. We talk about what they saw happening, what the priest used at the Baptism, what the parents said and did, et cetera. As they mention things they saw said or done or used, I just jot them on the board.
After we discuss what they already know about Baptism, we watch this short video of baby being baptized.
When it is over, we take a few minutes to discuss, again, what they saw happening in the video.
Then I go into explaining that Baptism is the first Sacrament (sign of God's love and life in us) that they received when they were babies. I bring out my baby doll dressed in my daughter's baptismal dress, and we talk about what the baby is wearing (white) and why (sign of purity). Then we take the baby doll and we perform a baptism in the classroom. I act as the priest. Two students get to be the parents, and two are the godparents. Everyone else is the congregation. I use the wording found on this PDF, but I do modify it fit the age and maturity of the children. I bring a glass bowl to use as the baptismal font, water, and oil from home. I put them in fancy salad dressing cruets to use during the Baptism.
After we act out the baptism and, again, discuss the meaning of the ceremony and items used, I have the children draw a picture and add a caption about Baptism that I bind into a class Baptism book, All About Baptism. This is also used as a formative assessment as it allows me to see how well each child understands Baptism.
After we finish this piece of the lesson, I get out their religion interactive notebooks. This is always the last piece of our religion lessons. As we read and add the pages to our notebooks, it is a good and lasting way to review what the children have learned during the week.
We always begin each section with a title page.
I love using the interactive notebook portion because it creates a lasting reminder of each lesson we've learned in our religion class. When I pass out the notebooks, I always give the children a few minutes to leaf through the notebook and talk about all the things we've learned. We start with the creation story at the beginning of the year and just add to the notebook all year long. Some things are not interactive per se. They might be crafts that we've completed to represent various lessons, like Noah's Ark or Moses and the Burning Bush. But each thing in the notebook sparks a memory of the lesson and brings the children closer to God as they grow in their faith.
Today, as part of the #2forTuesday sale, you can find this resource in my store on sale for $2.00. It includes vocabulary cards with words and pictures, the interactive notebook pages, a Baptism trace and color sheet, and a summative evaluation you can use at the end of the lesson or as a text dependent question sheet to go along with the interactive notebook.
As a small freebie for you, you can download this trace and color sheet by clicking on the image.
To view this resource in my store, you can click on the cover or any of the pictures from the interactive notebook.
Be sure to visit the InLinkz below and see what other great items are being offered in the #2forTuesday sale!
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