Religious Education Curriculum and Strands
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."
- Gospel of John 3:16
Having a relationship and privileged encounter with Jesus Christ and the promotion of the human person formed in the image of God is at the heart of the Ontario Grades 1-8 Religious Education Curriculum which is organized into 6 strands:
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Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations (OCSGE)
By the conclusion of secondary school, it is our aim, as Catholic educators, to ensure that each graduate is
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Virtues of the Month (TCDSB)
"The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God."
- St. Gregory of Nyssa
Each month, students in TCDSB schools focus on developing a specific Catholic virtue. Virtue is a habit and firm desire to do good. Virtues allow people not only to perform good acts but also to give the best of themselves. The virtuous person freely tends toward good, pursues good, and chooses it in daily, concrete actions (CCC 1803).
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explains how smiling, a sign of welcoming, is good for your health
– Sacrifice, Achievement, and Legacy: Canadians and the Second World War (1939-1945) *We pray for our soldiers who sacrifice themselves so that we may live in peace.
– Reflections on Christmas - a short video by Fr. Robert Barron
– 100 Days of Rejection Therapy: see Jia Jiang's tool kit on how to overcome fear (of rejection)
– Trinity: God IS Love - a short video by Father Robert Barron – Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen? - an article on an age- old question
forgive and move on
– Key Principles of Catholic Social Teaching – What Would Jesus Do? - asking ourselves "WWJD" helps us to improve our lives and the lives of others, as discussed in this article by Victor M. Parachin
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General Resources
Websites
Videos
Documents
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TCDSB Logo: The Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope, Charity (Love)
The three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity (love) are gifts of grace from God and allow Christians to live in a relationship with the Holy Trinity:
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines these three virtues in paragraphs 1812-1829. Bishop Robert Barron further explains each of these central virtues and clarifies the meaning of each in his video, Faith, Hope, and Love. |
Lent and Easter Videos
Lent
Holy Week
Easter
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The Gospel of John: Class Projects (2013-2015)
The Visual Bible: The Gospel of John is a 2003 film that has been adapted for the screen and follows the Good News Bible translation word-for-word, in sequential order, from beginning to end. This 3 hour film follows John's Gospel precisely, with no additions or omissions of Biblical passages.
Watch The Gospel of John (2003) and follow along with the Good News Translation of John's Gospel. |
After viewing and reflecting upon the film version of John's Gospel, a recurring comment made by my Grade 7/8 students (2013-2014 class) was how the film allowed them to understand the Gospel passages more clearly as the complementary visual images reinforced the Gospel's message. Seeing that there are 21 chapters in John's Gospel and 21 students at the time in my class, I was inspired (by the Holy Spirit, I am certain!) to assign a class project in which each student would adapt a chapter from The Gospel of John in a graphic novel format to create another visually accessible form of John's Gospel. As a note, the text used in our graphic adaptation employs the exact wording from the Good News Translation, but some passages may have been omitted and replaced by illustrations to convey their meaning.
You can purchase a beautiful, casewrapped hardcover (200 pages) version of this book distributed by Lulu.com (cost: $21.80 + $6.99 shipping + $1.44 tax = $30.23) or download the free eBook (in pdf format). |
My subsequent Grade 8 class (2014-2015) also viewed The Gospel of John during the 2015 Lenten season. John's Gospel, above all, enriched our understanding of agape, the Greek word for Christ's self-sacrificing love for us. To share this message of divine love, embodied in the person of Jesus, my Grade 8 students created a series of linocut prints to accompany the text of John's Gospel. Before loving someone, we need to know or at least see the object of our love. Inspired by Annie Valloton's simple yet evocative line drawings for the Good News Translation of the Holy Bible, our Illustrated Gospel of John will allow you to "see" the person of Jesus and stimulate your interest when reading John's Gospel, encouraging you to delve further into the mysteries of this glorious text.
A casewrapped hardcover (192 pages) version of this book is also available on Lulu.com (cost: $21.52 + $6.99 shipping + $1.43 tax = $29.94) or you can download the free eBook (in pdf format). |
Beatitudes Magisto Videos: Grade 8 Class Project (2014-2015)
To better understand the Virtue of Justice, we read and discussed the eight beatitudes, about which Jesus spoke in his Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3-12). The Beatitudes "are the heart of Jesus' preaching...[and] respond to the natural desire for happiness" (CCC, 1716, 1718)
In groups, students created a series of 10 tableaux to reflect the meaning of one of the eight beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12). Using the Magisto App, students uploaded the photographs of their tableaux, selected a video editing style and a soundtrack to create a video of their tableaux photographs.
In groups, students created a series of 10 tableaux to reflect the meaning of one of the eight beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12). Using the Magisto App, students uploaded the photographs of their tableaux, selected a video editing style and a soundtrack to create a video of their tableaux photographs.
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Ten Commandments Magisto Videos: Grade 8 Class Project (2015-2016)
In the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament, God makes an everlasting covenant or promise with the Israelites, promising them salvation through a Saviour or Messiah. In the Book of Exodus, God also reveals his law, the Ten Commandments, to Moses as part of his covenant; by following the Ten Commandments, we are able to respond fully to God's loving initiative. With the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, God's covenant is fulfilled as we are now able to have eternal life with God. Jesus helps us rediscover and further unfold the meaning of the Ten Commandments by summarizing them as the Two Great Commandments: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the prophets." (Matthew 22:37-40).
In groups, students created a series of 10 tableaux to reflect the meaning of one of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) from the perspective of Jesus' twofold yet single commandment of love. Each commandment was restated in a positive manner to emphasize what actions we should perform rather than avoid. Using the Magisto App, students uploaded the photographs of their tableaux, selected a video editing style and a soundtrack to create a video of their tableaux photographs.
In groups, students created a series of 10 tableaux to reflect the meaning of one of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) from the perspective of Jesus' twofold yet single commandment of love. Each commandment was restated in a positive manner to emphasize what actions we should perform rather than avoid. Using the Magisto App, students uploaded the photographs of their tableaux, selected a video editing style and a soundtrack to create a video of their tableaux photographs.
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Visio Divina: Grade 5 (2021-2022)
We often pray with our ears and mouth, but how often do we pray with our eyes? Visio divina means "divine seeing" or praying by looking at sacred images. To pray visio divina is to not only look at a sacred image but to also ask the Holy Spirit to show us how God speaks to us through the image.
Students created a religious image or icon that depicts a Gospel story and can be used to pray visio divina.
Students created a religious image or icon that depicts a Gospel story and can be used to pray visio divina.