They really love to color so I started printing off the images that lined up with that days feast day or celebration. What a hit! They still look forward to the coloring pages each evening. John and I pray the rosary while they are coloring the saint page. I have noticed more and more them praying along with us.
We usually begin prayer time listening to the Saint of the Day on AmericanCatholic.org. You will find a tab at the top that says "Saints" and you will then scroll down to "Saint of the Day" for a brief history lesson on the chosen saint. We've learned a lot from this great program.
I have special markers, colored pencils, pencil sharpener, and crayon holders I pull out just for this. It makes me want to color. I hope to do this soon! So sweet.
I know it is good for them to sit and be, but I also know the rosary can get long for little ones. We want them to associate prayer time with talking and being with God not a time where we are constantly correcting them on their behavior. We now have no problem during prayers. If they finish early, they know to grab a rosary and finish with us on the couch. I know they are paying attention because we will ask for their intentions and prayer requests. John will quiz them about the saint also. This was a perfect fit for us. You can find so many sources on the internet for saint coloring pages. I have also invested in several coloring books of Jesus, Mary, and the Saints if I can't find the saint of the day on-line.
This site contains several images to print off for the different feast days. We also find different images by just searching for the saint of the day.
Waltzing Matilda
Some of my favorite coloring books:
Fenestrae Fidei Coloring Book= I L.O.V.E this coloring book so much I almost don't let them color in it. The book is filled with stain glass windows of the saints and the pictures look so pretty once colored. My favorite!
This series is also great!
Eucharistic Adoration: Coloring Book
Dover Publications is another great resource for unique coloring books.
At the suggestion of a dear priest friend, we've been reading our way through the bible. We use this book for now, but I do hope to invest in this book for each child and read the whole bible in 365 days. Maybe in our Easter baskets this year!
What a great idea!! We may have to adopt that one in our house.
ReplyDeleteOh, good idea! We usually said the Rosary after we got our older one in her bed and I nursed the younger, but now that I weaned him that doesn't work anymore for us and she is still really too little mostly for saying the whole Rosary so I may have to try this out. I love the Waltzing Matilda coloring pages! I print those out for Mass time...so glad our daughter finally enjoys coloring!
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic idea! I'm embarrassed to say we've become those parents that are constantly correcting behavior during prayer time. Yikes. But this is a fabulous idea and we will most definitely be using it! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteFabulous idea. We too seem to be correcting behavior during prayer time. THanks for the idea and the link to the Waltzing Matilda blog. Love her coloring pages.
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