Introducing A New Confirmation Curriculum

1 Introducing A NewConfirmation Curriculum Professing Our Faithseeks to provide youth with a foundational understanding ofour faith, tradition, and Presbyterian practices. It will be added to the We Believeline of Younger youth survey courses. This sampler includes the Scope andSequence of the full Curriculum as well as a preview of the first session of theLeader s Guide and Student s At the 215th General Assembly (2003) the Assembly recommended that any new Confirmation materials publishedby Congregational Ministries Publishing be based on The study Catechism: Confirmation Versionapproved for studyby an earlier Assembly (1998).

2 2 The heart of the Curriculum can be summarized in the answer to Question 4 of The StudyCatechism: Confirmation Version .1By the Holy Spirit, I am made one with the Lord Jesus Christ. I am baptized intoChrist s body, the church. As a member of this community, I trust in God s Word,share in the Lord s Supper, and turn to God in prayer. As I grow in grace andknowledge, I am led to do the good works that God intends for my of the strengths of Professing Our Faithis its usefulness in a variety of contexts.

3 For example,the Leader s Guide is designed with two different formats in view. The full-length format includes33 sessions plus two sessions for use at Christmas and Easter and is designed for use during theschool year. Asecond format offers eight sessions that can be used as a stand-alone confirmationprogram or used in conjunction with the full-length program. Both the full-length format and theeight-session format come with a unique Student s Notebook that each participant can use and keep. Even if you are not thinking about Confirmation right now, you may be interested in usingProfessing Our Faithbecause it offers such a strong background in teaching what we believe andwhat it means to belong to God and to the community of faith.

4 The Scope and Sequence (see page 11) is built around three principal elements: the Apostles Creed, the Ten Commandments, and the Lord s Prayer. This learning model imitates the emphasesof The study Catechismas well as early church catechisms such as The Heidelberg Catechism andThe Westminster Catechisms, in that it presents lessons that teach youth biblical foundations andtheology. Additionally,Professing Our Faithinvites young people to explore the meaning of theirbaptism and their participation at the Lord s Table, as well as to learn about church polity,stewardship, spiritual practices, worship, and mission.

5 Professing Our Faithis chock-full of the biblical and theological lessons you would want youngPresbyterians to know and take to heart. Those who are leading the class have a uniqueopportunity to spend quality time with the young people in their congregation. The learners whoparticipate in the class have a unique opportunity to delve deeper into what it means to be aChristian. Professing Our Faithprovides foundational material from which everyone learns fromone another and forges relationships that will strengthen the bonds learners share in the body ofChrist.

6 Each session offers students a fresh opportunity to grow in the grace and knowledge ofJesus Christ and to learn to do the good works God intends for our s PackContains 1 Teacher's Book, 2 Student s Notebooks (a 35-session $ and an 8-session version), 1 set of 12 Confirmation certificates with envelopes, 1 copy of theThe study Catechism: Confirmation s Book$ s Notebook(Note:This book has more than 20 additional pages when$ (35 sessions)compared with the 35-session student books for the other We Believes u rvey courses whose student books retail for $ )623010 Student s Notebook $ (8 sessions)Teacher to TeacherThis section is written from the point of view of a teacher in dialogue with other teachers (seesample session, page L-1).

7 It is similar to the Background for Teachers found in the We BelieveSunday school material, but it is presented in a more conversational style. Teacher to Teachersupplies the person who is preparing the lesson with a deeper understanding of the biblical,theological, and life-application concepts covered in the session. Lesson Plan On the first page of each lesson you will find a summary of what is central to the lesson: a mainidea; an excerpt from The study Catechism,TheBook of Confessions,or the Book of Order; and asuggested Scripture text.

8 The Teacher s Guide has the familiar We Believelesson plan (A-B-C-D)(see sample session, pages L-1 to L-4):Assemble: God Calls Us Together This section suggests such gathering activities as games, simple crafts, songs, and an opening : We Learn What Our Church BelievesThe B in the Confirmation Curriculum has been changed from the Sunday school tag bible study to Beliefs since the focus of this study is on learning what it means to be a member of thecommunity of faith. The Beliefs section of the lesson varies from session to session, incorporatingBible study as well as learning about the catechism, our confessions, and our faith : We Live Out Our Faith In this section, youth are challenged to make life-application of the Beliefs material throughactivities that appeal to different learning styles ( , multiple intelligences; cooperative andindependent learning).

9 While Claim uses a subhead worded differently than the We BelieveSunday school materials( We Respond to God sWo r d), it holds essentially the same : God Sends Us Into the World This section may include a closing prayer, a litany, a faith statement, or other suggestions forworship. The activities offer a meaningful closure and sending. Activities for the students to doat home during the coming week may also be included. Evaluate This section contains questions for the teacher to reflect on in regard to the day s session.

10 Future This section helps the teacher look ahead to the next session, or subsequent sessions. It mayinclude instructions regarding items to prepare in for ThoughtThis icon represents the section called Food for Thought. It highlights tidbits that the teacher mayfind useful either in the preparation stage or in the handling of questions that arise in the course of teaching the lesson. Sometimes it summarizes an idea the teacher maywant to interject ascommentary or explanation of certain activities outlined in the lesson plan.