Not your ordinary after school program

On Wednesday afternoons, a steady stream of kids start heading to St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church on Pine Avenue. The older kids are attending classes, but the preschool and kindergarten kids started doing something a little different. They have a Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Montessori-style religious education program. 

This program was originally created in Italy by Sofia Cavalletti and Gianna Gobbi. It was designed to be a way to help children connect with God as well as gain responsibility. 

“It’s not your traditional classroom setting,” said Hill City facilitator Danielle Eckert. “It’s a beautiful place created for your child at their level where they get to encounter Jesus.”

Eckert was inspired by seeing the way her daughter grew to understand what the priest was doing during mass through the program at their former parish in North Dakota. Father Mark then suggested Eckert, along with Bertha DeAnda, attend training so they could bring the program to Hill City. 

A trip to Italy used to be required to be trained in this style of teaching. Thankfully the Hill City facilitators only had to go to Rapid City. One training was over two weeks in the summer with a day off in between, and the other took place over several three day weekends when trainers could fly in. 

After completing their training, Eckert and DeAnda began designing a curriculum created specifically for the kids in their group. They also set up two classrooms into an atrium format for the program. 

“In the atrium, everything has a purpose,” said Eckert. Each atrium needs certain things and specific areas. So they looked at the space carefully and tried to arrange everything in a natural flow. The program officially began about a year ago. 

Eckert and DeAnda pick up the kindergarten age kids from school, and preschool parents drop off their kids at the church. They start with a prayer and snack. After that, the kids patiently line up for their procession. Some kids hold objects that will go on their prayer table while others get jingle bells to shake. Then they parade around the main room singing a song together before heading into the atrium. 

Once there, the kids gather in a circle around the prayer table. They set up the table one by one using the objects they were given to hold during the procession. Then they sing songs together. 

There is no typical lesson. Instead, everything in the room is designed to teach the child something different. The facilitators also ask a lot of open ended questions to encourage the kids to wonder and think through things. In addition, they take time to fully engage with each child. 

After singing, the children are dismissed one at a time to their work. Each child gets a mat out of a basket which they carefully spread out on the floor. This gives the kids their own workspace and encourages them to take ownership of their things. 

Although it may look like play, everything is called work. This helps the kids gain independence and responsibility. They are encouraged to walk slowly, hold things with two hands and treat things respectfully.

“They’re all things that will help them to learn to have a steady hand,” said Eckert. 

Some of these works are practical life skills like pouring, measuring, sweeping, plant care and hand washing. New works are continually presented by a facilitator at age-appropriate levels before the child does it on their own. After that, children are allowed to work by themselves so they can try to work silently to help them connect with the Holy Spirit. 

“It’s all geared for them to be independent,” said Eckert. 

Some of the works include an infancy narrative model set, tracing pages, water pouring, dry pouring, sponge usage, stamping pages, using tweezers to pick things up, sorting, a baptism area, a Good Shepherd area, geography puzzles and even a kid friendly brass polishing kit. 

The works teach patience as well as basic life skills. Others are sensory or work on fine motor skills. Of course, many of the works teach kids about the Bible and encourage them to wonder about the kingdom of heaven. Eckert shared that the geography section especially “helps them to realize that Jesus was really real and lived in a real place on the earth.”

 Many of the works build upon each other as well, giving children a chance to improve in their skills. For example, there is a basic water pouring work for young children. After that, they progress to pouring water with a funnel and pouring to a line. This work is designed to prepare children for eventually preparing a chalice similar to what is done during mass. 

“I think my favorite part is at the end we gather in the atrium and give everyone a chance to give thanks,” said DeAnda. 

Everyone will gather around the prayer table. The lights are turned off, and a candle is lit. Then each child gets a turn to hold a small crucifix and either tell Jesus what they are thankful for or give him a hug. The kids say thank you for things like their parents, friends, brothers and sisters, the Good Shepherd, snow and whatever else comes to mind. Once everyone has had a turn, they sing a few more songs before the kids are dismissed. 

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Montessori style religious education program meets every Wednesday at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church. Any kids from ages three to kindergarten are welcome to attend. Their parent must simply call the parish office and fill out a basic registration form.