Wednesday, March 16, 2022

EDUCATION: Early Communion - 5th Grade


I wrote this workbook The Feast of Victory: Preparing for First Communion. for my husband who was asked by his church council to have a 5th grade first communion option for those parents who want to explore that possibility.

The Feast of Victory is a basic course on the Lord’s Supper for those who are interested in participating in the Sacrament earlier than eighth grade confirmation. It is designed for students in 5th grade and includes text, Bible readings, thoughtful questions, family discussion questions, and a quick quiz at the end of each lesson. It also has a certificate at the end that the pastor can fill out for each student. The information is told in a narrative fashion with Scripture and thoughtful questions, leading students to an understanding of the mysterious Sacrament. Lessons can be read and understood easily and can be taught by the pastor or by the parent.

The workbook begins at the beginning, explaining to students why we need a Savior in the first place and moves forward to the purpose and gifts of the Lord’s Supper. There 6 lessons which are:

Lesson 1 – The Fall: Why We need a Savior
Lesson 2 – The Law: Why We Cannot Save Ourselves
Lesson 3 – The Gospel: God’s Plan to Save Us
Lesson 4 – The Meal: How God Nourishes Us
Lesson 5 – The Exam: How We Prepare
Lesson 6 – The Gifts: How We Are Blessed

Taught by the Pastor
The pastor can walk and talk students through the workbooks, asking questions and completing both the discussion questions and brief quizzes at the end of each lesson, which can be done orally or written. The workbook can be completed in as many sessions as the pastor deems necessary. Each child needs their own workbook. The final quiz is best given orally by the pastor to show confidence in understanding. After the final quiz the certificate at the end of the book can be signed with confidence that the student is ready for participation in the Lord’s Supper.

Taught by the Parent
The pastor can have a parent walk and talk their child through the workbook, discussing the questions and checking the quizzes at the end of each lesson. Quizzes may be written or oral. They should also meet with the pastor either one family at a time, or all together once or twice to have questions answered or problems discussed, and understanding assessed; the number of meetings to be determined by the pastor. In this case either the child or both the parent and child could have a workbook or the parent can be given the leader’s book with answers. It can be very valuable for parents to have to work through the questions with their child as a refresher as well. In this case the pastor would give the final quiz (oral or written) and the certificate at the end of the book can be signed with confidence that the student is ready for participation in the Lord’s Supper (and the parents have had a great review as well).

I also created a parent packet which includes a letter introducing the option and questions parents can ask their children to assess whether or not their child is ready for early communion, as well as a description of the process. If you're interested in those document, feel free to contact me and I can email them to you. 

Watch the video below to learn a little bit more about the workbook.