Planning for the Jesus Strand

All the basic information for the unit planning comes from the Faith Alive site for your level.

For the key ideas on the plan write our key ideas about Jesus:

1. Jesus was human (as well as God)
2. Jesus came to show us how to live and to save us.
3. Jesus is God (as well as human)

Your strand unit will cover at least one of these key ideas really well so you will need to find opportunities to weave the others in.  You can do that either by introducing some specific teaching or raising awareness of it as you teach.  You will get posters for the key ideas.  You need to keep referring specifically to them as its what we need to get through to the children so they have something to hang their learning on year to year.

Your SOLO rubric helps you get to relational thinking.  You could use specific SOLO scaffolds from the SOLO book (copy) that you have all been given.  E.G. doing a define map to go deeper.  Or compare and contrast to compare your life with Jesus' etc.  The main reason to use SOLO is to help the children transfer this teaching into their lives.

Since the children are assessed on relational and extended abstract thinking and actions, there needs to be some provision in your plan for teaching this.  In a way, its easy for the Jesus strand.  You can use WWJD (what would Jesus do?) and use the relational thinking strategy of comparing circumstances in the world around us to circumstances Jesus encountered - what did Jesus do when he met hungry people.  What can/should you do?  Is it enough to give some of your lunch?  Does that solve unequal food distribution in the world?  What would Jesus do about that? etc etc

I hope that helps a bit - the main thing is use the faith alive site to get your plan down and look for ways of getting the key ideas in and relating it all to life now.

Ideas to include all three key ideas in the teaching

Year 1 - enough to look at the life and times of Jesus

Year 2 - Jesus showing love - either teach the Transfiguration when it comes in Lent, and refer to previous year's teaching about life and times, or explicitly talk about being human and God - e.g. Wedding feast at Cana - Jesus loved his mother (human) and performed a miracle (God).

Year 3 - Jesus in the Eucharist - about saving and divinity.  Look for opportunities to revise/refer to life and times stuff from year 1, and use some of the video stories from the parent page for class prayers as examples of things He taught.

Year 4 - About showing people how to live - see comments for year 2

Year 5 - Life of Jesus - teach Transfiguration in Lent, and stories from parents page for prayers.

Year 6 - Jesus the fullness of God's revelation - add on as for year 3

Year 7 - Jesus saviour and liberator - add on as for year 3

Year 8 - Covers Jesus' teaching, saving and being the Risen Lord - will have to add in something about the life and times of Jesus - some links to start conversation on parents page.