We are in the first week of Advent and I am all excited. I always love teaching, but teaching about Advent is one of my favorite religion lessons!

We start by talking about seasons.

First, I ask the children to list the seasons of the year (we have been working on this for about 2 months now). They share with gusto!

Which leads me to ask if they know about the seasons of the church. We have Lent, Advent, Christmas, Easter, Ordinary Time. They all know Easter, for sure. But today, we’re also going to learn about Advent.

What happens during Advent?

For one thing, Father Greg wears purple vestments. Different colors mark the different seasons of the church.

For another, we set up Advent wreaths. At this point, we make room in the middle of the carpet for our wreath, and sit on the floor around it. The children note the different colors of the candles nestled in the greens.

We talk about how the 4 candles represent 4 weeks until Christmas.

The 3 purple candles mean remind us to pray and do nice things as we prepare for Christmas. The rose candle (burned on the 3rd “Gaudete” Sunday) invites us to feel extra joy because we are halfway through Advent. Father Greg wears rose vestments on this Sunday too!

Finally, Advent is a time of waiting for something very special. We’re waiting for someone special. Who?

I tell the children they can NOT say Santa! The one who is coming is more important. They fidget. Then they start to get it. Yes, it’s the Baby Jesus who will come!

At the end of Advent Lesson 1, we make paper Advent wreaths. Come back for Advent lesson 2!