The ten year anniversary of The Parenting Passageway is coming up in October.  This blog has seen me through the days and years of when our oldest child was tiny, all the way through high school and three children homeschooling multiple times through the grades! Amazing all the different changes in ten years!

One thing that has been consistent about this blog is a love of developmental parenting and education.  I often felt Waldorf Education met the developmental needs of our children very well, and wrote about what we were doing in our homeschooling.  I extend an invitation to you to check out my thoughts regarding the different grades and what we did for certain blocks.

All of this information is free, and I hope you can use what you like out of it to put together developmental education for your own children.

Grade 7

Upper Grades: Getting To The Essence of A Block

Resources for Seventh Grade

Ideas for Teaching About Africa

Ideas for Teaching About Latin America

Seventh and Eighth Grade Chemistry

Guest Post: Seventh Grade Chemistry

Seventh Grade Physiology

Writing in the Middle School Grades

Charcoal Drawings

Drawing and Painting in Grades 6-8

Life Skills For Seventh and Eighth Graders

I went through seventh grade week by week , starting with Week One here

Grade 8

Block Rotation – second time through 8th grade

American History Blocks for Eighth Grade

Eighth Grade History

Eighth Grade Oceanography

Computers: A Waldorf Perspective

Emotional Health

Homeschooling Eighth Grade for High School Credit

Pondering Homeschooling High School

I went through eighth grade week by week for the entire school year starting with this post:  Week One Eighth Grade

Grade 9

Homeschooling Ninth Grade

Block Rotation for Ninth Grade

First Semester of Ninth Grade Wrap-Up

Homeschooling High School Biology

High School American History

Multicultural Literature Recommendations

Blessings,

Carrie

This list is not all of the literature we read in ninth and tenth grade, but it is the literature we did that focused on treatment of minorities or women or were by minority or women authors.

9^th Grade

In eighth and  ninth grade, our history covered mainly Southeastern Native American History/Native American history and American history (so keep in mind this book list was spread over two years for history if it seems like a lot to you!)

Poetry:

• Langston Hughes
• Phillis Wheatley  (as part of American History)
• “A Brave and Startling Truth” by Maya Angelou

Drama as part of our Comedy and Tragedy block as suggested by Christopherus Homeschool Resources, Inc in their former main lesson unit book “Comedy And Tragedy” which I don’t think is available anymore.

• The Damask Drum – Japanese Noh Drama
• A Raisin in the Sun – Lorraine Hansberry

Novels for American History:   

• Sing Down the Moon – Scott O’Dell (8th)
• Sacajawea – Bruchac  (8th)
• Freedom Train -Sterling;  (8th)
• (The Last of the Mohicans was another big read for this block;  it does deal a lot with Cooper’s ideas about Native Americans and the French and Indian War in the Northeastern United States)
• Black Like Me – Liddell-Benge

Nonfiction for American History

• Let It Shine:  Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters –  Andrea Davis Pinkney (8th)
• Indian Chiefs -Russell Freedman
• Malcolm X – Linde (picture book; I used it for my own presentation about Malcolm X)
• (general books about Martin Luther King Jr, John Lewis)

Literature: 

• Rain Is Not My Indian Name –  Cynthia Leitich Smith
• Their Eyes Were Watching God – Hurston
• The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian -Alexie Sherman (Accused of sexual assault; I didn;t know that then and don’t know if I would assign that now – better ones out there)
• The Good Earth = Buck (Buck was white, I think there are better books out there)
• Red Scarf Girl – Jiang
• (interestingly, we also did two science fiction selections as well!)

10^th Grade:

A block of Ancient Epics  is traditional in Waldorf Schools and developmentally tied to this grade, but we also did  a block of post-Harlem Renaissance African-American literature tracing vernacular  tradition in music traditions to poetry to a variety of written literature.

Poetry: 

• “Fundamentalism” – Naomi Shihab Nye
• “Still I Rise” -Maya Angelou
• “We Real Cool” – Gwendolyn Brooks
• “Eventide” – Gwendolyn Brooks
• “Georgia Dusk” – Jean Toomer
• “Dream Deferred” -Langston Hughes
• “Haiku” – Sonia Sanchez
• Music Lyrics as Poetry: “Get It Together” by India Arie and “The Evil That Men Do” by Queen Latifah; “The Rose That Grew From Concrete” by Tupac Shakur
• “Ego Tripping” -Nikki Giovanni
• “American Hero” – Essex Hemphill
• “To Some Supposed Brothers” -Essex Hemphill

Literature:   

• “Rootedness: The Ancestor as Foundation” – Toni Morrison (essay)
• “The Sky Is Grey” -Ernest Gaines (short story)
• “The Burden of Race” – Arthur Ashe (nonfiction excerpt)
• “The Bean Trees” – Kingsolver
• “The Joy Luck Club”  –  Amy Tan

Nonfiction, tied into American Government

• “Just Mercy” – Bryan Stephenson

Assigned Reading between 10th and 11th Grades:

• “Beloved” – Toni Morrison
• “Invisible Man”  –  Ralph Ellison (probably will end up doing together as first book in fall)
• “Dear Martin” – Nic Stone
• “All American Boys” – Jason Reynolds
• “Piecing Me Together” – Watson

Would love to hear some of your early high school multicultural selections!

Blessings,
Carrie

I don’t normally spend a lot of time here on issues specific to homeschooling as an Episcopalian, but since there are no resources devoted to Episcopalian homeschooling at all (you can see more about that lament on back posts on this blog), and I have had multiple mothers ask, I thought I would lay out a few thoughts.  I hope eventually to turn this into some kind of e-book so those of you who are interested have a small resource to get started!

I like to think of the progression of Episcopalian homeschooling as a threefold structure, so these are my ideas.

From:

Ages 0-7, Episcopalian homeschooling is about BELONGING.

• As parents, we model from our Baptismal Convenant that we “seek and serve Christ in all persons” and we “strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being, with God’s help.”
• We go to church and celebrate the church seasons, the Eucharist, the feast and fast days. We look at the stories in the Holy Bible as God’s story of LOVE for us and for all others.   We, as parents, learn for ourselves what these things mean and it is part of our daily and weekly and yearly routine.
• We USE our Book of Common Prayer in daily and weekly life.  This is important, because we don’t have a lot of creeds or statements the way other Christian denominations do.  Our path as Episcopalians is largely a path of prayer, of joy, and of standing up for what is decent and right.  It isn’t complicated.  But it does require work.
• We spend lots of time in nature, not only because Episcopalians are concerned about climate change and want to be informed stewards, but because nature is a strong strand of our beliefs that ties back into the Celtic roots of Anglicanism.

From Ages 7-14, Episcopalian homeschooling is about BELONGING and HEROES.

• We are still modeling BELONGING by the way we act toward others in daily life.  In this stage, we not only expect our children to model our behaviors that include and help people, but we hope to start to be able to see this action on their own.
• We still are going to church and celebrating the church seasons, the Eucharist, the feast and fast days, and we see now the stories in the Bible as a deeper level of encouragement in our own walk for loving ourselves, each other, and the Earth.
• As older children question things, we talk about how we use our intellect and experience as part of our experience with God.  Faith, tradition, reasoning, and experience are all part of being an Episcopalian.
• We get our older children to participate – older children can acolyte, participate in Children’s Choir and the Royal School of Church Music Program, help with the nursery, attend Sunday School and Vacation Bible School and summer camps.  We help and encourage relationships with the other children in the parish. My parish is pretty large, about 800 families, and I think there are probably close to 20 schools or more represented, so school attendance isn’t the deciding factor for friendship in our parish.
• We still use the Book of Common Prayer in daily and weekly life.
• We still spend lots of time in nature. Some at this stage will chosee to look for Episcopal summer camps – they are all over and provide incredible immersive experiences into nature and closeness to God.
• We develop more faith by participating in the life of the church.  We get involved with causes, with the classes and offering of the church, and if what we want is not there, we step up as parents and get involved.
• We start learning the stories of the heroes of our faith – the people who made the Anglican faith what it is
• My little mini-rant about Heroes of the Faith:  King Henry doesn’t count.  I shudder actually when people talk about that as if they don’t know any of the real ways and real heroes that made this strand of Western Christianity different than anything else.  Anglicanism was different than anything else because of where it HAPPENED –  The church was aligned with many Celtic beliefs and moved toward the customs and beliefs of the Western church with the Synod of Whitby, but in many ways still retains a good deal in common with its Celtic beginnings and with the church before the split of the Reformation.  So in a way, it was and still is its own thing!  If you want to debate me about King Henry, I will just delete your comment because it is a source of contention to me that people don’t know more about either their own denomination or others can’t be bothered to find out and just comment on things they haven’t researched.  #sorrynotsorry
• Heroes from the Holy Bible, and yes, the Feast Days of Saints that we celebrate (and the idea that we can all be Saints!  A little different concept in the Anglican Communion) (the Saints this month in June have varied from St. Columba to St. Ephrem of Syria to St. Enjegahbowh to Sahu Sundar Singh of India), and then some of the traditional heroes: Bede the Venerable, St. Anselm, St. Thomas Becket, John Wycliffe, Thomas Cranmer, John Jewel, Richard Hooker, Samual Crowther, Janauni Luwum, Archbishop Tutu,  and more.
• Toward the end of this period, I like to talk plainly about the 5 Marks of Mission of the Episcopal Church of the U.S., which are:
• To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom
• To teach, baptize and nurture new believers
• To respond to human need by loving service
• To seek to transform unjust structures of society
• To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth
• We can start to talk to older children (7th and 8th grade) about the history of the church as involved in the Social Gospel period of history, our role in the Civil Rights Movement, our role in equality for LBGTQ people, and our positions on civil rights,  the environment,  and more.

Ages 14-21  We walk the talk by publicly professing our faith and Baptismal Vows, not only in confirmation, but in striving for justice for all people, for loving all people by trying to see Christ in them, and for standing up for the dignity of all human beings.  We profess our faith by walking in love.  

• At this point,  teens get involved in running the life of the church – acolyting, helping at Vacation Bible School or summer camps or with the smaller children’s choir.
• Teens start to think about their faith and if they want to publicly profess in Confirmation with hands laid on by the Bishop if they believe in The Apostles’ Creed (the Nicene Creed is said weekly, but the Apostles’ Creed is used at Baptism and Confirmation), if they believe and will continue in teaching what the apostles began, will persevere, will proclaim the LOVE of God in Christ to the world, to seek and serve Christ in all persons, to strive for justice and peace among all people and to  respect the dignity of every human being and be a part of the belonging that is the Episcopalian Church.
• They can use their Book of Common Prayer and the resources of the church to have an active prayer life.
• We help our teen investigate the resources of the Episcopal Church, so they can make an impact in the world. These resources include:

The Episcopal News Service

The Episcopal Public Policy Network

Episcopal Climate News  and  Green Anglicans

The Episcopal Peace Fellowship

Episcopalians Against Gun Violence  and  Episcopalians Against Human Trafficking

Episcopalian Migration Ministries

Episcopal Intercultural Network

• Some teenagers will choose to attend an Episcopalian college.  The Episcopal Church has the highest number of people with graduate and post-graduate degrees per capita than any other denomination in the United States and has a strong system of colleges, both regular and historically black colleges and universities.
• After Confirmation, which varies from parish to parish in what grade it occurs (in our parish it is tenth grade), the teenager is considered an adult and equal in the church. The last few years of high school and headed into the twenties are good times to deepen spiritual formation, become involved in and make good decisions based around what we believe as part of the Episcopal Church of the United States and part of the Anglican Communion.  Some will continue into college deepening their faith through Campus and Young Adult Ministries and some will even branch out after college to do things like Episcopal Service Corps or  partake in other ways to serve others.

Hope that helps,

Carrie

Friendships are an amazing (and sometimes challenging thing!) for children of the ages ten to fifteen to really navigate! This week is friend week at The Parenting Passageway, and we will discover what children ages 10-15 really need to make friendships that thrive!

Ten- year -olds really love their friends, and it can be astounding all that a ten-year-old will know about their friends.  While it is true that some ten -year girls are in a dramatic fight with their friends for what appears every minute, many ten -year- olds really appreciate having loyal friends.  If neighborhood friends exist, that is probably the healthiest and most wonderful relationship for children.  Neighborhood loyalty can be strong, and a lot can be learned participating in neighborhood games and large groups.  (Sadly, this doesn’t seem to exist as much as it used to).  Ten is also the age for forming “groups” and  even participating in groups such a Girl Scouts.    Ten generally is not a hugely exlusionary age, although they may “forget” to invite people to a birthday party or their club that they made up – they may not really want that person there, but they don’t want to hurt that person’s feelings or lose that person who is a “friend”.  Lots of people are their “friends” – even if it is just an acquaintance from the next neighborhood over.

What you can do to help:  Talk to your children about how to  be a good friend, what is mean behavior, and what is plain bullying.  Encourage the neighborhood group and lots of outside play.  This is the age of games with rules that the children themselves make up (and break, and change the rules).  No adults should be needed.  If fighting erupts, don’t be dramatic with your child and give it a chance, because they may make up in a day or two.  Particularly if the arguments are amongst those in a neighborhood, it will blow over.  Do not give a child this age a phone!  All these little spits and spats that work out do not need a phone element involved!  If you think your child is being bullied,  try  the tips on this website.  Bullying is  different from mean behavior., and I like  this article because it talks about the difference between bullying and when exclusion is or isn’t bullying.    Social media exacerbates this, so please, do not give your child a phone!

Eleven -year-olds  can be a having a time of sadness and anger in general.  Eleven-year-olds often yell, cry, stomp away, become exceedingly competitive, and act very silly or giggly.  Eleven usually marks the beginning of choosing friends not just because of proximity, but because “we get along”.  Best friends are really important for many (not all) at this age, particularly boys.  Girls may still have more of a group to hang around with.  There may still be quarreling, but most eleven-year-olds can work things out.

What you can do to help:  Have your home be a place where eleven-year-olds want to land and be.  Help eleven-year-olds be outside to play and get physical energy out.  Talk to your child about being a good friend, and also about the confidences and loyalty that go along with being a “best” friend.    If they are super competitive, talk to them about how that fits in (or doesn’t) in being a great friend – does super competitiveness lead to incredible friendships and make people comfortable? When is competitiveness healthy and not healthy?

Later this week we will be talking about friendships for ages 12-13 and then ages 14-15.

Blessings,

Carrie

Waldorf Education does an amazing job laying the foundation for empathy, compassion, kindness, respect for the dignity of each child and each child’s differences as folded within the archetypal journey of the human being.

The view of Waldorf Education regarding tiny children and their large emotions, is to handle the children with compassion, caring,  an extremely solid rhythm that incorporates wholesome foods, rest, exercise, and nature, distraction, pictorial imagery for the early years, and general loving authority by a kind adult in the early grades.  There is  not  so much value placed on the words behind emotions as words  1 – are often parroted back by the child but do not really hold meaning (smaller children tend to think in terms closer to “things are good” or “things are bad”and not much beyond that)  and 2 -the child is a creature of will in this developmental stage rather than thinking in terms of heady strategies of dealing with emotion.  So we don’t expect tiny children to dwell and think on emotions in a heady way.  Instead we expect doing, restitution, good modeling from adults, a wonderful dose of “ho-hum” on the part of the adults.  This is really true throughout the early years and even into the early grades.

We can see temperamental tendencies, of course, even in the early grades,  and work with that through methods relating to each temperament and towards helping children find balance throughout all of their years of schooling.  We also can use growth mindset modeling for our younger children.

However, once a child hits past  the nine year change, I think it is time for more direction instruction  for emotional health.  Some in Waldorf Education may balk at this, as true ideas of causality really don’t hit until the twelve year change, but I think with this generation of children, after the nine year change is a great place to start (so fourth to fifth grade seems about right).  

This is the really fast list I came up with after about ten minutes of brainstorming; I am sure you could add an awful lot to it, but maybe it would give you some ideas for your own family.  As always, take what resonates with you and leave the rest.

Ages 10-12 – Make sure the child can correctly identify emotions in themselves and in others (this can take time; many  children are often not good at reading body language at all ); how to discuss problems/conflict to improve relationships and how to apologize most likely done through modeling and helping children along when there is conflict in a group; more direct conversation about growth mindset; what can I do when I am upset/mad/sad;  how big is my problem scales; thinking like a team;  how to be a friend; difference between being a leader and being bossy (comes up in group work!); activity pyramids for physical exercise

Age 12- The value of challenging oneself (works well with Roman History block of 6th grade); the value of physical exertion for emotional health;  how does conflict escalate; rules for fair fighting; how to apologize; thinking like a team; individual accountability; mindfulness techniques

Age 13/14- Understanding steps to self-care (this ties in well with the physiology block of seventh grade)(if you are homeschooling you need to model this too!) ; beginning work on boundaries;  ethics of hard work (fits in well with some of the Explorer stories); negative self talk and what to do about it; repairing relationships after conflict (see Gottman Institute); dealing with friends; what we think about BEFORE we say something; handling gossip;  areas of the brain and how that relates to how we emotionally react to things; dealing with friendship bullying; filters we can use before talking other than just saying the first thing that comes into our mind; self talk for decreasing anger or anxiety

Age 15- Relationships – narcissistic tendencies and personality disorders – what does that mean for dating or intimate relationships?,  abuse in intimate relationships; talking about effective communication; “I” message starters; setting emotionally healthy boundaries; rules for “fair fighting”

Age 16- Things that can tip/trigger depression; active and negative coping ;  what is passive-aggressiveness and how to avoid communicating like that; help discovering personal strengths and weaknesses;  habits of effective people;  fostering good habits; the teenaged brain; communication regarding sexuality and sexual decisions

Age 17/18 – adulting! ;  secrets of happy couples/intimate relationships; what to do when relationships are hard; dealing with difficult co-workers

Many blessings and much love,
Carrie

Looking forward to spring in the Northern Hemisphere? So am I!  It seems to be very slowly moving into the Deep South – we had very low temperatures last week which is unusual,(although today it is supposed to be summer temperatures for some odd reason). We went on holiday to Florida a few weeks ago  to catch some sun and came back to cold.  We used to live in Florida, and I said I would never move back there, but now that I am older and hating the cold even more I am reconsidering! LOL.

This is normally a month of great beauty and joy – the springtime of creation.  The plants and flowers are bursting anew; the sun is out more often and the temperatures are (hopefully) rising.  The world seems fresh and full of possibilities.  In this sense, I too am excited to begin anew.

We will be celebrating:

April 4- Martin Luther King Jr’s Feast Day in the Episcopal Church

April 25- The Feast of St. Mark the Evangelist

and getting ready for Ascension Day, which is May 10th and the Rogation Days of the Episcopal Church, which are the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday that precede Ascension.  If you are planning ahead as well, try this back post on Rogation Days and this back post on Ascension Day

What I thinking about in the home:

Spring Cleaning and Deep Cleaning.  I hurt my ankle/foot on holiday and have been hobbling about, but I still love to think of spring cleaning and have plans for deep decluttering and deep cleaning once I am able!  Here is a post on Housecleaning and Homeschooling and a favorite on  An Ordered Outer World for a Peaceful Family

Spring Crafting – I am looking forward to receiving our box from Happy Hedghog Post and also looking forward to some beautiful spring crafts.  I have some great projects on Spring Pinterest Board

Spring Self-care – We are still dealing with a lot of doctor’s appointments for our little guy who fell and hurt his teeth.  I fell on our vacation and had a doctor’s appointment for a very sprained ankle.  But beyond that, I have been in a little phase of establishing new morning, afternoon, and evening self-care routines.  I will be utilizing some of my favorite health care people to build a health care team to help me stabilize some of the health challenges I have faced this school year.  Yay for me winning!  We might also be doing a little moving challenge around our house for the big kids.

Spring Friend Care – I read the other day that the five people we spend the most time with clearly influence us.  I was thinking about the people I spend time with the most outside of my husband and family, and really want to focus on making spring and summer with those beautiful friends as lovely as possible.  In order to have friendships, which are so important, we have to put effort into them!

Spring attitude – Time for a fresh start in the expansiveness of spring!

Can’t wait to hear what you are up to!

Blessings,
carrie

Eastertide is such a joyous time – in the Northern Hemisphere, spring is beginning, and the season of Eastertide runs all the way from Easter Day until Pentecost on May 20.  I think of Eastertide as a time to remember that play and joy are such an important part of being human.  So, without further ado, here are 50 ways to make Eastertide memorable:

1.  Dye eggs and try your hand at some spring crafts
2. Visit a sheep farm where the sheep are being shorn and then wash, card, and dye some fleece.
3. Make projects having to do with sheep – I have an entire Pinterest board devoted to to wool and knitting here
4. Spring clean your house (deep clean)
5. Get rid of things you no longer use; paring down in the spring feels so good!
6. Re-vamp your diet to include even more fruits and vegetables and meatless meals.
7. Take great care of your skin
8. Cleanse your rhythm from things outside the home that are no longer serving you or your family
9. Look at our bee and butterfly friends in the garden, in books, and in crafts.  There are some ideas on my spring Pinterest board
10.  Clear your life from people who bring you negative energy
11. Make time to spend with those you love and trust – family and friends
12. Think carefully about new endeavors.  What are you growing for this season?
13. Find a wonderful new book to read!
14. Go hiking.
15. Go camping. If your spouse doesn’t like to camp, gather a moms and childrens group to go.
16. Spend time in nature every day.
17. Add some puppetry to your life
18. Try journaling 50 days of gratitude
19. Change your priorities so you have time for self-care.
20. Slow down and rest
21. Learn some beautiful new songs for spring for circle time or to sing as a family
22.  Carefully investigate your spiritual path and find a way to deepen your inner work
23. Go easy on yourself and give yourself space
24. Find an app to help you meditate or visualize
25. Go swimming
26. Get a massage or sit in a sauna.
27. Spend time with animals.
28. Get to know your local farmers and enjoy local foods.
29. Create art
30. Plan ahead…or not. Whichever brings you joy in your homeschooling!  Here is some inspiration for planning high school and here is some inspiration for planning the grades.  Also, here is  a whole Pinterest board devoted to the  Early Years
31. Learn some new Waldorf verses
32. Pick fruit
33. Plant a garden
34. Create something beautiful for your outdoor space
35. Plan new adventures in travel –
36. Have a May Day festival shared with friends
37. Plan for Ascension Day
38. Plan for Pentecost through these musings
39. Make some rock art
40. Create, cook, and sing for Pentecost
41. If you celebrate Pentecost as a family, consider a gathering for Pentecost
42. Encourage someone or become someone’s mentor.
43. Drink more water
44. Set up a new exercise plan
45. Catch up on your doctor and dentist appointments
46. Take naps
47. Walk in nature
48. Watch a sunrise
49. Go slow and enjoy spending time with your children.  If you are homeschooling, less books and more play.
50. Have a picnic

Blessings,

Carrie

Candlemas is upon us next Friday, and I am planning something simple to celebrate.  However, Lent is  also coming.  It begins on Valentine’s Day this year.  This long season of anticipation and wonder always takes me longer to plan, so I am beginning to look at how we want to keep wonder alive during these 40 days.  During Lent,  I have that feeling of love for this introspective time of the year.  There is something so moving and wonderful about this season.  The gradual awakening of the earth from its beginning budding of the flowers and trees to the jubliant and triumpant spring is wonderful each and every year.

Lent in the Waldorf home has a certain spirituality of the soul that can be transmitted to children with the doing of the most simple things that are outside of any specific religious tradition.  If you are new to Lent as a spiritual practice, I recommend that you start small!  It can be as simple as commiting to watching the birds at your bird feeder every day; commiting to taking a beautiful hike or walk outside all the Saturdays of Lent, or doing work to help someone else.

Lent is a wonderful time to empty your calendar and focus on what matters most in your heart.  Let us recommit to our children in the most wonderful of ways.

My  own spirituality is tied to my religious practice as an Episcopalian and part of the world-wide Anglican communion, so I am sharing my Lenten plans based upon this. Perhaps you can modify these ideas for your own family.  Any Lenten practice is more about doing  than words when children are involved, but I do have two  teenagers so it seems appropriate to have both the words and the doing this year!

My main plans include:

Lenten meals.  I am focused on make ahead breakfasts and eating many vegetarian meals.  There are quite a few links on my Lent Pinterest board board for different meal ideas.

Lenten housecleaning.  I typically spread “spring cleaning” throughout Lent.

Establishing healthy habits to last not only the 40 days of Lent but for the rest of the year; you can see more about my view of Lent as a time for re-growth and renewal here

We will be attending Ash Wednesday Mass, Mass throughout Lent, and the masses of Holy Week.  They are quite different than the typical Divine Liturgy. My favorites include Maundy Thursday and Easter Vigil.

There will be an offering jar to donate to Episcopal Relief and Development on our table.

We will be saying the Lenten prayer of St. Ephraim (St. Ephrem in the Orthodox tradition) together daily.  It is short and easy to say with children.

I ordered Station of the Cross cards from a Roman Catholic supplier, and will modify prayers for each station from this document from The Episcopal Church Stations of the Cross for Global Justice and Reconciliation  to go through on the Fridays of Lent.

I will be reading along with The Good Book Club  and will be listening to the podcast from the Episcopal Migration Ministries that will be running throughout the Lenten Season

I will make a  Lenten calendar for the smallest member of our family to follow along.

Hoping to incorporate suggestions from the 2018 Carbon Fast for Lent calendar

I would love to hear what you are doing to build up the wonder, renewal, anticipation of Lent!

Blessings,
carrie