January 20 Lesson PreK
**Remember to pray for your seminarian
** Please read about the Year of Mercy Saint:
St. Marianne Cope
(Corporal Works of Mercy)
following this lesson
Welcome:
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Play gathering music softly.
Have children color the page of Jesus calming the storm
Encourage children to talk about themselves and to the others sitting nearby.
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Announce that when the music gets softer the children should meet you in the prayer space
Prayer:
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Have the children quiet themselves and “center” themselves to talk God.
Welcome the children. Ask: Do you sometimes get scared of lightning and thunderstorms?
Allow responses. Today’s story is about the disciples. They get caught in a storm and get a little
scared. When Jesus wakes up, he tells them to have faith in him. Let’s pray:
Assist children with the Sign of the Cross
Jesus, help us have more faith in you. When things happen that
make us worried, all we have to do is remember that you are in
charge. You will never leave us alone.
Ask children if they have prayers to add
Thank you, Jesus for loving us so much! Please be with us
as we learn, live and love today. Amen
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Assist children with the Sign of the Cross
Discovering:
**Consider bringing in a little washtub and toy boat to model the story for children.**
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Say: In today’s Scripture story, Jesus is with his friends in a boat. Jesus fell asleep. A big storm
came up. Rain and wind tossed the boat around. (Model the boat in the water. Have an adult
assistant agitate the water with their hand.)
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Water started coming into the boat. How would you feel if you were in the boat? Allow
responses
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Jesus’ friends were very afraid. They thought the boat would sink. Even though the storm was
very noisy, Jesus stayed asleep. What would you do if you were in the boat with Jesus? Allow
responses
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Jesus’ friends decided to wake him up. Help me wake up Jesus. Allow children to call out to
wake Jesus. Jesus’ friends said, “Jesus save us! We will drown.”
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Jesus woke up. He saw the storm and his friends. He said, “Why are you afraid? You should
have faith in me. You should believe in me.”
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Then Jesus stood up. Have children stand up tall. He talked to the wind and the water. He told
the wind to be calm. He told the waves to be flat. (Stop agitating the water)
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Then everything went quiet. The wind and water obeyed Jesus! How would you feel if you
were in the boat? Allow responses.
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Jesus’ friends were surprised. Show me a surprised face. Students show faces. They said to
each other, “What kind of man do the wind and water obey?” Point out that God is in charge of
nature.
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Jesus took care of his friends in the storm. God will take care of us in scary times too.
Activity: Be Calm Game/Calm the Storm Craft
Materials: Jump rope for the game. Copies of the boat and weather circle, crayons/markers, brads,
scissors
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Place the jump rope on the floor in a wide open area. Have assistants jiggle and shake the rope
along the ground as children try to jump over it. These are the rough seas. Select a child to say
BE CALM. The rope should stop so the jumpers can jump easily. Take turns being jumpers and
saying BE CALM.
Precut the boat for the craft. Have students color the boat and weather circle. Cut out the
circle. Place the weather circle on the bottom and the boat on top, lining up the dot in the
middle. Poke a brad through and fasten on the back. Show children how to “spin” the circle.
This way they can keep showing the storm and using the words BE CALM (as Jesus did) to calm
the storm to sunny.
Sending/close:
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Play music while children clean up and gather the things. As music gets softer they should join
you in prayer space.
Allow children to center themselves.
Explain that that it was a wonderful time to be with friends and teachers. Say: In our Bible
story, there was a terrible storm, and Jesus’ disciples, who were on the boat, were very afraid.
Show me the storm on your craft. Allow children to show the storm. Jesus said, “Be calm!” and
the storm stopped. Now show me that you can stop the storm. Allow children to spin to the
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sunny side. Let’s see if we can make the storm and quiet it ourselves. First rub your hands
together to make the sound of rain starting. Next, the rain got harder. Clap your hands
together now. The wind began to blow and sway he boat. Sway back and forth, hands raised.
The rain got even harder and faster. Clap your hands on your legs. Then there was thunder!
Stomp your feet. Then Jesus said BE CALM. The children should stop and sit still. Jesus is so
powerful that even the wind, rain, thunder and waves listen to him. Let us pray:
Practice the Sign of the Cross
Dear Jesus, you are so strong and powerful. Help us to be brave. Help us to
have faith and know that you are always with us.
Amen
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Complete with the Sign of the Cross (assist children if needed)
Pass out any information/ materials/projects needed for families
7:30 Dismiss Children at school’s main doors
St. Marianne Cope
Facts
Feastday: January 23
Patron of lepers, outcasts, those with HIV/AIDS, the Hawaii
Birth: January 23, 1838
Death: August 9, 1918
Beatified By: May 14, 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI
Canonized By: October 21, 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI
Saint Marianne Cope, O.S.F. is also known as Saint Marianne of Moloka'i. She was born in
Germany on January 23, 1838 and spent much of her life working in Hawai'i working with lepers
on the island of Moloka'i.
She was beautified in 2005 and declared a saint by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012.
Cope was born on January 23, 1938 in Heppenheim, in what was then the Grand Duchy of
Hesse. Today, that region is part of Germany. She was baptized Maria Anna Barbara Koob,
which was later changed to Cope.
Just a year after her birth, her family emigrated to the United States, settling in Utica. New York.
Cope attended a parish school until she reached the eighth grade. By that time, her father had
become an invalid and she went to work in a factory to support the family.
Her father died in 1862, and this along with her siblings maturity, permitted her to leave the
factory to pursue a religious life. She became a novitiate of the Sisters of the Third Order
Regular of Saint Francis based in Syracuse, New York. She took the name Marianne when she
completed her formation.
German-speaking immigrants settled in large numbers in her area of New York State, so she
became a teacher and later a principal at a school for immigrant children.
Cope also helped direct the opening of the first two Catholic hospitals in central New York. She
arranged for students from the Geneva Medical College in New York to work at the hospital, but
also stipulated that patients should be able to refuse treatment by them. It was one of the first
times in history that the right of a patient to refuse treatment was recognized.
By 1883, Cope had become the Superior General of her congregation. It was at this time she
received a plea for help from leprosy sufferers in Hawaii. King Kalakaua himself sent the letter
asking for aid in treating patients who were isolated on the island of Moloka'i. The King had
already been declined by more than 50 other religious institutes.
Mother Marianne, as she was then known, left Syracuse with six sisters to attend to the sick,
and arrived on November 8,1883.
Once arrived, Mother Marianne managed a hospital on the island of O'ahu, where victims of
leprosy were sent for triage. The most severe patients were sent to the island of Moloka'i.
The next year, Mother Marianne helped establish the Malulani hospital on the island of Maui.
Her tenure at Malulani hospital did not last as she was soon called back to O'ahu to deal with
claims of abuse from the government-appointed administrator there. Upon arrival and following
an initial investigation, Mother Marianne demanded that he resign or she would leave. The
government dismissed the administrator and gave her full management of the hospital there.
Although Mother Marianne was getting older, the workload only seemed to increase. Soon, she
was responsible for orphans of women who had contracted the disease as well as clergy who
had contracted the disease while working with lepers.
Eventually, Mother Marianne's work became a burden on her frail body and she was confined to
a wheelchair. Despite this limitation, she continued to work tirelessly. Many noticed that despite
all her years of work she never contracted leprosy herself, which many regarded as a miracle in
itself.
Mother Marianne passed away on August 9, 1918 and was buried at Bishop Home.
In the years following her death, several miracles were reported in her name. In 1993, a woman
was miraculously cured after multiple organ failure following prayers to Mother Marianne. The
woman's subsequent recovery was certified by the Church and Mother Marianne was beautified
by Pope Benedict XVI on May 14, 2005.
After her beautification, Mother Marianne's remains were moved to Syracuse, New York and
placed in a shrine.
On December 6, 2011, an additional miracle was credited to her and approved by Benedict.
On October 21, 2012, she was officially canonized by Benedict
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Craft Example.
I have the materials if needed. We can place them on card stock or paper.
Students might need assistance to cut out.