Learning by example
CHARLOTTE — A second-grade boy walked into the cafeteria at St. Patrick School pulling a suitcase, wearing a neck pillow, and carrying a passport. He wasn’t lost – he was portraying St. Christopher, the patron saint of travelers.
He was one of two dozen students taking part in a “Saints Wax Museum” project undertaken at several schools to celebrate All Saints Day, Nov. 1.
At St. Patrick, students dressed as saints held paper shields containing information about their saint and stood statuesque around the cafeteria, coming to life only to talk about their saint with visiting parents, teachers and other students. Similar events also took place at Our Lady of the Assumption and St. Gabriel schools.
The project, teachers said, was more than a fun way to observe the holy day. It also prompted students to learn about the saints – as encouraged by Pope Francis – and to consider how these holy men and women have relevance to their own daily lives.
Making saints more relatable and appealing to students is important, teachers said, because saints serve as better role models than superheroes, video-game characters and other pop culture figures that compete for kids’ attention.
The wax museums help kids discover similarities they share with saints, teachers said, to demonstrate that saints are not simply figures in stained glass or books, but were real people who had their own joys, sorrows, struggles and things they liked to do.
“We didn’t want the students to just look for the same well-known saints we all hear about for their project,” said Angie Noonan, second-grade teacher at St. Patrick. “Instead, I asked them to research saints who shared their birthdays or their first names, or who was patron of a common interest for them.”
In cases where more than a few students wanted the same saint, Noonan helped them come up with alternatives. For instance, several students who play sports wanted to portray St. Sebastian because he is patron of athletes, so Noonan instead helped them do research to find saints connected to their particular sports. One boy wore a California Angels baseball uniform because he picked St. Rita, the patron saint of baseball players. Another student who liked swimming selected St. Adjutor patron of swimmers and boaters, and dressed in a blue robe and white headdress.
Katherine Ortiz, 7, picked St. Gemma Galgani because she is a patron of gymnastics, which is Katherine’s favorite sport. She came up with her own outfit, which included a black satin robe and a golden halo.
“This was a really fun project for her because she loves gymnastics, and it gave her a chance to bring out her creativity,” said her mother Annabella Batista. “Creating the shield and putting the costume together was super fun for her, and she really learned about the saint and enjoyed putting the information together.”
Teachers make clear to students that Catholics do not worship saints, but instead pray to saints in heaven to intercede on our behalf with God.
In his All Saints Day address Nov. 1, the pope encouraged all of the faithful to learn more about saints to deepen their own personal holiness: “In their lives we find an example, in their prayers we receive help and friendship, and with them we are bound in a bond of brotherly love.”
At Our Lady of Assumption School, fifth-graders selected a variety of saints aligned with their interests or character traits, teacher Whitney Hannah said. One boy who loves soccer picked St. Luigi Scroscoppi, the sport’s patron saint, while a girl who dreams of becoming a teacher selected St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, founder of the first Catholic schools in the U.S. and patron of Catholic schools.
Hanna Isayas, 10, selected St. Maria Goretti because she thought the saint’s biography offered an important lesson.
“Even though someone hurt her during her life, Maria Goretti was able to forgive, and that is a lesson we all can learn and a great way to live life,” she said. ‘If you hold onto something someone has done to you instead of forgiving them, you’re just going to end up living a life of anger.”
Teacher Hannah asked students to research their saints and find a traditional prayer of intercession to the saint or write one of their own.
“I was hands off during most of the process and have been so happy to see the excitement from them,” she said. “It was great to be able to help some of the kids who had a harder time picking a saint to find one they really connected with. Our Lady of the Assumption has a very diverse population, and you can see that in the diverse group of saints they picked.”
— Christina Lee Knauss. Photos by Troy Hull
