Advent - Preparing for Our Lord
As we enter the busy season of Advent, there is an excitement in the air, especially in our 2nd grade classrooms! Our students have already been learning their songs for our Advent worship service on Dec. 5 with Mrs. Mink and in our Church Music classes with Mr. Guebert. Hearing them joyfully sing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” brings our focus right to the Savior, the baby in Bethlehem, who is the reason we have so much to celebrate.
We center our classroom Advent activities with daily devotions to count down the days of December. In my classroom, we use the Advent calendar my family used when I was growing up, my own daughters and husband used, and now many years of 2nd graders have used. Being reminded of the symbols of the season is a fun way to tell the Christmas story: the wreath that symbolizes God’s eternal love, the candles that light our path as Jesus is the light of the world and shows us the way, the dove to remind us of the Holy Spirit and the gift of faith he brings, the key that tells us Jesus is the key to true joy and peace, and many more. We send home prayer chains with classmates’ names so each student can lift their classmates up in their daily prayers as they count down by taking a link off the chain each day.
Our students will spend a lot of time working on lap books in class to take home so they can share the Christmas story with family and friends. The week before Christmas break our 2nd graders have “Secret Angels” to whom they write encouraging notes, decorate a Christmas bookmark, and show kindness to their special person in simple ways each day. Of course, our students are excited about their elves on shelves, Santa’s visit, and all of their other Christmas festivities, but there is no doubt our 2nd graders truly know “the reason for the season”.
Mrs. Meier, 2nd grade
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