The "Orthodox Kids Journal Project"

NEW: Introducing a free weekly curriculum to create Orthodox Christian Kids Journals about our  faith! Each week, come back to this website and download the handout to print yourselves.

The handouts cover a topic from the Church year including quotes, miracle stories, maps, troparions, icons and Orthodox art.

As we discuss the components of the lesson, students are actively listening while they color, cut, and glue a memorable resource to keep for the rest of their lives! Often, students contribute stories they have heard, or if they have that particular Saints' icon at home, or if they have ever venerated a relic, traveled to that country etc. This method proves to be a wonderful tool to create lasting beauty as students develop a greater understanding for the Orthodox Church year in the midst of open dialogue.

Join with us and share! CLICK HERE

Here are the files currently available to follow the Church year from September to May:

• Journal Curriculum Calendar
• Journal Intro page handout 
• Journal Lesson on the Cross 
• Journal Lesson on Saint Euphrosynos and Humility
• Journal Lesson on Prayer & the Komboskini 
• Journal Lesson Called to Holiness 
• Journal Lesson on OXI Day Protection of the Theotokos
• Journal Lesson on St Demetrios & Martyrdom
• Journal Lesson on Angels 
• Journal Lesson on Saint Nektarios 
• Journal Lesson on Saint Katherine (Aikaterini) 
• Journal Lesson on Saint Nicholas 
• Journal Lesson on Christmas, the Incarnation and Nativity of Christ 
• Journal Lesson on Theophany, the Baptism of Christ 
• Journal Lesson on Saint Andonios the Great 
• Journal Lesson for Holy Unction in the Orthodox Church 
• Journal Lesson on the Three Hierarchs 
• Journal Lesson on St John Baptist
• Journal Lesson on St Photini Samaritan Woman at the Well 
• Journal Lesson on Great Lent
• Journal Lesson on The Annunciation 
• Journal Lesson of St Mary of Egypt
• Journal Lesson on Holy Week
• Journal Lesson on Pascha & the Holy Fire in Jersualem
• Journal Lesson on the Ascension

Holy Week Kids Orthodox Chart

Download for free and print this helpful lesson in chart format HERE to remind your students about each day of Holy Week in the Orthodox Church. The PDF file is filled with icons and a short description that is easily understood to enrich your experience to Pascha!

The second page includes my original Pascha Poem, along with
the Greek text to Xristos Anesti.

Holy Monday- Joseph
Holy Tuesday- Ten Virgins
Holy Weds - Betrayal of Judas
Holy Thurs - Mystical Supper
Holy Friday- Crucifixion
Holy Saturday- Empty Tomb
Holy Sunday - Resurrection of Christ

Join our Orthodox Kids Journal Project. All files are located here.

Wishing you and your families a blessed Pascha 2019!

Orthodox Coloring Books for Lent

The time has come for Great Lent  - here are some extra resources to challenge your young ones! We have compiled a printable PDF workbook available for free at this Scribd link. It contains coloring icons, games and craft activities to accompany the Sundays during Lent as well as Lazarus Saturday and Holy Week. Please do not reproduce or sell this for profit in any way - it is simply available for parish and home use only.


To purchase other fantastic resources available in many languages visit http://orthodoxchildrensbooks.com. Potamitis Publishing has extremely reasonable prices which include even the cost of shipping! They have informed me that the workbooks have nice explanations on each page in both Greek and English for example.

I wish you all a fruitful journey this year, with many blessings and illumination for a glorious Pascha celebration!

Three Hierarchs Lesson & Coloring Icon

Join us to learn more about each individual Saint celebrated during the Three Hierarchs common feastday on January 30th by downloading the handout for free here 
or on Scribd located here

We are coloring, cutting and gluing this lesson along with the many others in our "Orthodox Christian Kids Journals" that can be found at this link:

All files beginning from September have been uploaded for free download!

This method of journaling has created truly beautiful keepsakes for Orthodox youth ages 5 to 18 to help them follow the calendar year of the Church.  Each student has used their God-given gifts in a creative, unique way that has planted the seeds of our faith into their memory.

Greek Prayer Worksheets

Download and print these very simple worksheets to practice special phrases of our Orthodox prayer life! They are intended to assist our children and teens with reading and writing the Greek alphabet. Some handouts have the text in place to practice tracing, and others are blank for a tougher challenge. The "Our Father" prayer would be the most difficult of course. 

One need not be of Greek nationality to try these! 

This first page includes "Christ is Born, Glorify Him!"  and "Most Holy Theotokos, Intercede to Save us!" The second page has "Holy Saint Nektarios pray for us!" and "Lord Jesus Christ, Have Mercy on Me." Lastly, the third page lists the full "Our Father" prayer.

Discovering Virtue

Here is a new workbook on "Discovering Virtue" for our Orthodox youth, probably at a pre-teen or teenage level. I offer it with hopes that it will provide a basic framework to discuss the spiritual life and difficult topics like chastity, humility and obedience,along with activities, a craft, and quotes from the desert fathers.

The document can be viewed as a PDF by clicking here at our Orthodox Education Scribd Group

If you have ideas to develop this lesson further, please share them either through this website of by emailing me at eleniemarie@gmail.com

The icon on the cover is one of many beautiful crafts offered at the Monastery of St John Chrysostomos

"You have to struggle to increase your zeal for God. It should become for you a daily way of life. Struggle for perfection. If you can't gain a drachma, gain at least a tenth of a drachma. Virtues are not acquired easily. There is need of struggling. And know: if we acquire virtue quickly, we shall lose it quickly. Whereas if we acquire it with labor, it doesn't go away."

-Blessed Elder, IERONYMOS of Aegina +1966

Monthly Curriculum: Orthodox Girls

This year, our parish has designated separate classes for boys and girls ages 10-16.  I thought I'd share our program with you, as it seems to be well received so far. The idea of splitting the genders has  truly allowed us to concentrate on specific issues related to their challenges while also eliminating much of the chatter and drama! We do not have a text per say, but rather a structure that gives us
flexibility yet predictability.

Every month our girls follow this schedule:

• 1st Sunday: Koumboskinia/Prayer Ropes (Craft & Theology)
• 2nd Sunday: Chanting (Theology & Hymns from the Divine Liturgy or Feast)
• 3rd Sunday: Diakonima (The girls can bake, assist, serve, & clean-up at the coffee fellowship- the boys tend to the altar and candles)
• 4th Sunday: Journaling from the Lives of the Female Saints

Today, as an example, the girls were asked to walk around the church after the Divine Litrugy,
and to write the names of the female Saints that they found on the walls. Afterward, we discussed our vocation to be like these holy women who remind us weekly of virtue and our potential. Our plan is to create small journals that the girls will read a life of a female Saint in, then draw out a few inspiring details from the short story that impacted them. We will be sure to include the patron Saints of the girls in the class so that each can learn her story and share with the others.


If you have other ideas, please share~ It's truly a great blessing to walk along side these pure souls!

Here is the book I assembled at Shutterfly:
 http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0BatWTZozbs3Gw

Orthodox Icon Coloring Book

Just posted: A 39-page Orthodox icon coloring book full of images of Holy Week, other feast days, and Saints throughout the year for you to download and print to use with your families. Click here
for the printable PDF - select a few pages or print them all with minimal ink usage!

Once again, please do not distribute this for profit in anyway!

Orthodox Children's Coloring Worksheets

You might recognize the resources available by Potamitis Publishing as they are starting to become more popular amongst Orthodox Christians worldwide, but if you haven't visited their website, check it out for printable connect-the-dot activities, online puzzles and coloring sheets. It's very kid friendly!

Here's the Children's Corner where you can print many activities!

To send a free e-postcard with Orthodox imagery
Click Here