Garden of the Good Shepherd ~ Week 1

We are going to be celebrating the Easter season again this year by using the Garden of the Good Shepherd calendar. (Sorry this is a few days late!)

Jessica and I will be pulling ideas from last year and from each other and trying to keep the activities simple enough and mostly home based.

The theme for the first week is:
"The Good Shepherd's Pasture."

1. The Good Shepherd : Read John 10:14-15

• Easter Sunday!! CELEBRATE!!!

2. The Shepherd's Crook: Read Psalm 23:1-6

• Read the Legend of the Candy Cane (a little Christmas in April) and talk about why a shepherd has a crooked staff instead of a straight staff.

3. The Sheepfold : Read John 10:1-6

• Make popcorn for a snack. We don't have an air popper but I think a bowl full of popcorn will represent a sheepfold nicely.
• Read Psalm 23 and talk about how the Lord is our shepherd.
  

4. The Gate of the Sheepfold : Read John 10:7-10

• Watch The Secret Garden.
• Make our own Garden Gates.
• 4/16/09 edited to add picture: We finished these too late last night to photograph.
  

5. The Ewe and the Ram : Read John 21:15-17

• My kids still enjoy VeggieTales and have informed me repeatedly that there is one we haven't seen yet! (It's a lesson about patience! Ha!) Since this one is the story of Abraham and Sarah, it works.
  
• Read the story of the sacrifice of Isaac.
  

6. The Lamb : Read John 1:35

• Attend Mass and visit the Lamb of God
  
• I have wanted to introduce my girls to the art of quilling and this lamb note holder might be the perfect opportunity.
  
• Make Lamb Cupcakes or Lamb of God Rolls.
• Lindt Candy Lambs

7. The Wolf : Read John 10:11-12

• Read the story of St. Francis and the wolf. Here is on online version. Our favorite is Saint Francis and the Wolf by Richard Egielski.
  
• Make Wolf Paw Cookies. These are made with store bought cookies. They look like Pepperidge Farm Lido or maybe Tahiti cookies. Just dip the top edge in melted semi-sweet chocolate and pipe on melted white chocolate claws using a plastic bag with a snipped corner.
• Feed a hungry dog today with a donation to the local animal shelter. Maybe have the kids collect worn out blankets to donate too. The animal shelter told us last year that they can always use these kinds of items for making the animals more comfortable.