Activities to learn about Mary

[RacingSnake]

Hi. I am a teacher of RE at a primary school and we are having a 'creative day' based on the story of the Nativity. Each class is doing a different character and is to produce writing/poems/art work etc in one day to show to parents at the end of the day. I have drawn the short straw, I feel, with 'Mary', who doesn't figure very large in CofE teaching.

Has anyone got any ideas for me? The children are 8 years old. Is 'Hail Mary' the prayer used at all by the CofE or is it just RC? Would CofE people mind if it were included?

I really have no ideas! (I had lots of ideas for angels, but another teacher got there first!)

Personally I think Hail Mary would be a bit much for an 8 yr old to understand / remember...if that's what you were thinking of doing. NOt sure what C of E parents would think of it.

I think Mary would be the most interesting character to have... There she is aged about 16 (?) engaged to this nice guy, an angel comes along and tells her she's pregnant, (by God only knows who!) she has the terror of being a single parent, then Joseph sticks by her (phew) then they go traipsing off for days on the back of a donkey to have a baby, then she finds out Joseph has failed to book a room and they get put in a stable. AND THEN as if that wasn't enough- they have to flee to Egypt and become refugees. Now in my opinion that's a better storyline than the average episode of Eastenders.

A fun book is Granny goes to Bethlehem which is written from the perspective of Mary's mother - a typical Jewish mother - v funny and irreverant.

On a practical level - I expect (guess) that some of the Catholic websites might have some useful resources.

Finally - GOOD LUCK!!

If you look at RE online and put Mary as a key word it brings up a lower key stage 2 lesson on trust that might be helpful. Topic Box might be worth a look.

I think that it is quite nice to look at all the places where Mary appears in the New Testament and to build up a picture of what Mary is like. There is not an awful lot written about her after the nativity, but she is a good example for us.

Thank you, thank you! Off to look at your ideas and see if the library has that book. Any arty ideas, anyone? All I could think of was a big sort of icon, a collaborative effort with lots of collage. Going tp put question on education thread, too, to see if any art teachers are lurking about.

You could try and find lots of Christmas cards with Madonna and child-make a huge collage with them. If you use google images and put in Madonna and child paintings, you get lots of variety. Make a Powerpoint of all the different images and then do their own interpretation.

You could write an account, from Mary's point of view,of what it was like in the stable and the visit of the shepherds.
Or write a poem about the visit of the angel.

Have spent a happy evening so far in TopicBox - what a great site!

Like the idea of a huge collage - might send a letter home asking for old Christmas cards.

And setting a couple of the G&T readers onto research in the bible.

And I will order the granny book from the library tomorrow.

Racing - The church I attend is C of E but at the Anglo-Catholic end of the spectrum. We say the Hail Mary every week, so there will probably be at least some of the C of E parents who won't be surprised or offended by it.

I like the sound of Granny Goes To Bethlehem.

Good luck!

What about an image of a mother in a refugee camp doing their best for her children in terrible circumstances? I've always seen Mary as a feisty gal with a stout pair of docs on her feet, who could pack in a hurry and not forget things that she would really need, like the swaddling clothes. Someone who would undertake a perilous journey despite her own 'delicate' condition to help out a sista in need, like her cousin Elizabeth.

Prayers to Mary tend to emphasise her passive, message-bearing role. She is portrayed in Catholic prayers as a go-between with a very exalted place. But the Magnificat/ Canticle of Mary (Luke 1:46-55) is a different matter.

Of course - the Magnificat! Reciting that is one of the few things I remember about primary schhol.

I also like the idea of a refugee mother. Maybe I could find other images eg homeless pregnant girl, baby in a drawer, etc, and we could update the story.

MadBad, I had imagined you to be at the AngloCatholic end of the spectrum.

Racing - That's not where I am. It's where the church I attend is. I think I'd quite like to be a Quaker, but that's another thread.

I assure you, Racing, the truth is far worse than anything you could imagine

Racing I am here to help! We are rather Mary fans at DaisyTowers. I learnt the Magnificat when I did nativities at primary school/ sunday school

Also, Mary gets to wear white or purple

Last year DaisyBoy went to the crib service as Mary (much to the vicars confusion who tried (unsucessfully) to convince him he was a shepherd )

I would do

(1) a bit on the Magnificat

(2) something about a big big surprise (hard to be akin to the Angel Gabriel telling you you're having a baby, but your know, the empathetic 8 year olds equivalent)

(3) somethign about the journey - not the fleeing at the end but the journey to Bethlehem, hot, tired, are you nearly there yet?

(4) perhaps feeling of being in a new house/ stable/ staying somewhere a bit funny but making the best of it

could you construct a stable/ try to make somewhere nice for your new baby/ sleeping sort of thing - how you would come up with the manger and a bed of straw as a good option?

Like the ideas of pictures of mary and baby through the years

there is a lovely book called the First Nativity which we got from local church but it might be a bit young for 8?

Daisy - I nver thought of asking you! I do like the idea of a big suprise, if I can lure them away from the idea of 'getting a new nintendo wii', which is the stock answer for most questions.

You could print out some of the famous pictures of Madonna and child and the DCs could choose their favourite, stick it onto a piece of paper and write a few sentences about why they liked it the best.
If anyone finishes work early they could do some research and make a list of famous people (past and present)with the name Mary, Marie or Maria.

Ah! Like the name idea. I am very glad I asked!

I did write quite a thoughtful essay on Mary, but I think it might be a bit too "grownup" for your lot

Something to think about is how Mary said "yes" to God, how she just accepted what he told her, in what could have been a very scary situation. She trusted God, the Father. And maybe how, when they are in scary situations, they can trust their parents to know what to do for the best? (well, the cynic in me says, in an ideal world )

Also, I don't know if its worth finding out more, but in the Qu'ran (is that spelt right?), there is more on Mary than in the bible - they devote a whole 'chapter' to her, I've been told.

What I quite like about Mary's encounter with Gabriel is that, although she was totally faithful to God, she did question the fact that she was pregnant. She was an intelligent girl who knew about the birds and the bees, and knew that it was not normal for virgins to ge pregnant.

I like the idea of looking at Islam as well!