Lesson Plans and Resources
The Mother of Light
This Time In the Year of Grace
During the first half of August Orthodox Christians enter into a grace-filled time of spiritual preparation known as the Dormition Fast. Lasting fourteen days, this anticipatory period serves as our opportunity to prepare our hearts to celebrate the great feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos. The Orthodox continue to celebrate this feast through August 23, the Leavetaking of the Dormition. From then on we await the beginning of the new Church Year on September 1. It is no coincidence that the liturgical year ends with the Dormition of the Theotokos, for it also begins with her Nativity, which we joyfully celebrate on September 8.
The story of our salvation is inseparably bound to the person of the Theotokos, the Birth-Giver of God. The narrative of the Old Testament, which records the action of God in the life of man, builds up to her creation. God took from the human race one nation and from that nation He chose one family. From that one family, in the fullness of time, He brought forth his greatest creation, Mary of Nazareth. It was from this humble young woman, who is more honorable than the Cherubim and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim, that God clothed Himself with our nature and united it to His own. The Theotokos is man's greatest offering to God. As the hymns at the Nativity of Our Lord proclaim,
What shall we offer Thee, O Christ,
Who for our sakes hast appeared on earth as man?
Every creature made by Thee offers Thee thanks,
The angels offer Thee a hymn;
The heavens a star;
The magi, gifts;
The shepherds, their wonder;
The earth, its cave;
The wilderness, the manger;
And we offer Thee a Virgin mother.
O pre-eternal God, have mercy on us.
Lesson Plans For This Time of Grace
For the first half of this lesson block I have chosen to concentrate on the Old Testament symbols of the Theotokos. During each evening of the Dormition Fast one biblical symbol of the Mother of God will be introduced by the lighting of a series of fourteen decorated candles honoring the Mother of Light, accompanied by the related scripture reading and hymn from the Akathist. The beeswax tapers will be decorated using modeling beeswax and may be prepared in advance by the parent or each day by the children. As we make our way through the Old Testament and the Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos we will end the time of the Fast with the lighting of one large decorated candle to be burned throughout the Afterfeast up through the Leavetaking of Dormition. A list of supplies is linked below along with the list of symbols and readings for each day of the Fast. (For those who are not able or interested in displaying a line of 14 candles, each candle can be replaced on a daily basis in the family icon corner.)
As we enter into the festal time of the Theotokos, we will switch our focus to learning about the Orthodox iconography of the Mother of God. From the feast of Dormition until her Nativity we will learn about three of her icons each week. Below you will find ten printable icons of the Theotokos as well as a matching set of Montessori-inspired three-part cards for the little ones. Below I have included both links and suggested reading for each icon.
A Lesson Book For This Time of Grace
Our main lesson book for this season will be divided into three parts. The first third will be focused on the Old Testament symbolism represented by each of the fourteen decorated candles. After reading the stories from Scripture and the related hymnology from the Akathist, the children will record their learning through narration and illustration. The second third of the lesson book will be dedicated to a copywork/dictation project focused on the portions of the Akathist that narrate the events of the Incarnation. This writing project will continue throughout the entire lesson block and by its end the children will have a narrative, written in their own hand, of the story of our salvation based on this prayer of the Church. We will be focusing the final third of our lesson book on narrations of the history and symbolism of the icons of the Theotokos, as well as the children's own illustration of each.
As far as preparing the lesson books for the children, you will need to either purchase three separate blank books, one large sketch book, or fill a binder with loose-leaf pages. A variety of blank books can be purchased from Paper, Scissors, Stone, while Dick Blick sells a vast assortment of blank sketch books. Regardless of the format you choose, you will need to make accommodations for the following number of pages:
Main Lesson Book, Part I
The Mother of Light
28 pages
Each of the fourteen days of this portion of the lesson block will be recorded in the lesson book by using one blank page for a record of the child's narration and one blank page for an illustration of the Old Testament symbol or a photograph of the decorated candle. (Read this post for information on using photographs in main lesson books.) You can choose blank alternated by lined pages or use only blank pages and simply paste the narration onto the blank page.
Since the candles will be lit each evening from August 1 through August 14, some of the readings will take place on the weekends. This means that the written work for the Mother of Light portion of the lesson block will need to extend into the Afterfeast of the Dormition. The learning plans for August 15 through September 8 are scheduled for Monday, Wednesday and Friday. You can use Tuesday and Thursday to complete the unfinished pages for the first part of the lesson block.
Main Lesson Book Part II
The Atkathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos
25 pages
There are twenty-five selections from the Akathist for copywork or dictation (downloadable files offered below). For those using the copywork selections, the blank lines have been provided within each document as part of the exercise. You will only need blank pages if you choose a bound lesson book since you can paste the written work onto the blank page. If you are using a binder you can simply hole-punch the written work and include it. If your child is working on dictation exercises you will need lined paper. You can either purchase a lesson book that alternates blank and lined pages, a lined notebook, or paste your child's written work onto the blank pages of a blank book.
Main Lesson Book, Part III
Iconography of the Theotokos
20 pages
We will be learning about ten different icons of the Theotokos in this portion of the lesson block. You will need two pages on which to record both a narration and illustration of each icon. The set up for Part I of the lesson book applies to this section as well.
Reading For This Time of Grace
The online lesson calendar (linked below) offers a daily reading schedule, beginning on August 1, for the following books:
Reading For the Little Ones
The Illustrated Life of the Theotokos for Children
by Georgia and Helen Hronas
The Story of Mary the Mother of God
by Dorrie Papademetriou
The Twelve Great Feasts For Children by Sister Elayne
The Transfiguration of Our Lord
The Dormition of the Theotokos
Read this post for details of this children's Bible.
Reading For the Older Ones
Icons of the Most Holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary
by Theodore Khoury
Life of the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos
by Holy Apostles Convent, Dormition Skete
by A Monk of the Eastern Church
This book is listed as a core book in the Paschal Season lesson plans.
Readings for this season include:
The Transfiguration
pp. 238-242
The Dormition of Our Lady the Most Holy Mother of God
pp. 242-244
The End of the Liturgical Year
pp. 245-246
The Significance of the Liturgical Year
pp. 1-3
The First Day of the Liturgical Year
pp. 3-6
The Nativity of the Virgin Mary
pp. 31-33
by Metropolitan Hierotheos
This book is listed as a core book in the Paschal Season lesson plans.
Readings for this season include:
The Transfiguration of Christ
pp. 145-173
Family Reading
For Old Testament reading I prefer this edition because it is directly translated from the Greek Septuagint, offering the Orthodox number, naming and ordering of the Old Testament Canon, which differs from both Roman Catholic and Protestant Bibles.
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos
Translated from the Greek by Holy Transfiguration Monastery
Resources For This Time of Grace
Online Lesson Calendar Subscription Link
This is an essential tool offering a daily listing of the readings and activities used in this lesson block. Double-click on the daily calendar entries to view lesson notes.
Montessori Three-Part Cards
Icons of the Theotokos
Download Icons of the Theotokos.Three-Part Cards
Read this post for an explanation of using three-part cards with young children. I recommend introducing each card on the day that the icon is studied, slowly building up to matching the entire sets.
The Mother of Light Main Lesson Book Photo Album
Link forthcoming. Photos will not be uploaded until the beginning of August.
Handcraft Supplies
Set of 12 Beeswax Pillar Candles (4 1/2 inch tall, 1/2 inch base)
(or purchase from your parish)
Pattern Cutters for decorating wax
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Main Lesson Book, Part I
The Mother of Light - Daily Plans
August 1
Jacob's Ladder
Symbol: ladder
Readings
Scripture Reading
Genesis 28:10-22
Children's Bible Reader
Jacob Has a Strange Dream, p. 41
Hymnology
Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Two
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August 2
The Unburnt Bush
Symbol: green bush with flames
Readings
Scripture Reading
Exodus 3
Children's Bible Reader
God Calls Moses, pp. 76-78
Kontakion of the Icon of the Theotokos, the Unburnt Bush
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August 3
Cloud of Glory
Symbol: cloud
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 40:28-32
Luke 1:26-38
Children's Bible Reader
The Tent of Meeting and the Ark of the Covenant, pp. 97-98
The Angel Visits Mary, pp. 165-166
Hymnology
Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Kontakion Three
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August 4
Ark of the Covenant
Symbol: ark
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 25:10-22
2 Kingdoms (2 Samuel) 6
Luke 1: 39-56
Children's Bible Reader
Mary Visits Elizabeth, p. 166
Hymnology
Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos 12
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August 5
Lampstand of Gold
Symbol: golden candlestick
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 25:31-40
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Two
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August 6
Aaron's Rod
Symbol: rod budding with leaves and flowers
Readings
Scripture Readings
Numbers 17:16-28
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August 7
Root of Jesse
Symbol: tree root
Readings
Scripture Reading
Isaiah 11
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos One and Eight
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August 8
East Gate
Symbol: closed gate
Readings
Scripture Readings
Ezekiet 44:1-9
Hymnology
Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Four, Eight and Ten
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August 9
Stone Cut Without Hands
Symbol: stone
Readings
Scripture Readings
Daniel 2:24-45
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Kontakion Two and Seven; Oikos Ten
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August 10
Golden Vessel
Symbol: golden vessel or urn
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 16
Hebrews 9
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Six and Eight
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August 11
Holy of Holies
Symbol: temple veil
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 26
Hebrews 9
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos One and Eight
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August 12
Golden Censer
Symbol: censer
Readings
Scripture Readings
Revelation 5
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Three
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August 13
Holy Table
Symbol: altar
Readings
Scripture Readings
Exodus 25:23-30
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Three
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August 14
Unwithering Vine
Symbol: vine
Readings
Scripture Readings
John 15:1-10
Hymnology
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos - Oikos Three
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Main Lesson Book, Part II
The Akathist to the Most-Holy Theotokos
Copywork and Dictation Exercises
Copywork For Beginners
Handwriting Without Tears
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Manuscript Copywork
Handwriting Without Tears
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Zaner Bloser
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Cursive Copywork
Handwriting Without Tears
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Zaner Bloser
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Dictation
Handwriting Without Tears
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Zaner Bloser
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Main Lesson Book, Part III
Iconography of the Theotokos
The assigned readings from The Icons of the Most Holy Theotokos and Ever Virgin Mary by Theodore Khoury are listed in the online lesson calendar (linked above).
Week of August 17
The Dormition of the Theotokos
The Icon of the Sign
Axion Estin
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Week of August 24
Directress
Holy Protection
Kazan
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Week of August 31
Sweet-Kissing
Tikhvin
Vladimir
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Week of September 7
The Nativity of the Theotokos
Download Nativity Theotokos Icon
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