IN THE REGISTRATION PROCESS:

First, families will need to create their own password before they will be able to register.

Second, once you have created your family password an email message will be delivered to your email containing the login code and a link to the registration page. PLEASE PROVIDE A VALID EMAIL ADDRESS!

Third, once you enter your login code you will be able to access your family file. Please update all your family’s and children’s information before you register your child for next year’s program session.

Fourth, after you have updated your family file and registered your child you will see your Registration Tuitions and Fees Page with a link to Finalize the Registration and Print the Registration Receipt.

PRINT THE RECEIPT PAGE, SIGN IT AND MAIL IT TO THE RELIGIOUS EDUCATION OFFICE!!!

YOUR PAYMENT IS DUE JULY 1ST

If selecting a Tuition Payment Plan your first installment is due July 1st

Please contact the Religious Education Office
with any questions you may have regarding registration at 708-383-4185.

Philosophy

When families choose to enroll their children in one of the Religious Education programs here at St Giles Parish, they are choosing St Giles Parish to partner with and support their efforts of HANDING ON THE FAITH to their children.

All of our parish’s Religious Education programs strive to provide each child with a consistent, systematic structure that shares our Catholic faith and traditions which aims at challenging their understanding of WHO THEY ARE AND WHOSE THEY ARE.

Program Option Descriptions:

PREP is design to give preschool children (ages 3 to 5 years) an introduction to basic Catholic Christian principles. Children are active learners who are inherently curious about the world around them. Young children gain knowledge through hands-on experiences and meaningful interactions with others and their environment. Through story-telling, activities, community building, and shared experiences the young child’s relationship with God is strengthened. PREP aims to provide concrete, meaningful connections between a child’s developing faith and their real life experiences. A child’s first introduction to their faith is through their parents and so parental involvement is at the very heart of the PREP program. It is our hope that participation in the PREP experience will help to develop the young child’s basic religious understanding and prepare them for a life-long commitment to understanding living their faith.

Beginning in September through April, PREP is offered on Sunday mornings
from 9:30 am to 10:30 am (PRE3 - Kindergarten)

CATECHESIS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD (Montessori) - CGS is an approach to the religious formation of children. It is rooted in the Bible, the liturgy of the church, and the educational principles of Maria Montessori. Children gather in an "atrium," a room prepared for them, which contains simple yet beautiful materials they use to help them absorb the most essential proclamations of the Christian faith. In an atrium the child can ponder a biblical passage or a prayer from the liturgy by taking the material for that text and working with it - placing wood figures of sheep in a sheepfold of the Good Shepherd, setting sculpted apostles around a Last Supper table, or preparing a small altar with the furnishings used for the Eucharist. Older children often copy parables from the Bible, place written prayers in order from the rite of baptism, or label a long time line showing the history of the kingdom of God. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is a sensorially rich experience for children from the ages of 3 to 15 years that gives children the opportunity to grow in love and knowledge of God through the Christian tradition.

Beginning in September through April, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is offered:
Level I - Children 3 to 6 years of age (Pre-K to K) on Wednesdays from 3 to 4:15 pm.
Level II - Children 6 to 9 years of age (1st to 3rd Grades) on Tuesdays - NEW DATE! from 4:30 to 5:45 pm, Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:45 pm or on Thursdays from 4 to 5:15 pm.
Level III - Children 9 to 12 years of age (4th to 6th Grades) on Tuesdays - NEW DATE! from 4:30 to 5:45 pm, Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:45 pm or on Thursdays from 4 to 5:15 pm.
Level IV - Children 12 to 15 years of age (7th to 8th Grades) on Tuesdays from 7 to 8:15 pm or on Wednesdays - NEW DATE!!! from 7 to 8:15 pm.

TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS EDUCATION - TRE (Classroom Setting) is for students in Grades 1-8 and meets in the classrooms of the Frawley Building. The hope of our traditional classroom Religious Education program is to encourage and invite students to understand their life of faith as expressed in the Sacred Scriptures and the Living Traditions of our Church. As students progress through the traditional program their understanding of our faith will increasingly challenge them to live the faith they profess at home, at school, and in the larger community. It is vital to our traditional program’s success that PARENTS PLAY AN ACTIVE ROLE in the faith development of their children.

Parents are called upon to partner with their children’s catechists in the classroom by being their children’s catechist at home! Parents partner with their children’s catechist by: being an active member of the St Giles parish, by being a person of service to those in need, and by being a disciple who is continuously deepening their own relationship with God and His Church.

Beginning in September through April, our Traditional Religious Education program
IS CURRENTLY offered on:
Sundays from 9:30 am to 11 am (grades 1-5 only)
Wednesdays from 4:30 pm to 5:45 pm (grades 1-5 only) - NEW TIME!!!
Wednesdays from 7:15 pm to 8:30 pm (grades 6-8 only)
Class days and times options found in the Children Session of this Online Registration.

FAMILY RELIGIOUS EDUCATION PROGRAM (FRE) is designed to assist parents wishing to engage their children’s religious education at home with their entire family. Family Religious Education participants receive a resource text for each child to use at home as well as a family bible and online resources to engage their whole family. The text is the map for the family’s year of exploring our Catholic faith. Parents set aside time each week to review the unit lesson with their child. A Parent Guide is provided for each unit and grade level needed by the parent. Each month all FRE families gather at the parish to share what they have discovered/rediscovered about our faith and discuss questions or concerns that may have occurred during the month. FRE participants are also encouraged to join other FRE families to form faith study groups working together to HAND ON THE FAITH.

IMPORTANT NOTE!!! Only families that are members of our Saint Giles Parish will have this option. The Family Religious Education program orientation occurs in early September with the monthly FRE gatherings held on the fourth Sunday of the month September through April.

OFF SACRAMENT TRACK PROGRAM - This program is designed for families with children older than the age of seven who have been baptized but have not received formal religious education in a parish school or parish religious education program. These families are seeking the reception of the Sacraments of Reconciliation and First Eucharist for their children. The Off Sacrament Track program is a TWO YEAR process that prepares children for their celebration of the Sacraments and begins with parents choosing to partner with one of the parish's Religious Education Programs to formally introduce the study of our faith to their children.

Tutions and Fees:

Our tuition structure is based on parishioner status and number of children enrolled in our programs. Please note that submission of this registration does not AUTOMATICALLY register you as a parishioner. If you would like more information about becoming a parishioner of Saint Giles, please contact the Parish Center at
708-383-3430.

Please do not let cost be a prohibitive factor in the faith development of your child(ren).
Contact the Religious Education Office to arrange alternative payment options or
select Need Financial Assistance at the end of the Online Registration Process.

Registrations received after July 31st, 2013 will be charged an additional $50.00 processing fee.