Catechist Chat: Rubrics – Not Just for Mass Anymore

I’m a big believer in rubrics. Both of the “Say the Black, Do the Red” variety, and in the classroom. What’s a rubric, you ask? Sit back as I explain how you can overcome your hesitation and finally build up the courage to cross the Rubric…con.

That seemed like it was building up to be an awesome pun, didn’t it? Sorry about that.

Okay, basically, a rubric is a terrific time-saver for teachers and a way for students to know your expectations very clearly before they begin an assignment. Rubrics are great for essay portions of tests, evaluating projects, rating students’ behavior or class participation – pretty much anything you can evaluate, you can evaluate via a rubric.

Rubrics4Teachers.com has tons of examples; I usually make my own, so that they’re tailored to the assignment. Decide how many aspects of an assignment you want to evaluate, come up with a “4-3-2-1” description in each category, and then give the rubric to the kids before they start the assignment, so that they know what they should be doing to complete it. Then, you just need to circle the box in each category that best fits the student’s performance.

Here are some sample rubrics you’re welcome to use and/or modify – click on the link to view them in PDF form.

Saints Essay Question: Choose four saints whose lives we have discussed in class and explain how they practiced the corporal and/or spiritual works of mercy.

Sacraments Essay Question: Choose four of the seven Sacraments. For each Sacrament, explain how it was instituted by Jesus, how it serves to provide us with grace, and how a person should prepare to receive the Sacrament.

Scripture Class – General Essay: Choose at least three Biblical figures whose lives we have discussed in class, and explain what people can learn from their example. You may include details about how each person either chose to do God’s will or disobeyed God, and what resulted from those decisions.

Hope these help! And hang in there – Christmas is right around the corner!

(AAAA! CHRISTMAS IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!!!! AAAAA!!!!! MUST START BAKING!)

Catechist Chat will be an ongoing series of posts for teachers in religious education programs. It is based on my personal experience and not on any statistical evidence of the effectiveness of my advice. Suscribe to my feed to follow along, and Caveat lector, which is Latin for “your mileage may vary.” 

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