One of my favorite things about All Saints is that it is truly a Catholic school. Although we are always in the presence of God, we deliberately take time throughout the school day to turn our hearts and attention to Him. Not only do our children learn the prayers in English, but even before they come into third grade Spanish, they have learned many prayers in Spanish, too.
Why does this matter? Well, in terms of faith. I believe that this opens our hearts and creates a beautiful rhythm to our days, bringing peace and virtue. But even if you are not a Catholic family, I think that there are some wonderful blessings from a Spanish language standpoint to this practice.
First, it introduces vocabulary and grammar structures in an authentic way. In particular, the students see and hear Spanish outside of a textbook. There are new words, and patterns of words, that enrich their vocabulary. Always, always, we find examples of the grammar concepts that we are reviewing, from adjectives to past participles to irregular verbs.
Additionally, it allows the students to see the progression and evolution of language, noting older examples of Spanish in some prayers, and how others have been slightly modernized.
One of the biggest pitfalls for elementary Spanish classes is that so often students hear isolated nouns instead of rich, flowing sentences. As we practice the prayers and creeds in Spanish, our students experience the fluency of complete and complex thoughts being expressed in beautiful words. They become accustomed to intonation patterns and internalize correct pronunciation.
I want the prayers to be a source of peace for our students, not anxiety. For the most part, they do not learn them as a test or assignment. It is simply how we open our class. Even our third graders have mostly memorized the Apostles' Creed in Spanish this way!
The following are some of the prayers we have learned:
The Sign of the Cross
Our Father
Mary, Queen of All Saints
Hail Mary
The Angelus
The Apostles' Creed
Although not all of the students know all of these yet, most of them are very familiar with these prayers and can easily pray along with the class. As we talk about the meanings of each of the words, we find that we are truly learning them by heart. It is not vain repetition, but more like breathing: a regular and life-giving part of our day.
