IDEA OF THE MONTH: April

In the past, when I taught about the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, the lesson fell flat. This year, though, I tried something different that really worked.

Weeks before the lesson, I hung on the wall all the words of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit: modesty, kindness, joy, patience, goodness, chastity, self-control, faithfulness, love (charity), gentleness, generosity, and peace. I printed the words in bright colors and pretty lettering.

I didn’t put any title above the words—they were just there so the kids could see them often. My hope was that, when we eventually discussed the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, the kids might remember them.

On the day I presented the lesson on the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, I gave each student a miniature candy bar and told everyone not to open them. Then I began the lesson.

After discussing how our faith in the Holy Spirit helps us grow in different ways, I had my 11 students and my aid go to the wall, grab a word, and return to their seats. Then I told everyone to look at the word they held, decide what the word meant, and be prepared to tell the class what it meant and what fruit they would be if they were that Fruit of the Holy Spirit.

MODESTY
My aid seemed puzzled. “Huh?” She held the word modesty.
“Let me do this one,” I offered.

“Yes, of course.”  

“Ok. Modesty is about keeping ourselves composed in a way that honors our bodies,” I explained. “It means wearing clothing that is not suggestive and that helps others keep pure thoughts. If I were a fruit, I’d be a banana and keep my peel on!”

“Oh!” the kids responded. They got it!

Here are comments that the kids shared.

KINDNESS
“Kindness—an orange—because an orange is covered nicely and, when you open it, it’s already ‘kindly’ separated out for you.”

JOY
“Joy—a strawberry—because it looks like it’s smiling and happy.”
“Joy is not just being happy. It’s about a contentment we have because we have Jesus.”
“Maybe a lemon? Lemon fresh Joy?”

PATIENCE
“Patience—a pear—because when you pick a pear, you can never eat it right away. You always have to wait a day or two before it’s ripe enough to eat.”

GOODNESS
“Goodness—a pineapple—because it’s not about the outside, it’s the inside that’s good.”

CHASTITY
“Chastity—what does that mean?”
“Keeping our minds and bodies pure, whether we are single or married.”
“Ah, a watermelon without seeds.”

SELF-CONTROL
“Self-control.”
The student with this Fruit of the Holy Spirit paused. He wasn’t sure how to explain it. Then a light bulb went on in the student next to him. “I know,” she exclaimed. “It’s like giving us a candy bar and telling us not to eat it!”

“Yes!” I said, delighted that someone was able to make the association.

“Can we eat them now?” the kids asked.

“Yes,” I said. “So that’s self-control. What’s the fruit?”

After some discussion we decided the fruit is a coconut—because you can’t throw it around and pound it on rocks to open it. There is a proper and controlled way to open a coconut. 

FAITHFULNESS
“Faithfulness—a Grapple.”
“What’s a grapple?”
“It’s a new fruit. It’s an apple that has been injected with grape juice…tastes like a grape with the texture of an apple. It tastes like a grape but remains faithful to being an apple!”

LOVE (charity)
“Love—a cherry,” to which my aid added, “We show our love by putting a cherry on top of the whipped cream on a sundae!”

GENTLENESS
“Gentleness—a peach—because you have to be gentle with a peach or it will bruise easily. Plus it’s soft and fuzzy.”

GENEROSITY
“Generosity—grapes—because they give you the whole bunch at one time!”

And my personal favorite:

PEACE
“Peace—a kiwi—because it’s the hippy fruit, kind of hairy, kind of mushy, kind of just funky. And hippies were all about peace.”

The kids’ explanations were better than I had ever used in teaching this lesson. And so now, for the first time, I know that I can list all twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit without looking at a list for help!

Joanne Sheehan is Director of Religious Education at Mater Dolorosa/St. Joseph Parishes in Chicora, PA.

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