New lesson plan encourages trips to cemeteries

SURREY—Teaching a class on death is about as awkward as talking about where babies come from, according to English and religion teacher Josh Palmarin.

“End of life issues are a central part of Christianity and oft overlooked,” said Palmarin of St. John Brebeuf Regional Secondary School. He admits while the topic is uncomfortable, teachers should not shy away from telling children about this essential part of life and the Catholic faith.

“In an educational setting, it has an important place. There are a lot of unknowns regarding why Catholics do what we do, so making that accessible for teachers to then transmit to students is super important.”

So, when Catholic Cemeteries asked Palmarin to create lesson plans on topics such as praying for the dead, purgatory, and the communion of the saints, he agreed. Those lesson plans were delivered to 200 Grade 7-12 classrooms in Catholic schools this fall.

Palmarin included a teacher’s guide, references to Catholic teaching, and a variety of suggested activities including a field trip to a local cemetery.

We wanted the kids to have a better perspective on the Church’s teaching about end of life, death, burial, and the cemetery [than] what the world gives them at Halloween.

Teacher Rosette Correa took her Grade 7 class to Gardens of Gethsemani cemetery in Surrey Nov. 8. “We wanted the kids to have a better perspective on the church’s teaching about end of life, death, burial, and the cemetery” than “what the world gives them at Halloween.”

The students from Immaculate Conception Elementary in Delta spent the afternoon touring the cemetery, learning about burials and prayers, and cleaning tombstones of war veterans.

When she received the lesson plan, Correa was enthusiastic. “I like talking about it with my students simply because I lost my father when he was only 61. My children were still young at the time and I had to explain to them that death is not the end,” she said.

“I wanted the children I taught to also know this. They could bring it back to their homes, too, and teach their families.”

Inviting her Grade 7 students to clean gravestones and learn about the end of life opened up new possibilities. “The chosen program has a wonderful presentation on death and burial and the last things,” she said. “They had so many questions! It was actually a discussion opener for the kids because now they are no longer afraid to ask those questions.”

Our Lady of Good Counsel Elementary teacher Jacinta Quickert also saw a great response from her students when she took them to Gardens of Gethsemani Nov. 2.

“The students went on a prayer challenge where they were given six different graves to find. They went and prayed at each of the places at the cemetery. The cool part was that they were each given different names,” resulting in about 70 deceased people being prayed for on All Souls' Day.

“We’ve always thought of the month of November as the month of holy souls, but this gives them more hands-on experience,” said Quickert. The field trip was also a jumping point to talk about works of mercy, indulgences, and the school’s theme of “caring for everyone in our common home.”

Catholic Cemeteries’ outreach and community coordinator Terry Whiteley hopes to see more teachers tackle the awkward topic in their classrooms. She said only two classes out of the 200 that received the lesson plans have made field trips to the cemetery so far.