Hands and Hearts · Week 1 · Grades 6–8
Guided Notes: St. Joseph
- Name
- Date
- Class
Follow along as your teacher presents. Fill in each section when its slide is on the screen.
St. Joseph
A hard decision
Joseph was a blank 1 in Nazareth, a small town in Galilee, which was then ruled by the Roman Empire. He belonged to the family line of King David, but he was not rich or powerful.
He was betrothed to Mary, which was a binding promise to marry. Then he learned she was expecting a child, and he knew he was not the father.
Matthew’s Gospel calls Joseph a blank 2 man. He did not want Mary shamed in public, so he planned to end the betrothal quietly. Then an angel told him in a dream that the child was from the Holy Spirit. Joseph took Mary into his home.
Joseph in the Gospels and after
Write what happened at each point.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Nazareth | Write your answer |
| Bethlehem | Write your answer |
| Egypt | Write your answer |
| Nazareth | Write your answer |
| Jerusalem | Write your answer |
| 1870 | Write your answer |
| 1955 | Write your answer |
Check the facts
What did Joseph first plan to do when he learned Mary was expecting a child? Circle one.
- A Report her to the leaders of the town
- B Leave Nazareth and move to Egypt
- C End the betrothal quietly to spare her shame
- D Ask the priests in the Temple what to do
Why is that the right answer?
Refugee, worker, teacher
King Herod feared the child the wise men called a newborn king, and he meant to kill him. Warned in a dream, Joseph got up and left for Egypt that night. The blank 3 lived as refugees in a foreign land until Herod died.
Back in blank 4, Joseph supported his family by his trade. Neighbors knew Jesus as “the carpenter’s son,” and later as a carpenter himself.
So the Son of blank 5 spent most of his life on earth in an ordinary workshop. That is why the Church calls Joseph the patron of workers.
Why May 1?
Why did Pope Pius XII choose May 1 for the feast of St. Joseph the Worker? Circle one.
- A Many countries already honored workers that day
- B The Gospels say Joseph was born on that day
- C It is the day Joseph returned from Egypt
- D It marks the first day of the Easter season
Why is that the right answer?
Craft or shortcut?
Joseph did honest work with his own hands, whether or not anyone noticed. Sort each choice. Check one box for each.
| Item | Honest craft | Empty shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Writing your own essay, then asking for feedback | ||
| Turning in an essay an AI tool wrote for you | ||
| Learning to code a small game from scratch | ||
| Copying a friend’s answers from a group chat | ||
| Fixing a younger sibling’s bike without being asked | ||
| Posting someone else’s art as your own | ||
| Using AI to quiz you before a test you studied for | ||
| Doing a chore badly on purpose so you are not asked again |
Virtues Joseph lived
For each virtue, write how the saint lived it.
| Virtue | How the saint lived it |
|---|---|
| Obedience to God | Write your answer |
| Diligence | Write your answer |
| Humility | Write your answer |
What do we know?
Which statement about Joseph comes from tradition, not directly from the Gospels? Circle one.
- A He worked as a carpenter in Nazareth
- B He took Mary and Jesus to Egypt
- C He was from the family of David
- D He died with Jesus and Mary beside him
Why is that the right answer?
Talk it over
Joseph’s work was never posted, liked or praised, yet it fed and sheltered Jesus. Much of life online rewards being seen. Does work matter if nobody sees it? What unseen work do you do, or could you do?
Think: my idea before we talk
Sentence starters: “Work nobody sees still matters because ...”“I notice I work differently when people are watching, for example ...”“One unseen job I could take on is ...”“The hardest part of not getting credit is ...”
Pair: something my partner said
Let us pray
God our Father, you trusted Joseph with your Son.
Teach us to listen quickly and to work honestly.
Bless all workers, and those who cannot find work.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
Amen.
My own prayer or intention:
Well done!
Joseph shows that quiet, faithful work can change the world. His feasts are March 19 and May 1.
One thing I learned today:
One question I still have:
How could the example of St. Joseph shape the way I live, online and offline?
Challenge: Choose one of the three virtue practices and keep it every day until next week’s saint.