Restless Hearts · Week 2 · Grades 3–5
Guided Notes: St. Clare of Assisi
- Name
- Date
- Class
Follow along as your teacher presents. Fill in each section when its slide is on the screen.
St. Clare of Assisi
A girl from a rich family
Clare was born in Assisi, Italy, in blank 1. Her family was noble and wealthy, and they expected her to marry a rich man.
As a blank 2, Clare heard Francis of Assisi preach. Francis had given up his own family’s money to live like Jesus, who was poor.
Clare wanted to follow Jesus in the same way. On the night of Palm Sunday in blank 3, she slipped out of her home to join Francis and his brothers. She was about 18.
Words to know
Write what each word means.
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Poverty | Write your answer |
| Convent | Write your answer |
| Abbess | Write your answer |
| Patron saint | Write your answer |
| Canonized | Write your answer |
The Poor Ladies of San Damiano
blank 4 cut Clare’s long hair and gave her a rough robe. These were signs that she now belonged to God. Her family tried to bring her home, but she would not go.
Clare settled beside the little church of San Damiano. Her sister blank 5 joined her, and later many other women did too. People called them the Poor Ladies.
The sisters owned nothing. They prayed, worked with their hands and lived in silence much of the day. Clare led them for about 40 years and died on blank 6 11, 1253.
Quick check
Whose preaching helped Clare decide to follow Jesus in poverty? Circle one.
- A Her sister Agnes
- B The Pope in Rome
- C A noble knight
- D Francis of Assisi
Helps me listen, or pulls me away?
Clare kept times of silence so she could pay attention to God. Sort each choice: does it help you pay attention, or pull your attention away? Check one box for each.
| Item | Helps me pay attention | Pulls my attention away |
|---|---|---|
| Turning the TV off before family prayer | ||
| Watching videos while someone talks to you | ||
| Leaving the tablet in another room at bedtime | ||
| Playing a game during Mass | ||
| Sitting quietly for two minutes before homework | ||
| Checking a phone every time it buzzes |
Why a patron of television?
Near the end of her life, Clare was too sick to leave her bed. One Christmas, she could not go to Mass with her sisters.
Tradition says that blank 7 let her see and hear the Mass on the wall of her room.
Because of this story, Pope Pius XII named Clare the blank 8 of television in 1958.
Quick check
Why did Pope Pius XII name Clare the patron saint of television? Circle one.
- A She wrote stories that became TV shows
- B Tradition says she saw Mass on her wall
- C She invented a machine to send pictures
- D She asked people to watch less TV
Think, pair, share
Clare gave up many things so she could pay attention to Jesus. What is one thing on a screen that you could give up for a day? How would that help you pay attention to God and to people?
Think: my idea before we talk
Sentence starters: “I could give up ... for a day.”“With that time I could ...”“Silence is hard for me when ...”
Pair: something my partner said
Let us pray
Jesus, you are worth more than anything we own.
Teach us to be quiet and to listen for you.
Help us use our eyes and our screens for good.
St. Clare of Assisi, pray for us.
Amen.
My own prayer or intention:
Well done!
Clare was canonized in 1255, only two years after she died. Her feast day is August 11.
One thing I learned today:
One question I still have:
Challenge: Choose one screen-free quiet time this week, even five minutes. Use it to pray or to notice something beautiful God made.