Women of Faith · Week 1 · Grades 3–5
Guided Notes: St. Katharine Drexel
- Name
- Date
- Class
Follow along as your teacher presents. Fill in each section when its slide is on the screen.
A rich girl who learned to give
Katharine Drexel was born on November 26, blank 1, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father was a very rich banker. Her stepmother, Emma, opened the family home to the poor three days a week. Katharine and her two sisters helped give out food and clothes.
When her father died in blank 2, the sisters inherited about $14 million. Out West, Katharine saw Native Americans living in terrible poverty on reservations. The government had taken their land, and their schools were falling apart.
“Why not you?”
In 1887 Katharine asked Pope Leo XIII to send missionaries. He answered, “Why not, my child, yourself become a missionary?” In 1891 she founded the blank 3 of the Blessed Sacrament.
She built more than 60 schools and missions for Native Americans and African Americans. Some people hated her work and even threatened one of her schools. She kept building. In 1925 she founded Xavier University of blank 4, the first Catholic university for African Americans in the United States.
Words to know
Write what each word means.
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Inherit | Write your answer |
| Heiress | Write your answer |
| Mission | Write your answer |
| Reservation | Write your answer |
| Segregation | Write your answer |
| Canonized | Write your answer |
Quick check
What did Pope Leo XIII ask Katharine to do? Circle one.
- A Send him more money for Rome
- B Go home and stay in Philadelphia
- C Become a missionary herself
- D Write a book about her travels
Sort it out
Katharine used her gifts for other people. Sort each choice: does it share a gift or keep it for myself? Check one box for each.
| Item | Shares a gift | Keeps it for myself |
|---|---|---|
| Teaching a classmate a game trick you learned | ||
| Refusing to give anyone else a turn on the tablet | ||
| Using your art skills to make a card for someone sick | ||
| Leaving a new student out of the group chat | ||
| Helping a grandparent learn to use a video call | ||
| Hiding the good markers so no one else can use them |
Quick check
What did Katharine found in New Orleans in 1925? Circle one.
- A Xavier University of Louisiana
- B A large bank for her family
- C A hospital for sick children
- D A newspaper for the city
Think, pair, share
Katharine never spent her money on herself. She wore the same shoes for years and used pencils down to the stub. Think of one thing you have, at home or on a screen. How could you use it to help someone else this week?
Think: my idea before we talk
Sentence starters: “One thing I have is ...”“I could use it to help ... by ...”
Pair: something my partner said
Let us pray
“For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”
Matthew 6:21
Lord Jesus, everything we have is a gift from you.
Teach us to share our gifts with joy.
St. Katharine Drexel, pray for us.
Amen.
My own prayer or intention:
Well done!
Katharine Drexel died in 1955 at age 96. Pope John Paul II canonized her on October 1, 2000. She shows us that gifts are for giving.
One thing I learned today:
One question I still have:
Challenge: This week, use one thing you own or one thing you are good at to help someone, without being asked.