Alicia Van Hecke

This biography of St. Therese of Lisieux for children emphasizes the story of her childhood, her simple spirituality as taught to her by her family with an emphasis on the little acts of sacrifice she made and how that helped her to develop control of her will. The story includes many details of Therese's childhood and family life that Catholic homeschool families will relate to. It is told in a way that encourages young children to offer little sacrifices to God in imitation of this saint. I was particularly amused to hear that St.

A multi-part story of St. Therese's life is told in these six books with lovely colorful illustrations. This version would be especially appealing to three to six year old children. The story includes quite a few interesting details focusing on Therese's acts of sacrifices and offerings to God of everything she did - both those things that were hard for her to do (such as giving some flowers that she had just picked to her grandmother to use at the altar) to those things that she enjoyed doing. Also included are instructions for making the St.

This classic play, written in the fashion of a Greek tragedy (but with Catholic content) is suitable for high school students and adults. Handling the topic of St. Thomas Becket' martyrdom, it focuses on the spiritual and emotional struggles and temptations the Archbishop is faced with immediately before his martyrdom. Full of many truths and fodder for great discussion, this is a highly recommended piece for literature, religion and history.

The story of the martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket (and the last six years of his life) is presented in an intelligent and interesting format by viewing these events through the eyes of twin boys, Simon and Edmund, who are (respectively) in the service of Thomas Becket and King Henry II ( Saint Thomas' friend-turned-enemy).

My children have always loved picture cards for learning about subjects - animals, art, flags, etc. I love it when the cards are fastened together in some way so that they don't get lost and thus rendered useless. Catholic Cardlinks: Patron Saints is just the sort of resource that makes everyone happy!

The lovely story of the 16th century priest and saint of Rome whose joy brought many away from the evils of the day. He patiently bore a great deal of emotional persecution from some fellow priests, but eventually won his tormentors over to the love of Christ. Many insights into the meaning of a vocation and how to spread the joy of Christ.

This is the story of three orphan immigrants - Maria, an Italian in her early teens, Molly, a little Irish girl with a way of getting into trouble, and Ming, a very shy Chinese girl. Maria, Molly and Ming, survive for a time by sticking together and living in a dark boiler room until their lives are changed by meeting Mother Cabrini. The author, who is a Catholic homeschooling mother, has included questions and other study helps in the areas of history, geography, vocabulary and religion.

This is the story of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, the little Italian nun who came as a missionary to help the Italian immigrants, orphans and many others in America. She was the first American citizen to be canonized. This audio drama is very nicely performed with a full cast and narrator, music and sound effects. My daughter especially enjoyed this story since we had recently read Joan Stromberg's, The Orphans Find a Home: A St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Story.

The story of the great Italian missionary to the United States is told to two young students in one of the schools she founded. The story especially elaborates on the history of the schools and works founded by Mother Cabrini in New Orleans, Louisiana. A very beautiful story already, this particular rendition has the unique angle of being told by one of the Sisters of Charity who had come to America from Italy with Mother Cabrini. This would make a good read aloud story for the whole family and would be a helpful supplement to your American History curriculum.

I've been reading a number of the Vision Books aloud to my five year old daughter and she seems to like each one more than the last. The story of Saint Francis is both uplifting and enjoyable, due to the many humorous events captured in the story. The book is also informative enough to be interesting to older children and even adults (I had never read a full-length book about St. Francis).