Publications

Teacher and Student Books, Materials

Sister Kieran has been publishing catechetcal materials for many decades. Her book Confirming Faith has been the perennial top selling guide for high school confirmation classes; her Tyme Capsules books have helped thousands of youth ministers to create lively faith-bulding retreats for teens, her Faith Facts books have taught catechists fun ways to help children to learn the basic teachings of their faith, and her sexuality materials have guided parents and teachers in talking to children and teens about chastity and sex abuse prevention. She has also written numerous articles for catechetical publications. And she continues to write session plans for the online program Youth Ministry Access

 

Sex and the Teenager:

      Choices and Decisions

by Sister Kieran Sawyer, SSND;  Ave Maria Press, 1990, 1998, 2008

Imprimatur by The Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan, S.T.D., D.D., Archbishop of Milwaukee

 

Designed for use in a classroom,  youth group, or retreat setting, the Sex and the Teenager: Choices and Decisions program allows students to feel comfortable talking about and reflecting on sensitive questions connected with their sexual maturing. Rooted in Judeo-Christian and Catholic Church moral teaching, the program has a clear, straightforward goal: to encourage teens to make their own decisions to say "NO" to premarital sexual activity.

 

The program deals with a variety of topics including: what to do on a date; how to tell the difference between love, infatuation, and exploitation; the risks of teenage sexual activity with or without contraceptives; the necessity of setting personal limits and sticking to them; and many more important topics. Sex and the Teenager: Choices and Decisions also helps teenagers become aware of the many difficult decisions they would have should an unplanned pregnancy occur.

 

Includes discussion and plans of action for dealing with some of the recent challenges in the area of sexual activity now faced by teens, including practices of "hooking up" with a partner with little if any emotional investment and the increase in oral sexual activity.

 

       Click to order:   Sex and the Teenager    LEADERS'S GUIDE        $24.95               

                                                                     PARTICIPANT BOOK     $  9.95

 

 

Learning about L.I.F.E.: A Family-based Program on Relationships and Abuse Prevention

by Sr. Kieran Sawyer and Dr. Kathie Amidei;  Ave Maria Press, 2006

Imprimatur by The Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan, S.T.D., D.D., Archbishop of Milwaukee

 

This book, which was originally created as a Safe Environment program, has been revised to incorporate the directives of the USCCB document Catechetical Formation in Chaste Living.  The revised program. called L.I.F.E. Plus, fulfills both the Safe Environment mandate and the Chastity Education mandate.  It is now online in both English and Spanish. 

 

The book version of Learning about L.I.F.E. is availabe for promotional purposes only.  To obtain a copy, contact Sister Kieran Sawyer at sawyerk@tymeout.org.

 

Click here for a compete explanation of the L.I.F.E. Plus Program, and directions to preview or order the program online.

 

 

Confirming Faith

by Sister Kieran Sawyer, SSND

Ave Maria Press, 1980, 1994

 

Designed to prepare high school juniors and seniors to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation.  Contains everything necessary to begin the program and conduct each session. The introductory section provides the program coordinator with a background of initiation theology and confirmation catechesis, and practical tips for training adult volunteers, implementing the candidate-mentor program, and doing advance planning for the entire program schedule. Two plans for Orientation Meetings—one for parents and teenagers and one for adult mentors—allow for easy introduction into the program. Twelve working sessions on the themes of the Catholic Christian faith are presented. An After Confirmation session provides a bridge between sacrament preparation and assimilation into full community participation. Plans for conducting liturgical rites are also included. A 16-page tear-out section contains all the material to be duplicated for use during the sessions. Spiral bound for easy photocopying.

 

       Click to order:   Confirming Faith  DIRECTOR'S MANUAL        $26.95               

                                                           CANDIDATE BOOK             $  8.95

 

 

The Faith Difference: 

          Prayers, Lessons, Activities, Games 

by Sister Kieran Sawyer, SSND

Ave Maria Press, 2000

 

Activities, exercises, discussions, prayers, and retreat capsules for teens that can best be summed up in two words: they work. In The Faith Difference Sr. Kieran has collected many of her most requested materials and organized them into five easy-to-use sections of lessons, community building, activities, prayer, and games. These materials, whether used separately or joined together by themes, work well in a variety of settings—retreats, religion classes, youth group meetings, workshops—held for high school age youth. All of the units offer clear directions, lists of needed materials and preparations, presentation scripts, and reproducible handouts for teen use. These activities speak the Good News in ways that teens can really hear.  They cut through the maze of religious jargon and offer simple, proven, ways to share the faith with teens.

 

Click to order:   THE FAITH DIFFERENCE        $21.95               

 

Faith Facts for Young Catholics and More Faith Facts 

by Sister Kieran Sawyer, SSND

Ave Maria Press, 1998

 

      

Drills, Games, and Activities for Children & Preteens

Sister Kieran Sawyer brings you dozens of games and activities for helping middle school children learn the factual data that supports their developing faith. Topics include the commandments, the sacraments, the Mass, Scripture, and various prayers. Names of saints, Catholic vocabulary, biblical passages and lessons come to life as students drill individually and in friendly competition with one another to learn important lessons of their faith. The two books includes many games for creative ways to use the Faith Facts Study Cards listed below. 

 

Study Cards

Every middle school religion teacher and catechist needs these -- 400 study cards, each with a faith vocabulary word or phrase on one side and the definition or explanation on the other. The cards are printed on heavy card stock and packaged in small baggies. There are four sets of 100 cards: Set A (green) is the easiest, with Sets B (pink), C (blue) and D (yellow) being successively harder. Set L (orange), the last 20 cards, contains questions with long or multiple answers (eg: Name the 12 apostles, Recite the Hail Mary). Games for teaching with the study cards are found in the Faith Facts Books above. The games and the cards were created by Sister Kieran Sawyer, SSND.

 

Click to order:   FAITH FACTS, book I                $19.95               

                                                           MORE FAITH FACTS, book II     $19.95

                                                           STUDY CARDS (set of 400)          $16.00

 

out of print books

Several of my publications are no longer in print.  You can often find these on the shelves in parish or diocesan libraries, and sometimes they are available on Amazon.  Many catechists and youth ministers tell me that they still use the lessons found in them.

 

Developing Faith: Lesson Plans for Senior High Religion Classes 

Ave Maria Press,  1978

The Jesus Difference and Other Youth Ministry Activities

Ave Maria Press, 1987

The Risk of Faith and Other Youth Ministry Activities

Ave Maria Press, 1988

(Favorite activties from The Jesus Difference and The Risk of Faith were republished in The Faith Difference in 2001 -- see above)

Time Out!  Resources for Teen Retreats

Ave Maria Press, 1998