Suggested Activities for Teaching Youth About the Contest Theme
We hope that you will find the following activities helpful in raising awareness about poverty in the United States and about the unique approach of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) to unlock opportunities and end poverty. We encourage you to use and adapt these materials according to your unique setting. Please be sure to note on all written and/or adapted materials that they are used with permission from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Catholic Campaign for Human Development.
- Use A Catholic Call to Justice.
- If class/program time allows, teach six sessions to raise awareness about poverty issues around the globe. OR at a parish or diocesan retreat or youth gathering, set up the entire course of A Catholic Call to Justice. Hold a small or large group discussion after the course.
- Using the knowledge gained from the activities and discussion, help youth to formulate ideas for an individual or team entry to the art contest.
- Read the local section of the newspaper. Identify issues that keep occurring in the articles. How do those issues (i.e., education, housing costs, transportation) affect poor people? What are the steps that people in the community are taking to respond to the concerns? Use the educational materials linked to the Step-by-Step Guide for Youth to further explore and reflect on issues that face the poor.
For older youth:
- Show the CCHD video, Helping People Help Themselves, and facilitate a discussion of the questions provided in the enclosed "study guide". Or ask students to answer the questions in writing.
- Read chapter four of the booklet, Principles, Prophecy and A Pastoral Response which highlights the Catholic Social Teaching theme of Option for and with the Poor and Vulnerable. Assign the study questions that are provided at the end of the booklet or use those questions for class/youth group discussions. Each chapter includes relevant excerpts from papal encyclicals and bishops' pastoral letters, citations from Catholic social teaching, and examples of how Catholic Campaign for Human Development-funded groups implement the basic themes.
Online assignment:
- Visit www.povertyusa.org. Students could use the following questions as they navigate the site.
- Take the poverty quiz and/or the poverty tour. What new information did you learn? What surprised you?
- A family of four whose income is less than $___ is defined by the federal government as being poor. Most people believe that it takes at least $35,000 to support a family of four. (hint: click on "poverty facts")
- A common stereotype is that people are poor because they are lazy and don't want to work. Although this can be said of a few people living in poverty (as well as those who are wealthy!), ___ million adults in the U.S. are working and still poor.
- Which of the following causes poverty in the United States?
- a lack of affordable housing
- low wages that do not match the standard of living
- company lay-offs of workers
- all of the above
- Click on "about CCHD" on the left sidebar. Once there, read about the goals and mission. a) Describe CCHD's unique approach to ending poverty. (hint: how is it different from a food pantry or homeless shelter?)
- Then, click one of the "success stories." b) What obstacles did the people in the story face that made it difficult to break out of the cycle of poverty? What solutions did the people in the story create?
Websites: www.usccb.org/cchd, www.povertyusa.org, www.osjspm.org/cst/reading.htm.
USCCB Resources
The following items can be ordered from the USCCB Publishing department by calling 1-800-235-8722 or downloading an order form.
Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 1998. No. 5-281 (excerpt available online at
Leader's Guide to Sharing Catholic Social Teaching, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2000. No. 5-366
Principles, Prophecy and A Pastoral Response, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2001. Highlighting the seven themes of Catholic social teaching, this booklet challenges us to take action in our homes, parishes, and local communities. Each section of the booklet includes relevant excerpts from papal encyclicals and bishops' pastoral letters, citations from Catholic social teaching, and examples of how Catholic Campaign for Human Development-funded groups implement the basic themes. English: No. 5-433
Bring Down the Walls (Videotape) Reflects on the heritage, principles, and practice of Catholic social teaching. An important tool in any parish's continuing effort to educate and motivate Catholics regarding the Church's social doctrine. No. 746-4, 12 minutes
Marketplace Prophets (Videotape) Voices for Justice in the 20th Century
Video portrays 100 years of Catholic social teaching, from Rerum Novarum to the groups and individuals working for social justice today. Includes a discussion guide. Produced by The Catholic Communications Campaign. No. 427-9, 60 minutes
Other Books
No Shame in My Game: The Working Poor in the Inner City, Katherine S. Newman; New York: Knopf, 1999.
Growing Up Poor: A Literary Anthology, edited by Robert Coles and Randy Testa with Michael Coles; New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2001.
This book is a collection of poems, stories, and essays of people living in poverty, from different ages, geographical locations, and historical periods. It is thematically organized into four sections: the material circumstances of poverty, condemnation and judgment that people who live in poverty often face, the working poor, and stories of resolve and resiliency.
Living Justice: Catholic Social Teaching in Action, Thomas Massaro, SJ; Franklin, WI: Sheed & Ward, 2000.
Doing Faithjustice: An Introduction to Catholic Social Thought, Fred Kammer, SJ; New York: Paulist, 1991.