Circle of Grace is the curriculum mandated by Bishop McManus to satisfy the provisions of Article 12 of the Charter for the Protection of Children. This curriculum must be integrated into the regular parish religious education program. The 2023 revision includes one lesson for each grade.

  

The Diocese of Worcester is licensed to use this curriculum which may be found online at: www.cogpartners.org  The username is:  WorcesterDiocese and the Password is PartnersCOG*Worcester59!  We cannot change the username or password. Our license allows us “to make as many copies of the lessons and materials needed for use in our programs.  The lessons and resources can be downloaded and emailed to those teaching the lessons, as well as parent letters and resources to parents.  However, “No part of the Circle of Grace curriculum (lessons, resources or any materials) can be posted or shared on any website or platform that is not secured or password protected.”

This year, the reports are due on Ash Wednesday, March 5.  See our website for updated forms:  Safe Environment Education - Diocese of Worcester - Worcester, MA (worcesterdiocese.org)

Many of you commented that the 2023 revision is easier to work with.  The website includes a Spanish version of the curriculum and resources for parents in Spanish.

Thank you to all who did tremendous work with parents.  Again, you found the material on the website helpful and commented that the gathered sessions with parents gave you another opportunity to engage with them.

Some of you are looking for PowerPoint slides to accompany the lessons.  If any of you have created slides and are willing to share them with your colleagues, please forward them to the ORE and we will be happy to pass them on.

Quite a few of you commented on the acronym D.U.P. E. in the 6^th grade lesson.   Apparently, this is not a word familiar to your students.  We will certainly pass this comment on to the committee in Omaha.  However, might this not be a word that would be useful to our students? Given the contemporary marketing/advertising world we live in, we are being “duped” at every turn.  I think many of us in ministry smile when we read Jeremiah 20:7 – “You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped.”  The vocation to ministry is certainly a blessing, but, there are days . . .

If you have any questions about the curriculum, resources or implementation, please do not hesitate to call us.