Each grade works through a curriculum appropriate to their grade level. 

Grade 1
Book- Spirit of Truth: God is Love
Children begin to develop an awareness of God as our Father in Heaven, the creator of Heaven and earth, who is all good, who created them in his image and likeness, and who loves then unconditionally. Basic parts of the Mass are introduced. The reality of sin is further explored in connection with the Sacrament of Confession. Continuing to learn from the lives of saints, they also explore the basics of prayer as conversation with God.

Grade 2
Books- New Catholic Picture Bible: Popular Stories from the Old and New Testaments
St. Joseph First Communion Catechism (No. 0): Prepared from the Official Revised Edition of the Baltimore Catechism
Picture Book of the Saints (Lawrence G. Lovasik)
Children will learn and memorize the basics of the faith to prepare for the sacraments of First Communion and Confession. They will learn about God's nature, sin, Jesus, and the sacraments. They will also be introduced to key persons in salvation history such as Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, and Moses.

Grade 3
Book- Spirit of Truth: The Kingdom of God and the Church
Children learn what the Catholic Church is, who the Holy Spirit is and how he guides the Church, and what it means that Jesus continues his mission through the life of the Church. Along with the basics of the Trinity and all seven sacraments, they build on what they have learned about prayer, and explore what it means to live as children of God. This year also focuses on Jesus's parables of the kingdom, and Mary as the Mother of the Church.

Grade 4
Book- Spirit of Truth: Jesus Teaches Us How to Live
Most of this year focuses on the moral life, with children exploring more deeply what it means to be created in the image and likeness of God, and how they should respond to God's grace in order to spend eternity with him in heaven. Explored are conscience formation, the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, the Golden Rule, and Jesus's Great Commandment to love God with all our heart and soul, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. The reality of sin and the necessity of virtue are emphasized.

Grade 5
Book- Spirit of Truth: The Sacraments
This year provides an in-depth exploration of God's grace in the Sacraments, with a focus on what a Sacrament is and why Jesus instituted them, along with the form, matter, history, celebration, and effects of each Sacrament. Children explore what it means that God is the source of all life, learn more about the Holy Mass and Holy Days of Obligation, and read and discuss longer biographies of the saints, especially young saints.

Grade 6
Book- Spirit of Truth: Sacred Scripture
Children spend this year immersed in God's Word in the Sacred Scriptures, and explore how the Bible, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, records God's plan of salvation. Includes basics on how to use the Bible, Magisterial authority, how and why we should pray with Scripture, how the Bible is different from other books, and the four senses of Scripture before beginning a comprehensive exploration of the Holy Bible from Genesis to Revelation.

Grade 7
Book- Spirit of Truth: Living as a Disciple of Christ
This year includes four units in which middle school students explore in depth the topics of: Jesus and the Gospel message, with an emphasis on unifying themes in Scripture and an in-depth examination of the four Gospels: personal growth, with an emphasis on the origin, dignity and destiny of the human person; the seven sacraments, with an exploration of each sacrament; and prayer, with an emphasis on its elements, qualities, and challenges, ways of praying, and Mary and the saints as models of prayer.

Grade 8
Book- Spirit of Truth: The Communion of the Faithful
This year includes five units for middle school students to build on their understanding of: Personal growth, with an emphasis on our vocation to love and our responsibilities to God and each other; Morality, with an emphasis on conscience formation through God's gift of an objective moral standard and prayer; Church History, with an emphasis on what we can learn from history about our identity as Catholics, and how the saints have shaped the liturgy, hierarchy, and the doctrine of the Church; the Citizen and Government, including the natural rights of all persons and the purpose of government, and God's Plan for Marriage and the Family, with an emphasis on our identity as male and female and all that encompasses, purposes and abuses of sexuality, and resisting temptation to avoid sin and grow in virtue.

• Families should be attending Mass regularly.
• Registration at the parish is encouraged.
• Attendance at parent meetings is required.

• Students are expected to come to class each week, with only 3 days allowed for necessary absences.
• Please be on time. The class will promptly start as stated in the session.
• Appropriate behavior and common courtesy, at every grade level, are expected. 
• No electronics are allowed before or during class.

1. The child must have participated in the previous year in formal Catholic education.
2. He or she must attend Mass regularly.
3. Only 3 absences ae permitted for the year.
4. Age requirements: First Communion age is 7 or older and Confirmation age is high school age (9th grade or older)
5. Parents are required to attend parent meeting(s) as explained on faith formation calendar

Director of Faith Formation- Kelly Rice
Office phone number: 512-858-5667 x 206
Office hours: Tuesday-Friday 9:30-4:30pm
Email: formation@stmartindp.org