Need A Little Ccd Advise

[LouisvilleFan]

[quote name='To Jesus Through Mary' timestamp='1348952257' post='2488164']
So tomorrow I am teaching 3rd graders, who are preparing for 1st communion. None of them have ANY catechisis. Very culturally Catholic and poor neighborhood where the brokenness on a scale of 1-10 is an 11.. Most of the kids didn't know the story of salvation. So I am going back to the very very basics and starting from the ground up. Tomorrow I am covering creation 1. God the Creator of all things 2. The story of creation 3. Man made in the image and likeness of God. Here is where I am stuck. I was raised protestant, so we took the creation story literally. I know many Catholics do not. How do you approach this? Do you say definitively it is only meant in a figuratively and poetically? Or do you say we don't know? In your experience what has worked best for you? Any thoughts or advise is much appreciated!!
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Adam and Eve are believed litereally. The details of the Creation narratives are more philosopical. But you won't get into all tht with 3rd graders. This is the age where they still need to believe in Santa Claus, but most of them don't. In 6th grade (which I teach for CCD) you could talk more about what the story means and what's similar and different between the Genesis 1 and Genesis 2. But for 3rd graders, probably the most important thing is knowing we all have the same earthly parents and the same heavenly parents. As you describe their situation, I would encourage them to believe in God as a good Father. That's what they need more than anything.