Move over basketball. At Holy Spirit School, 332 Cannons Lane, “March Madness” is all about the saints.
In the NCAA, March Madness generates national excitement when family, friends and coworkers vie for the most accurate bracket in the basketball tournament.
For the past three years at Holy Spirit, sixth-grade religion teacher Liesl Minneci has organized “When the Saints Come Marching In: March Madness,” in which students “compete” in a bracket on behalf of their chosen saints.
While the project begins in March alongside the NCAA tournament, it usually continues through April into “May Madness,” Minneci said with a laugh during a recent interview.
‘My end goal is to get them more comfortable with the saints, to know more about them, and then, just to make it more relatable.’
Liesl Minneci, teacher at Holy Spirit School
“My end goal is to get them more comfortable with the saints, to know more about them, and then, just to make it more relatable,” she said.
The competition is also a way to engage students who learn differently, said Minneci. The students gain a deeper knowledge of their chosen saint, and are also exposed to more than a dozen others through their classmates’ projects, she added.
Here’s how it works.
Each sixth-grader chooses a saint and completes four tasks during the competition. The students, taking on the cause of their saint, compete to win peer votes.
During round one, the “Sweet Sixteen,” students write a short paper and give a one-minute presentation to their class about their chosen saint. The paper and presentation use first-person language, said Minneci. “They are that saint in that moment when they teach it, when they write it,” she said.
For round two, the “Elite Eight,” students “invent” a modern-day product that relates to the saint’s story or mission. They endorse the product, as their saint, through a commercial or print advertisement, which is shown to the class. This year, sixth-grader Alexis Nall, representing St. Agnes, presented “Saint Agnes hair growth oil.” St. Agnes is the patron saint of hair loss, Nall stated in a poster about her faux product.
Round three, the “Final Four” requires the students to instruct the class, assuming the role of a teacher, on a lesson relating to their saint’s story. This year, Sarah Brown — the student representing St. Honore, the patron saint of baking — presented a lesson on cake decorating. Annabelle Poge, a student representing St. Valentine, presented an interactive lesson on flower arranging. St. Valentine is the patron saint of love, and flowers are a common gift in romantic relationships, Poge said during her presentation on April 17.
For round four, the championship round, students create a pamphlet that outlines a mission trip or service project related to their saint’s mission. For example, a student representing St. Elizabeth Ann Seton could create a toy drive for a preschool classroom, Minneci said. This year’s sixth-grade classes are advancing to the final four this week.
Every student completes each product, regardless of whether or not their saint advances in the competition, said Minneci. But only the students representing saints who have advanced to each round present them to the class.
Several past students have chosen their respective saints for confirmation, which occurs in seventh grade at Holy Spirit Church, she added.
