One of the most important days in the second grade is the well known All Saints Day. On November 1st, 30 second graders dressed up as a Saint of their choice. The kids walked down the aisle at church dressed up as their chosen Saint, while their parents took pictures and the rest of the school watched. Though it may not be recognizable, All Saints Day really has deep meaning that can shape people’s opinions on the Saints and the amount of countless hours the 2nd graders put into the event.

This project is a tradition at St. Robert. For a very long time, the school has been allowing these children to dress up as Saints in order to highlight this important day in the Catholic Church. In order to pull the day off, several different steps are taken by the 2nd graders: filling out questions, doing an artistic piece, and learning about the history of their Saint. The process of choosing a Saint is the first part of this project. The kids pick a Saint that shares the student’s name or is the patron Saint of something they enjoy. Mrs. Luna states, “St. Mary, St. John, and St. Francis of Assisi are all very popular saints.” However, sometimes kids prefer to pick a Saint that has never been chosen before. Another important part of this presentation is the preparation. Preparing for the All Saints Day mass can be one of the most time consuming portions of this event. Mrs. Luna claims, “Often times, the kids don’t know where to stand, so we have to spend at least a week in church helping the kids.” All Saints Day also allows the kids to learn about how their Saint impacted the Catholic Church and students can learn important lessons from their saint.

Furthermore, many great memories have been made during this project. Mrs. Luna says, “Some of the coolest memories I’ve made have been from helping the kids prepare for this amazing experience.” Over the years, the costumes have become more and more elaborate. Mrs. Luna claims, “The kids love to wear the crowns during the whole day. We once had a kid faint because he had 7 layers of clothing on!” While everyone enjoys to costumes donned by these members of the community, often confuse the purpose of this project. As an example, Mrs. Luna utters, “People often think that our All Saints Day assignment ties into First Communion or Reconciliation, but it doesn’t have any connection to it all.” The celebration of All Saints Day is just an exciting way to teach the younger kids about the Saints that helped form our faith. This day in the Church is a Holy Day of Obligation, meaning that all Catholics are to attend mass even when it does not fall on a Sunday. This day celebrates all those that have reached heaven by focusing on the Saints that the Church has recognized formally. For students at St. Robert, a topic of debate is what the students should be gaining from the experience. Mrs. Luna has the exact answer one may be looking for: “Students should understand what [the Saints] did to help mold our faith as we know it today.”

In summary, All Saints Day at St. Robert is a special time to reflect on the people who have reached heaven and contemplate how to live here on Earth in order to follow their great examples. The 2nd graders that come through St. Robert are so lucky to be able to participate in such an amazing event, teaching the rest of their community very important lessons. All Saints Day teaches the students, teachers, and kids about the true beginning of the Catholic faith, and the people that made it possible.