The Sacred Space is a point of focus for pupils’ prayer. It is a centre for reflection and for the children’s work.

You can have a sacred space in your classroom or in the common areas in your school. It is a great way of supporting the implementation of the Alive-O programme and enhancing your school’s Catholic identity.

Sacred Spaces can have a thematic approach and are often based on the Liturgical Year. For example, for the season of Advent, you could have an Advent calendar and Advent wreath placed on a purple cloth. You could also leave a Bible open on a scripture passage from the readings for the season – for example, John the Baptist’s preaching. You can find more information on the Liturgical Year section of this website. This will give you ideas about how you can change your Sacred Space depending on the time of the year.

You could also use your Sacred Space to relate to the theme of Alive-O lessons. For example, if you are teaching the parable of The Sower, you could include seeds and a plant on your Sacred Space. And always remember to have a candle as part of your Sacred Space, as lighting the candle is part of the Alive-O prayer ritual.

Children also have great ideas about what ‘holy objects’ can go in the Sacred Space, so invite them to bring in items from home. Remember that the space is not intended to be a work of art, but rather a representation of the children’s spirituality. It is symbolic, and the meaning, rather than the aesthetics, is what’s important!

Finally, encourage the children in your class to make their own Sacred Space at home. All they need is a safe place, such as a windowsill or a bedside locker. They could use an old pillowcase as a base, and then add as much as they like! Remind children that candles can be very dangerous and should only be used when an adult is present to help.

View other examples of Sacred Space below.

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