As I write this, I am preparing to send my first born to preschool for the first time. As a stay-at-home-mom, I have spent nearly every minute of his life with him for the past four years. Emotionally, I am not ready for this transition. Mentally, I know it is in his best interest. Spiritually, I am praying for him constantly. Just like I know every other parent is praying for their children, especially during the back to school season.
We all know the chaos of school mornings and a busy school day, followed by sports or other activities in the afternoon. With a half-day preschool schedule, I know we’re not there quite yet, but our mornings are about to become much more rushed.
I want to make sure my kids know that God is still the center of our day, no matter our schedule. That prayer still takes priority. That we need God’s graces to make it through each day.
So, I made prayer cards for students that are short prayers for school days. These back to school prayer cards for kids include simple prayers for a variety of themes: anxiety, tests, sports, sharing, kindness, teachers, and more.
Examples of Prayer Cards for Back to School
These prayer cards can be used any time of year, but starting your school routine during the back to school season can help you stay on track for the whole year.
Prayer Cards for Kids
These prayers are meant to be simple, gentle reminders that Jesus is with your child throughout the school day — in the classroom, at lunch, on the playground, during tests, and in every little moment. Here are two sample prayers from the set:
- Dear Father, Help me to be a good student today. Open my mind to learn new things, and help me to listen, work hard, and do my best. Amen.
- Dear Jesus, Teach me to be a kind friend today. When I see someone that is sad, lonely, or upset, inspire me to talk to them or invite them to join me. Amen.
And these prayer cards come
in Spanish, too.
Purchase on
Etsy or
TpT.
Saint Prayer Cards for Kids
Our goal as parents is to raise saints, so we must teach our kids to live like the saints. With this
set of saint prayer cards, students focus on the virtues and lives of the saints. These simple reminders go with your students each day as they try to live like saints. Here are two sample saint prayer cards:
- Go set the world on fire like St. Ignatius.
- Be brave and stand up for what is right like St. Joan of Arc.
Purchase on
Etsy or
TpT.
How to Use Prayer Cards for Students
- Choose between the Prayer Cards or Saint Prayer Cards
- Print out your set. (Laminate if possible)
- Cut out the prayer cards.
- Decide which of the following ways you will use them. (Or pick multiple ways!)
Lunch Box Notes
This is one of the most popular ways to use these school prayer cards. Every day, choose one prayer card to put in your child’s lunch box. You can choose based on what their schedule looks like that day (tests or sports) or if they’re having a particularly hard time with something like sharing.
Car Ride Prayers
Since my son is too young to read yet, we use the prayer cards in the car. I printed them out and keep them in a small bag in our car. Each day I let him pick one out of the bag and I read it to him. Then, we talk about it on the way to school.
Breakfast Prayer
If your family eats breakfast together in the morning and your kids are not shoveling in Eggo waffles as they race out the door, then a breakfast time prayer would work well for your family. Everybody starts the day together, with the same prayer and intentions for the day. Keep the prayers cards in a jar in your kitchen.
Homeschool Morning Prayer
Maybe your family homeschools? This is a simple way to add a different prayer to your morning routine each day. Keep a jar or bag of prayer cards in your school area and have one child read one each day.
Let the Kids Choose a Prayer
If your kids are old enough to decide which prayer they need most that day, let them pick. I created a general checklist of all the prayers included, so they can choose a theme and the matching prayer card.
Prayer cards make great lunch box notes and encouraging notes to send with your children each day. As they venture out into the world without you there to hold their hand at every step of the way, you can at least send them with Jesus’ hand.
Taking a few minutes a day before the school day or over lunch to remember Jesus is with you or to ask the saints to guide you, can keep your kids close to Jesus. And if you’re looking for easy, short back to school prayers for students, these prayer cards make the perfect addition to your prayer life.
