12 Prayers Every {Catholic} Kid Should Know

There are so many lovely prayers the Catholic child should know. Where do we start?

Today, I’ve narrowed down a dozen of the most important prayers to have your child memorized.

You’ll find some lovely printables too to help your child memorize.

12 Prayers every Catholic Kid Should Know

1.Sign of the Cross

This is a great place to start! Even the littlest child can begin making the sign of the cross. I often put my hand over my toddlers and help them with the correct cross formation.

Teaching this one doesn’t take much time. It’s short and there’s lots of review because we say it before and after each prayer!

2.Grace before Meals

If your family says grace before every meal (and you should!), your child will likely pick this up easily as well.

3.Hail Mary

I love to bring our little ones to the feet of Mary. And this is a basic prayer before you can begin praying a Rosary.

4.Our Father

Learning the prayers of the Mass is a wonderful way to help our children participate. This prayer will also help them in praying the Rosary.

5.Glory Be

Short and sweet and also a part of the Rosary.

6.Guardian Angel Prayer

The idea of having a guardian angel can be so comforting to our children. The recitation of this prayer at bedtime helps children who are afraid of the dark and is a wonderful reminder of God’s loving care.

7.Nicene Creed

Another prayer said at Mass, this is important to learn so our children can participate.

8.Apostles’ Creed

This prayer is so similar to the Nicene Creed that it can be a bit confusing. Even we adults stumble through them at times. I’m not so concerned that my children get it perfectly right each time we pray the Rosary. I know they’ll pick it up gradually over time.

9.St. Michael Prayer

Another fabulous prayer for children who are afraid of the dark (or anything else!). My children and I have a version we learned from a friend that involves singing. It made memorizing it a snap!

10.Hail, Holy Queen

Once your child memorizes the above prayers and this one, they are completely equipped to say a full Rosary! (Of course, they can still pray the Rosary as part of the family whether they have the prayers memorized or not!)

11.Act of Contrition

This is a prayer all of us should recite every evening, whether we can receive the sacrament of confession or not.

12.Morning Offering

A wonderful way for any Catholic to start the day. At first, I want my children to just offer their day to Jesus in their own words. Eventually, I introduce them to the more formal Morning Offering.

Bonus Catholic Prayers for Children

There are so many beautiful Catholic praryers, there’s no limit to the prayers your child can learn.

Here are a few other suggestions:

• Fatima Prayer
• Anima Christi (perfect for First Communicants!)
• Angelus
• Spiritual Communion
• Memorare
• Divine Mercy Chaplet
• Act of Faith
• Act of Hope
• Act of Love
• Prayer to the Sacred Heart
• Stations of the Cross (understand the general format)

Free Printable Prayers for Catholic Kids

If you’ve been around here any length of time, you know I love to help make things actionable. And what better way to do that than with a free printable?

And I’ve got 2 for you today!

• Catholic Prayers Guide
• Catholic Prayers I know (child can color the cross as they complete memorizing prayers)

Both printables can be found in the Subscriber Printable Library.

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