Before starting lessons on the Law of God, the teacher of the law needs to get to know the children through simple conversations with them. The content of these so-called preliminary conversations may be approximately the following: what is the origin of the children, and which of them are orphans? Do they know how to correctly say their first, middle and last names, and do they know their name day? Do they know their parish church and do they go to it? Do they know what prayers and who taught them to be baptized and pray? Do they attend confession and Holy Communion? Do they avoid meeting the priest, do they have any superstitions and prejudices, and do they not live near people of other faiths or schismatics?
It is also necessary to talk about school: about its benefits for children, about their always attending school and how they need to behave towards teachers and among themselves; how to behave and take care of yourself on the way to school and home.
The teacher of the law should conduct such conversations in a simple home manner, with the main goal of becoming familiar with the religious and moral state of children and at the same time familiarizing children with school order. All this can be useful to an experienced teacher of the law for deeply sowing the saving truths of the Law of God into a young soul.
Due to the difference in local customs, as well as the age, rank and condition of the children entering school (especially in populous cities or villages), it is difficult to give a sample of these conversations, and therefore the content and order of them must be determined by the teacher himself, who more or less directly knows the local population, their attitude towards school and church and some other conditions...
A teacher of the law must always remember the Savior’s parable about the sower and sow spiritual seeds with great care, since, according to the parable, they can easily be trampled by passersby or pecked by birds; they can sprout without taking deep roots and immediately wither; or they may be choked by thorns; and, remembering all this, take care, as much as depends on him, to make the young hearts of children into good soil, capable of bearing fruit a hundredfold, and then with an experienced hand sow the Divine seed in firm trust in the gracious help of the Holy Spirit.