"Sacramentals are instituted by the Church and are effective by virtue of the Church's intercession. Institution and alteration of them is reserved to the Holy See.”

If you read through the Catechism of the Catholic Church's chapter on Sacramentals (1667-1679) you'll learn that even our small ordinary prayers fall under this heading and are sources of real grace to us. When used with the proper attitude of reverence and love for God, something as simple as praying grace before a meal can endow the moment with actual holiness. Here are some basic prayers to teach your children for use throughout the day, to bring holiness to their waking, their meals, and their preparations for sleep. God bless you!

Morning offering for children:
Father in heaven I give you today,
All that I think and do and say,
And I unite it with all that was done,
By Jesus Christ, Your dearest Son.
Amen

Prayer to your guardian angel:
Angel of God, my guardian dear,
To whom His love commits me, here,
Ever this day be at my side,
To light and guard, to rule and guide.
Amen

Grace at meals:
Bless us O Lord and these Thy gifts which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ Our Lord. Amen

For bedtime:
Children's Blessing
(excerpted from Coming Home Catholic)
A blessing can be done at any time, but is often ideal after bedtime prayers. Although there are many choices for prayers of blessings, we simply make a Sign of the Cross on the child's forehead and pray, "May the Lord bless you and give you peace."

If you have a small container of Holy Water in your home, which you can usually get from your local church, you can dip a finger in the water, then make the Sign of the Cross on the child's forehead.

We were amazed (rather silly of us) how powerful this simple blessing was for our children. They absolutely love it; it seems to relax them and give them joy and peace. It is extra special because they always give us a blessing in return.