Congregational sharing

Our Religious Exploration program uses curricula based upon the Purposes and Principles of the UUA. Our children will explore one or more of these aspects of our UU heritage: Unitarian Universalist identity, our Judeo-Christian heritage, religions of the world, peace and justice, and our interdependence with nature.

Sunday Morning in R.E.

Sunday morning programs are offered for our children at each service with the exception of once monthly when we hold our meditation Sunday. Classes are grouped by age and use age-appropriate curricula incorporating the Unitarian Universalist Principles. Community worship is an important component of our religious experience. On most Sundays our children join the rest of the congregation for Sharing Services in the sanctuary. On some Sundays our children participate in candle lighting, and our community sharing of joys and sorrows.

Curriculum for 2007-2008:

In general, the focus of this year is a study of what church means to different people, what a UU church is, and why we go to church. In the process, we teach the Unitarian Universalist history and explore how the seven principles are relevant to each of our daily lives.

Each Classroom is named after a historical Unitarian Universalist:

Beatrix Potter Room: (nursery for age 0 to 2):

Katie Allen-Schmid, our high school helper, and Ruth Neff will be available for childcare and free play time in this colorful room with lots of opportunities for reading, drawing, building and sitting on a friendly lap for our youngest attendees.

Susan B. Anthony Room: (preschool class for ages 3 to 5) This simple curriculum entitled "Chalice Children" focuses on learning the name of this church, what a chalice (the UU symbol) is, why we meet on Sundays, and simple applications of the UU principles. Song, dance, art and storybooks are used in the lessons in the colorful room. Cameron Blake and Kathy Neff are co-leading this group.

Thomas Jefferson Room: (kindergarten to 2nd grade) "Around the Church, Around the Year" is another curriculum with the theme of teaching Unitarian Universalism to children filled with fun group activities, drama, and even a winter over-night in the church with parents. This class is active and busy! Kathy Neff is organizing the teaching sessions with lots of parent support.

Henry David Thoreau Room: (grades 3 to 5) This curriculum entitled "A Stepping Stone Year" is based on the two premises that religion helps people find answers to important life questions and that Unitarian Universalist find these answers for themselves. These important questions are looked at during the year through stories from many cultures and traditions and biographies of historic UU people:

How did the world begin?
How did life begin?
How did I begin?
How can I live so as to make my life worthwhile?
Why do people die?
What is right and wrong?
How can I make decisions?

Can you imagine how much of a head start on life your child will have if they master all of the above questions this year? Sandy Anderson will be the head teacher of this class.

Emerson Alcove (new room!): (grades 6 to 9) "The Time Travelers" curriculum allows these kids to build a BIG time machine which they will use through the year to travel back in time and explore not only the earth's beginnings, but also the roots of UU and other faith traditions through the distant and recent past. They happen to meet up with many famous UU's on the way, and even learn about the history of our own UU Fellowship dating back to 1965. This class will incorporate some overnights, field trips and culminate with a newspaper publication of this year's activities.

Youth Group! New this year, our Jr. and Sr. High members are joining together with the United Church of Christ youth to do regular Wednesday evening youth dinner and youth group meeting.

Your Role as a Parent or Guardian

The success of our cooperative program of Religious Exploration rests primarily with you--the parents and guardians of these wonderful children. What follows are a few suggestions for working with us and fulfilling that commitment:

Arrive on time and come regularly. Children develop a sense of belonging by attending regularly; they learn to value religious education by the importance you give it. The teachers appreciate knowing when a child might not attend as it can affect their lesson planning.
Introduce yourself to the teachers. Ask questions about the program. The R.E. Directors and R.E. Committee members want to hear from you, too. Come visit on Sunday mornings.
Help in the classrooms. You will get to know some wonderful adults, see your child in a group setting, and learn about the program. Be sure to sign up to bring a snack. Religious education is a cooperative effort.
Share your point of view. Let your children know your thoughts, opinions, and values. Be patient with them and with yourself as you struggle to understand one another.

Teachers

Teachers are parents and non-parents from all walks of life who enjoy interacting with children and working with the UUFC approved curriculum.

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