Nursery: Toddlers and Preschoolers

Honoring the dynamic nursery space, we will weave in material from the UU created, Chalice Children. Classes from this curriculum will be offered in the nursery on Sundays when older children and youth RE classes are scheduled. The littlest UUs, aged 2-5, will make friends, feel love, and learn about 1U and Unitarian Universalism. It strives not just to teach about our faith, but also to provide experiences around the strength of community, the wonder and awe that transcend everyday understanding, and life issues we all share.

 

Primary: Preschoolers – 2nd Graders

In Lego ValUUes, children are taught UU values of pluralism, interdependence, generosity, equity, justice, transformation, and love, plus kindness through storybooks, discussion, and play activities. Each session includes an opening circle with an opening question and centering exercise, a story with discussion prompts, and a choice of play activities that carry out the theme of the day (including at least one simple LEGO build).

 

Upper Elementary Schoolers: 2nd Graders to 6th Graders

This curriculum for upper elementary students nurtures children’s ability to identify their own experiences and perspectives and to seek out, care about, and respect those of others. The sessions unpack topics that lend themselves to diverse experiences and perspectives—for example, faith heritage, public service, anti-racism and prayer. Windows and Mirrors represent our awareness of self, perception of others, and other’s perception of us. The program teaches that there are always multiple viewpoints and everyone’s viewpoint matters.

 

Middlers and High Schoolers: 6th Graders to 12th Graders

Using specific Twilight Zone episodes as jumping off points, this the Fifth Dimension curriculum seeks to help participants, consider social issues, understand ways in which the right of conscience calls us to do what’s right examine how our choices affect others around us, as well as ourselves, explore how taking a stand is related to perspective and point of view.

 

Youth Group: 6th Graders to 12th Graders

This is an exciting, values building time. We are qualifying Youth as young as 12 (and in 6th grade) through seniors in high school (usually 18). This year we are continuing a lightly facilitated and supervised space and time for our youth to gather. This time will be grounded in UU ritual (chalice lightings, check ins)  and then they will be encouraged to build their community through games, conversations, inspired projects. This is a Youth Empowerment model of youth group. Periodically, we will be partnering with our sibling congregation, UUUF, across town, to meet up for pizza and outings several times a year.