Religious Education for Children, Youth and Families First Unitarian Church of St. Louis 2020/2021 WELCOME! Family Handbook Welcome to the Religious Education Program for Children, Youth and Families at First Unitarian Church. Liberal Religious Education has a long history in Unitarianism and is a priority of Unitarian Universalist congregations. This congregation continues that strong tradition. This handbook is a description and guide to the different class and pro- gram offerings during the 2020/2021 year. Our Sunday School is one that: First Unitarian Church Of St. Louis Expresses that life is a joyful experience, 5007 Waterman Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63108 Promotes critical thinking, Firstuustlouis.org Teaches that every person is worthy of love, Ben Rosensweig, Educates that we have a responsibility to positively Director of Religious Education engage the world in order to promote justice and 314-361-0595 ext. 25 or equity for all people, 314-437-4727 (cell) or [email protected] And Recognizes that we are inextricably linked to the earth and all life upon it. COVID-19, Racism, Democracy Simply put, times are difficult. We live in an ever-changing world. Between a pan- demic, rampant police brutality, and the chipping away at what makes a democ- racy, one would be forgiven for feeling overwhelmed. Amidst the din of this storm, our First Unitarian community and faith tradition endeavors to honor the inner spirituality of all children and aims to create a community that fosters the child’s natural sense of awe and wonder of the world around them. From this sense of awe and wonder, we cultivate an awareness that all life is connected in sacredness. From this awareness, our children develop a generous spirit and un- derstanding that life is a blessing. Community is a vital part of this development, for it is together that people share stories and gain new perspectives about the world. Having a strong and vibrant connection with a faith community supports our children as they endeavor to live honest, ethical, and spiritual lives. Also, they have fun with their church friends! Come with your children and engage the dynamism of the living faith of Unitarian Universalism. Join Us — Ben Rosensweig Religious Education Program Mission Statement The Religious Education Program strives to promote religious education as a life long creative process by fostering an atmosphere supporting spiritual exploration and ethical decision-making in which individuals are respected. In keeping with this mission we have established the following objectives: To promote understanding of and participation in Unitarian Universalism. To provide opportunities for meditation, discussion and community service. To encourage opportunities for relationships with other church members and with our wider community. To provide opportunities for the study of the history, spirituality, and ritual of the world’s religious traditions, especially our Jewish and Christian heritage. To provide opportunities for examination of important questions concerning the existence and nature of God and the meaning of our lives. To foster appreciation of the natural world, the global community and the rich tapestry of spiritual life. These elements constitute the program: Worship, Personal Reflection and Prayer Classroom Study Community Social Justice Leadership Opportunities A Special Announcement about teaching Religious Education in a COVID-19 World In a nutshell: Religious Education will be virtual over Zoom with the goal of, if coronavirus num- bers are within limits, a once per month Sunday meeting in-person, but outside the church in the Memorial Garden. Know that the health and safety of your children, you, the parents, and our volunteer teachers, are of utmost concern and priority. The church has a COVID-19 Task Force that reviews the most cur- rent information and meets regularly to assess the ongoing situation that is the coronavirus. In that spirit, the curriculum used for this year is designed to be completely virtual. Pulled directly from our Soul Matters curriculum, this is their “Pedagogy for Online RE”: “We provide... • multi-use building blocks • to support four relationally based environ- ments/ministries • that encourage “lead-with” strategies, • build off each other, • and are tied together by a thematic & actiona- ble through line” For more information on the “Pedagogy for Online RE” visit: https:// www.soulmatterssharingcircle.com/re-online-approach.html Program Elements: Education and Classroom Study Nursery (Closed for the time being) SOUL MATTERS CURRICULUM For children not needing the nursery, our course of study provides a background in the history and wisdom of many traditions and a strong knowledge and con- nection with our own traditions. Each year, the classes engage four themes: Uni- tarian Universalist Identity; World Religions; Jewish and Christian Heritages, and our Connection to the Earth. THIS YEAR, we will be using the church-wide, all- ages “Soul Matters” Curriculum. Every month focuses on a theme. This ensures that what is being preached in the pulpit, comes full circle to the (virtual) class- room. All Soul Matters “packets are chocked full (over 30 pages) of stories, expe- rience-based learning activities, wonder box guides, song ideas, mindfulness practices, games, craft ideas, skits, videos, parent resources and more.” Virtual classes are a combination of active and reflective learning opportunities. As the children progress through the program, these subjects are looked at with deep- ening intellectual sophistication in recognition of their cognitive development. Children are guided to appreciate the wisdom and knowledge in these areas as they go deeper into understanding religion and developing their own religious val- ues. 11:30 AM Online Zoom Classes Pre-School — First Grade Soul Matters The primary goal for this age group is to introduce the children to Sunday School classes, and provide an arena for the children to discover their growing capabili- ties. As the children mature, they explore their growth as individuals within a community and look at our values regarding diversity, cooperation and service. The classes are a warm and fun environment where children sing, hear stories, create art, cook, and grow within the congregation. Directly from Soul Matters: “We heard loud and clear that online Zoom groups aren’t working well for this age group. So we’re curating resources for this age group that are action and object based - like embodied meditations, arts activities and Wonder Box elements, as well as activities that employ treasure hunt and “find & show” strategies.” Second Grade—Fifth Grade Soul Matters This group continues to explore their growth as individuals within a community. With an emphasis on empathetic relations, the children look at their ability to create a better world. Using some of the best in modern children’s literature, the children explore Unitarian Universalist values around diversity, cooperation and service. “This age is more comfortable with online meetings than the younger children, but still needs short, active, experiential small group activities to build their relationships and keep their attention. They are already spending a lot of time online getting information handed to them, so making sure RE is experien- tial is extra important. With this in mind, we will be leaning on 4 strategies to ensure compelling online interactive experiences: • Simultaneous creation (i.e. online simple creative projects one can do on the screen with others) • Science experiment-based lessons • Treasure hunt approaches • “Find ‘N Show” type approaches And, of course, we’ve not given up on games! We will keep hunting for games that work well online. After all, spirituality without fun and silliness is, well, no fun at all!” :) Sixth & Seventh Grade Online Crossing Paths—Soul Matters “Crossing Paths is not just an interfaith learning program; its ultimate goal is to help youth build and clarify their own UU identity through engage- ment with other faiths. This is why we start by ground- ing youth in their own faith tradition.“ “Crossing Paths joins the long line of middle school, visit-based UU cur- riculum going back 70 years. Church Across the Street was published by the UUA in 1947. More recently, we’ve seen Neighboring Faiths (1997) and Building Bridges (Tapestry of Faith).” Faiths covered • Unitarian Universalism • Judaism • Christianity • Christian Evangelicalism (Mega Church) • Catholicism • Quakerism • Islam • Buddhism • Hinduism • Paganism Eighth Grade Coming of Age Program Coming of Age will take place, subject to change, every week in-person but outside in the Memorial Garden at the church. Once per month, the participants will meet with their mentors. The purpose of the Coming of Age program is to foster and support our young people as they enter adolescence and begin the process of devel- oping a mature identity; to develop a group of peers who will support one another through high school in an honest and gentle manner; to develop healthy and lasting relationships between youth and adults; and to recognize the growing independence of and to encourage and to help formulate youth development in such a direction that they become individuals capable of facing the challenges of life and to experience life’s joys. This group of young people have the opportunity to focus their thoughts on their reli- gious beliefs and attitudes and develop the skills to articulate them. Work- ing with adult mentors and as a group, they read and discuss a variety of authors in the UU arena, compare beliefs and experiences with those of other religious traditions, engage in social action projects, take field trips and have fun. At the end of the year, the members of the class are hon- ored by delivering their affirmation/belief statements to the congregation during a Sunday morning service. This is a wonderful opportunity for the young people to clarify their values and religious understandings as they enter the grown-up world with its many pressures and decisions.