Welcome to a new year of Religious Enrichment here at the First Congregational Parish Unitarian Universalist in Kingston! As many of you know, this is my first official year as Director of Religious Enrichment here at First Parish, and I am thrilled to be on board!

I believe that a high quality Religious Education Program for children and their families is central to the ministry of our church. A UU values-based religious education should foster independent thinking, and give our children and youth the tools they need to make up their own minds about life's big questions. I think that our RE program here at First Parish is designed to do just that. From the spiritual “wondering” that children experience in our Spirit Play classroom, to grappling with profound questions about the nature of faith, belief and religion, our Children’s Church provides a safe and nurturing place for spiritual exploration at all levels. This year at First Parish, our goal is to help all of our children develop a strong sense of connection with our UU faith and values, and to deepen their relationships with peers and adults in our wonderful faith community.

Please take a few moments to read this prospectus as it includes a yearlong Children’s Church calendar, a description of our programming, behavioral expectations, as well as other important items. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, concerns or ideas about our program here at First Parish. I look forward to a spiritually enriching year for all of us!

Blessings,
Kate Sullivan
Acting Director of Religious Enrichment

Nursery Care (10:15 – 11:30)

Nursery care is available for infants and children younger than 5-years-old. The nursery is staffed by an adult who is hired by the parish. Parents/guardians are expected to pick up their children immediately following the service.

Grade 3 through Grade 12

This year we are adopting a new model of Religious Education that will shift our focus on Sunday mornings from delivering “content” to making connections. By connections we mean that we will build and strengthen relationships among our children, between children and adults, between adult and children’s worship experiences and between UU values and the everyday lives of our children and youth. We will do this by using a “Small Group Ministry” model. The SGM model for children’s religious education places the emphasis on long-term outcomes for children, youth and the adults that work with them. They learn about being in covenant by practicing relevant skills in their own small groups. They have a chance to discover what it is their faith calls them to do and be in the world beyond our church, with a “Carrying Our Faith into the World” component.

All children will arrive at the Beal House and gather for a 20-minute service with regular worship elements built around a Wisdom Story. A typical service would include a prelude, chalice lighting, prayers, joys and concerns, prayer, music and a benediction.

The weekly Wisdom Story will contain the “content” of our program. Look for the theme of the week in the RE section of each Sunday’s Order of Worship. Children and youth will then split into age appropriate groups where volunteer group will lead discussions and activities that will enable children to “process” the wisdom story from the worship service. This model allows children and youth to be a part of an intentional community where they will get to practice being together authentically, really listening to one another and being heard. They will also get to experience many of the other benefits of a SGM model: To respond to the great questions of life; To feel valued; To experience a sense of mystery, wonder, ritual and sacred space; To tell and retell wisdom stories; To be of service, and work with others on justice-making within the community and in the larger world. Service projects will be an ongoing part of the program, and will take place within the small groups.

Kindergarten through Grade 2

In their small groups, children in Kindergarten and Grade 1 will be in our Spirit Play classroom. This “Montessori style” classroom will provide our youngest children with a solid foundation for their faith development that encourages exploration, imagination and wondering. Children will hear stories that introduce and reinforce our UU principles, our unique UU liturgy, and stories from both the Old and New Testament (to explore our Judeo-Christian heritage). Seven-year-olds will culminate their Spirit Play experience at Children’s Sunday with their special rite of passage into the older group, a rite that marks their beginning journey into the wider world.



Additional Children’s Church Information

Worship Times and Places:

Every Sunday morning we gather in the Meetinghouse to attend the beginning of the Sunday worship service with the entire church community. Together, we light the chalice and hear the call to worship, sing a hymn and take a few minutes to express our joys and concerns. Once a month children will gather in the front of the church for a special Time for all Ages with the minister or RE Director. The congregation will then sing the children out and they will be escorted across the street to begin their Religious Enrichment Program in the lower level of the Beal House. Older children will be dismissed at approximately 11:45 am.

Help Your Children Become Responsible Givers:

Every Sunday a collection is taken during the Children’s Worship service. During the year, children will discuss and vote on how to best use the money they have collected. Please help you children remember their Sunday morning offerings.

Holiday Programming:

Throughout the year there are several Sunday’s when we will be offering Holiday Programming rather than Regular Programming. This is due to extremely low attendance on the popular long weekends. During the Holiday Programming Sundays, we will offer supervised cooperative games/videos during Children’s Church.
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Expectations of Parents

We believe that you are the primary Religious Educators of your children and youth. Our hope is to support your efforts by providing a structured opportunity for religious and spiritual exploration in the midst of a caring faith community.  We hope that you as parents will make every effort to have your child attend Children’s Church as often as your schedule will allow.  Consistent attendance is critical for the proper functioning of our small groups.  Children and youth will get much more from a program where there is a consistent group of peers with whom they can explore/share ideas.

Ours is a cooperative religious education program.  For our program to be successful the participation of everyone is essential.  It is crucial that parents or significant adults of all children registered take an active role in the Children’s Program.  Each family with a child registered in the RE program is expected to make a time contribution to the RE program.  No special training or knowledge is required to help out.  We ask only that you are willing to give time to be present with the children and youth as they move along their faith journeys.  In doing so you show them that they are a valuable part of our faith community.   Thank you in advance for your help!  [Return to Top]

2006-2007 Children's Church Calendar