Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalists
Monday, September 06, 2010
A free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

Religious Education for Children

Our Religious Education Program is an opportunity to impart the values we share as a community with our children; integrity, caring, compassion, social justice, truth, personal peace and harmony.  At SFUU our practice of Religious Education for children and youth is to educate them on how to face the dilemmas and choices of their every day lives.  We help them make decisions about the people they want to become and the world they want to help create.
 
The seven principals of Unitarian Universalism are the basis for our program. The goals of our program are to provide a place where children feel welcome and have a sense of belonging, explore religious ideas in an open-minded community, share their sense of wonder, ask questions and define and redefine their beliefs as they grow.
 
The gift of life itself is a miracle, and we should live as fully, joyfully and as responsibly as we can.
 
Leslye Janusz
Director of Religious Education 

  
 
 
GROWING PEACE CAMP was a smashing success.  To see photos from the camp please click here.
 
 
 
 
Children’s Version - Seven Principles and Purposes of Unitarian Universalism  
 
WE BELIEVE:
1. Each person is important
2. All people should be treated fairly
3. Our church is a place of acceptance and growth
4. Each person is free to search for understanding and for what is good and right
5. Each person should have a vote about what concerns him or her
6. It is our task to make the world a place that is peaceful, fair and free
7. In caring for our environment
 
 
Age Groupings and Current Curriculum Plan for 2010-2011
The 2010-2011 RE program will begin on September 12 with an Intergenerational Service, Gathering of the Waters. We have four groups in our RE program, with the class placement and curricula tailored to meet both the needs and competencies of individual children in each group.
 
  • Childcare Program: This program is geared for children infants to Pre-K. We are very fortunate to have two paid assistants, Caitlyn and Lauren, who offer the children a variety of stories, games, manipulative materials and crafts in a wonderful nurturing environment.
A mini-curriculum will be developed for the pre-K children in the Childcare Program to give them some basic exposure, through stories, songs and games of Unitarian Universalist principles on a level they can comprehend. 
 
  • K-2nd Grade Group: More on the Fall 2010/Spring 2011 curriculum will be posted soon.
     
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  • 3-5th Grade Group: More on the Fall 2010/Spring 2011 curriculum will be posted soon.
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  • The Youth Group: Our Youth Group is available for youth 6th through 9th grade.  We meet at an office building off-site from the church, but within easy walking distance to it. Especially at the upper end of this age group, the children are less and less interested in crafts or myths or lessons.  They are correspondingly more interested in each other, in group dynamics at school, and in all the incredible highs and lows involved in leaving childhood behind and in becoming an adult human being.  This age group often needs to sort out relationships including questions such as, what are friendships? Why do they matter? How do we deal with broken friendships? Helping this group understand how UU values play into these concerns in a direct and meaningful way is often pivotal in building life-long awareness of the values inherent in Unitarian Universalism.
Specifics on the Youth group 2010/2011 curriculum will be posted soon.
 
Whatever age your child is, we have a curriculum and activities tailored to engage and educate them and to help them bring our UU values of peace, tolerance, open-mindedness, selflessness into their minds and hearts.
 
We hope you and your children will join us in this year’s Religious Education Program.  Please contact Leslye Janusz, DRE at sfuudreleslye@gmail.com if you have questions about the program, or you’d like to set up an appointment to learn more about the program and how you and your children can become involved.