Children’s Programs (K-8th)

Moral Tales   (Early Elementary)

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Our Moral Tales curriculum focuses on helping our children to discern truth and justice inside themselves and consider the ways that Love calls us to act in the world. Core concepts include interdependence, the inner voice, faith, empathy, forgiveness, welcoming, respect, the Golden Rule, generosity, balance, non-violence, responsibility, fairness, courage, perseverance, and cooperation.
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Sing to the Power   (Upper ELEMENTARY)

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Sing to the Power affirms our Unitarian Universalist heritage of confronting “powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and the transforming power of love.” Sing to the Power uses a metaphor of the four elements—earth, air, fire, and water—as a framework to explore different forms of power. Participants experience their own power, and understand how it can help them to be leaders. This program uses students’ identity and knowledge as sources of self-esteem, engages peers through mutual friendship to understand the perspective of others, and encourages development of their own spiritual values.
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Spark: Activate Faith   (All Ages)

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Spark: Activate Faith is a Bible-based curriculum that invites children to explore stories from the Hebrew Scripture and New Testament through games, art, music and science. This curriculum provides a “spark” to our children— a glowing reminder of the Spirit of God within each of us, inspiring us to explore new ideas and discover our personal faith. Although published by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the developers of this curriculum intentionally collaborated with Christian leaders and practitioners from a wide variety of denominations to ensure resources are inclusive and relevant.
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Winter Wonders   (All Ages)

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First Parish has developed a unique program called “Winter Wonders,” an all-ages Sunday morning experience to brighten up the darkest times of the year. This social justice curriculum focuses on an important theme or moral/social issue which children explore from various angles through different activities. Each week we connect those themes to focus on real-world justice campaigns, fundraising or philanthropy, and advocacy.

In 2019 and 2020, we transformed our Sear’s Chapel into the Great Hall of Hogwarts Castle for an all-ages Harry Potter Social Justice themed curriculum each Sunday morning. Children and youth as they made their own magic wands, learned spells, played games, and (most importantly) participated in real-world social justice campaign (horcrux campaign in Harry Potter language) as members of Dumbledore’s Army, such as combatting illiteracy by launching a book drive to benefit More Than Words, and helping petition Godiva Chocolate to stop sourcing cocoa produced with child labor.

Other past campaigns have included:

• An Anti-Hate Campaign learning tools to prevent bullying – especially identity-based such as related to gender, race, religion, or nationality
• An Environmental Campaign selling wildflower seeds to raise funds for Environmental Organizations
• An Anti-Animal Cruelty Campaign where we created gift baskets for animals rescued by The Buddy the Dog Shelter in Wayland

RIDDLE & MYSTERY

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We are beginning with a curriculum called “Riddle and Mystery.” Its purpose is to encourage middle school students to begin their own search for meaning and purpose in life. All the sessions address (in a developmentally-appropriate way) one of the BIG questions we face – Where do we come from? What happens after we die? Why do bad things happen? Does God exist? How can I know what to believe? …you know — all the easy questions.

Middle schoolers are at a critical moment of growth, turning the corner from childhood into adolescence. They face a challenging world of increasing independence, choices, and responsibilities. They are developing skills around critical thinking, abstraction, and analysis. They are open to new ideas and exploration, but also to the guidance and structure of adult teachers, and this is the time to begin their lifelong exploration of personal spirituality.

Unitarian Universalists do not answer big questions for anyone but ourselves, nor provide definitive faith statements or creeds. Instead, we use the framework of Unitarian Universalism’s Principles, Sources, and Shared Values to encourage exploration of mind, heart, and spirit on our journey seeking truth and meaning.
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Neighboring Faiths

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We live in an increasingly diverse and complex world. It is now more important than ever to learn how to respect and engage with people who think and worship differently than we do. This wonderful curriculum compares the religious beliefs and practices of our own tradition and the religious beliefs and practices of our neighbors in age-appropriate and interactive ways, and then offers field trips to visit the Mosque, Synagogue, Buddhist or Hindu Temple, Quaker or Evangelical Church that we just learned about. We’ll think about the similarities and differences with our own tradition and about what matters underneath it all. The history and values of our Unitarian Universalist Christian tradition are woven throughout the class.
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Our Whole Lives

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We periodically offer (sometimes in collaboration with other local churches) “Our Whole Lives,” a highly acclaimed religious education program concerning human sexuality that is rooted in spiritual values, moral principles, and social justice. OWL provides comprehensive, developmentally appropriate, accurate information about sexuality, to support learning goals beyond the school-based programs. Our Unitarian Universalist values and principles act as a core element running throughout.

OWL asks this essential question: How do we live our faith in areas of life that are impacted by sexuality, including acceptance of self and others related to gender expression, sexual orientation, body image, living our values in intimate relationships, sexual health, cultural influences on sexuality, and being an ally and self-advocate when necessary? The program dismantles stereotypes and assumptions, builds self-acceptance and self-esteem, and fosters healthy relationships. It helps participants make informed and responsible decisions about their sexual health and behavior. It changes lives and has the potential to save lives.

More information about Our Whole Lives is available on the UUA website.