Children's Program

Children's Program
September 2022-May 2023
Program Begins Sunday September 11, 2022

In Person Programing at 9:30 and 11:15 during the Adult Worship
The Children's Ministry Programs at both Sunday Services are the same.
Nursery and Toddler Childcare (0-2) years old)
Sunshine Circle
Soul Matters Circles (3-11 year olds)
Rainbow Circle (3-5 year olds)
Water Circle (6-8 year olds)
Fire Circle (9-11 year olds)

ministry for families

Soul Matters is a theme based UU spiritual deepening program for whole communities across the ages. Soul Matters is used in many congregations in our movement.

For Kids
Each Sunday we explore the theme of the month in our the Rainbow, Water, and Fire Circles. The theme is the same for ages but the stories and activities are geared to each age group. The format of will be same format we have been using. We start with gathering activities, then worship together, followed by playground time.

For Parents
Parents will be able to easily share during the month with their children what is going on Sunday morning. All the children in the family from Pre-K to 5th grade will be exploring the same theme during the month.

The best news is parents get a Soul Matters packet on the theme at the beginning of the month so they can think about the theme while the children are exploring the same theme. This way the whole family is experiencing church together ... Parents, kids -- everyone is thinking about it!

Soul Matters Circles

What is a Sunday Morning Like?

Our Children’s Ministry Program it is a small group ministry model in which children meet weekly in a goup of 8 to 12 children close in age. In Soul Matters Circles, each week children have an opportunity to worship, to build community, to participate in meaningful service and learn about Unitarian Universalism. About once a month the children join the adults in sanctuary for Multigenerational Worship time, which gives children a chance to worship with their parents and be connected to the whole community.

Our program is worship centered which means that children participate in worship every week. We are moving away from calling the groups “classes” and calling our program an “education” program. Our children absolutely do learn about Unitarian Universalism while participating in the ministry program; however our emphasis is teaching through worship, singing, community and service. So our program is .experiential and worshipful.

Contact:
Marion Hirsch, Director of Lifespan Religious Education
dre @ c3huu.org
.

This year's Themes

We will explore the challenges and paths .....

September:  Belonging
October:  Courage
November: Change
December:  Wonder
January:  Finding Our Center
February: Love
March: Vulnerability
April: Resistance
May:  Creativity
June:  Delight

Typical Weekly Schedule
(except for Multigenerational Sundays)

Gathering Time (15 minutes ): Children gather in their Chalice Circle small ministry groups.

Worship and Small Group Sharing (30 minutes): Includes chalice lighting, singing, meditation, offering and a story. This is when the lesson and story for the week is shared. In small groups, children will share joys and concerns and answer a question that extends the story and theme of the week,

Outside Play (15 minutes): Children look forward to fun on our beautiful playgrounds, weather permitting.