Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship

Lifelong Learning at Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship:

Sunday Morning Programs for Children and Youth

The children and youth of BUF are guided in their religious lives through a combination of worship, small group activities, social action, and fellowship. BUF’s ministry with children and youth creates a welcoming, trusting environment in which each young person is nurtured spiritually, stretched mentally, and supported emotionally. Our challenge is to empower our children to take responsibility for their beliefs and for their ethical and moral decisions.   We are blessed with a team of dedicated teachers who are committed to helping our children and youth navigate the choppy waters of life.  They are invested in building relationships with the children and families in our community.  And they support each other in this work.  All of our children’s religious education classes are taught by teaching teams so there are generally 2 teachers in each classroom on a Sunday morning. A criminal background check as well as a signed Code of Ethics is required for all of our volunteers who work with children on a regular basis. 

Where Should the Children (Youth) Go on Sunday Mornings?

Children in grades K-12 will begin Sunday mornings in the service with their families and will be invited to religious education as part of the worship ritual and will make their way to their various classrooms.  Younger children (ages 1-4) may begin in the Childspace room up to 10 minutes before each service begins.

Sunday Morning Classes Available at 9:15 am AND 11:15 am

Childspace (Ages 1-4)

BUF has a childcare room for toddlers and preschoolers.  Parents are welcome to stay in the Childspace room with their children for as long as their child needs to become accustomed to the space. We have regular childcare providers who play and care for your children while you attend worship. We work with parents to help the young ones feel comfortable. Our space is equipped with interactive toys, art supplies and music. We have changing tables in the woman’s restroom adjacent to the Childspace room. Parents are responsible for diaper changes and fathers are welcome to use the facilities when they are not otherwise in use.

Spirit Play (Grades K-1)

We use the Montessori approach and Berryman's “Morning As Worship” approach for the structure of the morning. As in Montessori, the key elements are the classroom environment and the teachers. These elements free the children to work at their own pace on their own issues after an initial lesson. The Spirit Play Greeter (one of the teachers) helps the children get ready to enter the classroom as they come upstairs from the sanctuary. The Storyteller leads the circle in the story of the day, followed by the wondering (a series of open ended questions that are asked to get kids to think about the story they heard). Teachers do not attempt to explain or interpret the stories; instead children are invited to choose an art response or to work with a story previously heard, to draw their own conclusions.  This year we are working on stories that reflect our Seven Principles (called Promises in Spirit Play).

Primary Class (Grades 2-3) Love Will Guide Us: A Tapestry of Faith Curriculum

In this program, participants learn to seek guidance in life through the lens of our Unitarian Universalist Sources, with an emphasis on love. Together we ask questions such as, "Where did we come from?" "What is our relationship to the Earth and other creatures?" "How can we respond with love, even in bad situations?" "What happens when you die?" Sessions apply wisdom from our Sources to help participants answer these questions. Participants will learn that asking questions is valued in Unitarian Universalism, even as they begin to shape their own answers.

Sunday Morning Classes Available at 11:15 am ONLY

Intermediate Class (Grades 4-5)
Windows and Mirrors: A Tapestry of Faith Curriculum

Unitarian Universalism views our members' multiple perspectives as a blessing. In spirit, we embrace the contribution of diversity to our collective ability to pursue truth, fairness, justice and love. In practice, however, we often fail to embrace all the experiences and viewpoints in our communities as respectfully or as wholly as we might. Sometimes, we fail to even see differences among us. We seem most prone to gloss over differences when to acknowledge them requires acute self-examination and may lead to pain, shame, discomfort or guilt. Windows and Mirrors nurtures children's ability to identify their own experiences and perspectives and to seek out, care about and respect those of others. The sessions unpack topics that lend themselves to diverse experiences and perspectives—for example, faith heritage, public service, anti-racism and prayer. The program teaches that there are always multiple viewpoints and everyone's viewpoint matters.

Middle School (Grades 6-8)
Traditions With A Wink!

Sometimes youth (and adults) have a hard time explaining what it means to be Unitarian Uninversalist.  This curriculum teaches an understanding of UU faith that can replace the vague “we believe anything we want to” statement with: “We come from a long tradition of questioning and searching.  We come from a long tradition of loving kindness and good works.”  We have powerful stories and visions of hope.  This curriculum shares them with our older children as they begin the process of shaping their own faith.  This curriculum is designed to support the Coming of Age Program available this year to our 7th and 8th grade students (see Extra-Curricular Programs).

High School Youth Group (Grades 9-12)
Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU)

Our youth group is led cooperatively by the youth and several advisers. They use a variety of techniques to encourage responsible identity formation, community building and spiritual reflection including rituals, discussions, Principles in Action projects, and more. They dabble in several UUA curricula including, A Place of Wholeness-- Building upon the faith development of Coming of Age and other UU identity programs, this curriculum encourages youth to look inward for a clearer understanding of their personal faith and guides them to express that faith outward into the world. Also, Sharing the Journey: Small Group Ministry with Youth-- Small group ministry (like Chalice Circles) can be a way to help individuals build relationships, experience a greater sense of belonging, and feel supported in their spiritual journey in the congregation. Yet it is only beginning to be used with youth. Our youth will be experimenting with this structure for discussions of various religious topics. They will also experiment with Exploring Our Values Through Poetry which is a curriculum that utilizes poems concerning elements of the spiritual life: acute observation, conscious and continuous inquiry, the unveiling of reality, hope and hopelessness, the afterlife, and the tenderness of the human condition. This group frequently meets a bit longer than the other classes (generally until 12:45).

Many hands are needed to offer our inspiring programs; if you would like to volunteer in Lifelong Learning, contact Crystal Neva.

All Lifelong Learning Programs at BUF promote leadership development, respectful communication, global and social awareness, creativity and fun!