Session 13: The Gift Of Learning Together

Beautiful orange sunset over a deep blue ocean. — Tapestry is Sunsetting

The UUA is no longer updating Tapestry of Faith programs.

Part of Wonderful Welcome

In This Section

Introduction to Session 13
From Wonderful Welcome

‘No problem can be solved by the same consciousness that created it. We need to see the world anew.’ Albert Einstein This session introduces the intangible gift of learning together. As Unitarian Universalists, we use this gift in affirming and promoting our seven Principles. We cannot strive for…
Session-at-a-Glance
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity Minutes Welcoming and Entering Opening 5 Activity 1: Wonder Box 5 Activity 2: Story — The Rooster Who Learned to Crow 10 Activity 3: What Do You Know How to Do? We Can Learn It, Too!…
Spiritual Preparation
From Wonderful Welcome

Do you like to learn? Always? It can be hard to hear and process new information, to become proficient at a new skill, or to acknowledge when we need others’ help to learn something. Most of us can think of times when we were not willing to be learners, yet, learning with and from others is a…
Welcoming and Entering
From Wonderful Welcome

Materials for Activity Penny jar, created in Session 11: The Gift of Stewardship Preparation for Activity Set the penny jar on a table near the entrance to the room. Description of Activity If you started a penny jar in Session 11: The Gift of Stewardship, invite the children to donate the coins…
Opening
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Chalice and candle or LED/battery-operated candle Lighter and extinguisher, if needed Newsprint, markers, and tape Preparation for Activity Print the opening words on newsprint, and post….
Activity 1: Wonder Box
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Wonder Box (See instructions in Session 1.) A wind-up or battery-powered alarm clock Preparation for Activity Make sure you know how to make the alarm clock sound. Place the clock inside the Wonder Box….
Activity 2: Story - The Rooster Who Learned To Crow
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of the story, The Rooster Who Learned to Crow Optional: “The Rooster Who Learned to Crow” coloring sheet, and crayons Preparation for Activity Read the story and prepare to tell it or read it aloud to the group. Optional: Print the coloring…
Activity 3: What Do You Know How To Do? We Can Learn It, Too!
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity Optional: Items children can use to demonstrate their skills Preparation for Activity Optional: Gather “props” to help children demonstrate skills they are likely to have at this age, such as a ball, a yoyo, small musical instruments to play,…
Activity 4: Learning To Weave Wool
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity For each participant Four pieces of yarn, each one 36” long Four drinking straws A ball of yarn A piece of stiff cardboard, at least the size of an index card Extra yarn Scissors A copy of Leader Resource 2, Wool-weaving Illustration Preparation fo…
Closing
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Wonder Box poster (Session 1) Leader Resource 1, Rooster Copies of Taking It Home for all participants Newsprint, markers and tape Preparation for Activity Display the Wonder Box poster in the meeting space. Write the closing words on newsprint, and…
Leader Reflection and Planning
From Wonderful Welcome

Reflect on these questions and discuss them with your co-leaders: How do we feel about today’s session? What parts of the session worked well? What can we learn from the experience of this session? What preparations do we need to make for the next session?
Faith In Action: Each One, Teach One
From Wonderful Welcome

Description of Activity Arrange for the children to learn something new together. You might invite a volunteer from the congregation or community to lead an arts and crafts activity, teach the children how to plant seedlings, or lead a yoga or dance session….
Alternate Activity 1: Scavenger Hunt
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity Copies of Handout 1, Scavenger Hunt Questions, for each pair or small group Pencils Preparation for Activity Enlist the help of the junior and/or senior youth group in your congregation. Try to pair each child with a youth or have each youth lead a…
Alternate Activity 2: All About Roosters And Farms
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Newsprint, markers and tape Preparation for Activity Label a sheet of newsprint, “Roosters and Farms,” and post. Optional: Gather information about roosters and farms….
Taking It Home: The Gift Of Learning Together
From Wonderful Welcome

Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell ‘em, ‘Certainly I can!’ Then get busy and find out how to do it. — Theodore Roosevelt IN TODAY’S SESSION… The children explored the intangible gift of learning together. They heard a story about a rooster that did not know how to do its job…
The Rooster Who Learned To Crow

Janeen K Grohsmeyer

From Wonderful Welcome

A story from A Lamp in Every Corner: Our Unitarian Universalist Storybook (Boston: Unitarian Universalist Association, 2004). Read or tell the story. There once was a farm in a valley that was practically perfect in every way, except that it had no rooster to crow at the crack of dawn, and so…
Handout 1: Scavenger Hunt Questions
From Wonderful Welcome

Read over all the questions. Ask yourselves: What do we need to learn? Who could teach us? Then go find the people who can help. Write down the names of all the people who help the scavenger hunt by giving you information: How old is our congregation? ___________________________ How old is the…
Leader Resource 1: Rooster
From Wonderful Welcome

Printing This Handout Download a high-resolution copy of this Handout (PDF) for printing.
Leader Resource 2: Wool-Weaving Illustration
From Wonderful Welcome

The craft, “Wool Weaving,” appears in the book, Animal Crackers, copyright by and available from Heifer International. Permission pending. Wool Weaving Materials Four lengths of 36” yarn, 4 drinking straws, ball of yarn, pieces of cardboard Method 1….
Find Out More About Session 13
From Wonderful Welcome

A Lamp in Every Corner is the title story of a book by Janeen K. Grohsmeyer (Boston: Unitarian Universalist Association, 2004). Find more Unitarian Universalist stories here, along with suggestions for using them in worship and religious education programs.