Session 8: The Gift Of Families

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
From Wonderful Welcome

One of the oldest human needs is having someone to wonder where you are when you don’t come home at night. — Margaret Mead This session’s intangible gift is sharing positive qualities such as kindness, respect and care with the people in our families….
Session-at-a-Glance
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity Minutes Welcoming and Entering 0 Opening 5 Activity 1: Wonder Box 5 Activity 2: Story — The Picture on the Kitchen Wall 10 Activity 3: Picture for Your Kitchen Wall 15 Activity 4: Respect and Care Demonstration — Role Play 10 Activity 5: Dragon Families 10 Faith in Action: Chinese New…
Spiritual Preparation
From Wonderful Welcome

Children learn how to give and receive respect and caring primarily in the family. Yet, in many families, the expression of these intangible gifts can be conflicted, intermittent or lacking. Even caring and respectful adults sometimes leave their best behavior at the door when they are with their…
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. Description of Activity Gather participants around the chalice…
Activity 1: The Wonder Box
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Wonder Box (See Session 1.) Leader Resource 1, Chinese Characters for “Kindness” Preparation for Activity Print out Leader Resource 1 and place it in the Wonder Box. To hear the correct pronunciation of the Chinese characters, “ren” and “ci,” ask a…
Activity 2: Story - The Picture On The Kitchen Wall
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of the story, The Picture on the Kitchen Wall Optional: “The Picture on the Kitchen Wall” coloring sheet, and crayons Preparation for Activity Read the story and prepare to tell or read it to the group. Optional: Print the coloring sheet and…
Activity 3: Picture For Your Kitchen Wall
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of Leader Resource 1, Chinese Characters for “Kindness” Newsprint, markers and tape 8 1/2 x 11-inch drawing paper and pencils for all participants Markers, crayons or paint and paintbrushes 11x17-inch color construction paper for all…
Activity 4: Respect And Care Scenarios
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of Leader Resource 2, Scenarios for Sharing Intangible Gifts in Our Families Preparation for Activity Review the scenarios in Leader Resource 2 and add some of your own….
Activity 5: Dragon Families
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Imagination Optional: Two large pieces of different colored construction paper and a stapler to make hats Preparation for Activity Find a large, open space for this game….
Closing
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Wonder Box poster A copy of the Chinese characters, “ren” and “ci” (kindness) from Leader Resource 1 Tape or glue stick Copies of Taking It Home for all participants Newsprint, markers and tape Preparation for Activity Display the Wonder Box poster…
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: Chinese New Year
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 60 minutes Preparation for Activity Look for ways the children can create a Chinese New Year celebration to share with the larger congregation. Gather information about how Chinese New Year is celebrated in Asia and in the U.S. Talk to congregants or others you know with Chinese or…
Alternate Activity 1: Family Picture for Your Kitchen Wall
From Wonderful Welcome

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity Drawing paper and markers or crayons Color construction paper larger than the drawing paper Glue sticks Preparation for Activity Set materials at work tables….
Taking It Home: The Gift Of Families
From Wonderful Welcome

One of the oldest human needs is having someone to wonder where you are when you don’t come home at night. — Margaret Mead IN TODAY’S SESSION… Today your child(ren) talked about ways family members share kindness, respect and caring with one another. They heard a story about Chang Kung, whose…
The Picture On The Kitchen Wall

Sophia Lyon Fahs

From Wonderful Welcome

A story from China. Sophia Lyon Fahs, From Long Ago and Many Lands. Read or tell the story. Long, long ago in the land of China there lived a very old grandfather, named Chang Kung, who had a very large family. First, there were Chang Kung’s own sons….
Leader Resource 1: Chinese Characters for Kindness
From Wonderful Welcome

From the website Quotable Kindness. Together, this pair of Pinyin Chinese characters, pronounced “ren” “ci,” describes someone performing a kind action. Printing This Handout Download a high-resolution copy of this Handout (PDF) for printing.
Leader Resource 2: Scenarios for Sharing Intangible Gifts in Our Families
From Wonderful Welcome

Read the scenarios aloud to the group to act out, if they choose, and to discuss. After you present each scenario, help the children identify the intangible gifts such as kindness, respect and caring that could be brought to the scenario. Scenario 1 You are three siblings. There is no school today.
Find Out More
From Wonderful Welcome

Kinds of Kindness The two Chinese characters in Leader Resource 1 are pronounced “ren” and “ci” in Mandarin. Together they describe someone performing a kind action. Another word for “kindness” in Mandarin is “shan,” which describes a more passive sort of kindness, a quality of someone who is…