Mosaic Lifespan Curriculum

Welcome to the Mosaic Lifespan Anti-Racism Curriculum Series! For decades, religious educators have been asking for a lifespan curriculum series. In 2020, the Commission on Institutional Change’s report, “Widening the Circle of Concern” (UUA), the commission recommended the, “[development of] tools that allow congregations to hold conversations across generations about issues of inclusion, with the goal of recognizing the evolution in our Living Tradition and that spiritual development needs change over time.” (p.99)

With its “playlist” format and age/identity-based curricula, this series seeks to address the desire for lifelong learning around anti-racism that also is easily adaptable to both the evolving discourse around racism and the ever-changing spiritual development needs of Unitarian Universalists. Each curriculum series includes lessons designed to support the faith development and engagement of each identity group, as well as to enhance our growing collective understanding of best practices and justice-centered discourse arising from BIPOC movements to decolonize and decenter whiteness. The playlist format, featuring both UU and non-UU resources, provides easy-to-facilitate lessons in virtual, in-person, and hybrid learning environments.

Each lesson playlist consists of the following elements, curated by Unitarian Universalist religious professionals with a specific identity group in mind and on a specific topic related to anti-racism:

Open: chalice lighting words or song, followed by other classroom rituals, including joys and concerns or check-ins
Read: audio or video of a book or an article to explore together
Watch: developmentally--appropriate video
Do: craft, game, or other activity
Close: chalice extinguishing words and other classroom rituals to close the circle
Take Home: suggested activity and/or conversation starter to encourage further faith development at home

Grades K-1
From The Mosaic

Children will: explore what "race" is and that it's okay to talk about, will celebrate differences, understand how emotions can affect behavior, practice kindness, and work toward building beloved community.
Grades 2-3
From The Mosaic

Children will explore identity, understand the difference between appreciation and appropriation, process the tough feelings that come when we learn difficult history, understand that sometimes kindness isn't enough, and learn what "Black Lives Matter" means.
Grades 4-5
From The Mosaic

Children will explore individual and communal identity, further understand cultural appropriation, learn historical patterns of racism, gain confidence in daily living our UU values, and learn why UUs support the "Black Lives Matter" movement.
Middle School
From The Mosaic

Youth will learn the meaning of white supremacy culture and how to distinguish between cultural appropriation and appreciation, understand the history and present-day impact of colonialism, explore power and democracy, and how we can create healthy boundaries in beloved community.
High School
From The Mosaic

Youth will learn the meaning of white supremacy culture, how it appears within UUism, and how to distinguish between cultural appropriation and appreciation, explore the history and present-day impact of colonialism, and understand what "Critical Race Theory" and "police abolition" means.
Emerging Adult
From The Mosaic

Explore the history and present-day examples of anti-Blackness and racism within UUism, experiment with embodied worship and spirituality, discuss ways to effect systemic change, learn strategies for conversations with difficult people, gain a deepened understanding of UU anti-racist theology.
BIPOC
From The Mosaic

BIPOC caucus curriculum will identify racism, anti-Blackness, and white supremacy culture within UUism in general and within UU BIPOC spaces, celebrate BIPOC expressions of UUism, encourage self and community care, resource BIPOC to confront white entitlement and microagressions, and UU Theology
General Adult
From The Mosaic

Adults of various identities/ages will understand how UU values support police abolition, explore histories and present-day expressions of colonization, indigenous erasure, and anti-Blackness, learn how to confront white entitlement and advocate for reparations, and gain a deepened UU theology