Session 9: Our Ancestral Home

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

The UUA is no longer updating Tapestry of Faith programs.

Part of Creating Home, Kindergarten-1st Grade

In This Section

Introduction
From Creating Home

One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade. — Chinese proverb In addition to the particular places where we live and our immediate families, many of us also call home the places from which our ancestors came. Memories and stories associated with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and…
Session-at-a-Glance
From Creating Home

ACTIVITY MINUTES Opening 5 Activity 1: Black Crayon Legacies 10 Activity 2: Story — The Farmer’s Legacy 8 Activity 3: Meet Your Unitarian Universalist Ancestors 12 Activity 4: Honoring Unitarian Universalist Ancestors 10 Activity 5: Body Prayer 10 Faith In Action: Founders Plaque Rubbing —…
Spiritual Preparation
From Creating Home

Talking about ancestors can be complicated and potentially painful for some children. Some may have been adopted into their families. In essence, they belong to two family lines, and may lack information about their birth ancestors. Some may belong to an African American family line that was…
Opening
From Creating Home

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Chalice candle or LED/battery-operated candle Lighter and extinguisher, if needed Labyrinth Basket of name stones Newsprint, markers, and tape Preparation for Activity Write the chalice-lighting words on newsprint, and post. Memorize the…
Activity 1: Black Crayon Legacies
From Creating Home

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Plain 8 1/2 x 11” paper Crayons, black and a variety of different colors Plastic knives, coins, pencils, or other objects for participants to rub a layer of crayon off paper Optional: Store-bought multicolored scratch-art paper for all participants…
Activity 2: Story - The Farmer's Legacy
From Creating Home

Activity time: 8 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of story, “The Farmer’s Legacy” Optional: “The Farmer’s Legacy” coloring sheet (PDF), and crayons Preparation for Activity Review and print out the story, “The Farmer’s Legacy.” Optional: Print the coloring sheet and copy for all…
Activity 3: Meet Your Unitarian Universalist Ancestors
From Creating Home

Activity time: 12 minutes Materials for Activity Three empty boxes with covers Items to fill the boxes, cut out from Unitarian Universalist Ancestor Boxes Optional: Additional items for each box Preparation for Activity Fill three empty boxes, such as shoeboxes, with items to represent the legaci…
Activity 4: Honoring Our Unitarian Universalist Ancestors
From Creating Home

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Optional: Tablecloth and chalice Optional: Push pins or tape Preparation for Activity Designate a space to honor one or more of our faith ancestors. It could be a shelf, wall space, or a small table….
Activity 5: Body Prayer
From Creating Home

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Optional: A copy of Singing the Living Tradition, the Unitarian Universalist hymnbook Optional: CD with a version of the song, “Spirit of Life” Preparation for Activity Review “Spirit of Life,” Hymn #123 in Singing the Living Tradition….
Closing
From Creating Home

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Chalice candle or LED/battery-operated candle Lighter and extinguisher, if needed Labyrinth, with participants’ name stones placed on it Basket for name stones Preparation for Activity Review Hymn 1008 in Singing the Journey, “When Our Heart Is in a…
Leader Reflection and Planning
From Creating Home

This session has the potential to cover quite a bit of Unitarian Universalist history. Some children will be interested, some not. Do you feel you did a good job of tracking the group’s interest level and adjusting as needed? How did the children react to the rituals around the altar?…
Faith In Action: Founders Plaque Rubbing - Short-term
From Creating Home

Activity time: 30 minutes Materials for Activity Newsprint Masking tape Soft, thick sticks of chalk or pastels, in a variety of colors Preparation for Activity Locate on your congregational grounds a plaque that displays the names of congregation’s founders, former ministers, lay leaders, or othe…
Alternate Activity 1: Your Favorite Unitarian Universalist Ancestor
From Creating Home

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity An empty box with a cover Items to fill the box Preparation for Activity Using Activity 3: Meet Your Unitarian Universalist Ancestors as a guide, fill the box with items to represent the legacy of a Unitarian Universalist whose life and…
Taking It Home: Our Ancestral Home
From Creating Home

One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade. – Chinese proverb IN TODAY’S SESSION… The group talked about ancestors – both family and faith ancestors – and the legacies they leave for future generations. The children heard a story, “The Farmer’s Legacy,” in which a farmer…
The Farmer's Legacy
From Creating Home

Once there was a farmer. He was very old and ill and knew he would soon die. He had lived a good life and his only regret was that his three children fought all the time. None of them seemed interested in taking care of the large farm the old man had established. They were rather lazy….
Ancestor Boxes
From Creating Home

Susan B. AnthonyCharles DickensHajom Kissor Sinjh…
Susan B. Anthony
From Creating Home

Printing This Handout Download a high-resolution copy of this Handout (PDF) for printing.
Charles Dickens
From Creating Home

Printing This Handout Download a high-resolution copy of this Handout (PDF) for printing.
Hajom Kissor Singh
From Creating Home

Printing This Handout Download a high-resolution copy of this Handout (PDF) for printing.
Find Out More
From Creating Home

Read biographies of Charles Dickens and Hajom Kissor Singh on the Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography. A 2003 sermon by Unitarian Universalist minister Chris Buice, “www.tvuuc.org/audioservices/sermons/2003/03/02/20030302.doc“>The Real Value of a Susan B. Anthony Dollar,” discusses…