Faith Curriculum Library: Tapestry of Faith: World of Wonder: A Program on the Seven Principles of Unitarian Universalism for Grades K-1

Program Structure

Part of World of Wonder

All 16 sessions in World of Wonder follow the same structure. Between an opening and a closing ritual, participants engage in up to five or six activities. The opening includes a chalice-lighting and a community-building activity. Every session revolves thematically around a central story which participants hear and explore in one or more of the activities.

The sessions are grouped in four units.

Session

Title

Unit

Story

1

The Web of Life

Interdependence

The Grumpy Gecko

2

Nature's Partnerships

Interdependence

Swimming Home

3

Thanks Be for Trees

Interdependence

Amrita's Tree

4

Balance in Our Ecosystem

Interdependence

Why the Sky Is Far Away

5

Habitats

Circles of Life

Habitat at Home

6

Life Cycles

Circles of Life

A Caterpillar Grows Up

7

Decomposition

Circles of Life

And It Is Good

8

Life-Giving Plants

Circles of Life

Na'amah's Prayer for the Earth

9

Creativity in Nature

Soul of Nature

The Most Beautiful Bower in the World

10

Play in Nature

Soul of Nature

The Way of Otters

11

Kindness in Nature

Soul of Nature

The Noble Ibex: A Jataka Tale

12

Beauty in Nature

Soul of Nature

Arthur Lismer

13

Green Energy

Making a Difference

Samso Spins Wind Power

14

Enough Stuff

Making a Difference

Low Impact Birthdays 5 R's

15

Working Together to Make a Difference

Making a Difference

UU Green Sanctuary Story

16

Using Our Sense of Wonder

Making a Difference

no story — field trip

Faith in Action

Every session offers at least one Faith in Action activity. While these activities are optional, Faith in Action is an important element of the overall Tapestry of Faith curriculum series. Some Faith in Action activities can be completed in one meeting; others are longer term and require the involvement of congregants or community members.

Alternate Activities

All sessions offer alternate activities; while leading activities outdoors is preferred, indoor activities are always provided for times when it is not feasible or possible to be outside. Depending on your time and interests, you may replace one or more of the session's core activities with an alternate activity, or add an alternate activity to your session. You may also find the alternative activities useful outside of the program for gatherings such as family retreats, intergenerational dinners, or other events where some interesting programming for children is needed.

As you design your program, decide whether the group needs extra meetings to incorporate additional activities or to complete a long-term Faith in Action project. Long-term Faith in Action projects usually involve meetings outside your regular meeting time and/or at another location. Before you commit to an extended program, make sure you obtain the support of your congregational leadership and the children's families.

Quote

A quote introduces the subject of each session. You may read a quote aloud to your group as an entry to the session. However, the quotes are intended primarily for leaders, and are not always at the child's level of understanding or experience.

Co-leaders may like to discuss the quote as part of preparation for a session. Exploring a quote together can help you each feel grounded in the ideas and activities you will present and can help a team of leaders get "on the same page." Quotes are included in the Taking It Home section for families to consider.

Introduction

The Introduction gives an overview of the session concepts and explains how you can use the activities to teach the concepts. The introduction also describes the session's thematic connection with the other sessions in the program.

Goals

The Goals section provides general participant outcomes for the session. Reviewing the goals will help you connect the session's content and methodologies with the four strands of the Tapestry of Faith religious education programs: ethical, spiritual, Unitarian Universalist identity, and faith development. As you plan a session, apply your knowledge of the group of children, the time and space you have available, and your own strengths and interests as a leader to determine the most important and achievable goals for the session and the activities that will serve them best.

Learning Objectives

The Learning Objectives section describes specific participant outcomes which the session activities are designed to facilitate. They describe what a participant will learn, become, or be able to do as a result of the learning activities. It may be helpful to think of learning objectives as the building blocks with which World of Wonder's larger, "big picture" goals are achieved. If particular learning objectives appeal to you as important, make sure you select the activities for this session that address these outcomes.

Session-at-a-Glance

The Session-at-a-Glance table lists the session activities in a suggested order, and provides an estimated time for completing each activity to conduct a 60-minute session. The table includes all of the core activities from the session Opening through the Closing, plus any Faith in Action activities for the session.

Session-at-a-Glance is a guide for your own planning. From the Session-at-a-Glance table and the alternate activities, you will choose which elements to use and how to combine these to best suit the group, the meeting space, and the amount of time you have.

Keep in mind that many variables inform the actual completion time for an activity. Whole-group discussions will take longer in a large group than in a small group. While six teams can plan their skits as quickly as two teams can, your group will need more time to watch all six skits than to watch two. Remember to consider the time you will need to relocate participants to another area of your meeting room, and the time you will need if you wish to include clean-up in an art activity.

Note that the estimated times for Faith in Action activities include only the preparation and planning work your group will do when you meet together. For most Faith in Action activities, you will need to make special arrangements for participants, their families, other congregants, and sometimes members of the wider community to undertake activities outside the group's regular meeting time.

Spiritual Preparation

Each session provides a spiritual exercise that teachers may use to prepare themselves for leading the session. Taking time to center yourself within the session's purpose and content will support and free you to be present with the children and focus on providing the best possible learning experience. The exercise will guide you to call forth your own life experiences, beliefs, and spirituality and relate these to the session you are about to lead. Take advantage of these exercises as a way to grow spiritually as a leader.

Session Plan

The session plan presents every element of the session in detail in the sequence established in the Session-at-a-Glance table. Additionally, the session plan presents any alternate activities, a Taking It Home section with extension activities for families, and a Resources section. The Resources section includes all the stories, handouts, and other resources you need to lead all of the session activities. The Find Out More section suggests additional sources to help you, the leader, further explore the session topics.

If you are reading World of Wonder online, you can move as you wish among a session's elements—Opening, Closing, Faith in Action, Activity 4, Resources, etc. Each element occupies its own web page. You can click on "Print this Page" at any time. However, if you click on "Download Entire Program" or "Download Workshop" you will have a user-friendly document on your own computer to customize as you wish, with your own word processing program. Decide which activities you will use, then format and print only the materials you need.

Opening: Each session begins with a chalice-lighting ritual. To ensure safety, obtain an LED/battery-operated flaming chalice or use a symbolic chalice. The Opening is a time for centering, both for individuals and the group. Repeating the opening ritual each session helps participants build a faith language vocabulary, experience faith ritual, and make associations between ritual and the concepts of "connection and interdependence." Shape an opening ritual that suits the group, works with your space limitations, and reflects the culture and practices of your congregation.

Activities: Up to six activities form the core content of each session. The variety of activities in each session addresses different learning styles you may find among participants. In each session, one activity focuses on a story that illuminates the session theme. You may also choose to provide a coloring sheet specific to the session's story.

Presenting activities in the sequence suggested will help you provide a coherent learning experience. In general, sessions are structured to first activate children's interest in and prior knowledge of the main topic; next, offer hands-on engagement with the topic; and finally, provide opportunities to process and apply new observations and knowledge. The suggested sequence alternates listening and talking, sitting still and moving about, individual exploration and team or whole group exploration, to provide variation that will help keep five- and six-year-olds engaged and on track. As you mix and match activities to form a session that will work well for you, keep in mind young participants' journey of learning and the benefits of a well-paced session that includes different kinds of activities.

Materials for Activity: Provided for each activity, this checklist tells you the supplies you will need.

Preparation for Activity: Review the bulleted preparation "to do" list for each activity at least one week ahead of a session The list provides all the advance work you need to do for the activity, from securing parent permissions for an off-site walk to mixing Plaster of Paris before participants arrive.

Description of Activity: This section provides detailed directions for implementing the activity. For many activities, the description includes a rationale which links the activity thematically to the rest of the session and to the entire program.

Read the activity descriptions carefully during your planning process so that you understand each activity and its purpose. Later, when you are leading the group, use the description as a step-by-step how-to manual.

Including All Participants: Adaptation to include all participants should always be part of your planning process. For certain activities, an Including All Participants section suggests specific modifications to make the activity manageable and meaningful for children with limitations of mobility, sight, hearing, or cognition.

Faith in Action: An important component of the program, Faith in Action activities give children practice at being Unitarian Universalists in the world. When you lead a Faith in Action project, you create an opportunity for participants to experience the active expression of faith values.

By design, Faith in Action activities engage leaders, participants, their families, other congregants, and sometimes members of the wider community, often outside the group's regular meeting time and place. Faith in Action projects usually require special arrangements to be made in advance. Like the core and alternate activities, Faith in Action activities include a materials checklist, a list of preparations you must make ahead of time, and a detailed description of the activity.

Most sessions either introduce a new Faith in Action activity or describe a step the group will take in a long-term Faith in Action activity. Before your first World of Wonder session, decide which Faith in Action activities you will do over the course of the program. If possible, recruit a team of parents to help implement the Faith in Action activities. As you plan each session, make sure you allocate the time you'll need to move Faith in Action project(s) forward. Sessions that present Faith in Action activities also provide estimates of how much time you will spend completing this particular stage of the project.

Plan well, but remain flexible. Be aware that inclement weather, the last-minute cancellation of a scheduled visitor, or other surprises may bump a planned Faith in Action activity to a later session.

Note: Faith in Action activities can also be used independently of the World of Wonder program for a wide age span of children, or for multigenerational groups. If your congregation participates in the UUA's Green Sanctuary program, include the Green Sanctuary committee or team in helping to plan and carry out the Faith in Action activities.

Closing: Each session includes a closing ritual which includes a song and adding an image to the World of Wonder mural. The Closing ends the group's time together. As you plan each session, allow plenty of time for your Closing. Avoid rushing through it.

As with the Opening, repeating the same basic Closing at the end of each session will be both enjoyable and educational for children. Yet, you will find suggestions in each session for tailoring the Closing to the session's topic. Shape a closing ritual that fits the group and your faith community's culture and practices.

Leader Reflection and Planning: This section provides guidance, often in the form of questions, to help co-leaders process the session after it is concluded and use their reflections to shape future sessions. Be sure to share pertinent information with the director of religious education; the UUA's Resource Development Office also appreciates feedback on Tapestry of Faith programs.

Taking It Home: Taking It Home resources for each session are designed to help families extend their children's religious education experiences. You will find games, conversation topics, ideas for incorporating Unitarian Universalist rituals into the home environment, and/or online sources for the session's themes. Download Taking It Home and adapt it to reflect the actual activities your session included. You can print and copy the Taking It Home section for children to bring home, send it to all parents/caregivers as a group email, or post it on your congregation's website (or perhaps, do all three).

Alternate Activities: Most sessions feature one or more alternate activities to substitute for or add to core session activities. Sometimes the alternate activities are simpler, useful if the group as a whole seems unready for the core activities or if the group includes children with vast developmental differences. Materials checklists, preparation, and descriptions for alternate activities are provided as for Openings, Closings, core activities, and Faith in Action activities.

Resources: Use the left-hand menu online and the links in the session's Activities to find the full text of stories and all the artwork, handouts, and other resources you need to lead the session. The coloring sheets for the stories in World of Wonder can be downloaded individually from the pages where the story activity is described. Or, download the 15-page PDF packet of coloring sheets for the entire curriculum and print the ones you want.

Under "Handouts," you will find material that needs to be printed and photocopied for participants to use in the session.

Under "Leader Resources," you will find all the components you need to lead the session activities. These may include a recipe, a puzzle for you to print out and cut apart; an illustration to show the group, which you can print as a hard copy or display on a computer as a PowerPoint slide, etc.

Under the heading "Find Out More," you will find book and video titles, website URLs, and other selected resources to further explore the session topics.