The Love Surrounds Us program explores all the Unitarian Universalist Principles in the context of the Beloved Community of family/home, school, and neighborhood. 

Once upon a time in Kenya, on a peaceful river near the east coast of Africa, a herd of hippopotamus was surprised by heavy rain. The rain washed them away from their river home, toward the Indian Ocean. Then came something worse. A tsunami! In the huge, windy storm the ocean waters became strong.

Adapted from a Jewish folktale from Poland In this fun and participatory story a farmer lives in a house with his wife and children and the grandparents, and it is so noisy that he thinks he will go crazy. The rabbi advises the farmer to bring his animals into his home, too. First chickens, then...

Teach participants these sounds and actions. Invite them to listen for your cues to act them out during the story. 1. Gallop a gallop a gallop (slapping hands on legs) 2. Clippity Clop, Clippity Clop (slapping hands on floor) 3. Taking care of you (patting your neighbor on the shoulder) 4....

When Ruby Bridges was six years old and in the first grade, just like many other children, she went to a new school. Ruby's school was called William Frantz Elementary School. It was in the City of New Orleans in the state of Louisiana.

Odd Velvet by Mary E. Whitcomb, illustrated by Tara Calahan King (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1998). Permission pending. On the first day of school, Velvet's classmates brought their teacher cinnamon tea, lace handkerchiefs, and heart shaped boxes of potpourri....

Have you ever felt as if some grown-ups liked another kid more than they liked you? Maybe your teacher lets someone else get away with stuff you would get in trouble for. Maybe your mom or dad doesn't make your brother or sister do as much work as you have to do....

The story, "The Bremen Town Musicians," was told by the brothers Grimm in Germany, in the early 1800s. This session comes from Gail Forsyth-Vail's book, Stories In Faith: Exploring Our Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sources Through Wisdom Tales (Boston: Unitarian Universalist Association,...

Read or tell the story. Have you ever had to give something away that you really loved? This is a story about a little girl who gave away a puppy she really loved because she made the decision to help someone else....

A contemporary story by Elisa Davy Pearmain, based on the Jewish tradition of the Passover Seder. Before telling the story, set out a goblet for Elijah and invite a child to go and open the meeting room's door. These actions are customary during a Passover Seder. Once upon a time a there lived a...

Nelson was worried. He had been worried about something all week and this afternoon, it was going to happen. During clean-up at church school, he decided to talk to his teacher, Lilia. "Nelson, is everything okay?" she asked. "Well, not really....