As a child, Joseph Priestley noticed something that would influence the rest of his life: If you keep a bug in a jar for too long, it will die. At the time Joseph Priestley didn’t understand why that was true—nobody did. No one really studied the air; it was something everyone took for granted.

There once was an inquisitive, thoughtful girl named May. She was born in Belgium, about 100 years ago. She lived there only a few years until the German invasion in 1914. Fleeing Europe, May Sarton and her family came to live in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where May’s father became a professor.

If Pandora were alive today, she would probably sneak a peek at every gift under her Christmas tree. However, Pandora lived in very ancient times, according to a Greek myth. She herself was a gift, a special gift that Zeus sent to Earth....

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Story, "One Square Inch" Optional: Computer with Internet connection, and large monitor or digital projector and screen Preparation for Activity Read the story and prepare to share it with the group. Read the discussion questions. Choose those that...

From The Kids' Book of Awesome Stuff (Brotman-Marshfield Curriculum, June 2004). Used with permission. Take a deep breath. The air you just breathed in is different from the air you just breathed out. The air you breathed out is a gas that can suffocate you if too much of it gets in the air. That...

We gratefully acknowledge Dawn Publications for permission to use the text of the children's picture book The Tree in the Ancient Forest by Carol Reed-Jones. This is the ancient forest. This is the three-hundred-year-old tree That grows in the ancient forest....

In a time not so long ago and in a place not so far away, there lived a boy named Arthur Lismer. Arthur always had a pencil in his pocket, because Arthur loved to draw. He drew clouds. He drew birds. He drew flowers. He drew many beautiful things. And he drew pictures of stones....

Daniel firmly grips his paddle and pulls hard against the water. He watches as the paddle tip dives below the surface, then leaves behind a tiny whirlpool as the paddle rises above the water. The kayak glides forward....

Noah's Wife: The Story of Naamah (C) Text 1996 Sandy Eisenberg Sasso. Permission granted by Jewish Lights Publishing, Woodstock, VT, www.jewishlights.com.

Adapted from The Family Finds Out by Edith Hunter (Boston: Beacon Press, 1966).Ellen was sitting up on a branch of the apple tree, swinging her legs. Her mother was looking over the vegetable garden. "Want to see a nice fat green worm?" her mother called. Ellen jumped down from the tree and ran...

Adapted from "The Grumpy Gecko" in The Barefoot Book of Earth Tales by Dawn Casey and Anne Wilson (Cambridge: Barefoot Books, 2009). Used by permission. In a shady glade, the chief of the jungle slept. Until, GECK-O! GECK-O! GECK-O! Tiger woke up with a snort. He opened one yellow eye....

Based on a tale told in the 1700s by the Jewish teacher, Jacob ben Wolf Kranz, Maggid of Dubno....

"We Got Here Together," by Kim Stafford, is reprinted by permission of the author from We Got Here Together, by Kim Stafford, illustrated by Debra Frasier, published by Harcourt Brace in 1994....

From The Everything Seed by Carole Martignacco, illustrated by Joy Troyer, (Berkeley, California: Tricycle Press, 2006). Used with permission. Carole Martignacco is a poet, singer, grandmother, and former RE director. A Unitarian Universalist minister, she currently serves as minister to the...

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Large poster board or art paper, and tape Color markers Preparation for Activity Identify a place to post a Graffiti Wall of Wonder. If you have a wall space everyone can reach easily, tape blank poster board or art paper to the wall....

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity A gong, bell, or other musical noisemaker Preparation for Activity Read the guided meditation aloud several times so you become comfortable with the words and the pauses. Description of Activity A brief guided meditation sparks participants’...

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Three or more large magnifying glasses Three objects that would be interesting to examine closely, such as a rock, a granola bar, a leaf, a marble or a bowl of marbles or an article of clothing Paper and pencils for all participants Optional:...

Clyde had finished his farm chores. Now he was free to spend the rest of the evening doing his favorite thing: stargazing. He got out his telescope and he looked up into the night sky. While he looked at the moon and the stars he wondered about the universe....

I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see. — John Newton This session introduces Amazing Grace: Exploring Right and Wrong, giving a sense of its nature, a taste of its activities, and an experience of its richly mixed learning and fun. We explore the session's core question—"What...