Sunday Club Programs
Children are an important part of our community. We are committed to incorporating children into the life and mission of our congregation, and to nurture them in their own spiritual journey. Our Sunday Club program aims to be responsive to the needs of families, which means the program varies over time. The Sunday Club currently includes school aged children from 4 to 14 years, but a creche for younger children can be provided if needed.
Children participate in the first 10-15 minutes of our Service then, after our ‘Story for All Ages’, they are invited to go to Sunday Club. Your child, however, may wish to stay with you – especially if you are visiting for the first time. We welcome this.
Our Religious Education Curriculum is built around a five-stranded framework of:
- Community: Children develop a strong sense of belonging to, and identifying with, a diverse, accepting, inter-generational community.
- Wisdom: Children are exposed to the rich heritage of the wisdom of humanity which has been cultivated and passed down through the ages.
- Ethics: Rather than having a set of ethics imposed on them, children are supported to develop ‘ethical literacy’ – that is, language and tools for ethical decision making and living.
- Spirituality: Children explore, experience and express spirituality through meditation, prayer, yoga, art, and experiences in nature.
- Service: Children learn the value of serving others through deeds rather than words by participating in acts of service.
We also use the rich resources available from the Unitarian Universalist Association Tapestry of Faith Curricula (UUA.org)
We also run very popular Family Camps several times per year, usually during school holidays, at our Shady Grove Bushland site. The intentions of the camp are to have fun, make friends, develop a sense of connection with place and community, get away from screens, and spend time in nature. The program can include walks, games, yoga, talent shows, bushcare, service and science projects, campfires, candle-lit chapel visits, and eating!
Bringing children to church may not always be easy, but it can be an extremely important part of their spiritual growth. Children are beginning to learn, by the example of adults, what it means to worship and live in community. Together we can provide spiritual leadership and a positive experience for these, our youngest Unitarians.