Director of Religious Education

Roots Class: This week, we followed the Tapestry of Faith Wonderful Welcome curriculum in which we share intangible gifts each week.  This week we opened up our gift box and found the gift of covenant.  We played Simon Says and talked about rules versus promises.  We read the ebook “I Promise” by LeBron James.  Then finally we started our class covenant, which will be a living document that we look at regularly to see if we are keeping our promises to each other.

Seedlings Class:This week, we played a fun scavenger hunt game and reviewed the 7 UU Principles. Then we looked at the text of the 8th Principle and focused in on some of the key words, like diversity, racism, and oppression. Knowing that the youth will be leading a service on the 8th Principle in November, we brainstormed what kinds of things each student would be interested in contributing to that service.

Wildflower Youth Group:This week, the youth discussed their understanding of the 8th Principle and what they would like adults to do and learn about it. They had insightful contributions to how they would like to persuade adults of the congregation to vote for adopting this Principle, including ideas about the line between education and shaming, the importance of accountability, and the need to emphasize that adopting the Principle is just the first step and that action needs to follow on a daily basis and in all areas of life, not just at Wildflower. They’ll continue to build on these ideas as they prepare to lead a Nov 7 service on this topic.

This week’s in-person meet-up included a whole range of messy and refreshing activities. Some highlights include spray painting, making slime, water squirter bowling, sprinklers, and popsicles! Here are some pics to give you a feel for the fun we had 🙂

We had a great time yesterday seeing everyone in-person!! Highlights included making hula-hoops, making art, making pom-pom catapults, eating popsicles, laughing, and enjoying the feeling of community 🙂 Here are a few pics to give you a feel for the event:

Roots Class (k-2nd grade) w/Marie:

We celebrated our last class with ducklings! I have been taking care of some brand-new baby ducks (and one gosling) and the kids got to “meet” them today. In the spirit of Wildflower’s mission to spread love, justice, and joy, we leaned into the joy today and had a lot of fun with the ducklings. Looking forward to seeing everyone in-person soon!

Seedlings Class (3rd-5th) w/Piaf & Wildflower Youth (Middle & High School) w/Solveij:

We wrapped up our spring semester by reviewing what we’ve covered so far in regards to the 8th Principle. We looked at Greta Thunberg’s famous quote urging action on climate change with the metaphor of the house being on fire and explored the parallels with the issue of systemic racism and racist violence in our country. The kids were able to make many insightful connections and we also discussed the Derek Chauvin trial verdict. We ended with a collaborative drawing game.

Roots Class (k-2nd) w/Marie:

Well, today’s class was based around my rose for the week- we are picking up some ducklings this afternoon to raise for a bit! I got to share the story with the children about what’s become a neighborhood hatch project. With some of my neighbors and friends, 133 fertilized chicken, duck, and goose eggs are in incubators in several homes, farms, and schools right now. We’ve been brought in as a volunteer to raise some ducklings for a few weeks and as the children heard, I’m pretty excited about this. In celebration of the science and wonder of life we watched a video about how a fertilized egg develops from embryo to a hatching chick, then saw one of my ducklings hatch out of their egg as that’s been what’s happening the past few days at the farm they’re at. This afternoon I bring them home and next week, for our final Zoom class, the ducklings should be here to say hello. 

Seedling Class (3rd-5th) w/Piaf & Wildflower Youth (Middle & High School) w/Solveij:

This week we got up to speed on where Wildflower is in the process of bringing the 8th Principle to a congregational vote in December. Our young people are interested in leading a service on this topic in the fall, so we discussed various methods of persuasion. How can you move people to action? The kids brainstormed various ways to communicate facts, appeal to people’s feeling & emotions, and their sense of right and wrong. In that vein, we watched a short TEDx video of a spoken word artist who made an unlikely connection with a hostile audience and then listened to a song (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tkmkwufRVw) while we doodled any images that came to mind and shared how it made us feel. Finally, we ended with a collaborative storytelling game. It was great to see everyone!

Roots Class (k-2nd w/Marie)

Hello everyone! Some news from our class: we are planning the end of our Zoom times and looking forward to in person gatherings this summer. 
The first will be cupcakes and play and the second will be celebrating our class graduation and my last Sunday as Roots teacher.
More information as we plan for in person gatherings throughout summer with a focus on play and connection. Times are being worked out, location will be outdoors at Wildflower. 
I am stepping down as a staff member but continuing on as a member of the CYRE team and member of Wildflower Church, my family’s spiritual home. 

Seedlings (3rd – 5th) & Wildflower Youth (Middle School & High School) w/Piaf & Solveij:

This week we revisited the 8th Principle and explored how it relates to last week’s Earth Day. Solveij shared video clips of activists in different Texas cities from Jolt Action & Sunrise Movement as they spoke about local issues and carried out several banner drops. The concepts of environmental racism & climate refugees came up in the course of the discussion, both of which we then connected back to the 8th Principle. We will be thinking of ways to connect with these groups going forward since the kid said they would like to participate in these types of actions in the future.