Spirit Play Information Page |
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| This year we are expanding our number of Spiritplay classes three-fold! All children 4yrs through first grade will be in one of our multi-aged Spiritplay groups. These children are assigned to a particular spiritplay group; they participate in classes following the first portion of our service, which they attend with their families |
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| In 2006-2007, we will spend our year exploring the 7 UU 'Promises', the stories of some of our UU heroes, and our own congregation's history. |
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| We are so happy to welcome your child into the exciting world of Spiritplay! If you are not already familiar with this exciting Montessori-based approach to religious education, you may find this basic information helpful! |
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What is Spiritplay? |
| Spiritplay is a Unitarian Universalist adaptation of the Godly Play and Montessori Methods developed by Nita Penfold D.Min., Rev. Ralph Roberts, and Beverly Leute Bruce. First tested at the Winchester and Milton U.U. churches. A number of other churches are now using the adaptation. |
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| We see the purpose of religious education as helping children in living into their own answers to the existential questions, as in Jerome Berryman’s work: |
| Where did we come from? |
| What are we doing here? |
| What is our purpose? |
| How do we choose to live our lives? |
| What are our gifts? |
| How do we use them? |
| What happens when we die? |
| Why do we die? |
| Why are we lonely and sad sometimes? |
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| We use the Montessori approach and Berryman’s morning-as-worship approach for the structure of the morning. As in Montessori, the key elements are the classroom environment and the teachers. These elements free the children to work at their own pace on their own issues. |
| 1) The Door Keeper helps the children get ready to enter the classroom as parents drop them off. |
| 2) The Storyteller leads the circle in the story of the day, followed by wondering. |
| 3) Children choose an art response or to use a story previously heard, helped by the Door Keeper. |
| 4) Children clean-up, followed by a feast (snack) with the Storyteller. |
| 5) Leave-taking is a formal process of saying good-bye to the Storyteller when parents arrive and children are ready. |
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| Stories have been developed in the following categories using current children’s literature, myths, and religious stories that cover answers from various sources to the existential questions above. Each set of stories is color-coded or symbol-coded to the shelf for easy access and return. |
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| Unitarian Universalist Focal Shelves: Lessons pertaining to our central story of agreeing to live in community and right relationship, including our central symbol, the Flaming Chalice, church history, U.U. history and U.U. figures. |
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| Promises: Lesson pertaining to our principles and stories illustrating each principle. |
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| Sources: Lessons pertaining to the sources of our principles and our faith, including Judeo-Christian stories from Godly Play. On the top shelf will be pitchers with the symbols of the sources on them, including U.U. The pitcher used for the feast juice will be one relating to the story of the day. |
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| Stories of the Mystery: Stories relating to the Mystery that some people call God. |
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| Beginnings and Endings: Stories from all cultures and science telling of our beginnings and what might happen when we die, including concepts of heaven and hell, and reincarnation. These shelves will include materials on the Universe Story and the story of Earth. |
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| Sacred Places: Table containing a Jerusalem Temple, and other sets of blocks representing those spaces religions hold sacred, including a labyrinth. |
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| Art Shelves: Contains materials for art responses including paint, clay, paper, crayons, markers, glue sticks, templates for U.U. and source symbols, and easels. |
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| Cleaning Supplies Shelf and Snack Preparation Shelf: Child-size materials for clean-up and snack preparation. There is also a hand-washing station, and a station for clean-up from painting. |
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| Church Corner: Model your sanctuary space with an altar table, lectern, and those materials needed for ceremonies at your church including child dedications, coming of age, marriage or union, memorial services, flower communion, water ceremony, etc. |
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Developmental Framework/ What makes Spirit Play unique? |
Beverly Leute Bruce |
| 1) Modeled after Jerome Berryman’s Godly Play method (Episcopalian) |
· Strong Christian and liturgical base |
· Storytelling model |
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| 2) Draws from and integrates Montessori technique/ set of materials/ philosophy about how children learn |
| A. “Prepared Environment”- structure encourages freedom of choice |
Teacher is secondary (vs. traditional didactic model) - link to the materials |
| B. MULTISENSORY APPROACH: Stories allow children to: |
*hear/see/touch/ move (kinesthetic) as they handle the materials to make meaning
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| Powerful way to learn: CONCRETE MATERIALS to discuss abstract concepts: |
**Children handle the materials to make meaning of life’s questions |
| C. Allows application to children across many developmental levels and abilities- including children with special needs |
| · Routine: each day begins and ends the same |
| · Use of rugs to define space |
| · Concrete over the abstract |
| D. Vertical grouping: mixing ages |
| Children work with materials at own pace and level |
| Can work on individual issues |
| Hear the story differently each time- take away new meanings and |
| Make connections in social environment- Vygotsky theory |
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| 3) USE OF WONDERING QUESTIONS |
| Exposes children to the language of the UU faith- laying the foundation for understanding such
language when used by others, and then assimilate and make it their own vocabulary |
| -Experience can be presented symbolically by language |
| EX: “justice”, “faith”, “respect for others”, “inherent worth and dignity”, “spirit of love and mystery |
| - make it their own |
| REPEATED exposure: they first acquire an understanding of word/phrase and then integrate into their own
speech and “ make it their own” |
| EX: Children’s use of “spirit of love and mystery” |
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| 4) RESPONSE TIME: creative art response (paint, clay, church corner, book making, stencils, etc) |
| Children express themselves in many languages….art, music, dramatic play, play with puppets,
construction materials |
| **For young children, oral language is not their strong suit |
| **How do children construct their knowledge of the spiritual? God? The holy? |
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| “Learning happens when children use art to connect their prior knowledge, gain meaningful
new information, generate new ideas, and practice valuable skills” (Lillian
Katz, ECE) |
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| 5) Develops a “COMMUNITY OF CHILDREN” |
| **Adults and children thinking, learning and doing together” |
| Group cohesiveness, friendships, helping each other (prosocial skills), taking turns with materials, exchanging roles |
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| Respect and trust are essential for creating certain kinds of rhythms and harmony in the classroom |
| **comfort in raising sensitive issues |
| EX: “My grandmother died….” |
| Children can synthesize, reflect, analyze, imagine in comfortable, predictable environment |
