First Universalist Society in Franklin’s Religious Education Classes meet on Sunday mornings during our 10:00 am service. Babies and children under 6 are welcome to attend the service with their caregiver(s) or go to the Nest Nursery (details below). Unless otherwise noted, we invite children and teens to join their caregiver(s) in the sanctuary for the beginning of the service. After the Time for All Ages, which is at approximately 10:15, the congregation will sing the children, teens, and teachers to their classrooms.

In 2024-2025 Religious Education will be taught either as a whole group called The Circle or in grade based groups. We have discovered that there are gifts and benefits to both learning together as a whole group and learning with similar aged peers. To stay updated on what is happening on a given week, please see the Religious Education Schedule and/or the E-messenger which is emailed every Thursday (email office@fusf.com to be added to the email list).

The Circle – A gathering for all ages

Circle classes are a time for the community of children to come together around a common theme, usually related to a seasonal holiday or a larger service project. We’ll be exploring a topic at our first meeting – like helping out at the Fellowship Cafe, for example, or celebrating Halloween. We’ll make a plan together and then create our event or experience the following Sunday. Circle Sundays bring everyone together to share the experience of creating worship services, artistic offerings like a holiday pageant or our children’s art show, and service projects like our battery recycling drive. Everyone is welcome in the circle!

Gathering in Our Class Communities

Nest Nursery – recommended ages 0-5

The FUSF nursery will be open every Sunday from 9:30 am – 11:30 pm.  Babies and children in this age range will enjoy a morning of play. While Nest Nursery is designed for children ages 0 to 5, older children are welcome as long as they are able to play safely and respectfully with the younger children.  Caregivers will be asked to sign their children in and out of nursery each week. 

Grades K – 5

This group will start the year with an adaptation of Kathy E. Smith’s (CRE) curriculum titled Lego Valuues, which will be approximately 17 sessions long. The students will start their sessions with circle time, during which they will: light a chalice, review the covenant they wrote, read an illustrated book based on the lesson’s theme, and discuss the book. This will be followed themed play-based learning in which the children are invited to create a LEGO brick build, complete an art activity, and/or explore the theme with provided toys. Each of the lesson themes will relate to our Unitarian Universalist Values.

Grades 6 – 8

Starting the year with approximately 8 sessions of an adaptation of Rev. Caitlin Cotter Coillberg’s UU Values Challenge, the students in grades 6 – 8 will meet outside most weeks for their classes. This curriculum includes physically active problem solving in the form of a scavenger hunt, trust walk, or other challenges. Each session is represented by one of our our Unitarian Universalist Values and starts with a circle time, during which they will: light a chalice, review their covenant, play a check-in game, and learn the value for the lesson. This is followed by an active game based on the lesson’s value and a reflection.

Grades 9-12

At this time, our students in grades 9 through 12, are invited to: attend worship in the sanctuary, join the grade 6-8 class as a student, or volunteer as an assistant teacher in the younger class or nursery. If the needs of this age group changes, due to numbers or interest of current students, we will adjust what we provide.

Students participating in Coming of Age (typically grades 8 and 9) meet outside of Sunday Service time.