Youth Curriculum, 9-1-24

Announcements:

Join us Saturday, September 7th, from 1 to 3:30 p.m., for the Youth & Family Parent workshop: “Growing Together: Nurturing Spiritual Growth in Children and Families.” Dive into strategies for deepening family connections, fostering your child’s spiritual development, and creating a spiritually enriched home. Enjoy snacks, childcare, and the chance to connect with like-minded Let’sies. Let’s learn, share, and grow together!

Curriculum Overview:

Youth will explore the concept of peace by understanding how it can be found even in challenging situations. They will engage in creative activities like puzzle-making and mandala creation to illustrate how seemingly broken or scattered pieces can come together to form something whole and beautiful. Through stories, art, and guided exercises, the children will learn practical ways to find and nurture peace within themselves, no matter what is happening around them.

September Monthly Theme: Pieces into Peace
Week 1 Value: Rising from Pieces into Peace
Affirmation: I easily tune into the Peace at the center of my soul.

Spiritual Lesson: 

The lesson also includes active games and discussions designed to help youth connect physical actions with the calming practices they are learning. By the end of the session, they will have a deeper understanding of how to access their inner peace and the importance of maintaining it in their daily lives. The children will leave with tools they can use to create a peaceful mindset, along with a personal affirmation to remind them of their newfound ability to rise above challenges with a sense of calm and clarity.

Spiritual Practice: Stop, Drop, and Breathe

Youth imagine dropping all of their worries to the ground as they exhale and breathe in peace.

Active Listening: Book/Music/Vi”eo

Book: “I Am Peace: A Book of Mindfulness” by Susan Verde

Book: “The Peace Book” by Todd Parr

Music: “The Peace Song” by the Wee Sing

Music: “Peace Like a River” by Elizabeth Mitchell

Creative Expression: Piece by Piece Puzzle and Peace Mandala

Younger children work with each other, putting together different-level puzzles and understanding how things that seem broken can come together to create something beautiful.

Older youth use art to find peace and express their inner calm, creating their own mandala designs.

Connecting: Peace Relay Race  

Youth complete a relay course while balancing a “peace stone” on their head. If the stone falls, they must stop, take a deep breath, and start again.

We will discuss how easy or difficult it was to remain peaceful during the race and create a list of possible ways each of them could make a quiet space in their homes.