A Day in the Life
by Emma Dixon, Interim Coordinator of Family Programming at 1U

As the 1U RE kits make their way to the doors of our RE families this week, I thought you might like to know how they are created. 

Your intrepid 1U Religious Enrichment team is made up of myself and my conspirator, Heather Coddington.  We have different but cohesive roles at 1U and we share a common goal of doing our best for our youngest (and let’s face it, our cutest) congregants. We also have two active members of the 1U RE family keeping us on our toes… my 7 year old son and Heather’s 9 year old daughter. They’re a tough crowd, so if they approve, we know we’re on the right track.

Of course, during the pandemic we’ve had to switch to virtual RE. Or, as we prefer to call it, At Home RE. Online forums are a fabulous way of connecting in these uncertain times, but there’s nothing like talking, sharing and creating together, in person. So we produce activity kits for our RE families to share together in the safety of their homes. Parents can share their perspective and experiences with their children, who in turn offer a different viewpoint to the lesson at hand. A multi generational conversation can begin.

So how do those kits come about? And what’s in them? Well, the kits are distributed once a month and contain four weekly Religious Enrichment lessons, specially created for our little ones. The language is fun and engaging, aimed at creating curiosity and interest while relaying an important UU principle and prompting the children to ask questions. 

The lessons are based on the Soul Matters curriculum, and are written and curated by me, especially for our RE families. Part of this process includes devising crafts or activities that enhance and support each RE lesson. Young children can develop many skills through the power of play. Play helps to nurture imagination and give a child a sense of adventure. Through this, they can learn essential skills such as problem solving, working with others, sharing and so much more. When the spark of imagination is lit, wonderful things can happen!

Once the lessons are printed, the books chosen, and the activities created, we purchase the supplies needed and start filling kits for the children. I’m a self confessed stationery nerd, so putting together the supply kits is great fun. My seven year old gets final say and the bags are most definitely kid approved.

Then, the kits are divided up between me and Heather, and any wonderful 1U volunteers, and we drive all over Central Florida, dropping off bags of happiness at RE family doors. 

And those dulcet tones you hear during worship? Those are from the fabulous Heather, who records the Words for All Ages stories the week of service, to be incorporated into the worship stream. She also records the books we choose for the RE lessons which are accessed through our YouTube channel. Each RE lesson, book reading and meditation is also sent out in our weekly newsletter, and posted in our RE Facebook group. 

1U is nothing without a future. And our little ones deserve a bright future ahead of them, as they grow in faith together. It is our delight and pleasure to help them flourish.

If you would like to receive the RE newsletter, please email 
recoordinator@orlandouu.org

"A Day in the Life" article, published in the 1U Newsletter

During Covid, Religious Education kits were developed, created and distributed to the congregation's children.
The program was run from my studio, where I wrote and published RE newsletters, RE articles and activity books.
The kits were assembled and then distributed on a monthly basis.