REGISTER now for Fall 2023 programs
for children & youth at MLUC!

Children of a variety of ages, genders, and racial backgrounds seated around small tables outdoors participating in faith development activities

Families are invited to register whether they plan to attend in-person church on Sunday mornings, or would like to stay connected, but may not attend regularly on Sundays.

Specific age-grouped classes for kids and youth ages 3 – 18 will form when we reach a minimum enrollment of five families planning to attend regularly. See individual class descriptions for details.

Nursery Care for ages 0 – 2

We offer nursery care from 9:30 – 11:30 every Sunday with two trained, background checked, experienced caregivers.

This is a drop-in program. Older children welcome if space allows.

Celebrating Me & My World group for ages 3 & 4

This class celebrates the wondrous qualities children experience in themselves and expands outward to the things and people around them. Children are included in church as a place of belonging and enjoying through simple rituals such as a sharing circle, story time, exploring, and closing which are repeated each week.

This group will only meet if we have regularly attending kids in this age group.

Soul Matters Workshop for K – 5th grade

Soul Matters Workshops provide children the opportunity to explore stories and themes each week in Making, Movement, or Meditative workshop spaces. Each Sunday’s story/theme will relate to the worship service and correlate with these monthly themes: Welcome, Heritage, Generosity, Mystery, Liberating Love, Justice & Equity, Transformation, Interdependence, Pluralism, and Renewal.

This is a Sunday morning drop in program; all in this age range are welcome. (3 & 4 year olds included if Celebrating Me & My World does not meet.)

Elementary Our Whole Lives (OWL) for K-1st graders and 4th/5th graders

OWL for K & 1st graders supports parents in educating children about birth, babies, bodies and families. Following a Parent Meeting and Parent/Child Orientation, the sessions engage children with stories, songs and activities and include a weekly HomeLink – a homework project for parents and children to do together. Promotes dialogue between parent and child.

OWL for 4th & 5th graders helps tweens to gain the knowledge, life principles, and skills they need to understand and express their sexuality in holistic, life-enhancing ways. The revised edition includes new topics such as body image, social media/Internet, and consent; as well as an updated and deeper exploration of gender identity and roles.

These groups are only available to families who register ahead of time and attend the parent orientation.

Stepping Stone Year for 2nd & 3rd grades

Young people at the “age of reason” are invited to learn about our Unitarian Universalist history, heritage and identity. In this 6 week program, they work together to create a class plaque with the Clay Lady, and prepare a presentation to share with the congregation in a worship service, affirming their faith journeys as young Unitarian Universalists.

This group is only available to families who register ahead of time.

Crossing Paths for 6th & 7th grades

This group will learn about a variety of faith traditions and the ways their religious paths differ from our own. Study of each religion will include a classroom Sunday, a visit to a local congregation or group, and a chance to reflect on how what was experienced on that visit can inform our own UU faith journeys. This is a drop in program; all in this age range are welcome.  However, note that some Sundays will include a field trip to a neighboring place of worship and prior registration is needed to participate on these dates.

Junior High OWL for 8th & 9th grades

OUR WHOLE LIVES (OWL) is a comprehensive, faith-based sexuality education program providing accurate, developmentally appropriate information about a range of topics, including relationships, gender identity, sexual orientation, sexual health, and cultural influences on sexuality. Scheduling is TBD based on families and teachers schedules.

This group is only available to families who register ahead of time and attend the parent orientation.

Youth Group for 8th – 12th grades

Youth group will meet alternately with Jr. High OWL and will pursue projects possibly including a mission trip. More details TBD!

A middle-aged white man playing with a small white girl viewed from the back, with a rainbow-themed beach ball

Service Opportunities for Families and Adults

If you’d like to volunteer in the faith development program, we welcome your support! All volunteers must provide current Pennsylvania clearances (click HERE for detailed instructions on how to obtain these), and must have been participating at MLUC for at least 6 months. Please contact re@mluc.org to volunteer!

Some of the roles that we need help in are:

Teach Pre-K group (preparation required)
Help in the Pre-K group (no preparation required)
Lead the Soul Matters Workshop group (preparation required)
Help in the Soul Matters Workshop group (no preparation required)
Teach OWL (training in advance required)
Teach Crossing Paths group for 6th & 7th graders (preparation required)
Work with the Youth Group (preparation required)
Plan a social justice project (preparation required)
Staff a social justice project (no prep required)
Plan a community building field trip or event (preparation required)
Staff a community building field trip or event (no prep required)
Serve on the Children & Youth Faith Development Committee (preparation required)