Children & Youth
All about our Religious Exploration (RE) programs!
Street & Mailing Address:
General Contact:
Contact our Religious Exploration Staff
Kim Hartman, Director of Religious Exploration – kim@fvuuf.org
Jill Williams, Religious Education Administrative Assistant – jill@fvuuf.org
Our Philosophy & Values
Welcome to our Religious Exploration Program!
At the Fellowship, we’re passionate about offering meaningful programs that support every part of a young person’s growth—heart, mind, body, and spirit. We nurture curiosity, wonder, and a sense of connection to something greater, while also encouraging social responsibility and care for others. Our Religious Exploration program invites kids and teens to think deeply, ask big questions, and discover how they can make a difference in the world.
We are a welcoming community where people of all ages can feel at home, connected, and valued. Through our programs, we create opportunities for people of all ages to share their unique gifts and feel a true sense of belonging.
It is a joy to walk alongside the young people of our Fellowship, and we look forward to sharing this journey with you and your family.
Kim Hartman, Director of Religious Exploration
Jill Williams, Religious Exploration Admin. Assistant
The Fellowship’s Religious Exploration program:
- Offers liberal religious education for children and youth that promotes welcoming, anti-racist and anti-oppression values
- Teaches our children and youth about their UU identity, and to question and find their own spiritual path
- Increases awareness regarding issues of social responsibility
- Provides an emotionally and physically safe, secure, and nurturing environment
Religious Exploration Mission Statement:
To grow a community of compassionate young people by:
- Maintaining a safe, welcoming, and developmentally appropriate environment
- Fostering caring relationships
- Exposing them to diverse voices and religious traditions
- Engaging them in critical thinking about values in their world
- Offering opportunities for meaningful social justice work
Information about Each R.E. Program
Religious Exploration Schedule
During the program year (September through May) – See below for more details.
- Sunday 9:00 am – Sunday Coffeehouse service with nursery care. Children are welcome in the service.
- Sunday 10:10 am – Nursery care for ages 6 months to 4 years, and Fun & Friends for ages 4-10. Children over the age of 10 are welcome to attend a Middle Hour offering of their choice.
- Sunday 11:00 am – Nursery care, and religious exploration for children 4-13
- 4K-1st grade
- 2nd-5th grade
- 6th-8th grade
- TBD – Our Whole Lives (OWLs) 8th-9th grade comprehensive sexuality program
- 2nd & 4th Wednesdays 6:30-8:30 pm – Being A Teen (BATs) 8th-12th grade youth group
Fun & Friends – Middle Hour (Sunday mornings 10 am)
During the program year (roughly September through May), we have Middle Hour between our two Sunday services, held from 10:10-10:50 am. There are options for adults to learn and connect, and Fun & Friends for our kids– Usually Fun & Friends takes place in the Capek Room in the RE wing, and includes low-key time to play, build, do art, and connect with friends. Once a month Fun & Friends will be held in the sanctuary to practice with the multi-generational Joyful Noise choir.
For more details about Middle Hour and upcoming programs, click here.
For more details about our Music Ministries and the Joyful Noise choir, click here.
Weekend Camps
Twice each program year we hold a “camp” over the course of the weekend, during the day and held at the Fellowship, for everyone’s convenience! There are two camp tracks for adults to choose from, and a kids’ camp for children ages 4-10. It’s a wonderful chance to be together, learn, have fun, and connect to our Fellowship, our UU values, and to one another. One weekend at a camp is equivalent in hours to 2+ months of RE!
Nursery (Sunday mornings)
Our nursery is available every Sunday for each service for our youngest friends between 6 months and 4 years of age. Our paid and volunteer staff ensure that our little ones have fun and stay safe while their grownups participate in service or other opportunities on Sunday mornings. Grownups must sign them in when they drop off, and will receive a “pager” which will buzz in case they are needed by their little one.
Preschool to 1st Grade (Sunday mornings)
Our children, approximately ages 4 to 7 participate in our 4K-1st grade program on Sunday mornings at 11:00 am during the program year and 10:00 am in the summer. Children should be in 4K or its equivalent to enroll in this class, which includes a circle-time, sharing our joys and concerns with each other, a story, as well as activity and play time.
2nd to 5th grade (Sunday mornings)
Our children ages 7 to 10 participate in our 2nd to 5th grade program on Sunday mornings at 11:00 am during the program year and 10:00 am in the summer. Each week, children explore stories from world religions, picture books that reflect Unitarian Universalist values, and hands-on activities that make learning fun. Through exploring UU sources such as science, world religions, and stories of justice and compassion, children discover that spirituality can be joyful and engaging, rooted in love, wonder, and community, all while forming friendships and a strong sense of belonging.
6th to 8th grade – Crossing Paths (Sunday mornings)
Our middle school program welcomes kids ages 11–13 on Sunday mornings at 11:00 am. during the program year. Through the Crossing Paths curriculum, students explore the world’s religions, meet neighbors from the diverse faiths right here in our community and begin shaping their own beliefs. Families are encouraged to join field trips to share in the adventure and learning together! Crossing Paths not only enriches our student’s middle school experience but also prepares older teens to reflect on their spirituality, create a personal credo, and take their first steps on a lifelong journey as thoughtful, religiously literate adults.
8th to 9th grade – OWL: Our Whole Lives (Dates and times TBD)
Our OWL program offers teens a safe, engaging space to explore sexuality through a Unitarian Universalist values-based lens. Using the award-winning Our Whole Lives curriculum, participants receive accurate, age-appropriate information on human development, relationships, personal skills, sexual health, and society and culture within an explicitly LGBTQ+ affirming environment. OWL helps teens build communication, decision-making, consent, and interpersonal skills while reflecting on their values and the emotional, social, and spiritual dimensions of sexuality.
8th to 12th grade – Being A Teen: BATs
(2nd & 4th Wednesdays 6:30-8:30 PM, Sept through May)
Our newly updated BATs program provides a welcoming space for teens in grades 8 through 12 (ages 14 and up) to grow, connect, and thrive. Meeting twice a month, BATs balances fun with depth. One gathering focuses on laughter and community through games, snacks, and friendship. The other space for deeper conversations about life’s big questions, such as what matters most, what it means to live with purpose, and how we can respond to the challenges around us. Together we build friendships, share ideas, and look for meaningful ways to make a difference within the Fellowship and in the wider community. BATs seeks to nurture both the joy and the curiosity of being a teen.