Celebrating Whatās Already True About Your Children
The Quaker emphasis on Truth creates a wonderful jumping off point for conversations with children about special capacities they have (spiritual gifts) and ways those gifts help them to engage with others in ways that are loving and true and help others to be their best selves. Affirmations convey the tone for our Quaker parenting as positive and building on the good already within our children. All gifts, capacities, and abilities are important to create a whole family or community. (See Romans 12:4)
Invite children to make a sticker or draw a picture.
Tell them these are Quaker Affirmation Stickers/pictures that say something that is true about them. Emphasize that they get to choose what that is. Remember, children are fully spiritual beings!
Show them some options: I am Kind; I can Listen; I am a Helper; I am Grateful; I Share Toys & Turns; I Love the Earth.
Parents or caregivers can help support making a choice or two, if needed. Invite the children to decorate stickers with small rubber stamps to make it their own or invite them to draw a picture with their Affirmation highlighting their special gift. A great companion storybook is Jackās Talent by Maryann Cocca-Leffler.
A Friendly New Yearās Party ā Good anytime of the year!
Use the affirmations to celebrate the New Year on a positive note! Raise up what is already true about F/friends and family, saving a litany of resolutions and promises to try harder for another time.
Follow up the Affirmations with āA Bowl of Good Wishes.ā Have each family member or F/friend write a wish or hope for someone else. Fold them up and put them in a festive bowl. Settle into a little silence and pass the bowl around, each person drawing out one wish and reading it to the group. Finish the evening with a Game Night for All Ages.
The Quaker Religious Education Collaborative (QREC) is an international, cross-branch, grassroots network of Friends sharing a stewardship for lifelong Quaker faith formation through religious education. We formed in April 2014 and now serve more than 300 Friends in our network. We actively engage and support each other across languages and continents. We gather for regional and annual conferences and offer monthly Conversation Circles via an online conferencing platform.Ā
We share leadership as part of our collaborative mission, making decisions using the Quaker āsense of the meetingā process, sitting in expectant, worshipful waiting for the emergence of shared truth. Read moreā¦
Working Circles
Our workĀ takes place in ācirclesā or small groups of Friends who labor on a common task, usually meeting by video conference due to the geographic diversity of the membership. Read moreā¦
The Resource Library
Finders Guide, a sampling of the collection
The QREC Resource Library is a place to share lessons and other educational information in support of our work as Quaker religious educators. This library is a forum for curricula, articles, videos and other educational materials on Quaker themes. You will also find principles, policies and procedures to strengthen operation of your child, youth and adult religious education programs.
Find renewal, companionship, and help for nitty gritty issues in Quaker religious education, all the while opening spaces for Spirit to work and listening together for Godās way forward.
QREC holds an annual conference and retreat. In addition we hold online Conversation Circles and post other religious education events as we learn about them.
Online conferences for Quaker religious educators to share about their work. Conversations are scheduled for two sessions per topic to encourage international participation. Ā Join the conversationā¦
Other Events
Religious education events of interest to Quakers from all parts of the world. Please let us know about upcoming online or in-person events happening in your area. See the list of upcoming eventsā¦
Love at the Heart
Spiritual Practices
Discernment
Active Caring
Quaker Family Culture
Finding the Light
Faith at Home
Home is the heart of faith formation for all families. This is especially true for Friends. As an experiential religion, Quakerism is best learned through living in loving community. Indeed, the vast majority of faith formation for our young Friends happens at home in the busy swirl of daily life.
The Quaker Religious Education Collaborative (QREC) is an international, cross-branch, grassroots network of Friends sharing a stewardship for lifelong Quaker faith formation through religious education. We formed in April 2014 and now serve more than 300 Friends in our network. We actively engage and support each other across languages and continents. We gather for regional and annual conferences and offer monthly Conversation Circles via an online conferencing platform.Ā
We share leadership as part of our collaborative mission, making decisions using the Quaker āsense of the meetingā process, sitting in expectant, worshipful waiting for the emergence of shared truth. Read moreā¦
Working Circles
Our workĀ takes place in ācirclesā or small groups of Friends who labor on a common task, usually meeting by video conference due to the geographic diversity of the membership. Read moreā¦
The Resource Library
Finders Guide, a sampling of the collection
The QREC Resource Library is a place to share lessons and other educational information in support of our work as Quaker religious educators. This library is a forum for curricula, articles, videos and other educational materials on Quaker themes. You will also find principles, policies and procedures to strengthen operation of your child, youth and adult religious education programs.
Find renewal, companionship, and help for nitty gritty issues in Quaker religious education, all the while opening spaces for Spirit to work and listening together for Godās way forward.
QREC holds an annual conference and retreat. In addition we hold online Conversation Circles and post other religious education events as we learn about them.
Online conferences for Quaker religious educators to share about their work. Conversations are scheduled for two sessions per topic to encourage international participation. Ā Join the conversationā¦
Other Events
Religious education events of interest to Quakers from all parts of the world. Please let us know about upcoming online or in-person events happening in your area. See the list of upcoming eventsā¦
Love at the Heart
Spiritual Practices
Discernment
Active Caring
Quaker Family Culture
Finding the Light
Faith at Home
Home is the heart of faith formation for all families. This is especially true for Friends. As an experiential religion, Quakerism is best learned through living in loving community. Indeed, the vast majority of faith formation for our young Friends happens at home in the busy swirl of daily life.