| 2nd Unitarian Universalist Spirit Play Conference First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Antonio, Texas Conference Dates: Friday March 2nd & Saturday, March 3rd, 2012 (9:00 am Friday through 3:00 pm Saturday) Add-on Spirit Play Training: Thursday, March 1st (9:00 am to 5:00 pm) Keynote Speaker: Sally Patton Spirit Play: How Exploring the Spirit Within Benefits All Children We are taught at an early age that achieving happiness lays outside us that someone or something else will make us happy. The structure of Spirit Play nurtures children’s ability to go within for their Truth. It does not matter what labels have been attached, all are treated with respect for their ability to access their own spiritual knowing—the inner wisdom which is true happiness. Sally Patton, Ed.M. Developmental Psychology has advocated and worked for children with special needs for over 35 years. For the past several years, she has written about and conducted workshops on ministering to children with special needs in faith communities and on spiritual parenting of children who have been labeled. Visit author's website(s) at http://www.embracechildspirit.org Come and join other Spirit Play enthusiasts at the 2nd Spirit Play Conference for two days in historic and picturesque San Antonio, Texas ● Attend two workshops to fine tune your program. ● Share your original stories. ● Connect with other church groups using Spirit Play ● Turbo-Charge your batteries to carry on! ● Optional Saturday evening famous River Walk dining event, http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com/ ● Attend Thursday’s Add-On Spirit Play Training to get started! Conference Site: First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Antonio 7150 W Interstate 10, San Antonio, Texas, 78213 USA Note: Directions from car and bus can be found at http://www.uusat.org/?page_id=2 Workshops: Creating Sacred Space for All Children in Spirit Play Sally Patton The structure of Spirit Play creates the perfect environment for children with all types of behavior and learning styles to thrive. In this workshop we will explore why the structure of Spirit Play works for all children, what makes an effective teacher, and additional strategies for managing behavior that are compatible with Spirit Play. Sally Patton, Ed.M. Developmental Psychology. Sally has advocated and worked for children with special needs for over 35 years. For the past several years, she has conducted workshops on ministering to atypical children in faith communities and on spiritual parenting of children. Sally is the author of Welcoming Children with Special Needs, a Guidebook for Faith Communities published by the Unitarian Universalist Association. Sally’s latest book is Don’t Fix Me, I’m not Broken, Changing Our Minds about Ourselves and Our Children published by O-Books, 2011. Adapting Stories into Spirit Play Format. Patti Withers How often have you found the perfect story, but not been sure how to best adapt it into a Spirit Play story? Patti Withers leads you through the process. Please bring a story you want to transform. Patti Withers, Master Level Credentialed Religious Educator, has worked with Spirit Play since 2004 with children from PreK - 5th Grade. She is the 'PW' behind the credit on several adapted Spirit Play stories. Patti currently serves as DRE at the Henry David Thoreau Unitarian Universalist Congregation in the Houston area. Labyrinths and Other Kinetic Prayers Michelle Lee Wiggles and squirming and lack of focus? It’s difficult to sit still when your body wants to move! But how do you respect a child’s inclinations to dance with the Spirit without inviting a free-for-all? What works? What doesn’t? Come discuss different ways to engage, focus and explore while still maintaining respect and real choice within Spirit Play. Michelle Lee is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist and a Veriditas trained labyrinth facilitator. She is currently serving on the board of trustees, leads the Spirit Play team, and walks a spiral path at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Greensboro. Standing on the Shoulders of Giants Dr. Nita Penfold For those who have little experience of the Montessori philosophy, Spirit Play may seem a jumble of unintelligible rituals and rules. There are reasons behind each of the parts of the morning and how we lead children to find their own answers to the ultimate questions we all have as humans. Come and learn more about the method and ministry behind Spirit Play, including Montessori, Cavaletti, and Berryman! Nita Penfold is a certified Montessori teacher (MIA), Godly Play teacher, and co-developer of the Spirit Play program. She has been Director of Spirit Play since 2004, a UU religious educator for 23 years, and adjunct faculty at Andover Newton Theological School since 2003. She currently serves the Melrose Unitarian Universalist Congregation (MA) as its religious educator. The church has three Spirit Play classes encompassing Preschool through Grade 5. Incorporating Dramatic Arts into Spirit Play Jessica Gray How can we use drama in Spirit Play? In this interactive workshop, you will practice a few specific drama games to help children "get the wiggles out" during circle time. I will also demonstrate how you can incorporate "drama" as an occasional work option in Spirit Play classes. Attendees will receive a small booklet you can take back to your teaching teams. Jessica Gray has a PhD in theatre, and she enjoys bringing her dramatic arts into religious education. She currently serves as the Director of Faith Development Ministries at First Unitarian Church of Worcester, MA (where the program is running five Spirit Play classes!). She has also started her own nonprofit and serves as the Artistic Director of the Imaginorium Educational Collective (www.imaginedcollective.org) where she offers curriculum and other creative resources. The Spirit of Love and Mystery: Addressing Theological Language Jennifer Innis Ever have a story get lost in translation? The stories in Spirit Play use a rich variety of language to invoke the sacred and convey deep values. Sometimes, though, that language can be more of a challenge than the story itself. If you have found resistance to “the mystery some people call God”, if you are struggling with adapting a story from another religion to Spirit Play, if you have successfully bridged the language gap and want to share what you have learned, or if you want more ways to talk about sacred stories when promoting Spirit Play in your congregation, join us for a conversation about theological language. The Rev. Jennifer Innis’ background includes service as an interim director of religious education and four years as a minister in religious education. After growing up as a Unitarian Universalist, Jennifer attended Harvard Divinity School for her preparation as a minister. She learned to “talk the God talk” with congregations in Massachusetts, Maine, Alabama, South Carolina, Illinois and Texas. She now serves as a parish minister for two churches in Texas and has completed the Spirit Play Training Program and is now a certified Trainer. 21st Century Religious Education: Moving Spirit Play Forward into the Digital Age Ralph Yeager Roberts, M. Div. Spirit Play is aligned to the needs, expectations, and tastes of digital natives. This may surprise us at first when we think of the reliance of Spirit Play on giving space and time to deliberately and unhurriedly learn through physical engagement using objects and felt. Compare that to the virtual world in which young people live where there is instantly new information, the world is only a key stroke away, and the stuff we see is all pixilated life. However, when we dig deeper than first impressions, we begin to see these, that 1) Spirit Play redefines the roles of teacher and student, (2) how one relates to information and 3) what compels learning—all of which align to 21st century learners and the way they approach the world. The presentation provides material useful in promoting Spirit Play but more significantly it will offer suggestions for how we will need to focus our ongoing development and practice of Spirit Play. What materials and lessons do we need to be creating if we want to empower both this method of R.E. and the young people it serves and to address the concerns we have about the projected vitality and relevance of Unitarian Universalism? Ralph Roberts is an ordained minister and a co-developer of the Spirit Play program. If you are interested in leading a workshop contact Joy Silver, Conference Director odetojoy@telus.net Workshop leaders get free registration and home stay. Registration Fees Conference: Conference registration fees include two lunches & one dinner Regular fee $ 195 USD $20 discount each for 2 or more people from the same church One Day (Friday or Saturday) $ 95 USD (no discount) Add-on Spirit Play Training: $ 125 USD with conference registration $ 150 USD without January 15th Deadline for Registrations For Registration Form and flyer, click here. Travel and Lodging Information |
Spirit Play 2012 Conference
| Registration Form and Flyer Deadline: January 15, 2012 |
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