RE Policies & Procedures

Registration

UUCF Religious Exploration classes for children and youth are open to the children of all members, pledging friends, and members of the community. We ask that children who will be attending on a regular basis be registered by their parents or guardians. Registration consists of filling out a card with some basic information about yourselves and your child(ren).

Additional registration requirements exist for the 8th grade Our Whole Lives (OWL), sexuality education, class. Parents signing their children up for this class will be required to attend a meeting describing the class and required to sign an additional permission form. Due to the nature of this class, 8th grade visitors and newcomers who begin attending regularly after October 1 will not be able to participate in OWL and will instead visit or join the Middle School Seminar class.

UUCF does not close classes. When classes become too large, they are split into two separate classes. Early registration allows us to anticipate and accommodate such occurrences.

UUCF does not charge a registration fee for members and pledging friends; others will be asked to pay a fee of $50 per child ($100 family maximum) to help cover supplies and administrative costs.

Visitors are always welcome. We do ask visitors to fill out registration cards after the 4th visit if they plan to continue so they can be included in the RE database. Please check with the RE assistant for further details.

Parental Involvement

To ensure that we have sufficient volunteers to run the program, we ask that each parent teach or serve as an RE administrator at least once every two or three years. In years when you are not teaching, you will be occasionally assigned to serve as a classroom helper for one of the primary grade classes, even if you no longer have children in a primary age classes. Please see the Volunteers Needed section for other help needed.

Safety

Safety is our first concern. Our policies, procedures, and rules all exist to ensure the safety of (y)our children.

Teens Teaching RE Policy

1. UUCF High School age teens are welcome to be a part of a RE teaching team

2. RE teaching team members with be consulted and informed of the presence of teen members

3. Teen members must attend scheduled teacher training

4. RE teaching team members younger than high school age are welcome to join teaching teams with the permission or the DRE and consultation with their parents or guardians and the other teaching team members

5. There should be no more than one teen on each teaching team, although the DRE may, in consultation with the full teaching team, make exceptions

6. Teens may not serve as lead teachers on RE teaching teams, unless the DRE and the teaching team make an exception - this is in recognition of the needs of support for teens on the teaching teams and also the experience of some particular teens

Guidelines

Classes start at 9:15 and 11:15 a.m. Class length is one hour and fifteen minutes. Teachers should be in the classroom at least 10 minutes early to prepare and greet students as they arrive.

To assist teachers and make our program the best that it can be, we request the following:

• Please do not drop children off more than five minutes before class starts. Teachers need a chance to get organized before class.
• Please try to ensure that your child is prompt. It is extremely disruptive for children to be wandering in during the first ten minutes of class.
• Please make sure your child has eaten before coming to church. We do provide a snack, but it is not meant to be breakfast.
• Please try to encourage regular attendance. This regularity helps teachers plan and your child to know what to expect. Even an every-other-week schedule is helpful as long as the teacher and student know what to expect.
• Please do not bring sick children.
• Please pick up children at 10:30 or 12:30, when class ends. Please do not pick up children before the end of class unless absolutely necessary. Notify teacher in advance if you will need to pick up your child early.

Other

We are an informal church and casual dress is encouraged, especially for younger children. Classes often go outside, so please make sure to have children dress for the weather.

In the unfortunate event that a child is disruptive in class, he or she will be temporarily removed from the classroom and put in the care of the Sunday Morning RE Administrator. If there are repeated disruptions, the RE Administrator will call the parents out of the Sanctuary and ask that they take charge of their child.

We strive to make the RE program a good experience for all involved. If your child has special needs that teachers need to be aware of, please let them know how we can best help your child feel welcome and included in the class. You may discuss this with dre [at] uucf [dot] org (Natalie Fenimore), Minister of Religious Exploration, any member of the RE Committee, or any of your child's teachers.