First Day School:
2023 Annual Report
Through our children's programming, Third Haven Friends Meeting's goal nurtures the natural spirituality of children and their families, helping them learn and use principles from Quaker history, faith, and values. We honor each child's unique talents and skills, striving to give them the tools, experiences and freedom to pursue their purposes. We emphasize the qualities (called the Quaker Testimonies) of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality and stewardship. Our curricula focus on service, social action and experiential learning, all growing from our firm believe that world needs what our children can do.
Summer Nature Mindfulness Camp:
Join our summer nature Outdoor Mindfulness Camp June 26-29 at Third Haven Friends Meeting (the Quakers). This unique camp blends mindfulness & nature play for your children on the tranquil grounds of Third Haven located at 405 South Washington St. in Easton.
Winter 2024 Update:
Hello Third Haven Families: Happy New Year to you! I hope Christmas was joyful for you and your family. I want to thank all the families who attended the holiday children’s program last month. We all made wishes for the New Year and they are still posted in the common room (if you’d like to see them.) Thanks again for all who contributed to the potluck as well.
First Day School Activities:
- Jan 7: welcome back 10am
- Jan 14: testimonies 10am
- Jan 17: Miss Cherie returns! 10am
- Jan 24: Simplicity 10am
Please contact Susan Claggett with any questions.
The Basics:
Third Haven's First Day School offers spiritual education for children from preschool through high school (in other faiths this might be called Sunday School). We hold First Day School classes during the school year (from the 2nd week in September through the 2nd week in June) from 10 to 11AM. The children join their families with the full Friends Meeting for the first 15 minutes of Meeting for Worship, then attend their classes during the last 45 minutes of Meeting for Worship. The children are taught by a mix of parents, meeting members, and paid teachers. Curriculum is developed for every season and tailored to the group of kids attending, with the help of a First Day School Committee.
We also offer other children's programs, such as summer camps. These will be posted on this page as they are organized.
More about First Day School Lessons:
Third Haven Friends Meeting is hosting another fall calendar of rich, engaging activities for children in our First Day School. Featured programs include:
NATURE SEEKERS:
These sessions focus on helping kids build their toolbox of mindfulness techniques through immersion in nature. They will be led by Third Haven's talented summer camp teachers, Cherie Baron and Kristen Hanlon.FAITH & PLAY STORIES:
These are beautiful stories about the roots of Quakerism and Quaker values, told by teachers trained in a Montessori-inspired manner.
QUERIES & REFLECTIONS:
This monthly dialogue taps into the natural wisdom, curiosity and wonder of young children to explore how to think clearly about life's biggest queries—e.g., What is philosophy? Friendship? Happiness? Justice? Love? How do we know ourselves and what role do we play in the world? For the fall, the emphasis will be on the Quaker value of Peace.
SOCIAL ACTION:
A key theme of Quaker's faith: Let your life speak. Several times a year the kids take social action, offering their time and talent to help heal problems in our community. Recent projects have focused on local child hunger, homelessness, and refugee support. For details, please take a look at the upcoming calendar here.