COMMITTEE FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
The Committee for Children and Families (CCF) supervises the First Day School program, which includes children from infancy through the high school years. The Committee oversees planning the curriculum, acquiring materials, securing teachers, supervising and coordinating the teaching program, and encouraging service projects. The Committee works to nourish and support First Day School teachers and coordinators, helping them to make the experience of teaching an enriching part of their spiritual life. The Committee also supervises the nursery care program on Sunday mornings. On request, the Committee facilitates childcare during other Meeting events.
FIRST DAY SCHOOL
Starting on June 15th 2025 and going through November, 2025, the structure of our First Day School and Meeting is undergoing a trial schedule. Please see below for more details.
- All Sundays except for Business Meeting Sundays:
- 9:30 am -10:30 am Screen-free Meeting for Worship in the Meeting room
- 10:30 am – 11:30 am Common Hour (fellowship, reading & discussion, forums, singing, and in the fall, First Day School)
- 11:30 am – 12:30 pm Hybrid Meeting for Worship in the Meeting Room and online
- On Sundays when we have Meeting for Worship for Business (usually every 3rd Sunday): We encourage Friends to think of this as one extended Meeting for Worship, with a focus on Business in the middle, and to participate in any and all of it to the extent that they can.
- 9:30 am – 10:00 am Parallel worship on Zoom and in the Meeting Room (all are welcome to start at 9:00 am)
- 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Hybrid Meeting for Business in the Meeting Room
- 12:00 pm – 12:30 pm Hybrid Meeting for Worship in the Meeting Room and online
What does this look like for families?
Some families will want to come for the early Meeting and leave directly after, some will want to come only for the later meeting, and some may want to take part in both the early or late meeting and take part in the orbital hour activities.
- There will be nursery care on all Sundays from 9:25 am -12:45 pm.
- There will be First Day School on all Sundays during the school year from 10:30 am – 11:30 am.
- There will be childcare between 9:45 am and 10:30 am and from 11:30 am – 12:45 pm every Sunday during the school year.
During the summer (June 15th-August 31st), there will be childcare between 9:45 am -12:45 pm every Sunday, and nursery care on all Sundays from 9:25 am – 12:45 pm.
- In short, any time you come between 9:25 am and 12:45 pm, there will be childcare staff and/or First Day School teachers ready to work with your child.
A closer look at Sunday Mornings:
Children whose families attend the 9:30 am Meeting for Worship will join their parents or caregivers for the first 15-20 minutes of Meeting in the Meeting room, after which, our childcare staff will lead them to the children’s room or outside to play.
Families are welcome to stay and engage in forums, conversation, or fellowship from 10:30 am – 11:30 am while their children attend First Day School, or they may sign their children out when they are ready to go home. From 9:30 am – 10:30 am, children will be engaged by our childcare staff through stories, play, and other activities.
Between 10:30 am and 11:30 am, volunteer teachers from our community will provide a structured First Day School program between first and second Meetings for Worship. These lessons might incorporate stories, song, play, movement, art, service & stewardship projects, and lively discussions.
Children whose parents attend the 11:30 am Meeting for Worship should be checked in by our childcare providers either downstairs or outside between 11:20 am and 11:30 am. The children will be engaged by our childcare staff through stories, play, and other activities and will rejoin the Meeting for Worship for the last fifteen minutes. Families are welcome to come early and engage in forums, conversation, or fellowship from 10:30 am – 11:30 am while their children attend First Day School, or they may simply drop their children off for childcare between 11:20 am and 11:30 am.
During the school year, we provide a structured First Day School (Sunday School) program between first and second Meetings for Worship. We also provide childcare during both Meetings for Worship.
Please see Julie Cadman-Kim (julieloukim@gmail.com) if you have questions or concerns, or wish to volunteer your loving presence, stories, and/or activities to our First Day School program.
Ann Arbor Friends Meeting policy on the protection and safety of children and youth is available here: Child Safety Policy.
Registration
To enroll your children in First Day School, there is a simple registration form that must be signed by a parent or legal guardian. Please see Julie Cadman-Kim (julieloukim@gmail.com) for a copy of the form. Forms are also available on the main table outside the Meeting Room.
We look forward to creating a safe, warm, and inviting First Day School environment where our kids can experience the spiritual community of peers and adults within the meeting.
Summer 2025 (starting June 15)
The last day of First Day School before summer is Sunday, June 8, 2025. First Day School resumes on Sunday, September 7, 2025. However, we will have supervised children’s activities and child care over the summer as usual.