Materials for a Faith & Play story. made out of felt, are set out carefully on a table at the end of the story.
Story materials for “Margaret Fell of Swarthmoor Hall”

Faith & Play Stories™ explore Quaker faith, practice, and witness. Inspired by Montessori learning, these stories help children find words and images to express their experiences of holy mystery. The method of storytelling is contemplative and thought-provoking for a variety of ages, and stories are used in children’s religious education and intergenerational worship.

Curriculum resources are available from QuakerBooks. There you’ll find recent editions and expanded volumes created by Friends, for Friends.

Faith & Play Stories is a group that offers trainings, demonstrations, and workshops. Their community of practice includes experienced facilitators. It’s also beginner-friendly! Friends learn from each other, explore together, and welcome the wonder that comes from life-long learning.

To access more resources for Children’s Religious Education, see FGC’s Children and Families page or visit the Quaker Religious Education Collaborative.

How Faith & Play Works

Faith & Play Stories works with yearly meetings, local meetings, Friends Schools, and individual teachers. More than 70 trainings have been offered in the US and 20 yearly meetings since this ministry began in 2010. Currently, more than 25 Friends Schools use this curriculum to support creative learning about Quakerism. Training in storytelling techniques helps adults hone skills and to be open to the wisdom of children in their care.

Faith & Play honors a tradition of storytelling in Quaker spaces. It is linked to Godly Play®, which is a way to teach stories from the Bible that emphasizes experiential learning.

This approach of working with children acknowledges that God is active in children’s lives long before they enter any classroom. At the core of this method is a deep respect for children’s spiritual lives. Participants hear and respond to the stories in age-appropriate ways. As a result, these tools work well for meetings that have a wide age range of children.

History

Faith & Play Stories grew out of a project of FGC. Learn more about its origins here.

Additional Resources

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