Kindergarten Classes Join Meeting for Worship

On Wednesday, April 13, 2010, Greene Street Friends School students in Grades 7 and 8 walked over to the Kindergarten classrooms to collect their lower school partners. The students then walked together to Meeting for Worship. Paige, a Kindergarten student says, “I wanted to go to Meeting for Worship because I thought it would be a lot of fun.”

In Meeting, students and teachers sit in silence and reflect on their lives and the world around them and, if moved by the spirit within them, speak. Kindergartner Anthony says, “I liked that people got a chance to speak.” Classmate Claire adds, “I liked when Ed [Ed Marshall, Head of School] talked about the momma bird that was getting food for her babies.”

Sitting still for a half-hour can be a challenge for six-year-olds and having older students right beside them helps them to settle down. Sage, an eighth grader, says, “It’s fun and frustrating at the same time because you have to keep whispering, ‘Be quiet.’” Classmate Naeem adds, “It feels good to remember back when you were like them, going to Meeting for Worship for the first time.”

All students in Grades 1-8 attend weekly Meeting for Worship on Wednesday mornings with the Kindergarten joining them in the spring. This silent worship forms the core of Quaker practice and has been part of the curriculum for more than 150 years.

The Partners Program pairs older and younger classes for learning activities and play as well as for worship. You may find older students reading to their partners, helping them write a story or playing games like checkers or bingo. Strong cross-grade relationships build a tightly-knit learning community in which most students know each other by name. Eleanor, an eighth grader noted, “It is an interesting experience being a leader to younger students.”