Youth Programs​

We warmly welcome children to our Sunday School and Your Programs.  Our Sunday School and Teen classes are designed to help children and youth to lead happy, balanced lives by through right behavior, giving kindness to others, bringing God into their daily lives, and developing a personal relationship with God through meditation. 

The Sunday School classes center around the teachings of our founder, Paramahansa Yogananda.  Each Sunday our teachers present some aspect of our Guru’s “how-to-live” principles in a way that all children can understand and enjoy.  The spiritual topic of each class is brought to life with a variety of crafts, stories, discussions, games, plays and service projects.  Through these activities, your child will explore how what we practice and talk about in Sunday School/Teen Group can be applied in their daily lives.

Meditation is the cornerstone of these teachings, so children of all ages practice meditation in the SS classes, according to the receptivity of their age level.  The class also includes prayer, chanting, the SRF Energization Exercises, and an offertory, where your child can give a small monetary offering. 

Photo Jun 24, 11 49 05 AM

Sunday School Program

(ages 3 to 12)

Our Sunday School classes are offered every Sunday morning from 10:45 to 12:00 noon. Parents and children are asked to first “check in” at the Attendance Table before the students go to their classrooms. Students may enter their class any time after 10:45:

  • 10:45 am to 11 am: Teachers conduct pre-service activities
  • 11:00 am to noon: Teachers lead exercises, chanting, meditation, & present “How-to-Live” lesson / activity  
  • Parents are asked to please pick up their children by noon, or immediately after the service ends.
  •  

Teen Program

(ages 13 to 18)

The Teen Program is currently on hiatus due to low attendance.  It will be restarted when more teens attend on a regular basis, and at that time, classes may resume monthly.

 

In the interim, teens are encouraged to attend the Temple’s 11:00 a.m. Sunday service, and the online How-to-live classes at yogananada.org.  Yet another opportunity for teens is assisting the Teachers in the Junior-aged Sunday School classes. 

Registration

All students, including visitors, are welcome to attend our programs. Parents are asked to register their child when they first attend a Sunday School or a Teen class. Visitors do not need to register, but please introduce yourselves to the Sunday School staff at the Attendance Table as you drop-off your child. If you are bringing your child for the first time, please plan to come to the Sunday School Attendance Table 10-15 minutes early.

New Series of SRF Online How-to-Live Classes for Children and Teens

Creating a Spiritual Foundation for All Ages

Paramahansa Yogananda felt deeply for the welfare of youth and took a lifelong interest in their all-around education. Building on the rich, in-person offerings developed for SRF Youth Programs over many decades, SRF is now offering online How-to-Live programs that teach young people how to create a spiritual foundation for their lives, one that becomes a sustaining positive influence long after the series of classes.

Curriculum

Children and teens will join in the practice of the SRF Energization Exercises and meditation, and engage in discussions, storytelling, and other activities that illustrate Paramahansa Yogananda’s wisdom for building strengths, facing challenges, and approaching life with the abundant joy and self-confidence that come from spiritual understanding and experiencing “how-to-live” education.

The classes are designed to:

  • Promote peer interaction and student support, similar to in-person
    gatherings, through small classes (organized with separate classes
    for boys and girls);
  • Help introduce your child or teen to Paramahansa Yogananda’s
    inspiring “how-to-live” principles, using age-appropriate approaches (see age ranges below);
  • Provide an engaging experience in an online learning environment
    that encourages uplifting fellowship; and
  • Establish spiritually grounding friendships and a sense of inner peace and security.