Junior Youth Books

Breezes of Confirmation

Breezes of Confirmation

Breezes of Confirmation is a text used in the first year of the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme. It fosters literacy and builds the power of expression. A key concept explored in this module is that of confirmation – the understanding that God assists and helps us when we strive to achieve a noble goal.

The story follows a thirteen-year-old girl, Musonda, as well as her cousin, siblings, and friends, who are spending the school holidays together and starting to think about what choices they need to make in the present to work towards their goals for the future.

While the book maintains a certain level of simplicity in terms of sentence structure and flow, the use of difficult words is not avoided. By placing such words in different contexts, and drawing out their meaning through exercises, the text builds vocabulary and strengthens literacy skills. The book works best with young people aged 11 and 12, but is suitable for older youth as well.

Participants engage in activities such as discussion, drama, artistic expression, cooperative games, study of literature, story telling and acts of community service. The junior youth program explores different themes.

Glimmerings of Hope

Glimmerings of Hope

Glimmerings of Hope is a text used in the first year of the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme. The story follows 12-year-old Kibomi who embarks on a journey in search of his sister after his parents fall victim to civil strife. Throughout his journey, Kibomi is presented with a number of opportunities to analyse prevailing social tides and begins to see the implications of the choices he makes.

Glimmerings of Hope was written in response to the challenges faced by the many young people around the world living in the midst of civil strife. Each lesson includes a set of questions and activities aimed at fostering the ability to understand the forces at work in society and developing coherence between belief and action. The book is designed for youth aged 11 to 14.

Drawing on the Power of the Word

Drawing on the Power of the Word

Drawing on the Power of the Word is a text used in the third year of the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme. It explores concepts related to speech and action and the influence they exert on social progress.

The story follows the meetings of a fictional junior youth group who discuss the way words are used, identify the importance of linking words to noble deeds, and explore ideas related to family, friendship, education, as well as material and spiritual progress. A visit by a newspaper reporter who writes an article about the group’s activities leads to conversation about the media.

Drawing on the Power of the Word seeks to enhance the power of expression and explore the moral implications of speech and action. It consists of twenty readings, each of which is complemented by exercises in language skills. The readings begin simply, but gain in complexity both in terms of thought and language. This book seeks to explain the power of enlightened words and pure deeds in effecting social change. The book is designed for youth around 14 years of age.

Walking the Straight Path

Walking the Straight Path

Stories have traditionally been a means for conveying moral concepts from one generation to the next.

Walking the Straight Path is a text used in the first year of the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme. It brings together twenty stories from several different cultures, each with a universal theme.

Each story is relatively short and followed by a series of exercises designed to further comprehension, build vocabulary, and enhance moral reasoning.

Many of the stories are well known, have been recounted in numerous ways, and in this sense belong to the heritage of humankind. In Walking the Straight Path the stories are told in a way that teaches concepts related to moral development and develops language skills.