Universal Design for Children’s Ministry
Today’s architects design buildings with the expectation that people of all abilities will need to access the building. They know the elevator will be used by the person who is a wheelchair user as well as people who choose the elevator instead of climbing the steps. This idea of universal design for the physical building includes many features such as braille plaques, curb cutouts, sounds associated with each passing floor on the elevator, and bathrooms built for all kinds of building visitors. In general, 100% of the people who visit will benefit from these built-in options.
Many educators have also picked up on the idea of universal design, focusing on the area of learning. They build lessons with many options, recognizing that some students will write a report while others will give a speech or make a visual presentation.
Architects and educators expect from the beginning of the project that people of all abilities will be part of the environment. It’s far easier to make this type of plan from the beginning of the project or lesson than to retrofit a building with an elevator or add in an idea for students of differing abilities later in the session.
With universal design as our model, what preparation steps and options can we plant within our children’s ministries, recognizing that God creates children with great variation? Here are some ideas to get you started.
Many educators have also picked up on the idea of universal design, focusing on the area of learning. They build lessons with many options, recognizing that some students will write a report while others will give a speech or make a visual presentation.
Architects and educators expect from the beginning of the project that people of all abilities will be part of the environment. It’s far easier to make this type of plan from the beginning of the project or lesson than to retrofit a building with an elevator or add in an idea for students of differing abilities later in the session.
With universal design as our model, what preparation steps and options can we plant within our children’s ministries, recognizing that God creates children with great variation? Here are some ideas to get you started.
Creating a Welcoming Children’s Ministry
- Train your volunteers. It’s a guarantee that your ministry will include children with varied attention spans, sensory processing, mood regulation, behaviors, backgrounds, motor skills, reading and writing abilities, and much more. If volunteers are expecting trail mix rather than Pringles and have some good tools to use, you will have a more equipped team of leaders. (Invite local experts or use tools from the resource section).
- Physically assess your meeting areas. Would you participate in an event if you knew you could not use the bathroom or get a drink of water? We need to make sure our area is ready to receive children with varied physical abilities. Consider completing an accessibility audit of your children’s ministry area and your church building in general to help highlight some of the components that are important. There is a link to an audit in the resource section below, or you can get more information at crcna.org/disability.
- Design your registration form to gather information about unique areas of strength and challenge for each child. As parents register for the year, ask questions such as “What do you see as your child’s areas of strength? (paying attention, making friends, reading, writing, technology, athletics…)”. Then ask, “What do you see as your child’s areas of challenge? (paying attention, making friends, reading, writing, technology, athletics…).” These questions allow you to learn more about each child and may also open a door to further conversations with parents as needed.
- Offer information in advance. Consider how a hotel posts pictures, reviews, amenities, and prices that customers can see ahead of that visit. Most of us take advantage of this information. There are many children and parents who would appreciate knowing more about the schedule, people, and activities of your children’s offerings. If your website has the capacity, consider posting a video or pictures of what to expect in your programs. If that is not possible, consider writing a short booklet with pictures and words describing your offerings. Children who come equipped to know the people, order of events, and some of the expectations will have a much easier path into your ministry.
- Offer opportunities to visit prior to beginning. After the rooms are arranged and the leaders are in place, consider offering an open house of sorts. Allow children to explore the area and meet the leaders without the pressure of curriculum or activity expectations.
- Recruit one or more volunteers for your team who are comfortable stepping in beside a child as a “coach” or “buddy” when needed. The person or people who fill this particular role should be flexible and comfortable moving from space to space or coaching an unexpected visitor or a child having a difficult day. This is a critical role as well for short-term programs such as VBS.
Preparing Your Space
- Always choose curriculum and activities that are built with children of all abilities in mind. Even as you choose games or other activities to do within your children’s ministry, look for multiple access points for everyone in the room. For example, when choosing toys for a younger children’s area, consider materials for varied interests such as blocks for building, puppets for pretending, sandboxes for searching, tunnels for crawling, or easels for painting. If you are choosing a game to play, look for activities that welcome fast runners, slow movers, and children who are wheelchair users. The Dwell curriculum is an example of a curriculum that was written with all users in mind; activities are designed so that all children can participate equally.
- Stock materials that match varied fine motor ability. Often we have crayons, scissors, pencils, and other tools available for use. Consider stocking up on crayons of varied sizes, pencils that may be different sizes and shapes, scissors that are more typical along with scissors that are spring loaded to open more readily. Stock some pencil grips. By having a good selection of fine motor materials, you will increase the likelihood of children finding a good match for their own hands and fingers.
- Plan to use a picture/word schedule of events that is on display for the entire group. Let the participants know what to expect. (Make your own or find the materials at allbelong.org – Inclusive Worship Kit).
- Plan to use a picture/word schedule of events that is on display for the entire group. Let the participants know what to expect. Many individuals appreciate a visual schedule. Consider using an order of events for your group. Post them on a tackboard or attach them with magnets to a board. Some group members might like to remove that icon when that activity is over. Smaller versions of the icons can be used when working with one individual.
(Examples of Orders of Worship and visual schedules at withministries.org/worship-as-one/#examples) - Stock equipment for children who may have differently wired sensory systems. Order noise cancelling headphones children can wear if the room gets too loud, offer some weighted lap pads or animals for children who need to feel more stable, stock larger carpet squares for children who like to have a defined space to call their own, supply leaders with visual timers so children can see the time elapse between activities, offer a bin of quiet fidgets for each meeting area for children who listen best during quieter times with something to hold.
- Consider creating a space where children can experience a quiet area for some time as needed. It may contain a rocking chair, calm lighting, books to read, bean bag chairs, a bin of rice or sand with a few objects to find, and other calming, quiet activities. Make sure this is not presented as an option for misbehavior, but a choice when someone may need a break or a quiet area for a few minutes. Some congregations have a volunteer who staffs this area during children’s meeting times.
