One of the Apostle Paul’s most famous speeches took place at Mars Hill, the Areopagus, in Athens. He noted that they appeared to be a very religious lot of people due to the sheer number of statues they had to their gods. In a brilliant move he identified the one statue that was for the [...]
Archive for the ‘Youth With Disabilities’ Category
Building Bridges (art of connecting pt. 1)
Posted: September 8, 2011 in Addiction, Adolescent Development, Depression, drug prevention, emerging adults, extended adolescence, LGBTQ Youth, Mental Illness, Parenting, Spirituality, Suicide, systemic abandonment, Teens, Youth Ministry, Youth With Disabilities0
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 6 – marketing to disabled youth and families)
Posted: August 31, 2011 in Spirituality, Teens, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Accessibility, Disability, Education, God, Hearing impairment, Student, Youth Ministry, Youth worker
It is not enough for a youth ministry program to simply be ready to serve the Disabled Youth Community. Rather, the ministry should be proactive in making the Disabled Youth Community aware of it’s accessability. It is hoped that any ministry targeting youth with disabilities will be in contact from the outset with any known families or organizations [...]
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 5 – physical disabilities)
Posted: August 31, 2011 in Spirituality, Teens, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Disabilities, Disability, Disabled, Hearing impairment, Student, Youth Ministry, Youth worker
As a general modification to the typical youth ministry gathering, it is necessary to accept different types of body positioning for people with disabilities – some people may need to stand up or move during group, and this activity should not be considered rude. Youth workers may have to keep group meetings short or schedule frequent breaks [...]
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 4 – cognitive disabilities)
Posted: August 30, 2011 in Adolescent Development, Spirituality, Teens, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Developmental disability, Disability, Education, Intellectual disability, Learning, Learning community, Student, Youth worker
Accommodations for students with cognitive impairments can include the use of visual cues, mixed media, and the repetition of major points. Experiential exercises is often effective for a young person with intellectual or cognitive disabilities. Role-playing works well for a person with developmental disabilities – the process of playing a role themselves helps them to internalize [...]
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 3 – hearing impairments)
Posted: August 26, 2011 in Youth Ministry, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Deaf culture, Hearing impairment, Language interpretation, Sign language
If a student who is deaf is using an interpreter, group members will need to take turns during discussions. If several people are talking at the same time, which is not uncommon in youth group meetings, the interpreter will be unable to communicate all the information. Requiring people to raise their hands before speaking is [...]
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 2 – visual impairments)
Posted: August 25, 2011 in Teens, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Blindness, Braille, Disability, Vision and Reading Aids, Visual impairment
Youth who are visually impaired need to orient themselves to the group setting in a different manner than those who are sighted. They will need to understand the group environment, including the position of all the participants and the format or structure of learning activities such as readings, or breakout discussions, so that they can prepare for them in [...]
Disabled Youth and Youth Ministry Gatherings (pt. 1 – overview)
Posted: August 24, 2011 in Spirituality, systemic abandonment, Teens, Youth With DisabilitiesTags: Disabilities, Disability, Disabled, God, Student, Youth, Youth Ministry, Youth worker
This is the first in a series of posts on youth ministry and youth with disabilities. While accommodations may be needed to integrate people with disabilities into your youth ministry group settings, it is important to first emphasize what all group members have in common. Youth workers can emphasize to the group that, despite a wide variety [...]
By Adam Ballard Even at the beginning of a new century, with ever-increasing awareness of disability issues, there remains a deficiency in the church’s response and service to those who are disabled. And nowhere are the needs for effective ministry to this community more obvious than in the city. Cities, for the most part, are [...]
