Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Christian Education Resources

group of friends stand arm in arm. Some have disabilities.

Some adults with intellectual disabilities may be happy to participate in classes alongside peers who do not have a disability. Others will appreciate a specialized class that takes their learning differences into account.

A separate program should respect the dignity and life experience of adults with intellectual disabilities. A separate program should respect the dignity and life experience of adults with intellectual disabilities by providing them with Christian education appropriate for their age group. We do not recommend adopting a curriculum written for children. For more thoughts on treating adults as adults, read "Learning in a Grown Up World," by David Morstad, executive director of the Bethesda Institute.

Sources of curricula for adults

Friendship Ministries offers Bible study resources for adults with intellectual disabilities and many other resources for ministry from an interdenominational perspective.

Lifeway offers the Access curriculum for adults with intellectual disabilities from a Southern Baptist perspective.

Christian Churches Disability Ministries. 52 Lesson Plans for Students with Cognitive Disabilities; many other resources.

Beyond Limits Curriculum. a 52-week Bible curriculum specifically designed for use with teens & adults with intellectual disabilities

Jesus Cares Ministries - a range of resources developed by the Lutheran Home Association

Baptism and church membership

Expressing Faith in Jesus: Church Membership for People with Intellectual Disabilities. By Ron Vredeveld. This book and its companion resource kit, written from an interdenominational perspective, guide church leaders and friends with intellectual disabilities through baptism, confirmation, or profession of faith.

Opening Doors

Friendship
Naomi Epp recounts the ways her friendship with Chantel has been a blessing for both of them.
SEEDS: Socialize, Encourage, Engage, Disciple, Serve
Making Her Presence Known
Enabling people with intellectual disabilities to fully express themselves requires turning away from society's discomfort with difference.
Camp Safari
Camp Safari for people with intellectual disabilities was a new camp this year for the Southern Ohio District Church of the Brethren.
Where's the justice in that?
Why are so few people with developmental disabilities present in our churches? Next time you go to church, have a look around, note who is in attendance and resolve to do what you can do to bring those who aren’t already there into the fold.

Connections

Register for We are Able 2023
Join other intellectually disabled and autistic young adults for a week of volunteering, worshipping, and having fun!
Disability Across Cultures
A visit to L'Arche Poland
New Dawn Educare Center
a school for children and adults with intellectual disabiliites in Taiwan
Discerning Baptism, Together
Peter and Mary Graber were uncertain how to approach baptism for their daughter who was born with an intellectual disability. Read about how this family worked with their congregation to design a very special 'Ceremony of Joining'.
Becoming More Inclusive
Slate Hill Mennonite Church near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, builds relationships with neighbors from a nearby group home.
We Are Able Workcamp
We Are Able Workcamp offers a service opportunity in the summer of 2016 for teens and young adults with developmental disabilities and other young adult volunteers.