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by Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane, Editor
June/July 2006
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Editor’s Note: This story was a two-part series originally printed in the May 3rd and 17th issues of the Mass. Conference SPOTLIGHT enewsletters. For a free subscription to the twice-monthly enewsletter that promotes local church vitality, you can call 508-875-5233 and speak to Registrar Jane Clark, email her at clarkj@macucc.org or subscribe online at www.macucc.org/spotlight. |
Like many United Church of Christ congregations these days, the members of the United Parish of Lunenburg, UCC, have had several discussions on the topic of hospitality. They have addressed Open and Affirming concerns as well as developed ways to be more welcoming to visitors. But the Lunenburg Church members have taken that concept a step further and asked themselves how they can be more welcoming to the new children attending Church School, especially those who have learning or developmental issues.
“We were hospitable before,” says Ruth Ann White, Education Coordinator. “But the God is Still Speaking campaign helped make it a topic of discussion within the church so we could really crystallize our thoughts and develop concrete ways to be more welcoming. We discussed what it means to be welcoming, including toward children. We asked ourselves, ‘what can we do to make the new kid more comfortable?’ Then we asked our children that question and they offered ways they could help someone new to feel welcome and included.”
White attended a seminar sponsored by the Massachusetts Conference, which offered direction for developing a religious education curriculum and introduced the widely- used Workshop Rotation Model. The model, which explicitly takes into account that there are multiple kinds of intelligences and learning styles, promotes the teaching of major Bible stories and concepts through child-friendly multimedia workshops. Each story is taught over a 4-5 week cycle in an effort to develop lasting memory and understanding of the concepts.
Since the teachers agreed that children generally learn better with repetition and in a creative learning environment, they adopted the program for their own church. Participatory discussions were added, as well as workshops exploring a variety of media such as computers, dance, art, drama, song, games, storytelling, and crafts. Instead of going to the same classroom each week and discussing one particular Bible story, the children are now ushered to their assigned workshop and experience the same lesson four different ways in four weeks. There are adults, who act as ‘shepherds’ guiding them to the workshop and giving the children a sense of consistency and security.
“Children learn in their own special ways,” explains White, “and we think this method has a bigger impact in their learning and remembering of the lessons that are taught than when they were just being lectured.”
Including all children
Teaching different children with different learning styles is a challenge; but the challenge is even greater at Lunenburg. It seems to Ruth Ann White, the Education Coordinator, that in their membership there is an unusually high number of children with learning disabilities, including attention-deficit disorder; hyperactivity, autism, and Asperger’s syndrome. White took the Rotation Model a step further, recognizing its potential to accommodate children with special needs; she then implemented the Model in a more effective way for all children.
White sat down with her volunteer teachers, who were supportive and willing to accommodate the unique needs of these children. Instead of running from the challenge, they came up with ways to involve those children who normally would be left in the pews with their parents or whose parents wouldn’t attend church at all out of fear of being stared at or rebuked.
The pastor, Andy Burr, recruited a member of the church who worked with the disabled to “shadow” a sixteen year old autistic boy in the high school class. The member offered direction and tips to the teachers and students. White adds, “One student’s mom, a new member, spoke up during a membership meeting. She said that this program was wonderful for her son. He was nervous at first, but having a mentor beside him gave him the strength he needed and he felt he was accepted by the group. In fact, the mother said that this is the only place he feels completely accepted, besides his special school. He genuinely trusts the two teachers and that’s a huge step for him.”
As a result of this success, White assigned volunteer mentors to shadow other children to ensure their needs were being met and to help alert the teachers if there was an issue. One mom of an autistic teen shadowed a younger autistic child for a few weeks, and then helped train new mentors. That small gesture helped put to ease the mind of the parent of the younger student. According to White, the mentor’s support and the teachers’ openness and willingness to learn was a ‘magic’ combination.
“We have a treasure chest of parents with expertise in the special needs area,” says White. “These parents are informed and have experience with some of the issues that might crop up, and they are more than willing to help others understand. We have discovered through the parents’ guidance that hand chimes that sound so sweet to most members might bring tears of pain to a child with sensory issues. Hyperactive children who cannot sit still are more involved and less disruptive to the rest of the class if they don’t have to fight their impulses and can get up and move around during the lesson. Deviating from a schedule might upset autistic children so much that they become disruptive in class, but can be calmed as soon as the scheduling issue is addressed.
“We are very open about the different needs of others,” says White. “Rev. Burr involves all the children in the service and we encourage those with special needs to do the readings or get involved in special events. We have seen the smiles and looks of pride on the faces of those children who may otherwise be ignored, or worse, reprimanded. Andy models for us acceptance and gratitude for the presence of all the children. The congregation has ‘caught’ this spirit of inclusiveness.”
The mother of a middle school student with sensory and social issues says, “My son has found a hospitable and friendly environment at the United Parish. His strong verbal skills are brought out in this place even more than at school. The church has nurtured some of his gifts that we wouldn’t have been aware of. He really shines at church! Although it’s years away, ideas have been sparked for college scholarship opportunities that wouldn’t have been realized before. That wasn’t the reason we started going to church, but it has been a wonderful by-product. God sometimes does work in mysterious ways.”
Sandra Osborne, Lunenburg member, parent of an autistic child, and special needs advocate, cannot speak more highly of the program. “I knew I wanted my son to be included but he is in a special school for autism. And I thought ‘how am I going to do this?’ I wanted my son to be a part of this creative and fun class but with his limitations I was worried and concerned he would be disruptive to the classroom, or couldn’t keep up. But my fears were soon put to rest.”
“There are people within the parish who are committed to our children,” says Osborne. “Ruth Ann found two generous souls to give up Sunday mornings and be with my son one on one in his Church School class. Now, he likes coming to church. He loves going up at Children’s Time in worship and sitting at the front with the pastor. It was one of my proudest moments when my son raised his hand, Andy called on him and he answered the question of ‘how can we show Jesus we love him?’ He answered ‘friendship.’ I know his sister probably prompted him, but I was still proud he answered and was part of the service. I had tears in my eyes. It was such a wonderful feeling. As a parent of a child with special needs, you wonder if they are ever going to be part of and enjoy some of life’s most simple events.”
“And I know that I wasn’t the only one with a wonderful feeling at that moment. When he raised his hand and answered, I know that others were just as surprised and pleased as I was. It was a big thing and I felt the people knew. At my church, I feel everyone cares about him, even when the moments are not so glorious. My son is a very endearing child, but can also be difficult at times. I have had to take him out of church kicking and screaming, but he’s growing up with the parish. When a child is baptized, the whole parish stands up and promises to help that child and I really feel that is what has happened with our children – not only my special needs son but my daughter as well. Ruth Ann is committed to educating our kids, whether it’s a challenging child or not. We are truly grateful we found this church.”
“It’s not smooth all the time, but we’re open and talk about how things can be done differently,” says White. “We find it a challenge and an opportunity, not something to be frightened about. We have something to learn from every child. Those parents who were afraid that their child’s Church School class would be a ‘special needs class,’ have realized that their own children can learn patience and understanding from their classmates. There is a value to those children being part of the group because God is Still Speaking to them.”
More information about the Workshop Rotation Model can be found at: www.rotation.org
Photo above: Lunenburg teachers practice the Workshop Rotation Model. The model, which explicitly takes into account that there are multiple kinds of intelligences and learning styles, promotes the teaching of major Bible stories and concepts through child-friendly multimedia workshops.