The fastest growing class in our disability ministry is for teens and young adults—we call it the RISE class. It stands for Reverse Inclusion Serves Everyone. My son James is part of the class, and he loves it!
Here’s what reverse inclusion is and why it’s a good fit for us:
First, reverse inclusion is a class designed for teens and young adults with disabilities that invites typical teenagers and young adults in for the purpose of friendship. It’s for teens like my son James who wouldn’t enjoy being part of our youth group. That environment isn’t safe for him and the curriculum doesn’t fit his needs. So instead we’ve created a class that is a good fit for him and our other teenagers!
At our church, we have Sunday school time at 9:00 and the service at 10:30. The RISE class meets at both times. Some students are in the class for Sunday school and then sit with their families during the service. Some (like James) are in the class for both hours.
During the worship service, they join us for singing and prayer. They sit on the front row so they have space to move. They grab a sensory bag on their way into the worship center so they have fidgets and noise reducing headphones available. After the music, they head back to their classroom for a lesson that’s designed for them.
There are great curriculum options for classes for teens and adults. I recommend:
Let’s talk about the space:
- The enjoy activities that meet their interests in a sensory-friendly classroom.
- We tried to make it look more like a teen room with a futon couch and a TV with a Nintendo Switch they can play, but it also has a train table and an indoor trampoline. I visited a church that had a full coffee bar in their teen and adult room. It also had a huge closet for dress up clothes when the class did skits to act out the Bible stories! You can customize it for the teens and adults who attend.
- The class is in the building with a bathroom that has a universal sized changing table and a shower if needed. There are also handicapped parking spaces in front of the building and a covered drop off and pick up area for rainy days.
Teachers and teens:
Most high schools have similar programs where teens with disabilities are in classes designed for them and joined by typical teens. Our high school calls it the PALS program. So the concept is familiar to our teens. The hope for them being in the class is they would develop friendships and model helpful behavior. They are more like students than teachers, but they are there to help if needed.
Here’s how I would set up the process for those teens:
- Teens could apply to be part of the class with a recommendation from their youth pastor or an adult at church who knows them well
- They could watch a training video on their role in the class and the goals and let the ministry leader know if they had any questions
- They wouldn’t need the full buddy training that teens that serve in the preschool and elementary classes do, but they can certainly do both!
- They could sign up to join the class once a month or more often!
- You can decide on additional policies or training that would work for your church and the students you have in the class.
As I mentioned, this is the fastest growing class in our ministry! In fact, we plan to launch another adult class next year as the ministry grows and the teens in the class become adults. I’m so thankful for a class that fits James’s needs so well at this stage! He’s safe and celebrated, and that means a lot to our entire family.
