9 Disability Resources to Help Your Children's Ministry Welcome All Children

Most churches want to include kids with disabilities in their children’s programming, but many leaders aren’t sure how to do it. We rounded up a list of some recorded trainings and resources that your church ministry leaders and volunteers can use to become more equipped to welcome all of God’s children. 

• Notes and Recording from Thrive’s Accessibility Roundtable: In October 2024 Thrive hosted a roundtable conversation with the goal of learning together, sharing resources, and brainstorming helpful and sustainable practices related to accessibility in children’s ministry. The conversation covered the importance of making physical spaces, worship elements, and communal activities more inclusive for children with diverse needs.
• 3 Part Plan for Ministry: In this video from Thrive and the RCA’s Nurturing Belonging event Victoria White provides practical tools and tips for church leaders as they seek to create welcoming spaces and engage people with disabilities in the life of the church.
• Wonderful Works Ministry Video Library: As stated on their YouTube page, Wonderful Works Ministry wants church to be accessible for everyone, including children who have disabilities and other life challenges. The training modules included in this video library are designed to equip church volunteers to better understand how to serve everyone effectively.
• Simple Sensory Tools for Church: 8 part video series: This helpful series from Charla Holst at Overcomer Ministries looks at how, when, and why to use sensory tools in the church. And explores why it’s important for every church to provide a basic sensory tool kit to meet the needs of people with sensory processing issues.
• Awe & Wonder Training library: As highlighted on the Awe & Wonder website, Cortney Jenkins believes the church needs to be intentionally reaching those with differing abilities and their families with the Gospel and integrating them into the life of the church. That’s why she’s created a hub of resources, including their video training library, to make that task easier.
• Inclusion in Children’s Ministry resources: This group of resources created by Sandra People’s will help churches welcome all to their children’s ministry.
• Inclusion Basics for VBS Teachers video: Don’t let “VBS” deter you—though Sandra People’s created it specifically for that program, this video is a helpful summary of some easy ways to welcome all children into any children’s ministry program.
• Key Ministry: This gospel-driven movement that supports disability inclusion has a number of helpful resources for those wanting to create a more inclusive children’s ministry. You might check out their ongoing round table discussions, recorded trainings, or their annual event, Disability and the Church, held in the spring.
• With Faith : Expressing and Living the Gospel: This resource guides church leaders in how to help persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities engage in public expressions of faith such as baptism, communion, and other public expressions of faith. 

We hope these resources are a blessing to your ministry. For more disability resources, check out Thrive’s disability resources or email [email protected].