The Learning Disabled Child In Sunday School

It has been estimated that one in ten children has a learning disability. In Sunday school, therefore, teachers may also be faced with the unpredictable and delicate challenge of teaching learning disabled children. The teaching methods used with such children must be highly personalized, compatible with the child’s strengths and accommodate their areas of weakness. The following suggestions may be useful in working with these children.

  1. Learning disabled children learn best when they are actively involved in the learning process, such as acting out a story or constructing a model of the tab­ernacle. Most of these children will remember things they touch and hear and see and smell. They need to have information presented in a variety of ways.
  2. Don’t assume that the child has understood your instructions. A learning disabled child finds complex instructions confusing and difficult to remem­ber, so it is necessary to break down what you want the child to do into very clear and precise steps.
  3. If you know what readings you plan to use during the lesson, contact the child during the week so that they can practice the verses assigned to them to read.
  4. During the lesson have the child sit by you or a competent reader. When reading aloud, teach them to point to an unknown word so they can quickly be told what it is without disrupting the flow of the reading.
  5. Allow the child to use their finger or a marker as they read to help them keep their place on the page.
  6. Reduce the amount of written work that the child is expected to produce. If a written assignment is part of their homework, enlist the parents’ help by having the child dictate their answers to them.
  7. If possible, evaluate the child’s progress by testing them orally.
  8. Progress must be made tangible with gold stars, stickers, or charts noting completed assignments or appropriate behavior.
  9. Learning disabled children can be disruptive, so plan your seating carefully.
  10. Sensitize the other students to the learning disabled child through specific Bible lessons: e.g., how did the blind man at the pool of Siloam feel? Or use the lesson of 1Cor 12 on the various parts of the body.

Many learning disabled children experience some sort of social and/or emotional problems because of their handicaps. You can help the learning disabled child by encouraging him to participate in activities in which he can excel — to the honor of God and his own growth as a person.

Let the child know that you love them. Look for things to praise, and find ways to make them realize that they are accepted and worthwhile despite their difficulties.