# Children's Catechism for the Mentally Disabled



## thbslawson (Oct 21, 2012)

Has anyone given any thought to this, or has anyone ever heard of a resource like this that perhaps I'm not aware of?

This is of particular interest to us in that our son has some mental disabilities. We have found over the years that we've had to simplify even the children's catechism in order for him to learn it, but he's done well. Here's an example of what we do. The italicized parts are what he answers.

1. Who made you? _God_
2. And God made... _All things_
3. For his..._Own glory_

As you can see, there's a lot more fill-in-the-blank and less answering in complete sentences. We've gone much further with him, but most of it is prompting with 2-3 word answers.

We are thinking of writing this down if it could perhaps be of use for the mentally handicapped, whether adults or children, who do not posses the ability to go beyond short phrases and are of limited understanding. Any thoughts on this?


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## Jerusalem Blade (Oct 21, 2012)

I would be interested in seeing a written form of this, Thomas. I've spent many years serving the developmentally disabled, and have sought to bring Christ to them. I'm not in the field now, but would still like to see this. Thanks!


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## py3ak (Oct 21, 2012)

Our very own Caroline has produced a catechism geared towards autistic children: Special Catechisms for Special Kids: A resource for teaching autistic children about God: Caroline Weerstra: 9781453875001: Amazon.com: Books


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## thbslawson (Oct 21, 2012)

py3ak said:


> Our very own Caroline has produced a catechism geared towards autistic children: Special Catechisms for Special Kids: A resource for teaching autistic children about God: Caroline Weerstra: 9781453875001: Amazon.com: Books



Thanks! This is great!


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## Rich Koster (Oct 21, 2012)

It may also be a help for the functionally illiterate. I have met people, in churches, that can not read and have an extremely limited vocabulary.


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## thbslawson (Oct 21, 2012)

I checked out the materials for autistic children above, and it's great, but I still think there's room for those with limited vocabulary and mental capacity. In the case of someone who's moderately-severely mentally disabled, three to five words may be the most that they're able to express in a lifetime. We can hope for more.

I may start working on this. I'd love to post the material here and get feedback.


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## Matthew Willard Lankford (Oct 21, 2012)

_Special Catechisms for Special Kids_ looks like a great resource. I'm glad no one on this thread is advocating using images as books for the mentally disabled. I understand the temptation can be there, but we must remember to trust God that His word is sufficient. "_Little children, keep yourselves from idols._" (1 John, v. 21.)


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## py3ak (Oct 21, 2012)

thbslawson said:


> I checked out the materials for autistic children above, and it's great, but I still think there's room for those with limited vocabulary and mental capacity. In the case of someone who's moderately-severely mentally disabled, three to five words may be the most that they're able to express in a lifetime. We can hope for more.
> 
> I may start working on this. I'd love to post the material here and get feedback.



Indeed, Thomas. Caroline notes in the introductory material that her catechisms were written for mild-to-moderately autistic children. Obviously that puts it out of reach for many with mental disabilities. But as well as highlighting the most relevant work I know for the question you asked, perhaps the catechisms may also prove helpful in showing some of the way to or igniting your own creativity in taking this work forward for those who are more impaired.


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## Tim (Oct 21, 2012)

Matthew Willard Lankford said:


> Special Catechisms for Special Kids looks like a great resource. I'm glad no one on this thread is advocating using images as books for the mentally disabled. I understand the temptation can be there, but we must remember to trust God that His word is sufficient. "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." (1 John, v. 21.)



An excellent point.


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## Somerset (Oct 22, 2012)

thbslawson said:


> Has anyone given any thought to this, or has anyone ever heard of a resource like this that perhaps I'm not aware of?
> 
> This is of particular interest to us in that our son has some mental disabilities. We have found over the years that we've had to simplify even the children's catechism in order for him to learn it, but he's done well. Here's an example of what we do. The italicized parts are what he answers.
> 
> ...


Excellent idea - I don't have any experience or expertise in this area, but will pray for guidance for you.


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