Then came...Learning the Language of Autism
After years of working with parents and teachers I noticed something....sometimes they weren't speaking the same language! And trust me, autism can have a complete language of its own. So I thought to myself, what can I do to help parents and teachers understand each other so they can better understand the children in their lives. That's where Learning the Language of Autism came in.
With all the jargon that comes along with autism I knew there needed to be a resource where parents and teachers could go to understand all the terms their will hear in the school and private therapy through their journey. Learning the Language of Autism has over 130 autism related terms that are explained in a way that anyone can understand.
Some terms are strictly for information. Some are for inspiration, because hey, some days are hard. And some terms come with implementation strategies for parents to implement at home and for teachers to implement at school. Ultimately it helps parents and teachers bridge the cap of understanding. With everyone on the same page, the child wins.
Click Here To Grab A Copy
Then my greatest assignment yet...
Children's Ministry Director
"Hey Veronica. So we (my pastors) want to ask you something."
I knew what the call was about before they said another word.
"Yes. I know you haven't asked me yet, but yes."
They we calling to see if I'd be interested in serving as the children's ministry director. I believed in the pit of my heart that after faithfully serving for 15 years as a children's church volunteer, now was the time.
As I prepared for my role, undoubtedly one of the most significant roles I've had to date my first plan of action was to choose a curriculum.
I wanted something that went a bit beyond the surface.
I didn't just want to teach the stories, I wanted to teach Christian principals.
It was also important to me that the curriculum was inclusive for neurodivergent learners. I've spent my entire adult life serving children with autism so there's no way I could leave them out of any work I do in ministry.
I found some great curriculums but they just weren't what I was looking for. And that's when I remembered something that happened at The Together Conference, a ministry conference dedicated to helping ministries include individuals with disabilities.
During a private lunch someone asks the founder, Jillian Palomino "Is there a special needs curriculum?" Her answer, "There really isn't one. I know a few people that have tried but it's a lot of work."
After some prayer I knew it was time to get started on the curriculum I was looking for. And then ... 3i!
3i Curriculum
There are so many things I love about 3i.
It's interactive. Years of service has taught me that children enjoy learning when they can engage with what they are learning. 3i encourages children to be active participants in every lesson throughout the entire lesson.
It's inclusive. Like I said, there's no way I could write a curriculum and not consider children with different abilities. With 3i, ministries are given guidance on how to include everyone child while teaching God's Word. They don't need an entirely separate curriculum, one that considers them.
It's intentional. With continuous prayer, every unit of 3i was written to not only teach God's Word but inspired children to have a personal relationship with their Heavenly Father.
I couldn't think of any better place to launch 3i than at this year's
Together Conference
