SKILLS FOR THE REAL WORLD PREPARING STUDENTS WITH ASD

SUSANNA JOHNSTON, CLAUDIA SCHULTE, JEANNE SMAY Author

01/06/2017 Added

485 Plays

Description

This presentation will focus on making Connections that will assist students to transition successfully into the workforce and life after school. Learning Objectives:  The learner will identify the critical skills necessary for transitioning into the world of work  The learner will recognize barriers and identify strategies to be successful in the workplace  The learner will identify steps for successful career planning/retention

Searchable Transcript

Search:

[00:00:02.313]Welcome to the webinar,
[00:00:03.843]Skills For The Real World.
[00:00:05.680]I'm Claudia Schulte, presenting
[00:00:07.983]with Susanna Johnston and Jeanne Smay.
[00:00:11.280]We are all three from
[00:00:12.384]the Autism Center of Nebraska in Omaha.
[00:00:15.660]We have a small employment service
[00:00:17.527]within the Autism Center called ACN Connections.
[00:00:21.616]We started seven years ago
[00:00:23.040]through a vocational rehabilitation grant.
[00:00:26.395]VR noticed there was a great need
[00:00:29.210]for services for individuals with high functioning autism.
[00:00:33.168]They were having difficulty finding jobs
[00:00:35.338]and then retaining jobs.
[00:00:38.822]I am a retired Millard Public Schools supervisor.
[00:00:42.629]I was a teacher, coordinator,
[00:00:44.595]and a principal of the young adult program.
[00:00:47.465]I also coordinated all the related services
[00:00:49.819]and was part of the autism committee.
[00:00:52.445]Susanna is a retired Omaha Public Schools supervisor.
[00:00:56.118]She supervised alternate curriculum programs
[00:00:58.825]and she was in charge of the autism consultation team.
[00:01:03.023]Jeanne Smay is a retired Omaha Public Schools supervisor.
[00:01:06.597]She supervised behaviorally disordered
[00:01:09.016]and the Work Experience program.
[00:01:11.681]And she also has experience in the field of mental health.
[00:01:17.062]She was a director of Educational Support Services
[00:01:19.476]at the University of Nebraska Med Center.
[00:01:22.257]She was in charge of the day treatment program
[00:01:24.928]for children and adolescents with mental health issues.
[00:01:31.234]Okay, so what important lessons have we learned?
[00:01:34.491]Based on what we've experienced so far
[00:01:36.425]in the last seven years,
[00:01:37.822]we were just really amazed at what we saw.
[00:01:41.908]And hopefully we're going to be able
[00:01:43.572]to give you some ideas for what needs to be emphasized
[00:01:46.689]to help prepare your students
[00:01:48.765]for the real world after school.
[00:01:53.090]What we were shocked at was the fact
[00:01:56.253]that so many of them just stayed at home
[00:02:00.111]and did nothing after school was over.
[00:02:02.826]They truly became couch potatoes.
[00:02:06.201]Began the pattern of staying up all night
[00:02:09.416]and then sleeping during the day,
[00:02:12.705]so they had no routine.
[00:02:15.316]They had no work experience,
[00:02:18.489]or little work experience to fall back on.
[00:02:22.528]And so they weren't working.
[00:02:25.149]They might have volunteered in high school,
[00:02:27.165]but didn't continue that.
[00:02:29.109]So they really had no outlet,
[00:02:33.199]or very little outlet for activity after school was over.
[00:02:38.467]One thing that was surprising to us as well
[00:02:41.599]when we started looking for jobs for this population,
[00:02:44.443]is there are no easy jobs out there.
[00:02:46.902]And every job involves multi-tasking,
[00:02:50.928]so that was a real eye opener for us.
[00:02:54.817]Grooming and hygiene become issues
[00:02:58.652]after school is over as well
[00:03:00.991]because there is no routine,
[00:03:03.667]so they don't have that routine
[00:03:05.936]where they get up in the morning
[00:03:07.107]and get ready for their day.
[00:03:08.824]So grooming and hygiene can become big issues
[00:03:11.682]and we'll talk about that some more.
[00:03:13.718]Transportation is huge.
[00:03:17.283]But the fact that they sit at home
[00:03:19.781]and isolate themselves was very disturbing to us.
[00:03:24.574]When you're at home doing nothing,
[00:03:26.118]you can become lazy and unmotivated and depressed.
[00:03:29.981]And that is a big concern,
[00:03:31.815]so we need to get them out there and give them jobs.
[00:03:35.786]Another concern was how much
[00:03:41.378]they relied still on parents.
[00:03:44.488]And we need to make them more of an advocate for themselves.
[00:03:49.552]Also looking at the accommodations
[00:03:52.435]that are out there in the workforce.
[00:03:55.564]In competitive employment,
[00:03:57.096]you cannot have those same accommodations
[00:03:59.426]that you had in school.
[00:04:01.384]And then another ah-ha for us was the fact
[00:04:05.612]that many of them had such unrealistic goals.
[00:04:09.928]You know they all wanted to be
[00:04:11.647]video game developers or work at Gamers or whatever.
[00:04:16.121]So, we are going to hopefully give you
[00:04:19.402]some insight into what we have learned
[00:04:22.791]from our experience and what skills we feel
[00:04:26.328]need to be emphasized in school
[00:04:30.878]and in their transition program
[00:04:33.195]so that they can be successful
[00:04:35.274]and be prepared for the real world.
[00:04:40.436]After looking at everything,
[00:04:42.190]all of the ah-has that we just discussed with you,
[00:04:45.228]we chose three critical areas of need
[00:04:47.573]that we thought we would address during this webinar.
[00:04:51.125]You see at the bottom of the triangle,
[00:04:52.627]communication is the biggest,
[00:04:54.619]because it is the foundation
[00:04:55.614]and the basis from which to start.
[00:04:58.092]Our clients, your students,
[00:05:00.354]have to be able to communicate
[00:05:01.976]with coworkers, supervisors,
[00:05:07.711]us when they're looking for jobs primarily.
[00:05:10.874]So that is a big area of need.
[00:05:13.101]The second one is work readiness.
[00:05:14.981]Not only hard skills but soft skills.
[00:05:17.686]And the third one is self advocacy.
[00:05:20.679]They have to be the ones to speak for themselves.
[00:05:23.115]They can no longer rely on teachers and parents.
[00:05:28.228]Communication, one of our more critical areas
[00:05:31.809]and the foundation for everything
[00:05:33.554]that goes on with our client.
[00:05:35.868]The first thing we talk about with our clients
[00:05:38.480]is our phone skills.
[00:05:40.754]Phone skills are so, so important.
[00:05:43.276]A lot of our clients come to us,
[00:05:46.627]they do not say hello or goodbye,
[00:05:49.531]or make any kind of response on the phone.
[00:05:52.438]I've had a young man that would call
[00:05:55.148]and I would say, "Hello,"
[00:05:56.140]and he would just be breathing in the phone
[00:05:58.300]because he was not saying hello.
[00:06:01.535]Good thing I knew who he was.
[00:06:03.331]So those are the things that we have to teach our clients,
[00:06:06.135]that they have to greet,
[00:06:07.705]and that they have to let us know when
[00:06:10.019]they are done with the conversation.
[00:06:11.926]They can't see our face
[00:06:13.496]and so we need to tell them
[00:06:15.268]that they need to be communicating.
[00:06:17.616]Also when they're on the phone
[00:06:18.819]with employers, following up on interviews,
[00:06:22.055]we need to be sure and tell 'em
[00:06:23.164]to say thank you or thank you for your time.
[00:06:26.368]So many of our clients have an aversion to the phone.
[00:06:29.606]It causes them great anxiety.
[00:06:31.972]But they need to be learning
[00:06:34.416]and need to be taught how to use the phone
[00:06:37.806]as early as possible because
[00:06:39.848]practice will help alleviate some of that anxiety.
[00:06:43.545]A lot of employers do call back.
[00:06:47.004]And if our clients are not checking voicemail,
[00:06:49.900]which is another thing they need to do daily,
[00:06:52.496]then they're going to be missing important phone calls
[00:06:54.679]that maybe were trying to set up an interview.
[00:06:58.020]If they need to return a phone call,
[00:07:00.462]they need to do it a timely manner.
[00:07:02.611]We often use scripts to help our clients
[00:07:05.688]so that when they are on the phone,
[00:07:08.337]they won't get so anxious
[00:07:09.846]that they'll forget what they're going to say
[00:07:11.082]or not say anything at all.
[00:07:12.754]So they go ahead and read the script
[00:07:14.521]and the person on the other end of the phone
[00:07:16.150]has no idea that that's what they're doing.
[00:07:19.102]We also tried to put together an outline
[00:07:22.813]when they are listening to messages or taking messages.
[00:07:26.500]We need to find out who the name
[00:07:28.501]of the person is that's calling us.
[00:07:30.721]They need to write down the date,
[00:07:32.373]possibly the time they called and a short message.
[00:07:36.766]So many times our clients will say
[00:07:38.282]yes, we have an interview on Wednesday,
[00:07:40.734]and then they can't tell us what time it is
[00:07:43.232]and they can't tell us who called them.
[00:07:46.032]And then we have no way of being able
[00:07:48.044]to follow up on that.
[00:07:50.404]So phone skills are so, so important.
[00:07:54.389]Email although is just as important
[00:07:56.561]because in this day and age
[00:07:58.539]some of our employers are emailing them, our clients,
[00:08:02.611]and telling them, "Yes, we received your application,
[00:08:04.657]"and please call us during these hours
[00:08:07.692]"to set up an interview."
[00:08:09.420]And we have had numerous clients
[00:08:11.768]that will not check their email daily or twice daily, even.
[00:08:16.386]And a few days, even three weeks has gone by,
[00:08:19.950]and they have not checked their email
[00:08:22.004]and so they've missed a good job opportunity.
[00:08:27.472]We always try to show them
[00:08:30.307]what they say and what they impacts others.
[00:08:33.143]So when they are talking to us,
[00:08:36.337]we always ask them, "How do you think
[00:08:37.412]"that would make us feel?" or "How would that
[00:08:39.169]"make you feel if you said something like this?"
[00:08:42.310]I have a client who always
[00:08:43.627]starts her conversations with hey.
[00:08:46.220]And I tell her that that's not an appropriate way
[00:08:48.816]to begin a conversation.
[00:08:50.872]We need to say hi or hello,
[00:08:52.910]something to that nature.
[00:08:56.089]Social Media has become so big
[00:08:59.321]in all of our clients' worlds.
[00:09:01.733]And Facebook is huge.
[00:09:05.141]Social media types of things are huge.
[00:09:07.507]So many of our clients have hundreds of friends,
[00:09:11.799]and in reality they are not friends.
[00:09:14.290]And so we have to talk about boundaries
[00:09:16.719]and appropriate things to talk about
[00:09:18.716]and things to post on Facebook.
[00:09:21.255]We also teach our clients that many employers
[00:09:25.433]will Google or look on Facebook
[00:09:28.224]to kind of investigate what you've been up to,
[00:09:32.172]what kind of reputation they have,
[00:09:33.728]what kind of experiences they have.
[00:09:35.801]So they need to be really careful about what they post.
[00:09:40.981]We have had one client that got into trouble
[00:09:43.171]with her job when she was angry at a coworker.
[00:09:46.388]So she got on Facebook and she talked
[00:09:48.881]about this coworker and how she didn't like the company.
[00:09:51.922]Of course that got her into trouble
[00:09:53.289]because everybody follows Facebook it seems.
[00:10:00.078]Manners, manners are huge.
[00:10:02.692]Temple Grandin talked about schmooze rules
[00:10:04.848]and they are very critical.
[00:10:07.261]You can do a lot of things wrong in a job,
[00:10:10.387]but if you're polite and show manners,
[00:10:12.243]they tend to get overlooked.
[00:10:14.490]So please remember to say hi, goodbye,
[00:10:19.307]thank you, you're welcome, please.
[00:10:23.228]Smile when at all possible.
[00:10:26.581]Eye contact is good as well.
[00:10:29.494]But you need to help them to focus on the positive.
[00:10:34.935]And levels of communication.
[00:10:38.721]There's written communication, verbal communication,
[00:10:41.448]non-verbal, visual.
[00:10:43.443]Our clients need to be taught
[00:10:45.373]how to communicate in all those different ways.
[00:10:49.031]And they need to be taught about their audience.
[00:10:52.338]How you communicate with each
[00:10:53.626]individual audience is important.
[00:10:56.118]How they text their buddies or their family
[00:10:59.216]is very different of how they're going
[00:11:00.888]to email a prospective employer.
[00:11:04.492]Texting is really handy
[00:11:08.526]and convenient and quick because
[00:11:10.036]they do a lot of abbreviations
[00:11:11.842]and not complete sentences, spelling is not an issue.
[00:11:14.975]But if you're going to be emailing an employer back,
[00:11:17.215]you need to have good grammar,
[00:11:20.085]punctuation, and good spelling.
[00:11:22.538]So we always talk about think about your audience.
[00:11:25.664]And not everybody is your friend.
[00:11:28.206]We always talk about that, those levels.
[00:11:30.436]That you have close family and friends,
[00:11:33.262]and then you've got acquaintances,
[00:11:35.501]then you might have coworkers,
[00:11:37.148]and then you have strangers.
[00:11:38.577]And we really hit that hard about
[00:11:40.894]who falls into what category
[00:11:43.055]and how you should be talking to each person.
[00:11:46.605]We always try to teach small talk to our clients,
[00:11:50.167]things that could get them by.
[00:11:51.744]Some surface language, I guess is what you would call it.
[00:11:55.288]So again, communication is huge.
[00:11:58.620]And if you can start that in the very, very beginning,
[00:12:02.701]it will only transfer over into the world of work.
[00:12:09.759]The second area of need is work readiness.
[00:12:12.517]So there are a lot of skills under work readiness
[00:12:16.731]that we would like to see developed.
[00:12:20.512]And if you can help in high school that would be great
[00:12:23.484]because we see these as issues
[00:12:25.554]as we're working with our individuals at finding employment.
[00:12:29.563]Flexibility is the first one.
[00:12:31.710]We feel that they have to be able
[00:12:35.757]to adjust and adapt to change
[00:12:38.126]in order to be successful on the job.
[00:12:41.158]On the job, there are schedule changes,
[00:12:43.321]work task changes, different bosses with different styles,
[00:12:47.610]there are different coworkers from day to day.
[00:12:50.254]So no day is the same.
[00:12:53.956]And so we've worked so hard up to this point,
[00:12:56.447]I know in school, to have them be successful
[00:13:01.253]by using structure and routine.
[00:13:03.612]But now we have to start branching out
[00:13:05.449]and getting them to develop a willingness
[00:13:08.271]to try new things and new places without getting upset.
[00:13:12.449]So it's so important to be exposed
[00:13:14.534]to different places and different people.
[00:13:17.929]So good for students to have
[00:13:21.329]different teachers that they interact with,
[00:13:24.177]different paras that they interact with,
[00:13:26.666]and actually change classes and have,
[00:13:30.811]maybe throw in some different expectations
[00:13:33.254]throughout the day and see how they deal with it
[00:13:36.936]because in life and work there's always going to be change.
[00:13:42.029]And we need to work them through this.
[00:13:46.704]Rigid thinking, that leads to problems on the job.
[00:13:50.848]If you're not able to accept a change or adapt,
[00:13:54.701]you're going to have problems.
[00:13:56.694]I am working with a young lady right now
[00:13:58.817]who I am trying to teach her how to
[00:14:03.612]accept when there's a change without getting upset.
[00:14:06.836]Because she knows the job,
[00:14:08.082]she's able to do the skills,
[00:14:10.302]but whenever there is a change in her supplies,
[00:14:15.536]if someone has moved her supplies,
[00:14:17.560]or if there is something that's broken,
[00:14:22.366]or something out of the ordinary,
[00:14:24.138]she is not able to handle that right now.
[00:14:27.028]So we're trying to work on accepting
[00:14:29.309]the change and adapting.
[00:14:31.374]Just last week when I went there,
[00:14:34.008]I could hear her saying, "No, no, that's not the right way.
[00:14:37.285]"That's a no-no."
[00:14:38.549]And I walked in to the bathroom that she was cleaning
[00:14:41.768]and she was so upset because
[00:14:44.179]someone had put office trash in the bathroom trash container
[00:14:49.540]and she did not like that.
[00:14:51.353]She knew that that was not the right trash,
[00:14:53.894]and she was almost not going to empty it
[00:14:56.011]because it wasn't right.
[00:14:57.723]So we need to try to help them prepare for change
[00:15:03.212]and help them be able to manage that and be more flexible.
[00:15:07.226]So we know that if you do some priming,
[00:15:11.391]or know ahead of time when there's a change, that is good.
[00:15:15.219]And we try to emphasize that with employers
[00:15:17.505]on the job as well, that if there are gonna be big changes,
[00:15:21.061]it helps them to know ahead
[00:15:22.820]so they can manage that.
[00:15:26.157]So getting them to be more flexible and adapting.
[00:15:31.196]The next one is time management.
[00:15:33.614]Time management includes actually
[00:15:36.086]being able to tell time.
[00:15:38.423]It was amazing to us that some of our clients
[00:15:41.297]didn't even know how to tell time,
[00:15:43.576]either digitally or analog.
[00:15:47.995]You know, having that awareness of time is important
[00:15:52.416]because some of them don't even have
[00:15:56.498]a sense of any urgency about time, about being on time,
[00:16:01.210]and about how it looks to another person
[00:16:04.490]when you're not on time.
[00:16:05.686]That can be perceived as being very rude.
[00:16:08.282]So giving that perspective to them about time management.
[00:16:14.984]Keeping track of elapsed time.
[00:16:17.105]This is very, very important when you're on the job,
[00:16:20.083]knowing when to go and come back from break.
[00:16:24.090]So you might have to set the timer on your phone
[00:16:29.547]to know when to go back on break.
[00:16:32.562]Knowing how long it takes to get things done.
[00:16:37.729]Knowing that I have this much time
[00:16:41.302]and I have to give this much accomplished.
[00:16:43.529]So that's very critical, like a job in a warehouse,
[00:16:47.614]in a production environment.
[00:16:51.868]I've actually used a visual timer
[00:16:53.984]to show the time passing by
[00:16:57.357]in a production setting, in a warehouse setting,
[00:17:00.198]and this was helpful.
[00:17:01.791]So time is very important,
[00:17:03.665]and getting them to have that awareness,
[00:17:06.391]as well as the skill of telling time.
[00:17:09.353]So being on time for class, being on time for meetings.
[00:17:12.887]You can really emphasize that.
[00:17:15.422]One of the things that also is important
[00:17:17.832]under time management is they are often very perfectionistic
[00:17:23.175]and this sometimes hinders them from getting things done.
[00:17:26.877]They may be rechecking and rechecking.
[00:17:29.244]So it's important to teach them
[00:17:32.073]that it's okay to check things once and move on.
[00:17:35.972]So time is very, very important and managing time.
[00:17:40.818]The next is organization,
[00:17:42.714]actually looking at the work space.
[00:17:46.980]Clutter can cause sensory overload in some people
[00:17:50.445]and can be confusing.
[00:17:52.798]So trying to look at the work environment
[00:17:55.270]and see how it can be organized
[00:17:57.502]because it can be distracting
[00:17:59.351]from them being able to focus on the job.
[00:18:03.037]I have a young lady that I worked with
[00:18:05.817]who had a job in a retail store
[00:18:08.210]and she really did quite well.
[00:18:11.086]She was a very organized individual.
[00:18:13.391]And she loved putting the clothes out on the shelves
[00:18:18.516]and doing the folding and reorganizing
[00:18:23.334]and having everything look really nice.
[00:18:25.827]But part of her job was also
[00:18:27.822]going to the dressing rooms
[00:18:29.951]and putting those clothes back on the sales floor.
[00:18:34.908]And you can imagine how overwhelming that might be
[00:18:38.628]to someone who is so organized
[00:18:40.868]to see all the clothes thrown around in dressing rooms.
[00:18:46.893]This actually became quite overwhelming to her
[00:18:51.672]and she would actually do some things
[00:18:54.450]that were avoidance type behavior
[00:18:57.851]rather than do that part of her job
[00:19:00.393]because it was just too overwhelming.
[00:19:03.648]So we had to come up with a way
[00:19:06.250]that she could organize and prioritize.
[00:19:10.594]So she might do a job,
[00:19:14.730]like straightening the shelves first
[00:19:16.644]and folding the clothes
[00:19:17.589]and then go back and do,
[00:19:20.342]a short time doing the dressing room,
[00:19:22.308]and then go back and forth
[00:19:23.719]between things she liked
[00:19:25.168]and things that were least liked, like the dressing room.
[00:19:29.681]So organizing and prioritizing tasks is very important,
[00:19:35.730]and looking at using organizational tools,
[00:19:39.175]such as checklists when you're working
[00:19:41.935]to know when you've accomplished something
[00:19:47.637]and organizing what priority tasks
[00:19:50.907]need to be done before other tasks.
[00:19:55.425]Meeting expectations and productivity
[00:19:57.830]is a very important skill to look at under work readiness
[00:20:01.813]because every job has certain job requirements
[00:20:06.426]and there is an expectation to work at a certain level,
[00:20:11.093]a certain standard in that competitive employment job.
[00:20:16.306]So we need to look at things
[00:20:19.289]that they can do as far as the expectations.
[00:20:26.117]When we're in school we look at maybe exceptions
[00:20:30.895]to things more than out in the real world.
[00:20:34.395]So they might be given extra time for something,
[00:20:37.611]but out in the real world they're not going to be
[00:20:40.334]given extra time to get things done.
[00:20:43.383]They need to know the expectations
[00:20:45.422]and they need to be able to work towards
[00:20:47.751]those expectations and standards.
[00:20:51.256]So it's important that they have rules
[00:20:53.831]and responsibilities at the school level and at home
[00:20:58.986]because if they don't have those,
[00:21:01.991]they're not going to be able to
[00:21:04.157]work up to the standard in a job.
[00:21:07.649]This also includes looking at the standards
[00:21:11.680]and the policies in a job
[00:21:14.185]as far as using electronics,
[00:21:16.793]using their phone, things like that.
[00:21:20.375]There are certain expectations
[00:21:22.961]and they have to abide by them.
[00:21:26.321]The last one on this slide is teamwork.
[00:21:28.857]And working on a team and doing your share
[00:21:31.703]is very, very important.
[00:21:33.067]I know many of our individuals would prefer to work alone,
[00:21:37.929]but there are really very limited jobs
[00:21:41.222]as far as working completely alone.
[00:21:45.025]So you need to learn how to work with others, do your part.
[00:21:50.517]So in school you can work on group projects,
[00:21:54.164]you can participate in clubs and sports and all of that,
[00:21:57.975]but it's very important to learn how
[00:22:00.183]to get along with others even when you may not like someone.
[00:22:05.334]That's something that I've been emphasizing
[00:22:08.513]with one of my current clients.
[00:22:11.195]You don't always have to like the people that you work with,
[00:22:14.960]but you have to get along when you're working.
[00:22:18.549]So you have to teach them how to tolerate,
[00:22:22.688]how to work with different individuals.
[00:22:25.117]So there are things that just need
[00:22:27.849]to be developed in that way,
[00:22:29.348]but you really need to learn how
[00:22:31.757]to be a part of a team and doing your share
[00:22:35.299]and getting things done together.
[00:22:39.653]Working with different bosses and different personalities
[00:22:43.820]is very important as well.
[00:22:52.409]Okay, work readiness
[00:22:54.113]also includes handling feedback.
[00:22:58.391]Our clients sometimes mistake feedback for criticism,
[00:23:02.348]so they get defensive or argumentative,
[00:23:05.570]but just getting the students to realize
[00:23:08.763]that when somebody is giving you feedback,
[00:23:12.209]they're not criticizing, they're just trying to help
[00:23:15.638]and give you some direction.
[00:23:18.260]So sometimes we need to actually give them
[00:23:21.183]what to say and how to look.
[00:23:24.368]They look away or it looks like they're not paying attention
[00:23:28.448]when the boss may be giving them some direction,
[00:23:32.041]so we actually practice how to look
[00:23:34.816]when they're getting feedback.
[00:23:38.587]We have actually made a taking
[00:23:41.768]feedback card to remind them.
[00:23:45.007]So the steps to taking feedback might say,
[00:23:47.553]look at the person, nod, listen,
[00:23:52.042]restate the problem back to them or the issue
[00:23:54.670]and then thank the person and change your behavior.
[00:23:59.105]So handling feedback is very important,
[00:24:02.696]and getting them to understand
[00:24:04.649]that it's not meant to be negative.
[00:24:06.931]So when you have a student that is
[00:24:11.753]not taking redirection well,
[00:24:14.222]you definitely need to work with them on handling that.
[00:24:18.810]The next thing is developing stamina.
[00:24:22.877]And that was, like I said earlier,
[00:24:25.593]one of our ah-has for what we saw
[00:24:30.735]when they went home they just became couch potatoes.
[00:24:35.406]So it's so very important for them
[00:24:38.578]to keep to some type of routine
[00:24:40.605]once they're out of school because
[00:24:43.383]they develop that poor sleep schedule,
[00:24:45.956]up all night, sleep during the day,
[00:24:49.444]and then they miss appointments.
[00:24:50.821]I've worked with several young men
[00:24:52.627]that have missed their appointments because
[00:24:55.789]they were sleeping and their excuse has been
[00:24:59.254]that they were up all night playing their video games late
[00:25:03.861]and just didn't hear their alarm.
[00:25:06.872]So getting them to establish a routine is important
[00:25:11.486]and also to do some physical activity.
[00:25:16.452]They need to go to the gym, go for walks.
[00:25:20.341]That's very, very important to continue
[00:25:22.987]to exercise and get out of the house.
[00:25:26.393]So continuing to do that physical activity
[00:25:31.618]as well as some recreational things.
[00:25:34.249]So one thing we also saw was that they isolate themselves
[00:25:38.546]and that's part of just a change in their routine
[00:25:43.504]by not being in school.
[00:25:45.694]So we need to keep them engaged and physically active
[00:25:50.082]because when you get a job it's important
[00:25:51.943]that you have enough stamina physically
[00:25:55.257]to be on your feet all day or be alert.
[00:26:00.097]And you do need to have at least
[00:26:01.659]a four hour period where you can be up
[00:26:05.409]on your foot and also sustain attention.
[00:26:08.850]So usually you have four hours before you can take a break.
[00:26:13.112]So that's very, very important.
[00:26:16.035]The next thing is job shadowing.
[00:26:20.007]And this has actually been very beneficial
[00:26:22.808]for some of our clients because
[00:26:26.099]they have gone to environments or to look at jobs
[00:26:29.660]that they were interested in
[00:26:32.362]and have actually been able to be hired at those positions.
[00:26:36.027]So they actually go to the job,
[00:26:38.961]they watch the job being done,
[00:26:41.378]and what the components of the job
[00:26:43.475]and the requirements of the job,
[00:26:45.785]and look at the skills that are required.
[00:26:48.853]So it is a very good way of them
[00:26:52.416]seeing that yes, they can do it.
[00:26:54.579]We've worked with several clients
[00:26:56.725]that have so much anxiety about going into the workforce
[00:27:02.676]and they needed that opportunity
[00:27:07.980]to see the job in order to feel comfortable.
[00:27:11.748]We had one young lady who was kind of interested,
[00:27:15.243]never had a job, was kinda interested
[00:27:17.058]in maybe working at the grocery store.
[00:27:21.645]So she looked at the job of courtesy clerk.
[00:27:24.634]And we worked with the HR manager
[00:27:27.082]to allow her to do that.
[00:27:28.681]And when she saw the job, thought she could do it,
[00:27:32.541]she was able to meet the HR manager
[00:27:35.176]and interacted well with her
[00:27:38.464]and saw that yeah, she could probably do it.
[00:27:41.648]And so she got hired and was very successful there.
[00:27:46.467]Another client that I worked with
[00:27:49.437]was kind of interested in working in a warehouse,
[00:27:52.198]but once we toured the warehouse,
[00:27:56.949]quickly found that that was not
[00:27:58.659]an appropriate place for her because of the noise.
[00:28:04.182]There were lots of noise, it wasn't constant,
[00:28:09.072]but it would be bells whistling
[00:28:11.326]or something when something came down the line.
[00:28:13.926]And we had to get out of that environment pretty quickly
[00:28:18.416]because it was really bothering her.
[00:28:22.968]Another thing that it can show
[00:28:25.907]is many of our young people want to be gamers.
[00:28:29.856]And so I had one young man that wanted
[00:28:32.326]to work in a comic book store because
[00:28:35.536]he was very interested in a certain series or whatever
[00:28:38.772]and thought that would be a good job for him.
[00:28:40.938]Well, when we went to the comic book store,
[00:28:43.983]it was very clear that you don't just
[00:28:47.621]talk to people about the comics that you're interested in.
[00:28:51.333]You have to do a lot of multi-tasking.
[00:28:53.607]You are cashiering, you are stocking,
[00:28:57.266]you are talking to people about many different things,
[00:29:01.109]and dealing with a lot of different aspects
[00:29:06.224]all at once so that was important for him to see
[00:29:09.818]and he really saw that that was something
[00:29:13.808]that he maybe could not do.
[00:29:15.784]So that was an eye opener for him.
[00:29:19.767]Another area is job exploration.
[00:29:23.393]And that's very important so that they
[00:29:26.205]can investigate and explore jobs and careers.
[00:29:29.893]And so that should definitely start in high school
[00:29:33.498]so that they know an area of interest
[00:29:37.097]and maybe what they'd like to do
[00:29:38.573]and actually research the skills that are needed
[00:29:42.427]and what kind of schooling might be needed,
[00:29:45.132]and really looking at if it matches
[00:29:47.899]their conditions, as well as skills.
[00:29:50.439]So getting them to be realistic about a career
[00:29:54.582]or a job is very, very important.
[00:29:57.953]And the last is transportation.
[00:30:01.077]So, how are they going places now?
[00:30:04.929]Do they take the bus?
[00:30:06.335]Do they walk?
[00:30:08.356]Do they ride a bike?
[00:30:10.793]Do members of their family take them everywhere?
[00:30:14.213]Or are they able to drive themselves?
[00:30:19.887]We work with many clients
[00:30:21.097]who actually drive and do very well,
[00:30:23.826]so that's an option if they're able to handle it.
[00:30:28.073]Our bus system is kind of limited geographically.
[00:30:34.001]It doesn't go very far west,
[00:30:35.977]but factors to consider when you're looking
[00:30:40.130]at transportation includes safety, weather,
[00:30:45.173]the availability of family.
[00:30:47.332]I had one young lady that I worked with
[00:30:48.914]who has very limited availability
[00:30:51.857]because she could only work in the morning
[00:30:55.892]from the hours of 7:00 a.m. to noon
[00:30:59.283]because that's when her mom is available to take her.
[00:31:03.604]So it really limits opportunities.
[00:31:06.609]So they need to really look at how
[00:31:10.104]they're getting places now
[00:31:12.107]and they need to be able to have
[00:31:14.649]some reliable form of transportation.
[00:31:17.614]That's very, very important.
[00:31:22.408]Discussions regarding dressing for an interview
[00:31:25.062]as well as while you're on the job is essential.
[00:31:28.636]For starters, cut offs, T-shirts, and flip-flops
[00:31:31.471]are not appropriate attire, unless you're a lifeguard.
[00:31:36.565]When a prospective employee meets the interviewer,
[00:31:40.091]that person makes a judgment within three
[00:31:42.665]to seven seconds about whether that candidate
[00:31:45.960]is a good fit for the job or not.
[00:31:48.972]That impression is critical,
[00:31:50.817]and how one is dressed is a big part of that impression.
[00:31:55.608]Looking at the environment for which
[00:31:57.065]the candidate is applying can help
[00:31:59.281]identify appropriate interview attire.
[00:32:02.069]For example, nice jeans and a polo
[00:32:04.903]or a button down shirt is suitable
[00:32:06.809]for an interview in a warehouse.
[00:32:09.218]However, if the candidate is applying
[00:32:11.329]for a job that will meet the public,
[00:32:13.616]then khakis or black pants and a dressier shirt
[00:32:16.754]are recommended for guys.
[00:32:18.621]Nice slacks and a blouse or a dress for gals.
[00:32:23.267]Don't forget to suggest looking at nicer shoes
[00:32:26.852]in the closet for an interview.
[00:32:29.007]Worn out tennis shoes cannot add
[00:32:31.360]to an outfit that is looking nice,
[00:32:35.454]but looking at your feet would kind of be a problem.
[00:32:41.708]Also a reminder, we're living in an age
[00:32:45.054]where there's lots of piercing and tattoos
[00:32:47.475]and you need to make sure that you remind people
[00:32:50.532]that have piercings that those need to be removed
[00:32:53.142]at an interview and oftentimes cannot be worn on the job.
[00:32:57.302]And covering a tattoo is also important.
[00:33:01.758]Many businesses require wearing a uniform,
[00:33:04.419]so be sure to discuss that possibility
[00:33:06.652]when you're having students explore job opportunities.
[00:33:11.240]And we have found through our career planning,
[00:33:13.659]that that is a critical question
[00:33:15.986]because most are willing to wear uniforms,
[00:33:18.748]but if they are not willing to wear a uniform,
[00:33:21.343]then that needs to be addressed.
[00:33:25.378]It's never too soon to address hygiene.
[00:33:28.060]I think one of the things
[00:33:29.363]that the three of us have found
[00:33:30.916]is that almost always we have to remind
[00:33:34.900]our clients before they go to an interview
[00:33:38.032]what it is they need to do to really look nice.
[00:33:41.731]All of us have also been called by an employer
[00:33:45.239]with issues about hygiene,
[00:33:48.534]and have had to address those with the client
[00:33:51.472]and help the employer kind of bridge
[00:33:54.790]that transition about hygiene.
[00:33:57.922]Recently I had a call from a business
[00:34:00.873]where I had a client that was working,
[00:34:04.181]and he had the job down pat, he had the skills,
[00:34:07.397]he had all the necessary ability to do the job,
[00:34:12.204]but his hygiene was creating quite a problem.
[00:34:15.624]He was not showering and not using deodorant,
[00:34:18.494]and his team members were complaining to the supervisor
[00:34:21.795]about not wanting to work around him.
[00:34:26.211]Having body odor and not showering,
[00:34:29.407]or not being clean can really jeopardize
[00:34:32.243]your relationship with others in the work setting
[00:34:35.099]and cause a really big problem
[00:34:37.321]if you're working with the public.
[00:34:40.060]Don't be afraid to address hygiene issues head on.
[00:34:43.764]We've had to be very direct and to the point,
[00:34:47.176]helping our clients understand the importance
[00:34:50.047]of good hygiene habits.
[00:34:52.659]And this helps to prevent embarrassment
[00:34:54.504]for the employer and the employee.
[00:34:58.526]Reminders are always necessary for follow up
[00:35:01.505]about shaving, having clean hair,
[00:35:04.424]trimmed and clean fingernails.
[00:35:06.837]If fingernails are long,
[00:35:09.204]that's something that an interviewer
[00:35:11.505]or somebody in the work setting will notice immediately
[00:35:15.265]because they're usually dirty also.
[00:35:18.254]Having your teeth brushed and no bad breath,
[00:35:20.691]using deodorant, and showering,
[00:35:23.358]have been always addressed by us prior to an interview.
[00:35:29.502]It's important when assisting individuals
[00:35:31.172]in job exploration to research the requirements,
[00:35:35.149]such as what are the necessary skills
[00:35:37.859]and abilities needed for the job.
[00:35:41.128]A good example might be some warehouse jobs
[00:35:46.737]need forklift experience
[00:35:48.492]and there may be an added line
[00:35:50.364]that training will be provided.
[00:35:52.500]But if training is not provided,
[00:35:54.217]then applying for that kind of a job
[00:35:56.714]will give you the experience of an application,
[00:35:59.357]but will probably not land you an interview.
[00:36:03.229]Most entry level jobs train on the job
[00:36:06.059]and have designated employees
[00:36:07.685]that provide that kind of training.
[00:36:10.256]A few examples of those entry level jobs
[00:36:12.578]are a courtesy clerk at a grocery store,
[00:36:15.120]a dietary aide at a retirement home,
[00:36:18.226]a busser at a restaurant,
[00:36:19.936]and some initial entry level jobs in custodial.
[00:36:25.255]Researching jobs online is a great opportunity
[00:36:29.492]for individuals and a starting point,
[00:36:32.123]so that many businesses have videos online
[00:36:36.141]that assist in understanding the skills
[00:36:38.219]and educational background and training
[00:36:40.427]that is necessary to perform the requirements of the job.
[00:36:48.853]We found that all of our clients
[00:36:51.385]have a very difficult time looking at goal setting
[00:36:55.488]and setting realistic goals for themselves.
[00:36:58.084]When they are looking at exploration of jobs
[00:37:02.177]there are a lot of important aspects to consider.
[00:37:06.060]Will the job provide a viable income now and in the future?
[00:37:11.323]Is there flexible scheduling?
[00:37:13.401]We have many clients that attend school
[00:37:16.117]and want to work part-time.
[00:37:18.268]But if a job doesn't allow for that kind of scheduling,
[00:37:21.293]then it's probably not a good match.
[00:37:24.617]What are the opportunities for advancement?
[00:37:27.846]Are there any benefits associated with the job?
[00:37:31.125]And sometimes benefits are provided
[00:37:32.993]if you're working at least 32 hours a week
[00:37:36.193]and you have been on the job
[00:37:37.590]for at least three to six months.
[00:37:40.676]Is there any vacation?
[00:37:42.128]Is healthcare provided after a certain amount of time?
[00:37:47.673]Is there a probationary period?
[00:37:50.687]Is the job needed in the community?
[00:37:54.000]We've talked about this, that we have many clients
[00:37:57.233]that desire to develop games
[00:37:59.220]or do something associated with video games.
[00:38:03.176]But in our community and the marketplace in the Omaha area,
[00:38:07.216]and actually across the state of Nebraska,
[00:38:09.538]this skill set is not needed.
[00:38:12.553]Always be able to help the individual
[00:38:14.979]to find whether this is a hobby or a realistic goal.
[00:38:19.974]Hobbies can pique interest,
[00:38:21.502]but sometimes do not translate
[00:38:23.462]into a marketable skill set.
[00:38:28.418]Lastly, make certain that individuals are realistic
[00:38:32.427]about a specific job or place of employment.
[00:38:36.970]Refusing to work at a restaurant because you don't like
[00:38:40.014]the food that it offers is not a realistic goal.
[00:38:44.089]I have a client right now
[00:38:45.610]that is desiring to do food preparation,
[00:38:49.366]and he's had experience with that,
[00:38:51.321]but he limits himself totally
[00:38:54.507]by not applying to any jobs
[00:38:57.428]where he doesn't go to on a regular basis
[00:39:00.592]or that he doesn't care for the food.
[00:39:04.424]Not working in a store because you don't like
[00:39:07.727]the clothes they sell is another example
[00:39:10.394]of not being flexible enough
[00:39:13.695]to look at what the job market
[00:39:16.538]is offering in the community.
[00:39:18.848]So those kinds of things that can kind of widen
[00:39:22.015]and expand goal setting are extremely important.
[00:39:28.986]Volunteering experience is an excellent way
[00:39:31.227]of building pre readiness work skills
[00:39:34.116]and related work experience.
[00:39:37.771]And a resume, when it's being developed sometimes
[00:39:40.259]doesn't look like that you've done anything,
[00:39:43.427]but if you have that volunteer experience there,
[00:39:46.037]many businesses look at that
[00:39:48.231]as pre-preparation for the world of work.
[00:39:51.853]Volunteering really does the following kinds of things.
[00:39:55.069]It teaches good work ethic,
[00:39:57.845]while developing skills of independence,
[00:40:00.384]reliability, punctuality,
[00:40:03.532]and most importantly, time management.
[00:40:06.591]Susanna kind of alluded to that
[00:40:08.179]when she talked about time management.
[00:40:10.877]And that is a very important piece
[00:40:13.433]of being able to use that time management
[00:40:16.725]on the job and getting ready to go to work each day.
[00:40:21.066]It also teaches the mechanics of working,
[00:40:23.181]how to clock in, how to complete assignments,
[00:40:26.207]and as Claudia mentioned earlier,
[00:40:28.592]communication is the basis of everything,
[00:40:31.675]and how to talk to your coworkers is a real key.
[00:40:38.756]It also helps determine one's likes and dislikes for a job.
[00:40:42.980]If you have been in a volunteer situation at a library,
[00:40:47.019]and you're stocking shelves with returned books,
[00:40:51.146]and you absolutely hate that job,
[00:40:53.831]you're not gonna probably do a very good job
[00:40:56.277]as a stocking associate in a retail business.
[00:41:02.020]Volunteering also assists in building
[00:41:03.915]a network of connections.
[00:41:06.439]And sometimes volunteer jobs do turn into employment.
[00:41:11.575]It also builds a great reference base
[00:41:14.337]for potential reference checks
[00:41:18.038]for people that are looking for competitive employment.
[00:41:23.470]Students begin to understand the expectations
[00:41:25.692]of a job and how to handle stress on the job.
[00:41:28.931]And what the three of us have found,
[00:41:30.826]there isn't any job that's easy,
[00:41:33.178]and every job has its own stress issues.
[00:41:37.935]Also students learn to handle feedback
[00:41:40.049]from supervisors and coworkers
[00:41:42.104]while developing communication skills
[00:41:44.696]and they begin to learn the policies
[00:41:46.760]and the rules of a business.
[00:41:50.552]If you're wondering where are good places to apply,
[00:41:53.299]what we have found in our community
[00:41:56.057]is that local libraries, public libraries,
[00:42:00.051]the Humane Society or rescue shelters.
[00:42:04.098]Oftentimes we have clients
[00:42:05.935]that have volunteered at churches
[00:42:08.518]where they've prepared the bulletins on Sunday morning
[00:42:11.736]or they've done light office work.
[00:42:14.491]Non-profits, such as the Salvation Army
[00:42:16.904]are always looking for bell ringers.
[00:42:19.127]Habitat For Humanity is a great opportunity.
[00:42:23.065]There are youth builds, there are womens' builds,
[00:42:25.450]there are all kinds of builds in a community
[00:42:28.788]where people can volunteer.
[00:42:32.374]And the American Red Cross
[00:42:33.844]and thrift stores are also good volunteer opportunities.
[00:42:42.478]The next area of need that we identified
[00:42:45.188]at the top of our triangle is self advocacy.
[00:42:48.921]And this is really something
[00:42:50.340]that needs to start as young as we can.
[00:42:54.745]They really need to know about themselves
[00:42:57.787]and be able to speak up about themselves
[00:43:00.588]and know what they need
[00:43:02.823]and what their strengths are and their challenges.
[00:43:06.992]So knowing your strengths is very important,
[00:43:10.000]identifying what you're good at.
[00:43:11.994]That is really critical in knowing
[00:43:14.014]what will be good for them in a job.
[00:43:17.354]Knowing your challenges,
[00:43:20.487]what is going to help you overcome your challenges.
[00:43:24.024]When you have a difficult time
[00:43:27.335]understanding verbal directions,
[00:43:29.301]you need to know that written instructions
[00:43:32.422]can be helpful, things like that.
[00:43:35.993]It's just important to know how they learn best
[00:43:39.037]and what helps them overcome their challenges.
[00:43:43.748]When we look at self advocacy,
[00:43:48.116]I think that they need to work on
[00:43:51.370]when and how to ask for help.
[00:43:54.969]They must be able to identify,
[00:43:57.691]if they have a problem, what they should do.
[00:44:00.349]So oftentimes what we see is that our individuals
[00:44:05.377]have trouble making choices and making decisions.
[00:44:10.591]So it's really important in school
[00:44:13.242]to help them learn that process.
[00:44:16.625]We need to help them learn
[00:44:20.670]the process of decision-making,
[00:44:22.853]you know look at the five steps of decision-making.
[00:44:26.051]What's the decision you need to make?
[00:44:27.881]What decisions could you make?
[00:44:30.177]And then look at the pluses and minuses
[00:44:33.073]of each of the those choices
[00:44:34.880]and then pick the best choice for them
[00:44:37.106]and then evaluate did they make the best choice.
[00:44:41.842]Decision-making I think is
[00:44:43.302]a critical component of self advocacy.
[00:44:47.492]And then knowing about your disability,
[00:44:50.755]that is really critical when you get into the job market.
[00:44:56.386]Knowing if you want to disclose to the employer.
[00:44:59.635]And we leave it up to the individual
[00:45:01.374]whether they want to or not.
[00:45:03.676]But I think in the case of an individual on the spectrum,
[00:45:08.305]it is they bring so many unique things
[00:45:13.066]to a job because of their characteristics of autism.
[00:45:16.799]They have characteristics that are valuable to an employer.
[00:45:22.185]They are very dependable because
[00:45:24.793]they're very rule bound, many times.
[00:45:27.089]And they want to be there.
[00:45:30.022]So their strengths and challenges
[00:45:33.127]are very, very important for them
[00:45:35.060]to be aware of and to know.
[00:45:38.148]How would they describe themselves to someone?
[00:45:41.446]They need to understand how
[00:45:43.424]their autism affects how they interact with others
[00:45:48.097]and how they operate in an environment.
[00:45:51.814]So their characteristics are truly strengths in many cases
[00:45:57.541]and they need to be aware of that.
[00:45:59.112]It's not a bad thing to be on the spectrum.
[00:46:02.544]They are very detail oriented often,
[00:46:05.929]or very accurate and able to spot irregularities.
[00:46:12.318]So somebody that is doing proofreading,
[00:46:16.139]or we have a young man that we worked
[00:46:18.767]with years ago who was very detailed
[00:46:23.782]and very accurate and almost perfectionistic.
[00:46:29.650]And he was able to get a job
[00:46:32.091]as a zip sort operator at First Data.
[00:46:36.263]And those characteristics are critical
[00:46:39.501]for being successful on that job as a zip sort operator.
[00:46:44.972]So he was very accurate in being
[00:46:47.985]able to sort out the zip codes
[00:46:50.661]because they do all their mail sorting by zip code
[00:46:54.055]and they have to be very efficient at that.
[00:46:58.214]So that was a real good job match for him because,
[00:47:03.943]and those characteristics of his autism
[00:47:07.352]made it a good match for him.
[00:47:12.879]Knowing about your disability,
[00:47:14.209]being able to make decisions,
[00:47:16.515]knowing when and how to ask for help,
[00:47:19.315]I'm going back to that because
[00:47:20.779]you need to look at who to ask,
[00:47:25.454]you need to be aware of like the chain of command at a job,
[00:47:30.856]you need to know how to appropriately ask for things.
[00:47:36.459]Not be demanding.
[00:47:38.730]And sometimes that is hard.
[00:47:40.953]It all goes back to that communication piece,
[00:47:43.440]which is the foundation for what we do.
[00:47:46.537]Being able to communicate those things appropriately.
[00:47:52.360]And then just realizing that
[00:47:56.658]it's time for them to take the initiative.
[00:47:59.209]They can hopefully have been a part
[00:48:02.455]of identifying their needs throughout school,
[00:48:06.063]so that they have participated in their IEPs
[00:48:08.870]and have been able to identify
[00:48:13.086]what kinds of things would be helpful for them to work on.
[00:48:18.409]It's amazing when they have come to us
[00:48:20.912]and we're doing our intake and our career plan,
[00:48:25.329]that many of them really truly
[00:48:27.568]haven't thought about what they're good at.
[00:48:30.469]So they need to develop that awareness of what
[00:48:33.790]they're good at and then what their challenges might be,
[00:48:37.175]and how they can work at overcoming them,
[00:48:40.819]because on the job you can have some things
[00:48:45.620]that might be helpful for them as far as
[00:48:49.067]like using the visuals and things like that,
[00:48:51.800]that are very effective in helping them
[00:48:55.394]with their challenges, but just that awareness piece
[00:48:59.030]I think is so important
[00:49:01.217]and being able to know their disability
[00:49:05.456]and know what they want to tell coworkers and employers.
[00:49:09.021]So you might have them learn how
[00:49:11.308]to do a little description of themselves.
[00:49:15.462]And that could be very useful for them in the future.
[00:49:19.092]So that is basically self advocacy,
[00:49:23.783]kind of letting them have the lead in things,
[00:49:31.055]in knowing themselves, so getting to know themselves
[00:49:33.431]is so very critical for this.
[00:49:39.159]Lastly, knowing your responsibilities
[00:49:42.024]is essential to be able to transition successfully
[00:49:46.498]to the world of work.
[00:49:48.410]And we can begin at home and at school
[00:49:50.958]by having some of these expectations for our clients
[00:49:55.238]that will help with that transition.
[00:49:58.679]Completing chores at home is a very good thing,
[00:50:02.722]to have clients or students,
[00:50:06.400]or your child working on their own chores
[00:50:10.142]and having that responsibility to complete those chores.
[00:50:14.324]Just setting an alarm and getting up,
[00:50:16.316]as Susanna mentioned before,
[00:50:17.836]we have many clients that miss appointments
[00:50:21.772]because they don't have the time down correct
[00:50:24.379]or they haven't set an alarm
[00:50:25.930]to get up and they've overslept.
[00:50:28.061]And that is not going to be a very effective way
[00:50:31.899]of handling yourself on the job.
[00:50:34.769]Planning your lunches, planning your clothing,
[00:50:37.466]doing your laundry, being able to pick out
[00:50:40.137]an outfit that's an appropriate outfit
[00:50:42.855]to wear at specific occasions, and the hygiene.
[00:50:46.716]I think we talked about that at length,
[00:50:49.017]about the need for making sure that
[00:50:54.495]everything is handled in that way,
[00:50:56.557]the showering, wearing deodorant,
[00:50:58.545]shaving, clean fingernails,
[00:51:01.287]fingernails that are cut, your hair is clean.
[00:51:04.971]At school, I think we need to have some
[00:51:07.140]high expectations for those kinds of soft skills.
[00:51:11.063]Arriving to school on time and to class on time.
[00:51:15.095]Completing classwork and meeting those kinds of time lines.
[00:51:18.491]It's fine if you're in class and you have an assignment,
[00:51:21.984]but if you forget to turn in an assignment,
[00:51:24.462]I think that we sometimes allow students
[00:51:29.250]to do those kinds of things
[00:51:30.721]and those things do not transition
[00:51:33.305]well to the work setting.
[00:51:34.461]So we need to have high expectations
[00:51:36.486]about getting those assignments turned in.
[00:51:39.786]Having the necessary equipment,
[00:51:41.482]the tools and supplies for class, ahead of time.
[00:51:45.294]And this is a very big responsibility,
[00:51:49.524]and it also goes back to that advocating for yourself
[00:51:54.039]is being able to ask for clarification
[00:51:56.812]when you need it or help if you need it.
[00:51:59.757]Taking the initiative in opportunities
[00:52:02.989]that are available at school
[00:52:04.965]and to kind of help students along the way
[00:52:07.793]and supporting that taking initiative.
[00:52:10.704]Knowing about the school calendar.
[00:52:12.367]When are vacation days?
[00:52:14.439]When are the days that they're not expected
[00:52:16.283]to be at school because it's teacher inservice days?
[00:52:19.921]And knowing how to handle your lunch account.
[00:52:22.724]Knowing when you're running out of money
[00:52:24.436]and that you need to reinvest in your lunch account.
[00:52:28.041]Those are all things that sometimes I think
[00:52:30.674]that we kind of support maybe a little too much
[00:52:34.711]and that we can start to have students
[00:52:37.059]be a little bit more independent.
[00:52:39.414]And requesting a homework assignment
[00:52:41.145]if you're going to be absent or you've been sick,
[00:52:43.846]to come in and request what it is that you need to do,
[00:52:46.551]to turn in something so that it is presented
[00:52:50.526]after you've been absent from school.
[00:52:58.631]So to wrap this up,
[00:53:01.134]your challenge is to think about the areas of needs
[00:53:03.769]and all the skills that we have discussed
[00:53:05.641]and see if you can put those into an IEP
[00:53:10.155]in a real meaningful way
[00:53:11.894]to help with the transition process.
[00:53:14.506]Try to link it to the real world.
[00:53:16.780]We believe that the IEP should be aligned,
[00:53:19.892]as well as the post-secondary goals,
[00:53:22.081]to exactly what they would like
[00:53:23.859]to do when they leave school.
[00:53:25.596]And we know those things change over time,
[00:53:28.087]but I think that if you could include
[00:53:30.316]some of those responsibilities,
[00:53:32.914]the creating independence,
[00:53:36.910]then the kids will have a head start
[00:53:39.492]in having a smooth transition into the world of work.
[00:53:48.695]We want to thank you for being
[00:53:49.839]with us during this webinar.
[00:53:51.698]Our contact information is displayed on the last slide.
[00:53:55.973]You can either get a hold of us by email
[00:53:58.231]or call us at 402-315-1000
[00:54:01.988]and we will be happy to answer any questions
[00:54:04.629]or address any concerns.
[00:54:06.609]Thank you for your participation.

The screen size you are trying to search captions on is too small!

You can always jump over to MediaHub and check it out there.

Comments

0 Comments

SKILLS FOR THE REAL WORLD PREPARING STUDENTS WITH ASD

Description

Searchable Transcript

Comments icon comment

Related Channels

Comments