Transition Tidbits

 In-Demand Jobs VIDEO This past week was Ohio's In-Demand Jobs week. In Ohio, in-demand jobs offer a sustainable wage and a promising future based on the number of openings and growth. Every year the state, including the Department of Education and Workforce, spotlights these jobs to inspire excitement among students and job seekers. There is a toolkit that can be used in grades K-12 to highlight these jobs. Below are a few highlights from the toolkit.  In-Demand Jobs Week Toolkit  As mentioned above, the Department of Education and Workforce published this toolkit for last week's In-Demand Jobs Week. The toolkit, as you will see, ranges from grades K-12. If you have not heard it enough this year, remember it is never too early to start engaging students in postsecondary transition planning. The earlier we start, the more fluff we can get weed out and have a closer fit for our students. Check out your grade level. Is there something you can use?  Ohio's Top Job List...

 Self-Determination Curriculum  VIDEO It's My Turn Self-Determination Curriculum  Here is a great resource from the Ohio Coalition for the Education of Children with Disabilities. We always talk about the importance of self-determination and even share some resources to build this skill in our students. This resource is not only a curriculum to teach these skills, but it is a FREE curriculum. Just enter your name and email on the home page, and you are all set. You can use this as a whole-class curriculum, or you can have each student sign up for an account so they can take the course at their own pace. Remember, the goal of transition is not just getting students employed, educated, or living independently; the goal really is to build self-determination skills in our students. 

April 28 Supporting Transition At Any Age  Pre-K to 5th Grade Transition Planning  In Ohio, we know transition planning does not officially start until age 14. A lot of times we wait until that time to even begin talking about transition with parents and students. This is a really great handout from the Center on Transition. It shows some really simple activities that we can do in the earliest of years to help students begin to think about postsecondary transition. The earlier we start the more focused our work can be when we hit 14.  Exploring Decision-Making Supports  It is that time of year, we are having our final meetings with our exiting seniors and exploring many of the next steps they will pursue. Many times, we have conversations with families about guardianship. These can be great discussions, but supported decision-making is a nice alternative that can help the student become more independent as they grow. This tool is a great way to identify specific area...

 Building Self-Determination TODAY's VIDEO Last week we had multiple resources to assess a student's self-determination skills. This week we have some resources to help build those skills because remember, just like any other skill, we need to teach transition skills to our students before we can expect them to be strong in those areas. One of the most critical areas to have strong self-determination skills is in healthcare which the last two resources really help to build. Carefully review the resources below, how can you use at least one of them, in the short term, to build the self-determination skills of your students?  Quick Note- We will not have any tidbits next week. We will be back after Easter on April 28. Have a great Easter and a nice break for anyone who has time off.  Self Determination Skills Last week we talked a lot about self-determination assessments. This is a great resource to align with those. This is a short resource that explains 7 different skills...

 Assessing Self-Determination  VIDEO  Community-Based Instruction Parent Input Form This is a great resource is a nice combination of independent living assessment and family engagement. This comes from the Florida Department of Education's Community Based Instruction Guide. The first page is obviously just some background information if a child is going to be in a community-based instruction experience. After that is a survey for parents that asks if a child does specific skills and also with or without assistance. The skills are divided into sections; domestic skills, vocational activities, community access skills, and recreation and leisure. After that parents are then asked to choose community-based activities that are most important as well as community locations the family uses. Obviously, this form can provide great information for community-based instruction but it also be altered slightly to be very informative to us as it is great data to base an independent liv...

 Career Exploration Video Link  Remember the "Fluff Scale" we shared early this year from the University of Oklahoma's Zarrow Center.  According to this scale, as students get older our transition goals and activities should become more focused and have less "fluff" in them. Our resources this week are great tools to help students focus their career exploration more. For example, a student may be interested in the field of heavy machine operating but using the John Deere resource below they can focus on an actual position as well as a specific company thus moving from fluff to closer to a firm match.  John Deere  John Deere has a dedicated section on their website for students and recent graduates. There is information on internships, part-time student programs, and their development program, and of course, you can search for jobs. There is also a section on tips for professionals. Visitors can also visit the professional careers link and learn more about not on...