January 6, 2025 Transition Tidbits
January 6 Transition Tidbits
Check out the video below for one highlight of each tidbit
Chris Canann's Clip 01/05/2025
Welcome back and Happy New Year to everyone. Hope you enjoyd the time off and had some time to relax and enjoy. Since it is the new year and it is a common time for us to make a resolution related to being healthier, we wanted to focus these tidbits on healthy living for our students with disabilities. Take a look at some of the statistics below, from the RAISE Center, to show the importance of fitness for our students with disabilities. As you review this data and the tidbits, think about how we can use this information to develop really meaningful independent living goals for our transition plans.
- 1.5 to 2 times more likely to experience obesity than their non-disabled peers. In fact, over 38% of youth with disabilities are obese, compared to 18% of non-disabled youth.
- Up to 3 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than non-disabled youth.
- Less likely to engage in regular physical activity. Only 15% of youth with disabilities are engaged in regular physical activity, compared to 30% of non-disabled youth.
- At greater risk of cardiovascular issues due to lower levels of physical activity.
- More likely to have high blood pressure.
- More likely to experience depression and anxiety. Studies show a 25-50% higher rate of mental health issues among youth with disabilities compared to non-disabled youth.
- Cool resource from Special Olympics. This page contains simple fitness videos on 5 different levels. They cover topics from flexibility to balance, to cardio and more. The videos have a model that does the excercises that are all easy to follow. The website also has a guide that can be opened which has many more exercises on it. The guide has pictures and step by step directions as well. These both can be great whole class activities but they can also be individualized for individual transition plans. One example could be building a weekly workout schedule for a student that they can follow and check off when exercises are complete.
- Another resource from Special Olympics. There are some things in common with the resource above but there is also many different things. For one, some of these videos have full 30 minute routines in them. Another great resource on this site is the toolkits. There is a caregiver toolkit, which is a great way to engage and empower parents but it is also a great tool that us professionals can use. For instance one of the activities asks athletes what fruit or veggie they might like to eat. We can take these type of activities and use them as part of our AATA data to help drive the development of our transition activities around being healthier. One final toolkit is the coaches toolkit. Check this out, there are so many ways to empower our students to take ownership of their workout. For instance stuedents can use a choice board to pick different types of excersies to complete. Again a great source for transition activities and a great way to give some control to our students, since they will have to do this without us someday.
- One more great resource, this one from the National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability. This Youtube page has videos for many different exercises and different abilities. There are videos for chair exercises or even videos to "melt away stress". These videos can certainly meet individual student needs. This allows them to be great transition activities. A great example could be students watching and then completing the exercises they see in the video. The teacher then can teach the students how to reflect on the exercise and if this is something they can and would be interested in doing themselves.
Mark you calendars our Regional Transition Network is scheduled for January 30 from 1-3. Remember these are hybrid. More infromation and an invite to come.
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