April 14 Teaching Self Determination April 13, 2025
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.
- 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 that are associated with self-determination. It is one thing to know a student needs to build their self-determination skills but it is quite another to be able to identify specific skills that are associated with self-determination. This resource also explains to teachers what skills they can teach to build in the area of need as related to self-determination. When you look at this list and analyze it about your students; what is an area your students excel in? What is an area they made some more instruction? If you're not sure, check out last week's tidbits for some help.
- This is 1 of 6 different EZ Readers. Each pertains to a different topic of healthcare to prepare students as they become adults and in charge of their own healthcare. All 6 come from the Lifecourse Nexus group which is the same that developed the Charting the Lifecourse Tools. This EZ reader begins to prepare students and parents for some upcoming topics as the students become more responsible for their own healthcare. As students work their way through the reader, teachers have multiple opportunities to stop and have the students reflect on the information that is being shared. Also on page 10 are some great resources that align with the reader. The Healthcare Readiness Assessment, on that page, is one we have shared in the past but is still a great resource to use with your students.
- One thing that can make adult healthcare so overwhelming is the amount of doctors to see. There can be a primary physician, specialists, urgent cares, hospitals, and more. This document is a nice one-pager and can be a great transition activity to support a goal. Teachers can teach students how to fill this information in as well as what each specialist is for. Students can also put into their own words why they see this specialist. Finally, students can fill in addresses and contact information so they can have access to it in a hurry if needed. This can also be a great pre and post-assessment to compare how many different providers the student learned about over some time.
Posted: Tuesday, April 15, 2025