Teaching transition and functional life skills to students with disabilities definately requires a unique learning enviornment. It requires access to the places these skills are going to be used. It requires a kitchen, a laundry room, the community. I consider myself very blessed to have all of those things, and more at my figertips on a daily basis. This makes my job 100 times easier because I don't have to spend my planning time trying to find kitchen access or figuring out how I am going to train one student to fold laundry while I am responsible for 7. I will share with you today some of the ways I have attempted to even further adapt my unique and tailor-made classroom, to provide necessary supports for my students and allow them to experience independence.
We will start in the kitchen... Here is a picture of our kitchen:
If you look closely, you can see pictures on each cabinet and drawer throughout the kitchen. This picture shows the items that are in that particular cabinet or drawer. Once opened, there are additional pictures designating the appropriate location for each item. This helps students and staff while they are preparing a food item, so they can quickly find the item they need. It also helps students know the appropriate place to return the dishes after they have been washed and dried. Staff is not required to hover over and make sure everything goes back in its home, and it ensures that everyone has equal opportunity and support in locating the items they need. Similar cues can be found throughout the center, including cues for cleaning products in the laundry room. Efforts were also taken to ensure this kitchen provided equal accessibility for all students, regardless of their mobility. Some modifications include front dials on the range, an accessible sink, and an island created to allow a wheel chair to pull up under it.
Our students spend a lot of time in this kitchen. They use it to prepare lunch daily and learn to create snacks and meals through lessons on a weekly basis. We have found that organization allows for the students to experience the kitchen on a higher level of independence, so it is always our goal to have the kitchen clean and organized.
Moving onto the laundry room...
Please excuse the mess, student learning is in progress. A space to allow our students to daily participate in completing laundry tasks was very important. This give students the opportunity to see through several loads of laundry from start to finish, as well as going back and forth between completing laundry and other activities. Our students wash our kitchen laundry, such as wish rags and drying towels, along with clothing, including workout clothing, as well as smocks and uniforms from the work place. This provides opportunities to learn the steps for washing, drying, and folding a variety of different laundry types. Also included in this space is a closet with hangers...another place to practice necessary life skills.
Welcome to our living room...
Also included in our classroom is another great learning environment for functional life skills. This is our living room. This space allows for our students to practice different skills such as dusting and vacuuming in a home-like setting. It is also a space for our students to go and learn/enjoy recreational/leisure activities such as watching movies, playing the Wii, and completing a puzzle.
This classroom allows for us to meet the functional needs of our students on a daily basis. We can dive into the teaching an learning of all those skills one will need when living on their own, right in the comfort of our own classroom.
Do you have pictures of your own transition or functional classroom that you would like to share? If so, please contact me and help us grow our community and provide better services and opportunities for the young adults we serve!
Come to the edge with me...
Mackenzie
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