Transcript Teaching *soft skills* to young adults with intellectual disabilities

Teaching “soft skills”
to young adults with
intellectual disabilities
Presented by
Mary Lange MS
Director of Education for Older
Adults and Adults with disabilities
Introductions
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Name
Where you work
Question: think about one of your favorite
employees…what quality do you most admire
about them?
What are soft skills?
Wikipedia defines soft skills as follows:
“ Soft skills is a term often associated with “EQ”
(emotional intelligence quotient), the cluster of
personality traits, social graces,
communication, language, personal habits,
friendliness, managing people, leadership etc.
that characterize relationship[s with other
people.”
What “soft skills “ do
employers most value?
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Strong work Ethic
Good communication Skills
Time management abilities
Problem-solving skills
A team player
Self- confidence
Ability to accept and learn from criticism
Flexibility and adaptability
The Truth about “soft skills”
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Can’t be taught from books and hand outs
This teaching process started (or didn’t start)
at birth.
Some disabilities have strong contraindicators for these skills.
How can we teach, remediate or
accommodate?
So Where do we begin?
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Use the classroom experience to teach and
raise expectations
Teach new skills
Provide Constructive criticism
Practice, Practice, Practice
Take it to the streets!
Build on each new unit, raise expectations as
you go.
Raising expectations in the
classroom
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Be on time
Look and smell nice
Appropriate greetings for teachers/boss
Appropriate greetings for classmates/coworkers
Appropriate conversation topics with
teacher/boss.
Appropriate conversation topics with class
mates/co-workers
Preparing to teach a new skill
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Evaluate the current skill level of your
students, break down lessons accordingly
Make sure you have provided the tools
needed for success (adaptive equipment,
AAC, visual supports, peer buddy etc…)
Set up an environment of mutual respect and
high expectations
Be prepared to problem solve
How to teach a new skill
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Through critical thinking, talk about why the
skill is important. How will it impact their life,
others, give examples through sharing or roll
play. When you have the “buy in”…….
Present your lesson
Roll play/Video model/Practice with a mentor
Practice with an unfamiliar staff person
Get support circle involved
It’s ok to “fake it til you make it”`!
Provide constructive criticism
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Have students and staff provide constructive
criticism through a well laid out set of
instructions or script.
What I really like was______
I think you can improve on __________
something that might help is __________
When I have trouble with that I_________
Teach to process constructive
criticism
Verbal acknowledgment of the criticism
Emotionally processing the feed back
What are appropriate questions to ask?
Teach active listening skills?
Teach helpful “buzz phrases”
Roll play/video modeling/mentor practice
MAKE constructive criticism part of every
learning unit. These skills can be deal breakers
in a job situation!
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Time Management
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Teach and remediate for telling time and
using an alarm
Do activities that help students plan realistic
time lines.
Incorporate this in to planning all outings
Teaching Problem Solving
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Teach critical thinking by presenting a
problem situation.
Have students identify the problem
Identify who can solve the problem/ who to
discuss it with.
Decide how to advocate to solve the problem.
Roll play, video modeling, critique, practice,
practice, practice
Communication skills
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Verbal (sounds language and tone of voice)
Aural (listening and hearing)
Non –verbal (facial expression, body
language and posture)
Written( journals, e-mails, social media)
Visual (signs, symbols and pictures)
Evaluate /remediate/ accommodate ability to
communicate as needed.
Teaching good communication
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Each student has a way to communicate
Each student is asked to provide input to
teach self-advocacy and self-determination
Each student provides active listening
acknowledgment
Non verbal communication is evaluated
Who/What/ and when to communicate is
discussed
Roll play, video modeling, practice, practice...
“Team Player”
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Create team building tasks
Identify strengths of each student
Assign tasks based on strengths
Carry out task
Evaluate outcome
What could we do better next time (practice
constructive criticism)
Plan for next time
Wrap Up
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Incorporate in daily routines and activities
Post as reminders and references
Use in “real life” situations across campus
and in the community
Evaluate and re-evaluate
Include circles of support
Practice, Practice, Practice……