Life Skills support

This program provides students with growth experiences in language development, self-help skills, social development, functional academics, and vocational skills. It is for students who have intellectual abilities which prevent them from obtaining meaningful progress in a general education curriculum and who require instruction in daily living skills.

CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION

• A functional curriculum, based on the following domains of independent living, is utilized to teach skills and provide activities related to daily living skills:
  • Functional Academics – Reading, writing and math
  • Domestic – Cleaning, meal preparation, budgeting, grocery shopping, and laundry
  • Personal Maintenance – Feeding, drinking, toileting, grooming, and clothing care
  • Recreation/Leisure – Spectator activities, hobbies, and physical fitness
  • Interpersonal Communication – Responding to others, identifying self and others, and exploring self
  • Vocational – Prevocational, job specific skills, obtaining and maintaining employment
  • Community – Social interaction and travel
  • Social/Behavioral/Affective – Responsible behavior and understanding emotions
• Individual, small group, and whole group instruction is provided through various means including community-based instruction (shopping, banking, and transportation), which is designed to teach students to use the classroom skills and appropriate behaviors in real-life situations. Secondary students are provided with vocational training opportunities in the community, at the CIU 20 Warehouse and the Career Institute of Technology with an emphasis on obtaining competitive employment. Secondary students in Northampton County also have an apartment site in which to practice daily living skills.
• Related services of speech and language support, hearing support, vision support, orientation and mobility, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and adapted physical education are integrated within individualized student programs as appropriate to meet student needs.