PARENTS PLANNING FOR TRANSITION AND SELF-ADVOCACY
Transition means moving from one place to another or from one stage to
another. Transitions have several points in common. There may be a
period of uncertainty, a change in the support system for your child, and
stress. In order to make transitions as smooth and stress-less as
possible, planning must be done. The planning involves communicating
with your child’s teachers, the IEP team, and your child. In order to plan
effectively, the adults who work with and support your child must know
what his interests are, what he likes to do, and what he wants to do when
he leaves high school. You, the parent, are very important to this process
by providing supports and life experiences to your child, and by
encouraging him to assume responsibilities at home and in the
community. You and your child can also supply his IEP team with valuable
information about his out-of-school experiences. These experiences will
be critical in helping guide his choices for postsecondary placements.
By the time your child is 14 (or younger if appropriate) his IEP team will
emphasize transition services, which are a coordinated set of activities
that will focus on his future goals. The IEP will have measurable goals for
post-high school that are based on his strengths and interests, and on
age-appropriate transition assessments. His transition plan will include
what services are needed to transition smoothly into college, employment,
and/or independent living arrangements. These services may include links
to adult/community service agencies that will provide support to him after
he leaves high school.
TRANSITION TIMELINE
8th Grade
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Allow your child to help with family chores
Encourage hobbies and leisure activities
Encourage him to attend and participate in his IEP meetings
Help him identify strengths and interests
Help him to find work or volunteer activities in the community
Talk about and explore career interests
Encourage him to use a calendar to keep up with assignments
allow him to make choices about clothing, social activities, family events, and
ways to learn new information
Help him learn about his disability
Encourage him to help at home with meal preparation, shopping duties, and
caring for clothing
Introduce him to co-workers and discuss their job responsibilities and career
training requirements
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Help him develop a list of skills that are needed to succeed in any career
Help him complete a variety of simple forms requesting personal information
Assist your child in describing his needs, and asking for the accommodations
needed to help him function effectively at home, school, and in the
community
Encourage him to develop and follow a homework schedule
Help him understand that his actions can have a long-term or permanent
impact on a situation
Show him how to use household appliances
Encourage him to save money for a large purchase
Guide him in meeting his responsibilities in class, at home, and in the
community
9th Grade
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Help him identify strengths and skills needed for employment success
Work with his case manager to help him learn what his disability is and how it
affects his learning
Discuss his learning style with him
together, evaluate which modifications and adaptations have been most
successful at school
Help him self-advocate with you, his teachers, and his peers and to learn why
self-advocacy is so important
Work with him to develop a personal plan to meet his needs in school
Continue to help him explore career options
Encourage him to develop skills for academic independence
Help him formulate transition and other IEP goals to present to his IEP team
Review his 4-year course of study with him
Encourage independence by showing him what to do/who to call in an
emergency situation and by being prepared to give demographic information
Get to know his teachers and his Guidance counselor
Ask to see his resume and help him update it
10th Grade
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Review his interests, aptitudes, and accommodation needs
Encourage his to study hard and to follow his 4-year course of study
Continue to encourage self-advocacy skills
Continue your support in his volunteer or paid work experiences
Discuss updated learning style/interest/aptitude assessments
Monitor his progress on IEP, transition, and career goals
Work with him to communicate what a reasonable accommodation is, and
which ones have been successful for him in school
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Review with him and his EXED case manager what his rights are under IDEIA
as a student with a disability, the transfer of these rights when he turns 18,
and implications after he enters the adult world
Collaborate with his Guidance Counselor, his EXED case manager regarding
the skills, education, and training needed for his postsecondary goals
Based on his long-range goals, help him develop a plan to strengthen the
skills he needs to fulfill those goals
11th Grade
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Work with him to establish realistic career goals based on his strengths,
education, skills, aptitudes, and interests
Help him identify resources that would help him with seeking and gaining
postsecondary employment
Talk with him about job interviews and completing job applications, if you
haven’t already
Ask to see his updated resume
Talk with him about the lifestyle he wishes to have in the future
Work with him on budgeting time and money
Have him do his own laundry
Let him prepare a meal twice or more a month, including shopping for the
food
Continue to promote self-advocacy skills by giving him the opportunity to
resolve issues independently
Help him develop a list of names, phone numbers, and addresses of
references, adult service providers, community service providers, and health
care providers he uses
Talk to him about medical insurance, help him investigate the information on
the internet, or call a local insurance company
12th Grade
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Review his IEP and transition plan and help him decide if any changes or
modifications need to be made
Talk to him about his earned credits, his abilities, and interests to help him
match them to appropriate postsecondary placements
Have him check to see if DVR representative is going to attend his exit IEP
meeting
Talk to him about his postsecondary plan
Help him investigate resources that will help with gaining postsecondary
employment
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Have him talk to his doctor and you about health care needs so he will be
ready to take responsibility for them
Ask him about the contents of his transition portfolio
Discuss his postsecondary plans with him
Help him investigate financial arrangements
Go with him to visit vocational or educational training institutions of interest
and meet with Disability Support Services personnel