YOUTH – PtP Project Goals/Objectives/Activities
Purpose: To bring young people with disabilities into the Independent Living Movement.
Outcome:
-young people with disabilities will be leading programs in CILs and in their communities
-youth programs will be youth led, youth run and youth driven
-schools, churches and local community organizations will be educated In the capabilities of youth w/disabilities
-expectations and standards of what youth with disabilities can do will be raised
-stretch beyond the “popcorn and movies” aspectsof social clubs moving into an advocacy group that discusses issues and becomes involved in disability movement
-creating disability pride
Ideas – Work with CIL, but do presentation in the schools:
-Center does the set up
-CIL does the presentation
Questions for IRCIL -
-When does school start?
-Do you have a connection w/schools?
-Present in the schools or at the CIL?
-Recruit youth w/disabilities ahead of time?
-Open up to rest of the population after first meeting?
-Other questions?
Policies and procedures, program parameters, budget/financial info, unique activities – Mike Mayer, Tim Sheehan, Brenda Pierce, Julie Bosma, Liz Sherwin (Kathy to call for best practices and other info)
Project Topic Areas -
- Recruitment: To increase the number of young people in the IL Movement.
- Transportation: (as it pertains to recruitment)
- IL History/Philosophy: To bring an awareness of the history and philosophy of the Independent Living Movement to young people who have not experienced it or maybe even heard of it.
- Youth participation in community: To increase the number of young people participating in CIL activities as well as everyday events in their greater community.
- Transportation: (as it pertains to participation)
- Sexuality: (relationships and safety)
- Leadership and Advocacy:
- Transportation (on its own?)
Recruitment:
At the end of this training, centers will be able to:
- Establish relationships with local high schools
-who do you know?
-call a special education teacher, gym teacher or coordinator
-check with adult consumers with kids in high school
-presentation at department meetings
-do your homework on what they need
- listen to what they want
-piggyback with established youth groups
-requestcontact teacher write an evaluation or blurb about your proposal and share with other teachers
-bring an ally (Betsey’s term?)
-build trust through continued communication
-suggest moving on to other teachers/classes w additional presentations and other services
-make connections at transition fairs (special ed coordinators)
- what is your curriculum? – what do you teach?
- get list of fair locations from schools
- resources: contact spec ed coordinator at school
- familiarize yourself with school district websites and calendars
- check with main school district office
- statewide Office of Public Instruction
- help set up transition fairs
- Effectively advertise for programs and events:
-use social networking sites (FaceBook, Twitter, U-tube)
-search for schools on Facebook
-create a brochure or on-line page –“ We believe any student can benefit from this training”
-disability mentoring day (October)
-develop a press packet – topical one-pagers that include amount of time, target audience, facilitators, AV needs, materials, resources, anticipated outcomes, lesson-plan outline (like best practices form), cross-disability offering, testimonials from teachers/students
- Perform effective follow-up:
- with Teachers:
- pre-post evaluations from students and teachers (send them results and ideas for improving the presentation in the future)
- thank-you notes to teachers
- stay on the teacher’s radar (follow-up calls, emails, are you still interested, ideas about follow-up presentations)
- with Students:
- survey?
- get contact information
- do what you said you’re going to do – follow up from initial presentation to start a group and integrate youth into your center
- let them know what other activities are happening in the community
-Email/phone reminders to students and teachers prior to gatherings
- Getting Student Buy-in (retention issues)
-Listen to what they’re asking for
-Set guidelines/parameters for group (all people w/disabilities or not, day and time to meet, rules of the day, they vote on rules)
-Follow-through from group leaders
-Use KW&L chart - Know, Want to learn, & what did you Learn (KWL chart)
-Administer interests survey (topics they’re interested in)
-Offer Information session before starting a program/training (then the student can decide whether or not they want to join)
-flyer
-Make it fun and manageable
-Food (let students choose, be responsible for it)
-Time they can do it – right after school (4pm)
-Activity/ice breaker (easel and paper – youth issues in community – brainstorming) (group decides what to focus on now and in the future)
-Watch for the Bullshit detector (presenters must be believable)
-Dress believably for the group (be real, relate to the audience)
-Have excitement (a smile) in your voice
-Be flexible with your time and energy
-Celebration at the end – fun time, giveaways, gift certificates, can be each class period (like toss-up trivia) something that happened during the class
-Get familiar with the local Dollar Store (as handouts – alternatives to candy)
-Don’t be afraid of silence (don’t be too quick to fill the silence, people may be processing)
-Get constant feedback from youth and give them choices
-Make your points into a game if possible. (Price is Right! Jeopardy! BINGO!)
-Use props.
-Peer pressure
Student Buy-in for on-going social group
-Curriculum
-Video clips
-Speakers, ADAPT, others
-Traditional meetings every other month that end in a fun activity
- Be professional
-get a business card
-dress for success (know your audience)
-use respectful, friendly and easy-to-understand words (no jargon)
Transportation:
At the end of this training, centers will be able to:
- gather information/resources and
- help youth with disabilities utilize transportation to be more active and independent.
- Create activities that peer model transportation options in the community– ID individual transportation needs - what do you need?
Gather information/resources
-conduct a task analysis of the problem (find out when, how, where youth with disabilities face challenges in using public transportation)
Activities:
-self advocacy opportunities
-plan bus routes
-analyze cost of different kinds of transportation
-utilize free options (do members in group homes have something you can use?
-para-transit options
-mobility managers available
-be creative
-utilize trail services (corral the troops and go together (power chair users)
IL History and Philosophy
At the end of this training, centers will be able to:
- offer training to teachers and youth with disabilities on IL history and philosophy
- know who to talk to and how they can – know how students can do things for themselves – not just a social club
- know rights and responsibilities w/in disability context (laws that effect them – ADA, IDEA, others – goes with Jeopardy game, 504)
- many have not been given the right to have responsibility
- make sure there is a lesson
– bowling: how to get your shoes, how to approach the desk, how to keep score
- fishing: how to rent the equipment, how to hook a worm
Items to remember:
-Awareness for teachers – language – be real, use “student” or “youth” – not “kid” or “the real world” nothing magic happens when they turn 18
-Use of word “crip”, “crip humor” or “crip casting” – should have ownership in this room. Play label game and definitions. Role model what works for you. Are there words we should not use in this room. Vote on it. Can take the words out of the group and use it correctly. Teaching moment – great discussion. Don’t expect others to use the language correctly if you don’t model it yourself.
-Who’s making decisions about a person’s life.
-Discuss words in the Context of the time, attitudes, how has the word evolved.
-(Q) what to say when confronted with – “my students are too low functioning.” (A) We believe our program can be adapted to any students’ needs.
History items: (find internet sources)
-Ed Roberts – “His Words and His Vision” & “People in Motion” - PBS
-Life/death discussions – ideas of suicide in people who acquire disability
-Mid-evil times
-Label game – how that developed through history
-ILRU DVD – edited version w/stops
-“When Billy Broke His Head” – not impressed
-“It’s just US” – about Ed, Wade and Justin
-10 Commandments of Disability – DVD and written piece
-Power of 504 – first section plus testimony
-Disability culture/timeline/written user guide
-Mixture of pics and facts – back up with DVD
-Disability Rag, MOUTH magazine, Storm Readings – Neal Marcus, Mike Oxford/Gina McDonald history piece, Steve Brown other leaders throughout history, Toward Independence, Les Freidan
-June Kailes – Language Isn’t a Trivial Concern
-People First Language – KYEA – one-page poster (compare with past ones)
-Our Story – Scott Cooper (current stories)
-MAKE IT FUN!!!
- - print out different words, person who uses a wheelchair, put in columns, acceptable/unrespectful – matching game
Philosophy
-choice
-consumer control
-GalaudetUniversity
-Nothing About us Without Us
-Best expert on your own life
-Disability pride/awareness
Leadership and Advocacy
At the end of this training, young people will:
- gain confidence in developing their leadership skills
- know more about their personal leadership style(s)
- Recognize the difference between self and systems advocacy
- finding ways to get one’s own needs taken care of
- changing the way a system works through laws or policy
At the end of this training, CILs will be more comfortable with:
- Developing youth into leadership roles
- Hiring youth in staff positions
Outcome:
- having youth move on to their personal next level of leadership
Advocacy goal:
- develop confidence to participate in individual or systems advocacy
- talking to teachers about what they need to take a test
- talking to government to change a law
- have role models
Activities:
- brainstorming the characteristics or qualities of a leader
- what are the different types of leadership
- use as a resource (to set an example)
- I have something in common with them and look what they did
- the first step is showing up
To be a leader, you don’t have to do all these things, but find your own separate style. You might see other people’s styles before they do and asking them to show up or become part of the leadership.
- Stand and Declare (make a stand on an issue and be able to explain why. Listen to other points of view and be able to change your mind
- leadership styles (description or examples of jobs/people w/d who do these things (matching game –people in room as well as famous people – can get them to stand under a type of leadership style and explain why they feel they fit that category.
- the speech giver (systems) (testifies at public hearings or before legislature presentations, self-disclosure, teaches classes, PSAs, general PR – (example: Justin Dart)
- the negotiator for
- the mediator
- the bridge builder
- the volunteer
- supporting actor (silent leader who empowers others to become leaders)
- the person who does logistics
- the letter writer (systems or self)
- the person who keeps track of events through social media and passes information on
- the self-advocate
- the motivator (the dream catcher) – add your own examples of things that have been done in your community
- the person who has the vision
- the big picture person
- the dreamer
- the person who leads by example
- the role model (silent motivator)(goes to an ADAPT rally, one-on-one mentoring, lead by example)
- the professional (has knowledge and other resources to support the cause)
- the entertainer (promotes a cause through humor or other self-expressions (ie, music, storytelling, art or culture
- the facilitator
Game ideas:
How to develop – the meeting once a month, taking them to events, pushing youth to go beyond themselves,
Game: what are they good at/not good at, Who in the room compliments your skills
Write down your 5 strengths. The Strengths Finder – 2.0 by Tom Rath. What do you do with that strength? Find others who have the same or complimentary strengths. Consistency, empathy, futuristic, harmony, achiever, activator, adaptability, analytical, arranger, beliefs, command, communication, competition, connectedness, context, deliberative, developer, discipline, focus, ideation, includer, individualization, input, intellection, learner, the maximizer, positivity, relator, responsibility, restorative, self-assurance, significance, strategic, woo --
NOTE: one goal is not necessarily having people come every month but having your youth move on to the next level. Integrate into the center.
Youth Participation in the Community
At the end of this training, centers will be able to:
- identify information/resources to help youth with disabilities be active and enhance quality of their community participation
- develop youth into leadership roles
- set up programs in the community with youth in leadership roles
- include youth both with and without disabilitiesin community activities
- identify that inclusion and accessibility are important aspects of youth participation in the community
Participation includes: Quality, role and quantity of participation
-Include youth in established programs and activities
-Establish mentors to work with youth
-Eventually youth can establish their own programs
Sexuality – safety and relationships
- gathering materials from other sources
- KH and Sierra participated in ILRU training in Atlanta
- use resources from that training
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