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A Practical Approach at Home for Parents and Carers

Life Skills(Teenagers)

Children with Disabilities TeamOccupational Therapy

This is the second booklet which has been designed to helpteenagers and families developessential life skills. In the firstbooklet (Life Skills for Little Ones),the focus was on young childrenmoving towards independence. This one focuses on another keytheme - preparing for adult life.

Occupational therapists oftenmeet with teenagers who havedifficulties with ordinary daily lifeactivities. In order to help them to gain the skills required for aparticular activity, we offer practicaladvice and suggest a range ofexperiences which will enablethem to develop these skillsnaturally. This booklet is not ateenagers’ developmental guide, as there are many good bookson the market with information on this stage of development. This booklet is simply a range ofhints, tips and ideas, designed to be slotted in to busy family life, this booklet aims to encourageteenagers to think about theexperiences and skills they may need to help them prepare foradulthood, and to help parents tothink creatively about supportingtheir teenager. Its aim is toencourage the development of the necessary skills without itseeming to be a programme to befollowed, or set of exercises orschool homework.

We would hope teenagers andfamilies will dip in/out of the ideaslisted.

We all learn by experience. Asparents, we seek to give ourteenagers experiences which will provide them with the bestopportunity to develop the skillsrequired for activities that will be important in the future. This can be difficult for all parents, as it involves: letting go, taking risks and allowing teenagers tomake mistakes. Parents of teenagerswith specific difficulties may benaturally very protective and oftenfind it harder to give their teenagersthis level of independence.

Many of the life skills that teenagers acquire are oftendeveloped following repeatedexposure to a range of activitiesaway from the family home orschool. Regularly skills are developedusing information from subtle cues.This booklet aims to break down the skills to be practiced in a rangeof areas. This booklet promotes that activities be broken down intomanageable chunks. Exampleswould be: understanding theunwritten rules of trying on clothes in a shop, queuing up for the changing room if the shop is busy, telling the staff the numberof items of clothing they are tryingon. Some of these tasks are so basic that we may not think of them as requiring specific skills but in fact they do.

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Moving on from a children’s routines to teenageroutines

Developing independence in personal care:

• Ideas to promote choice and avoid conflict

• Bathroom etiquette

• Eating habits

• Sleep hygiene

Travel

• Car journeys

• Bus journeys

• Train & plane journeys

Thinking about moving out

• Social situations

• Moving on

• Technology

• Timetables and routines

• Social networking

• Using video recording to examine and assess yourstyle of parenting


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As parents, weseek to give our

teenagersexperienceswhich will

provide themwith the bestopportunity todevelop the

skills requiredfor activitiesthat will beimportant in

the future.

Generalstrategies for

family life

All families work differently. Someare highly organised; others describe‘organised chaos’ as the dailyround! But generally family life isbusy, and teenagers can set theroutine if you are not careful. If youare aware of this, you can avoid itby setting clearly what happens onparticular days at particular times.This may enable your teenager tohave a better understanding of whatis happening. In due course, thismay help to develop their routine asthey get older, but it should be forthe benefit of the whole family.

Each family has its own informalroutines. They may use calendarswith details of events, and work orschool times will give structure toindividual days throughout theweek. Often each day is different,because of school activities, parents’work routines, clubs and leisureactivities. Teenagers may not alwaysknow exactly what they are doingthe next day, but they know thatthey enjoy some days better thanothers (because of what ishappening or not happening thatday). Observing this can helpparents to organise and plan familylife.

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General strategiesfor family life

Each family hasits own informal

routines. They mayuse calendarswith details of

events, and workor school times

will givestructure to

individual daysthroughout the

week.

For teenagers who have difficultywith picking up cues, a clear routineor structure can be helpful. Justknowing what is going to happennext, or how long an activity willlast, can be really useful in providinga sense of being in control. This isparticularly important whenteenagers move on from schoolforming the basis for Monday toFriday routine.Ideas to try:• Look at your weekly routines to

see if they could be made clearerfor the whole family.

• Use a family planner with onlyone week in view and a picturecalendar for events. Let thefamily help you plan the week.

• Ensure morning or eveningroutines are clear visually,making it easy to see what ishappening both now and lateron.

• Set family meal times for eachday (if you can).

• Mark in any appointments andset reminders

• Use mobile phone calendars,daily alarms, and reminders.

• In a central spot where everyonecan see it e.g. fridge to displayTo Do Lists etc.

• Set times for family activities e.g.to feed/walk pets.

• Set times for specificallyenjoyable activities which shouldnot be interrupted ( eg. a familywalk, time to watch somethingtogether or play a game).

• Organise rooms to get rid ofclutter which can reduce visualoverload and help keepeveryone calm.

• Give everyone in the housesomewhere to keep their ownbelongings, and label this withpictures or names.

• Use objects to remind everyoneof something unusualhappening e.g. big Easter eggbefore Easter or a case beforesummer holidays.

• Have a music slot at significanttimes (e.g. beginning ofweekend)

• Have a designated chill out placeand/or time at home

• Use visual timers or five minutecount downs to begin or endparticularly difficult activities.

• Get other family or friendsinvolved in helping to plan yourroutine to give you the benefitof an onlooker’s perspective.


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Personal care Think about how many daily tasks are done automatically or out ofhabit. For example, dressing, washing, brushing teeth and hair etc.Although you may have supportedyour child in doing such tasks fromtheir childhood to teenage years, withthe pressure of many commitments, it may have been quicker and easier for you to do things for them. As your teenager matures this mayneed to change.

Everyone has their own individualpersonal care routines. However, if a teenager has difficulties withfollowing routines, understandinglanguage and motor coordination, this can impact on the way in whichthe skills begin to develop. It can behard for teenagers with difficulties to adapt to new routines. Resistanceto change, and sometimes adeterioration in behaviour oftenseems to take place when they are under pressure in other areas of life. This might be apparent inpersonal/ intimate care e.g. refusingto shower.

The following ideas may enable themto develop more independence ingeneral personal care activities: • Use visual reminders, for example,

pictures, objects, written notesetc. These are often used withchildren but removed when theybecome older and moreindependent. In times of changeor when they are facing newsituations, bringing them back incan be helpful and can be ameans of removing anxiety. Theyprovide a good support to anyroutine.

Developingindependence in

personal care

Even something assimple as amotivating

character on thetoothbrush or a

visual timetablewith a motivating

special interest onthe border can make

a difference.

• Breaking down the skills used inevery activity. (You will be surprisedhow many skills can be needed).Just try to let them master one skillat a time and build each skill upgradually. Remember that toachieve each individual stepsuccessfully is very rewarding.Make sure you find just the rightchallenge, not so difficult that theyare put off, not so easy that it’s notrewarding.

• This then this - All teenagers find ithard to be motivated unless theysee the point of a specific task. Ifyou can find out the motivator, thiscan make things much easier ifpersonal care activities are notmotivating. Providing an enjoyableactivity or a positive sensoryexperience, immediately after apersonal care task. Even somethingas simple as a motivating characteron the toothbrush or a visualtimetable with a motivating specialinterest on the border can make adifference.

Developmentally, the physicalchange during the teenage yearscan be difficult for those who aresensory sensitive. Everything feelsdifferent as the body is changing.Be mindful that the physicaldifferences may lead to particularsensory likes and dislikes.

Be aware of sensory issues.

• There can be sensitivities regardingpersonal care activities. Touch,sound, visual stimulation, smell andtaste can all play a part and newsensitivities can develop as we getolder or old ones can re-emergewhen we feel anxious. It is notalways easy to adapt to new careroutines involving new sensoryexperiences, for example, shavingor having sore skin as a result ofacne. Some new products on themarket can be helpful butteenagers might find it stressfulwhen familiar products change anddo not have the same smell orpackaging. Do remember thatsensory deep pressure activitiesmight still be useful. How long anactivity will take and when it willend can all be important. Countingto ten, or using a timer or thelength of a piece of music, to markthe end of a task, may help tomake things clearer for someonewho may not have a sense of howlong it will take, or if and when itwill end. Imagine how you wouldfeel if you thought you could notget out of the shower and you werethere forever!

• Most teenagers are rebellious attimes. Their behaviour is often moreapparent as they grow up. Livingwith parents during this phaseoften leads to conflict. This isnormal!


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• Teenage problems include: defiance, moodiness,being withdrawn and head strong. A parent whohas a teenager, with the added complication ofhaving difficulty in understanding, feeling confusedabout the world, or coping with physical difficulties,often finds this extremely challenging.

• Generally speaking, for most teenagers, part of thisprocess involves some risk-taking behaviour forteenagers with additional needs. Risk taking is anessential developmental step towards greaterindependence. This might involve such things asnot asking for help or being abusive to carers. Alack of awareness of danger and boundaries mightaffect the limit to which they might be allowed thefreedom to take risks. Often young people knowtheir rights but need support to understand theresponsibilities that go alongside these rights

• Conflict most often arises from the issues aroundindependence in personal care, or in using other lifeskills, as this is where teenagers with additionaldifficulties still need help but may resent it orbecome self- conscious and embarrassed.

• Being able to make choices for yourself isimportant. Try to negotiate on things like thecolour of their face cloth, or the kind of shower gelthey use. Making special trips to buy the items usedin the bathroom routine and choosing their owncare products can be helpful and motivating. Suchaspects as the colour or smell of a product can beused positively to give a teenager more control butstill get them washed!

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Promotingchoice ratherthan conflictin personal

care

• Does it have to be done the way you have alwaysdone it? (You will have created the routine whenthey were small. Does it need to be this way?)

• Can a choice be given to help your teenager havemore control?

• Am I able to step back and see when there is aneed to compromise?

• What level of personal care is really necessary or isit my need to nurture them that is dictating thise.g. you may have assisted them to shower dailybut they prefer to shower every other day?

• If I am too close to the situation to judge fairlyshould I ask for help to reflect from family orfriends, or a professional, Am I willing and able toallow my young person to take risks?

• What is the teenagers’ responsibility?

• What has changed since the teenager was at thepre- teens stage?

• What motivates them? What do they thinkindependence is?

• What helpful strategies can they revisit or start?

• What agreements including visual or written oneswould they work with?

• Have they ever experienced independent risktaking?

• Can you build on this to promote positivestrategies?

These are questions you might like to discuss to see ifthey help you to allow the teenager work towardsgreater independence. It might help to explore withyour young person what understanding they have ofhis/her abilities and strengths, what understanding ofsupport he/she needs.

By the teenage years, most families are never in thebathroom together and what happens there is very


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Questions toconsider


page ten

private. However, many teenagers with physical challengesor with problems of understanding, have to share thisaspect of their life. This is shared not only with parents andextended family, but even with school staff, carers, andbefrienders. This may continue into adulthood. We need toensure that using the bathroom is a safe experience, ourteenagers are treated with the dignity they deserve, andfeel secure at all times. Choice should be offered to theteenager at every suitable opportunity.

It is important to help build a teenager’s understanding ofwhat constitutes safe touching even in personal care.Thebathroom experience provides the opportunity to talk aboutwho can touch and what is appropriate. Help to build anunderstanding of the meaning of privacy and covering upto your teenager. This can be something they have lessexperience of than other teenagers, as they may requiremore help. Towels should be made available to encouragecovering up discreetly. Consider how it would feel ifdiscretion was not given during self care activities if youneeded assistance. Using a towel to cover up the area ofthe teenager’s body that they are not are not activelyneeding assistance to wash is a basic but very usefulstrategy. Discussions about the issue of privacy, perhapsusing pictures, should take place to reinforce this. There aremany resources available to guide parents in relation to this.

Basic hygiene to avoid spreading germs can be taught byusing social stories, pictures or cartoons about ways toprevent germ transmission, such as washing the hands afterusing the bathroom. There are many social stories availableonline in relation to this. There are social story apps that canbe personalised to make it more meaningful.

The bathroom routine for morning and or night can bevisually supported with as many cues appropriate to theindividual teenager as required.

BathroomEtiquette

Remember that although independence andchoice should be encouraged, balanced withtheir hygiene needs, health and wellbeing.

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Co-ordination problems can beminimised by avoiding the use ofclothing with very small buttons, andshampoo etc with small lids. To help withmotivation, parents should try to use avariety of smells and textures of washingproducts, clothes and towels, with arange of colours of bottles etc to providepleasurable sensory feedback. Anexample would be to warm the towelwhich may make drying less stressful.

Managing toilet hygiene can be difficultto learn especially if a teenager reliesvery much on the sense of sight tosupport reduced hand co-ordination. Ifthis is the case, parents could encouragethe use of a small hand mirror for theyoung person to check themselves (tosee if they are clean). Or, they could tryusing moist toilet paper to cleanthemselves after using the toilet.Alternatively, they could use a little waterfrom a small plastic bottle poured at theback to wash themself clean and adisposable cloth to be binnedafterwards.

If hygiene remains an issue andindependent toilet hygiene is not beingsupported by regular showering,consideration could be given to usinghome or travel bidet devices toencourage cleanliness. Specialist toiletequipment can increase independence athome even although there can still bedifficulties when a teenager is out andabout and it is not available.

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Hair care can be difficult as you are relying more ontouch than what you can actually see. It can be hard tonegotiate using a brush and reaching round the back ofyour head. Sensory sensitivities can make it feelunpleasant if someone else is touching your head andhair. Being able to care for your own hair may give yourteenager a greater sense of control and promotepositive body image.

• Easy, yet up to date shorter hair styles may be asolution to let the teenager feel they are growingup. A discussion with the hairdresser might be agood idea and your teenager could be involved inthis.

• Using suitable shampoos, conditioners and anti -tangle products to help with brushingdifficulties, and involving a young person inchoosing their own hair care products, will help to develop a positive attitude.

• Experiment with different brushes, thinking about such things as: handle length, soft or hardbristles etc. Letting your child become familiar with how the brush feels or looks will buildconfidence, give them a sense of control and helpto overcome sensitivity.

• Front brushing is the easiest way to start. Brushing your hair from behind might be the nextstep. You can help by holding up a mirror forthem so that they can see their hair better. Adressing table style mirror may give a few differentperspectives to allow your teenager to see theirhair from all angles.

With regard to washing hair, think about temperature,amount of water, and suitably fragranced shampoo. Is iteasier to wash hair while having a bath or shower? Howoften is it necessary and how can this be fitted into theroutine? Teenagers can be sleepy in the morning. Isnight time better? Consider the use of dry shampoo onthe days that hair washing is a challenge.

Hair care

Things to consider:


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Remember visual routines, time limits on activity and the reward ofan enjoyable activity after completion, if the teenager perceives it asa dull or pointless task.

If your teenager hates hair washing, build positive routines in tohelp. Before washing hair, try massaging the scalp or applying deeppressure to the head for a count of ten. The teenager can build in aroutine of doing this for themself.

Teeth brushing

Remember theimportance of

taste, smelland texture,and involve

the youngperson where

possible inbuying a

toothbrush andtoothpaste.

Most people have a preference over thetype/style of toothbrush and the flavour oftoothpaste. This is no different for teenagers with additional needs.

Try using an electric toothbrush. Noveltytoothbrushes can be motivating for some people,other people may like a visual timer so they knowhow long is left of brushing.

Think about how a toothbrush feels in yourteenager’s mouth. Brushing one’s own teeth is definitely less stressful. (If you getsomeone else to brush your teeth you will feelthis.) There are many varieties and solutionsavailable e.g. finger toothbrush.

If possible, you should get your teenager’s to brush your teeth and then talk about what you both felt about it.

Discuss or get your teenager to create a visualroutine they are able to follow and tick offstages.

Try allowing your teenager to eat something very chewy or chew hard on the toothbrushbefore they brush.

Rubbing hands together to build up the sensationbefore brushing could also help.


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Teenager’s interest in fast foodand snacking can posedifficulties for both health andpositive family routines. Everyfamily is different in how this isbest managed. Eating out withfriends/carers and eating outwith family may be two verydifferent routines. Eating out canbe a real source of pleasure or areal source of stress forteenagers and their parents. It isworthwhile considering how todeal with this in your particularfamily.

• Do you want to eat out as afamily in a variety ofdifferent places?

• Do you consider meals atime for being sociable orwould you prefer to keepthe social time for later?

• What is the pattern forvisiting relatives and friendsand are you and yourteenager happy with it?

• Is it harder for yourteenager to eat meals atschool or with friends/carersthan at home?

• Is there an opportunity for achange, for example, eatingwith their befriendergroup?

• Can a relative or friendcome on board to trysomething new anddifferent?

Age appropriate eatingstrategies need to be considered.With modern eating habits,eating with fingers is lessnoticeable and is commonplacein many fast food chains.However, perhaps not in somerestaurants or family occasions.Cutlery is something it isimportant to be comfortablewith.

Some suggestions forusing cutlery:

• Revisiting styles, colours andshapes of cutlery with theteenager as it has probablybeen a long time since youdid this. Moving on to moreadult looking cutlery isimportant to manyteenagers.

• Using camping cutlery withdifferent designs and weightcombinations might appealto them. Similarly, thecolours, shapes and designof camping plates, wherethere are sections whichmight help to separate food,might be attractive.

• School trips, activities,special events andbefriending sessions can bean ideal time to introduceand try new things. Forexample, new cutlery andplates could be tried outwhen you are visiting afriend or relative then, ifaccepted and a positiveexperience, built up intoother areas.

Eatinghabits

Issues toconsider:

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For teenagers who struggle changing routines andsocial understanding it may be useful to add positivesensory experiences specific to eating out andenvironmental cues. Try using a variety ofenvironments with different smells, music, coloursetc. This may have been something you have avoidedin the past, however, you could prepare them byusing pictures or social stories again, especially if theyhave strong preferences. Again tap into what isavailable online to make bespoke social stories.

Try buying clothes that are only worn when eatingout which the teenager can pick out for themselves.

Devise strategies to use while waiting for the food tobe served, for example, smart phone games or smallfidget toys. This may help the teenager to feel theyare growing up but still keeps them occupied. Havingheadphones with favourite music to listen to may behelpful for some.

• the time

• number of people coming

• how you will get there

• how long you will be there for.

Try using a smart phone with all the details to allowthe young person to go over this themselves inpicture or words.

...it may beuseful to addpositive sensory

experiencesspecific to

eating out andenvironmental

cues.

Structure the eventtaking into account:

Teenagers’ sleep patterns are often very different fromthose of children. They may need more sleep at times, yetdevelop a pattern of being up later than you feel ishealthy. Watching TV, playing with gaming consoles,social networking and using mobile phones, sometimesencourage habits to develop which disrupt sleep routines.Changes may be required.

• Let your teenager help design a bedtime routinewhich is teen friendly. Think about using an ageappropriate sleep chart.

• Make sure nothing is worrying or upsetting them.Encourage them to try using emoticon texts to seehow they feel each night.

• It can be helpful to ensure the bedroom environmentat that time is suitable for sleep, for example, thetelevision is turned off and there are dark curtains ifit is summer time.

• If sleep is a major difficulty minimiseclutter/distraction in the bedroom, try out specificdesigns with not too much colour to reduce anydistractions. Prepare a calm quiet area where theyoung person can relax, possibly using a rockingchair or hammock chair to provide gentlemovement.

• Keep the environment and routine exactly the same,to help the teenager clearly link it to time for sleep.

• Before bedtime, allow time for calming activitiessuch as: listening to music or an audio book,drawing, reading. Soaking in a hot bath with acalming fragrance, rubbing on body creams etc mayhelp. Avoid stimulating activities such as watchingtelevision or playing with games consoles at thistime.

• Include an element of choice of activity in thebedtime routine. Your teenager will cope betterwith the routine if involved in creating it.

• Pick night wear that the teenager likes, thinking oftexture, colour, trendiness etc.


Sleepinghygiene

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Here are somesuggestions for

a better sleeppattern:


page seventeen

• Use heavy blankets to provide positive deeppressure.

• If they can't sleep, build in an activity outside thebedroom, then encourage them to go back andtry again. For example, they could go to thekitchen for a drink of water. This might help themto associate wakefulness as something thathappens outside the bedroom.

• Encourage a habit of switching off mobile phones,or putting them on silent, screen down, to chargeat night, to prevent sleep getting disrupted. Ifdoing this, keep them away from the bedside.

• Make sure they exercise during the day, even for ashort time, rather than later at night which mightincrease alertness.

• Prepare a mini routine the young person canfollow if or when they wake in the night. This issomething we all do but we don't often teach thisto young people.

• Use timers, alarm clocks etc to clearly signify whenit is time to get up.

Keep theenvironmentand routineexactly the

same, to helpthe teenagerclearly linkit to time for

sleep

Travel

The actualexperience oftravelling to anactivity is just as importantas the activityitself.


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When our teenagers were children,they may have had an experience ofwalking in the midst of crowds thatthey found overwhelming, or theymay not have been motivated towalk at all. It might be a good timeto revisit this now, as walking as aform of exercise is beneficial for theirhealth and can be a calming activity.

The following are some suggestionsfor parents to try:

• Going on a short walk with aclear purpose. Buildingindependence by making shortjourneys, for example, to aneighbour’s house, local shopetc. (perhaps with youshadowing them, rather thanwalking with them - a few stepsbehind).

• Using crossings and practising agood road crossing routine (atvarious places, at various timesof the day and night).

• Planning routes whichspecifically include crossingroads at designated crossings(judging the distance of carsand crossing roads safely atother places may never be a skillthat can be achieved). Notunusual for many people.

• Using smart phones with a routeplanner or putting instructionsinto notes.

• Increasing independence bygoing with the teenager, thengetting them to meet someoneat a specific point, as this canincrease their awareness of thetime it takes. Thinking aheadabout the routes they mightneed to use when they leaveschool and go to college.

• Travelling by bus might be a partof this, but walking to and fromthe bus station to college etcmight be involved too.

Walking

Modern living can involve frequent travel and visiting lots of places away fromhome. It can be rather frightening for teenagers to be away from familiarsettings and everyday routines. The actual experience of travelling to an activityis just as important as the activity itself. Teenagers with difficulty tuning intonew experiences may feel confused if they go by a different route than normal,or pass a familiar place where they usually stop but don’t on one particularoccasion. This can cause alarm and may then lead to difficult behaviour.

We want to enable teenagers with additional needs to reach the stage wherethey can travel independently, without parental support. To achieve this, theyshould be given experience of travel, and the opportunity to develop theappropriate skills, using as many forms of transport as possible. For someteenagers there is technology that can help build skills in this area e.g. GPS inphones.


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Generally teenagers may have more experience as a car passenger than a buspassenger. Teenage years are a good time to build this skill.Experience of busjourneys may be very limited for many teenagers. However, bus travel mayprovide the best opportunity for independent travelling so it is important thatthey are familiar with it.

Bus

• Make sure you use the busregularly with the teenager(or even better from pre-teen). Ask befrienders orwider family to use the buswith them.

• Practice going on bus routeswhich might be importantwhen they leave school.

• Make sure that each step ofthe journey is taught clearlyto them, as bus travel has itsown skills and social rules.

• Prepare them for what youdo if you miss the bus or itdoes not turn up. Meetthem at a bus stop, or geton at the next stop, or at theend of the journey.

• Practice what you say to thedriver, how you pay for yourfare, or show your bus pass.Make sure you don’t doeach stage for them. Dowith them, then supportthem to be actively involvedwith your supporting, notdoing.

• Ask the wider family to meetthem getting off the bus at astop near them.

• Think about using a smartphone locator for safety asthey travel so you knowwhere they are.

• Build social stories aboutwhat might happen on thejourney perhaps usingpictures.

• Make sure they have anemergency plan to follow,for example, if they arefrightened they should speakto the bus driver or show acard with emergency details.There are many bus travelscheme passes.

• Have emergency contacts ineasy to find place on phonee.g. on home screen.

The following are somesuggestions about how to

do this:


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Car

A teenager may cope with standardseat belts as they become older andget more familiar with car travel,however, the use of additionalharnesses may still be required.

Weighted lap blankets on their knees gives sensory feedback whilethey are sitting in the seat. This mayhelp if your teenager finds deeppressure calming.

Specialist vehicles may be requiredwhen the teenager gets bigger, ifaccess to seats or wheelchair accessbecomes an issue.

Clear information about the journeyor any changes to the journey willhelp them to understand what ishappening. The use of visualinformation using their familiar visual preference is recommended(e.g. pictures/words/symbols).

A surprise card could be used forroute changes or road cues on themotorway.

Distractors such as DVDs, tablet apps or music may help to keep theteenager calm if they are travelling for long distances .Fidget toys, or an object that reminds them wherethey are going, (e.g. a swim bag forswimming) might also be worth using.

A Sat Nav can be helpful for teenagerswho need to know where they areand when they will arrive (there aremany sat nav apps on tablets andmobile phones).

Distractors such asDVDs, tablet apps or

music may help tokeep the teenagercalm if they are

travelling for longdistances

Train travel is generally more predictable,provided there are no cancellations, and may bea good way of supporting a teenager whowants to embark on longer journeys. The abilityto get up and walk on a train and the regularmovement may make this a positive experiencefor some teenagers who do not have issueswith mobility. It also enables an adult to givesupport without the distraction of driving .

The teenage stage can be a good time to teachtrain travel as it is a new, grown up, andmotivating environment in which to learn newskills.

For the teenager with physical disability,learning how to notify the train station of theneed for assistance or a ramp (and what to doif there is a problem with it) would be avaluable skill. Train timetables present effectiveinformation which provides visual support.Information about times, destinations etc canbe interesting and motivating to a teenager.

The teenager should be made familiar withtheir local train station and the railway staff.

They should have an emergency plan in place(e.g. if frightened, talk to conductor or use

phone with emergency contacts.)


Train Travel

The teenagershould be made

familiar withtheir local

train stationand the

railway staff.


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There are a number of things which could be helpful(for the teenager with communication andunderstanding issues):

• Providing information on what is happening,when it is happening, and who is travelling.

• Using visual supports, such as a calendar, toshow how many days there are until the holidayor until they come home.

• Pre- planning for the journey with pictures ofplanes etc Visits to the airport in advance togive them experience of being there.

• Organising travel at the less busy times of dayor year, to limit sensory overload and avoid toomuch waiting time.

• Preparing for delays, using social stories orwaiting time activities, possibly related toairports.

• Consider the use of handling slings for planejourneys, the use of continence products toavoid toilet access issues in confined spaces.Have a discussion re your teenager’spreferences. Many airports have dedicatedteams to assist if pre booked. For those withphysical difficulties thinking around accessissues and creative solutions is a worthwhileexercise.

Plane Travel

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The Social Scene


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• Parents may have differentopinion on the benefits ofsocial activities for teenagerse.g. adults can perceive thesocial scene as an essentialway of developing socialskills that teenagers need.However teenagers may onlybe interested or not inwhether they are feelinghappy or not with theactivity.

• Teenagers may find that theirexperiences at school willaffect the access they have tofriends and leisure outwith ofschool. Teenagers withgreater difficulties may findthis more of an issue ifactivities involving friends arenot actively planned forthem. They may find socialexperiences stressful,therefore, structuring eventsin advance, using visualsupports, and perhapspractising what to do at anevent beforehand, can beuseful preparation.

• Often both parents andprofessionals view inclusiveleisure as a means of learninglife skills, increasingindependence and buildingself-esteem. However, theteenagers themselves aremore likely to be simplythinking about friendshipsand having fun. In fact, abalance of both views isneeded.

• Although teenagers mightenjoy participating in normal,mainstream leisure activities,they may also welcome theopportunity to meet withothers in a similar situation,in order to share their mutualexperience. For example,wheelchair users might enjoycomparing the speeds oftheir power chair .

• A lack of appropriate support(such as transport, personalassistance, and help withcommunication) may proveto be a barrier toparticipating in ordinaryleisure activities. Carefulplanning with these issues inmind is required.

Before ateenager leavesschool it is goodto introduce themto places whichthey cancontinue to visitonce they haveleft behind thefamiliar routineof school.

Before a teenager leaves school it is good to introduce them to places which theycan continue to visit once they have left behind the familiar routine of school.

Thefollowingideas are

worththinking

about:


• Leisure activities can involvemeeting other people. Theycould also be activities whichcan be done alone, yetprovide an opportunity tomeet other people, withoutthe commitment of afriendship. Examples of thiswould be: going to the gym,or swimming .It is helpful togive thought to what suits ateenager best in terms oftheir social needs.

• It is also worth exploring howmuch exercise the teenagerwould like to have, as thismay be beneficial for theirgeneral mood and feeling ofwellbeing.

• Before a teenager leavesschool it is good to introducethem to places which theycan continue to visit oncethey have left behind thefamiliar routine of school.Think about whether theycould use the local sportscentre instead of the schoolgym, or the local swimmingpool for PE in their final yearof school. This would buildup a familiarity with newenvironments and people,and provide leisure activitieswhich would remain afterthey leave school. It wouldrequire making links with theschool but could be worthinvestigating.

• Other lone leisure activitiesworth considering are: aweekly visit to a cafe, or alibrary with wifi, where theteenager could get to knowthe staff and develop afamiliar routine which wouldbe age appropriate. It couldbe transferred to an adultbefriender or become anindependent activity.


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• Thinking about the college orplacement the teenager mightattend, so that you can startmaking the journey there a partof your outings and trips earlyon in their teenage years. (Itdoes not matter if this does notturn out not to be the one theyattend in the end, as busexperience will still be helpfuland it is always useful tofamiliarise them with specificroutes.)

• Discussing work experience andfinding out about what theymight like to do. Doingvoluntary work together, orasking wider family orbefrienders to accompany themto help in a local setting, mighthelp to widen their experienceand build confidence andcommunication skills.

• The school environment and allthat it involves will have becomevery familiar to the teenagersbut when they come near to thetime of actually leaving school,you could try using other local,newer services which theymight continue to use in thefuture, for example, the library,sports centre ,community centreand maybe some new clubs orcafes.

• Suggesting to friends, family, orbefrienders that they try visitingnew places when they takethem out. It is best to keepthese trips local so that they fitinto life easily and couldpotentially become a regularactivity once they leave school.

• Giving them more choice andindependence with regard togoing to local shops to buy suchthings as food, clothes, careproducts, or to get their hair cut.You may need to plan a specifictrip for each individual item butit is gradually building upindependent skills.

• Self Help Skills/Domestic Chores

• Introduce concept ofresponsibility in your home soyour teenager now contributesto the running of the familyhome. This is a good way ofincreasingly independent living.The chore could be daily (settingthe table/clearing the table) orweekly - helping with theshopping.

Moving on All parents want to plan for their children’s future and enable them to developthe skills to survive in the adult world. However, there is often a lack of timein which to practise these new skills in advance, in new environments withnew people, to allow parents and teenagers to feel confident that they areready to move on. It’s therefore important to start early!

The following are somesuggestions to help with this:


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Technology We live in an age of technology and our teenagers will already be familiar withit and use it on a daily basis. Assistive technology, specialised to the needs ofyoung people with difficulties, will be used both at school and at home to aidcommunication and control the environment. However, there are some morelow key ways of using what is already at our finger tips to give moreindependence unobtrusively.

The following are some examples:

• Emoticons - young people arefamiliar with such as smiley facescould be used to check mood/feeling.

• Texting with simple emoticons forteenagers who would love to textbut find it hard.

If the teenager likes texting but hascomplex social understanding issues,making up a list of texting rules couldbe helpful, for example, appropriatetimes to text (not 3am!) and anacceptable number of texts if they aretexting too much to one person. Setthe rule list in notes or in pictures.

• Use pictures saved on phones tostore visual routines, waiting time,or social story.

• Watch the clip of the conversationsyou have with the teenager. Askyourself if you are letting themgrow up and make choices forthemselves or making the choicefor them out of habit.

• Watch the clip of the teenagerinteracting with friends or familywith them, and chat about whatwas good in the way they actedand what showed maturity inconversation or actions. Resistpointing out any negatives!

• Ask yourself if you are making fulluse of timers, calendars, andalarms.

• Switch on safe location on smartphones to check where teenagersare; or if they are anxious, to letthem check where you are.

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Specific advice regarding the use oftablets with complex teenagers.Tablets are very predictable for teenagersand even many of those who have verycomplex difficulties and limited motivationfor other things, really enjoy using them.This can be used to advantage in thefollowing ways:

• You should maintain control over howmuch time they get to access the tabletso you can negotiate what is required tobe done, and reward and support otheractivities.

• The tablet could be used to give simple,predictable cues. For example, you couldset a photo album for a routine they donot understand.

• The tablet can be a familiar object whichthey can take with them to newenvironments to provide a predictable,safe and familiar activity.

• You could use the album to support asimple routine and share at bedtime.

....there are somemore low keyways of using

what is alreadyat our finger tips

to give moreindependenceunobtrusively.

Notes:


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Notes:

SWCF 11 AUGUST 2016

If you would like thisinformation in anotherlanguage, Braille, LARGE PRINTor audio, please contactChildren with Disabilities Team.

www.falkirk.gov.uk/cwdAANNEE FFOORR AA''

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