Get Everybody Thinking About Work
Expectations are a key. If your child, you, and his or her support network all have work as the goal, everybody will work harder to make it happen.
Explore Options with Your Child
Help your child start thinking about work:
- DB101’s Finding a Job article can help your child think about what type of work he or she might like.
- Help your child find a mentor or role model. This person can help with advice and support that can make work more realistic.
- Give your child chores. They teach your child skills and to assume responsibility.
- Get your child involved in the community. Social experiences, summer camps, volunteer projects, community education classes, and internships all teach aspects of what work is like and let your child meet more people who might help with work in the future.
- Encourage your child to enjoy hobbies. Hobbies like sewing, cooking, woodworking, or anything else can teach skills, enrich life, create job possibilities, and help develop relationships that may lead to work.
- Introduce your child to the local Independent Living Center. It’s a good place to see what types of strategies other people with disabilities use to find and keep work.
It’s hard to teach a child to make decisions and take actions independently. At age 14, your child will not be making every decision, but as your child gets older, graduates high school, and reaches age 18, he or she needs to be ready to handle the broader world. Knowing how to make decisions and take action are key skills for personal and work success. Starting early with small steps will build future success.
Learn more about the child-parent relationship in DB101’s Start Planning Now article.
Make Work a Part of Your Child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP)
If your child is still in middle school or high school, he or she probably has an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Make sure that your child’s IEP team knows that your child’s long-term objective as an adult is work and make it a part of the IEP Transition Plan. For example, the IEP could increase its focus on developing work skills, such as reading with understanding, using technology, and having interest-based work experiences.
Connect with Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VRS)
A counselor from Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VRS) or State Services for the Blind (SSB) can help your child integrate work into his or her IEP transition plan. Usually, this happens when your child is two years away from graduating high school, but if your child is ready to work earlier, a VR counselor can help any time after your child turns 16. In Minnesota, a VR counselor is assigned to every high school. You can ask for a VR application from your child’s school or directly from VRS.
After high school, the IEP will end, but VRS or SSB may still help your child with counseling, training, job skills, and job placement. CareerForce locations also have programs for youth with disabilities and job services for all adults.
Make Work Part of Your Child’s Community Service and Support Plan
If your child has a county case manager, make sure the case manager knows work is in your child’s future and discuss what employment supports the county will offer as your child becomes an adult. You can also work with the case manager to develop a vision for your child’s life as an adult, including both work and other aspects of adult life.
It can be scary when your child actually reaches the goal of finding a job. Read DB101’s Working article with your child, so that you can both learn more about how to make a first job successful.
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