Lesson 10

Lesson 10: Community-Based Work Experience

This lesson focuses on the culminating activity for implementation of the Pre-ETS toolkit.

Objectives

  • Identify what work experiences are.
  • Connect job exploration with real-life work activities.
  • Connect workplace readiness skills with real-life work activities.
  • Learn how to develop a community-based work experience.

Materials

Expanding Your Knowledge

These optional activities and resources can reinforce lesson objectives in the home, engage families, or supplement classroom instruction.

Practicing Real-World Work Tasks

For an extension activity, download the activity PDF to guide students through a simulation of real-world work-related tasks in a classroom environment. This activity is designed to help high school students with significant disabilities practice and develop the skills required for community work-based experiences.

Additional Resources

These additional resources support the content in the Pre-ETS Toolkit and provide even more ways to help students plan for the future.

Community Partners Tracking Template

This Excel template is a helpful tool for instructors to manage community-based work experiences. It helps instructors keep track of business contacts and potential students who may be a good fit for each business.

Work-Based Learning Experiences

NTACT:C explores multiple types of work-based learning experiences and provides a guide in determining which learning experience is best for students. It also includes activities and multiple additional resources.

Explore Work

This website provides training with activities for teens with disabilities who are exploring work. Students can explore a variety of training options, including Career Planning, Your First Work Experiences, School beyond High School, Workplace Readiness and Self-Advocacy.

Transition to Work: Program Activity Guide for Blind and Low Vision

This activity guide was created for community rehabilitation program providers, vocational rehabilitation agencies, and teachers of students with visual impairments working to improve employment outcomes for teens and young adults who are blind or low vision. The 19 lessons in this guide can be utilized by service providers to implement three of the five required activities for their blind/low vision clients: job exploration, work-based learning, and workplace readiness training. The website includes program activity materials.

Pathways Middle School Career Clusters Exploration Guide

This website contains printable materials for educators, parents, and students, including a "Transition Guide for Students with Disabilities" and "Pre-ETS Sample Lessons for Life After High School for Individuals with the Most Significant Disabilities." Resources may be downloaded for free.

Developing Work-Based Learning Internships

This topical paper from the VCU Center on Transition Innovations provides steps to developing sites in the community for high-quality work-based learning.