Building Work Skills for Special Needs High School Learners

'Skills for Work' is a series of four books written by Australian author and special educator, Anne Vize. The books are able to be used individually or as part of a series where students progress through learning tasks at their own pace. The books are fully photocopiable and are aimed at a teacher market, meaning a single copy can meet the needs of multiple students. They are especially helpful for teachers beginning in special education, who may not have a lot of their own resources. For teachers who have older students who are becoming work ready, or those who want to know how to help a young person develop work skills, these resources provide a sequential and planned approach that can provide enough content for an entire year of in class teaching. There is a strong focus on employability skills, and on areas such as:

• communication
• teamwork
• interpersonal skills
• personal management and organisation

The series of books is made up of:

• Book 1 - Read for Work
• Book 2 - At Work
• Book 3 - What work?
• Book 4 - Rights and responsibilities.

The concept of the series is to provide resources focused on literacy skills which can take a student from beginning to learn about the skills they will need in a workplace, right through to planning and choosing a career area for the future, and understanding their rights and responsibilities once they are in a workplace.

The 'Skills for Work' series includes activities and worksheets for a high school audience which is performing at a literacy level around the upper elementary / primary school level. Typically the students who use the books would be operating at a reading age of around 4-5 years lower than their peers. The language is designed to be appropriate for high school students, and the concepts are suitable for a high school student group. It is simply the reading level and the task expectations which have been modified.

The books may be used by students who are struggling readers, as well as those who have a learning or intellectual disability. They have also been used with some learners who are learning English as a second language.

Some of the language, case studies and examples are uniquely Australian, and so may need to be modified for an English, Canadian or US audience. However, given that each book contains upwards of 100 pages, there is still likely to be plenty of suitable material to keep even the most enthusiastic student going for quite a while!

Teaching work skills and exploring how to help a young person develop work skills is increasingly becoming an important part of the special educator's role in a secondary or vocational setting. Young people with special needs must be aware of the strategies, skills and life long learning approaches which will help them to function as independently as possible in an increasingly complex and technology driven work environment.

Books in the 'Skills for Work' series sell for AUD $59.95 each, and are available from Phoenix Education

Sample pages from the books can be viewed online at the Phoenix Education website.