Transition Planning Services for Your Child
Another important aspect to think about for your child is transition planning. The primary goal of transition planning is to prepare your child to move from high school to post-school activities, whether that is work, college, trade school, military service or something else. Transition planning for post-high school activities is often mandated to begin when your child turns 16, but in some states transition planning may begin even earlier.
Your child’s transition plan needs to be individualized to their specific support needs, strengths, interests, and goals while considering their disability. The transition plan is focused on helping your child develop the skills and experiences necessary for functional work, community life, or further education.
Your child’s transition plan is student focused. It includes conversations with the student and transition assessments often completed prior to the IEP meeting. This input from your student will be used to create a draft transition plan to be reviewed at the IEP meeting. Most students attend the IEP meeting as they get older. While you will be a part of these conversations, hopefully, your child also will be present at these meetings and take an active role in developing their own transition plan. At Boys Town, all students on campus attend their IEPs. It is helpful if you can frequently talk with your child about their hopes and dreams for their future after high school. As you better understand your child’s future goals, you can help them practice their self-advocacy skills to prepare for these conversations, which usually occur during the IEP meeting.
Transition plans vary in length and detail, but a transition plan must describe your child’s strengths, preferences, interests, and needs. A transition plan also includes measurable goals for your child following high school, like their goals for continued education, work or independent living. In addition, the plan must describe services that are available to help your child achieve these goals.
The transition plan will be focused on activities the child/family will take to support the child’s future goals, as well as any supports the school will provide to prepare your child to meet their post-secondary goals. The school can help you connect to a range of community-level supports that might be available for your child.
Transition plans also will be used as your child prepares for other substantial shifts in their K-12 educational career, such as moving from middle school to high school, or moving from different levels of care (like from a residential or day school to a community high school). Anytime your child is going to experience a big change, it can be helpful to develop a transition plan to prepare your child for success.
Transition plans are a vital part of the special education process. There are several important aspects to consider when thinking about how to help your child succeed post-graduation. We have another texting series that focuses more in-depth on how to develop a successful transition plan for your child that you may want to enroll in next.