Programs for the Future
School to Life Transition Programming
Community-Based Instruction
Community Based Instruction (CBI) is an instructional method for teaching, in real-life settings and under the supervision of staff, the skills that students will need for functional daily living as productive adults. This program opportunity is something the district highly values for our special education students. Both middle school and high school Life Skills and Autistic Support classrooms have participated and will continue to participate in CBI trips. These trips touch on various areas of “life-skills” instruction including recreation, dining, entertaining, work experience and more. These trips are zero cost to students and occur throughout the school year.
Community-Based Instruction (CBI) is a critical component of the educational program for these students. As adults, the community is where they will need to use the skills they acquire during their school years. The expectation is that our students will live, work, shop and play in integrated environments in the community, and that they will participate, either independently or with accommodations and supports, in typical activities across a variety of settings. Overarching guidelines are based on the following principles and best practices:
1. Instruction should occur in “natural environments” and at naturally occurring times of the school day whenever possible: e.g. teach money use in settings and situations where money is naturally used such as grocery stores, cafeteria, school store, shops, etc.
2. Instructional priorities for each student should be based on the real world needs of the individual students, and should lead toward increased independence and autonomy in his or her home and community.
3. Students should learn skills that are referenced to performance demands of real world environments, and which are critical to maintain meaningful participation in the least restrictive environment.
Because CBI is designed to increase independent living and social interactions for students, careful planning takes place prior to beginning instruction. Educational staff are charged with determining the student’s needs and matching these needs with the proper instructional setting. As CBI expands in the district, so do the real life experiences and learning opportunities.
WOW Program
The WOW fund has been established to support fundraising efforts by our low incidence classes. Students are responsible, with guidance from teaching staff, for planning all aspects of the fund raising efforts. This includes initial ideas and planning, creation or purchasing of goods, selling the available items, tallying funds raised, depositing funds, and more. The funds received from fundraising are used to support future fundraising activities inclusive of holiday cards, coffee in decorated cups, bagel sales, and more. Any additional funds raised are utilized in the low incidence classrooms for purchasing behavior reinforcement tools/incentives and for other classroom activities.
As the roll out of the WOW fund continues, the students are looking forward to expanding funding raising opportunities. Below are many examples of students working on WOW fund related activities:
Community Based Instruction Through The Students Eyes
UPN's Indians In Action
About Us
Website: www.upsd.org
Location: 2229 East Buck Road, Pennsburg, PA, United States
Phone: 215-679-7961
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LearnUpperPerk/
Twitter: @LearnUpperPerk