Life Skills Program
Students registering in the program are required to meet cognitive criteria as identified by the Department of Education. Parents, educators and administrators meet to determine placement in the Life Skills Program prior to registration.
Student programs are managed through Individual Education Plans and Individual Transition Plans. Students completing the program receive a High School Diploma comprised of either modified or individualized credits.
The general goal of the program is to teach young adults to become independent.
To achieve this goal, the school emphasizes academic skills through language arts, math, computer and writing. In addition, other skills taught are communication, age appropriate behaviour, utilizing community resources, using public transportation, handling money, budgeting, banking, problem solving and decision making. A Family Life Education Program was developed at Neelin for the Life Skills students. This program is taught under the name of Personal Development Program.
Students are actively involved in learning the techniques required to participate in such life time sports as, skiing, swimming, bowling, skating, snowshoeing and golfing. Responsibilities that lead to an independent lifestyle include domestic skills such as housecleaning, cooking, and shopping.
Integration/association occurs wherever and whenever possible. “Reverse integration” is ongoing as students from high school act as peer tutors for Life Skills students.
Students registered in the Life Skills Program are involved in work experience. The work experience component may consist of up to 50% of the student’s program.
Workstations are located throughout the Brandon community, and vary according to the degree of student autonomy. Work education theory such as writing resumes and learning about employer expectations is covered in the classroom. School staff supervise “on the job” training until the student is capable of functioning independently.
Regular visits to work stations serve to determine the suitability of work and program of the student.
The Life Skills staff works as a team and consist of teachers, teacher assistants, work experience liaison, administrators, speech and hearing therapist, psychologists, occupational and physical therapists, workers from various community agencies, work station employees and employers. This team meets whenever deemed necessary to discuss and plan programs to meet individual student needs.