As services in California move towards fully inclusive employment opportunities in our communities, service providers are encouraged to use evidence based strategies to support individuals with developmental disabilities in natural ways. Understanding the use of Visual Supports opens multiple options to support clients in home and community natural settings. Visual supports include pictures, written words, objects, environmental arrangement, visual boundaries, schedules, maps, labels, organization systems, timelines, and scripts that can be useful in any natural environment. Research-based evidence indicates that visual supports are effective with adult clients to improve social, recreational, academic, vocational and adaptive skill areas. Visual supports can increase learner independence, support transitions between activities, and increase predictability, structure, and clarify expectations of the workplace or the job task. When used correctly, visual supports have been shown to reduce challenging behaviors, reduce reliance on verbal instruction and prompting, and reduce distractions and increase focus on task related activities.
To learn more about Visual Supports, interested service provider members of the Lanterman Employment Collaborative have an opportunity to participate in a Lanterman Visual Supports Workshop, provided in collaboration with CAPTAIN, the California Autism Professional Training and Information Network. The Training will cover the use of visual schedules, visual boundaries, and visual cues to increase desired behavior and decrease problem behavior in a variety of settings, including fully inclusive employment settings. The workshop will involve a 2-hour online interactive training module for service providers led by Lanterman CAPTAIN Cadre Members. CAPTAIN Cadre Member(s) will then conduct a post-workshop follow-up site survey and/or site visit at provider’s request to complete consultation and evaluate the usefulness of the visual supports with selected clients. Interested family members are welcome to attend this workshop on using Visual Supports by registering at ARCA Learn and typing Visual into the search bar.
Additional information about free CAPTAIN trainings is available by contacting your Lanterman CAPTAIN Cadre members at jjohnson@lanterman.org. Check this page for information as future trainings arise. For additional information on employment services and supports available through Lanterman, parents and clients are encouraged to contact your service coordinator. Exciting opportunities for supported and independent employment are being developed through the Lanterman Employment Collaborative in conjunction with Lanterman Community Services Department to provide new incentives for finding and retaining paid employment through competitive integrated employment and paid internships. Learn more about evidence-based strategies to support adults’ participation in community based activities at the CAPTAIN website link to autism focused intervention resources and modules (AFIRM).
References:
- Visual Supports – AFIRM Module
- California Autism Professional Training and Information Network (CAPTAIN)
- Autism Focused Intervention Resources and Modules (AFIRM)
Contact your Lanterman CAPTAIN Cadre members: