1. Explore animals! Would she want to do a dog-walking business? Work on a farm or ranch? Try to play with other pets, visit the farm and zoo, read books and sing songs, and later volunteer at animal shelters or the pet store.
2. Explore the arts! Go to plays, visit art museums, watch dance companies, try a dance or painting class, listen to music, lots of options! Maybe later she will want to be a model or costume coordinator!
3. Explore outdoors! Does she like fishing? Gardening? The mountains or forest? Playing outside on the playground? Later on, she could be a flower arranger or something in the parks department!
4. Explore foods! Try different foods, make different food, put together picture recipes and see if she can follow those instructions! Does she want to work at a restaurant? A grocery store?
5. Have Fun!!! Does she love books? Games? Movies? Shopping? Would she want to help re-shelve books at the library, or volunteer with early intervention respite and play games with the kids? How about making popcorn at the movie theater? Or folding clothes at a retail store?
There are SO many choices!!! Starting at age 16, a transition plan should be a HUGE part of every IEP!!! We need to prepare our kids (non-disabled and disabled alike!) for the "real world", rather than succeeding in an educational vacuum.
What will make YOUR child happy and go on to lead a fulfilled life? So explore different avenues! Try out volunteer work early on so they can get a feel for what they like! Everyone can contribute!
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