1. The main purpose of transition is to prepare the students for the next step in their life.

There are 4 main transitions that happen in a student's life. The first is transitioning into

preschool and kindergarten. Second is elementary to middle school, then middle school

to high school. The last transition is the one that we tend to spend the most time on, and

that is transitioning into post secondary or into the workforce. The transition process

takes a deep look into the students interest, the skills they have, the skill they need to

develop, and where they would fit best.

2. Assessment is one of the most important roles in the transition process. In the process, it

consists of multiple inventories and surveys for the student, parents, and the teachers to

go through so that we can best evaluate what is going to be the best fit for the student

and how we can make them a successful contributing citizen of their community.  

3. There are 5 main areas of transition that are evaluated and taken into consideration

when planning for the students next steps. The first area of transition is home living, in

this area we look at where the student plans to live after highschool. Is it in a

dorm,apartment, with their parent, in a group home, etc. The next area that is considered

is their post secondary education. Is the student going to go to college or trade school? If

they are, what are they going to be studying? What skills does the students need to

learn to be able to succeed at a college or trade school? The third area of importance is

employment. In this area we look heavily into their skill set, interest, and where they

would succeed the most.  This area is the most interesting to me because there is so

many different option for our students out there, I believe it will be fun helping students

find their path in this world. Next is the area of leisure and recreation. This area looks at

what the student likes to do on their own time. Does he/she like to go to the movies or

go to the bowling alley. We look at their leisure activity interest and try to help set up a

plan to develop the skills needed to participate in these different activities. The last area

of transition is community participation. We look into what is their for the individual to do
 in the community. Some examples of this are: participating at the local ymca, attending

sporting events, joining a community club, etc. The most important thing to consider

when looking at these areas are what is the student interested in doing and what

accommodation do we need to put into place to make this student successful as

possible when in these certain environments.

4. The legal age to start the transition process is age 16. However, it is recommended to

start as early as possible to start helping the students start thinking about life after high

school and help them develop the skills needed. 

5. The connection between an IEP and transition plans is that when the transition plan is

started and the student develops the different areas of domains they would like to

participate in, goals and objects are developed in the IEP to help the student grow and

develop in the areas of need. 

6. In my opinion, one of the biggest ways to support the student and parents in this process

is making sure that they are heavily involved in the decision making.The student needs

to have a voice in what they will be doing for the rest of their life. As the teacher, we

need to listen to their opinions and help by giving them any resources they need and

help prepare them for the student and families future.  

7. To me, the most important aspect of transition is listening to the students interest and

dreams. Then taking those interest and dreams and helping the student to the best of

my ability to put them in a successful position to succeed at whatever they are doing.

One of the best way to do this is really pay attention to the transition inventories. 

8. Coming into the semester, I had very little knowledge on the transition process and what

it all consisted of. I feel that I have grown tremendously from the begging of the

semester. I have started thinking in way that I haven't before. Every time I am working in

the classroom, I am thinking of where I see the student succeeding at after high school. I

noticed this at the Hope center. I always wonder what if some of these members went
 through the transition processes that are in place now. Where would they be?  I have

even made suggestions to some of them and started working on skills that would help

them. Before, I don't think any of that crossed my mind. I can honestly say I am more

capable and prepared to teach a high school class and help them with their transitions. 

9. When thinking about what I still need to work on, the first thing that comes to mind is

practice.  I need to be out in the school helping students with this process. The more

practice the better I am going to become. Also, I need to continue to work on developing

a transition plan.