A Day at Aspire
Life at ASPIRE will be safe, active, fulfilling, and rewarding experience aimed at creating environments and activities to enhance the resident’s day to day life.
Aspire residents typically have individual challenges they face every day when dealing with the community, housing, communication and/or employment. They tend to have difficulties in the following major areas: communication, social skills, daily living skills, employment skills and personal growth skills. After residents have been accepted into Aspire, an overall program will be developed to meet the individual and group needs of the residents.
The focus of interaction will come in the way of our Life Coaches and their curriculum for daily life and training at ASPIRE. Counselors, coaches, teachers, and friends will provide the residents with a sense of supervised independence, self-esteem, and promote a wholesome living environment. Life coaches will be accredited and experienced in the ASD community and will provide daily simulative interaction which will include, but not be limited to the following:
Communication
Verbal, Non-Verbal and Social Communication Skills
Adults with autism have difficulty with social interactions due to lack of communication skills, including both receptive and expressive language and rigid thinking. They often misconstrue the meaning of a communication and do not understand metaphors, puns and slang language. They also do not understand how to see other points of view which often causes strife in personal relationships. If resident needs are pervasive, then a speech-language therapist will be called in to assist with this population.
Social Skills
Social interaction awareness
Aspire will provide a monthly calendar with social interaction events that will be promoted. Residents will be able to choose the events in which they wish to participate. Activities will include such events as movie nights (both inside and outside of Aspire), bowling, skating, music entertainment, volunteering and other events suggested by residents or their families. Because of an over focus on topics of interest, adults identified as having autism often do not like to interact with others unless they have the same topics of interest. If a resident chooses not to participate in any events, a one on one meeting to determine areas of interest for the resident will be held. If necessary, families will be consulted as to the best way to get their resident involved with others.
Daily Living Skills
Daily chores training
All residents will be required to help keep Aspire common areas clean and welcoming for themselves as well as visitors. Group trainings will be held to show them the proper way to take care of each common area. Individual daily chores training will be provided to those residents that require training in the upkeep of their condo based on the interview with family and resident.
Personal care and Grooming
Personal care, grooming and how to effectively dress for a variety of situations (social, professional, work) will be discussed through small group meetings. Individuals will be given personalized training when necessary to maintain standards of hygiene, grooming and dress as appropriate. These needs will be discussed with family during the initial interview.
Food Preparation
Aspire employees will provide food preparation training 2 to 3 times per week for both small group and individuals. Since residents may have specific food requests or allergies to food which restrict their choices, the training and accommodations will be determined after residents are screened and accepted into Aspire.
Employment Skills
Jobs training coordination
Most Aspire residents will hold at least a part time job in the community. They will most likely be receiving services through Vocational Rehabilitation. Vocational Rehabilitation has agreed that one counselor could be assigned to Aspire for easier facilitation through the Aspire management. Job training, if needed, may be provided both in-house at Aspire, through Vocational Rehabilitation, or outsourced to a 3rd party as appropriate. Each resident’s job training needs will be assessed and Aspire manager will coordinate with the appropriate personnel to provide training.
Personal Growth Skills
Money management
Money management skills will be taught in both small group and one-on-one individual trainings. Group training will include basic budgeting skills and understanding the different type of accounts (checking, savings, etc.) and how to use services from banks or other financial institutions. Individuals will have one on one meetings to help them set up a budget based on their income and expenses.
Safety training
Safety training will be provided to all residents based on the rules and regulations of Aspire. Any area of need based on input from families will be provided to the individual or small groups as appropriate.
Life Skills
Life Skills will be provided to clients as requested or needed. After residents have been accepted into Aspire, applications will be reviewed and determination of the necessity for life skills will be noted. They will be taught by a professional that is experienced in this type of training and will be given in small group or one-on-one
trainings. These life skills will include, but not limited to:
- Goal setting
- Time management
- Self-advocacy
- Managing emotions
- Organizational and calendar skills
- Dealing with emergencies
- Health and wellness
- Community resources
- Boundaries and relationships
- Hobbies and recreational activities
- Showing empathy for others
Aspire Housing / Personal Effects
Each resident will bring their own furniture, personal belongings, family photos, favorite books, music, movies, and curtains to decorate their condos. We want to recreate their former home environment as much as possible.
