UP Skills for Work

The UP Skills for Work course is designed to explicitly teach and give opportunities for learners to practice soft skills in a safe environment that is designed with the Deaf learner in mind. The course offering is based on the ABC Life Literacy Canada Up skills for Work curriculum that focuses on motivation, attitude accountability, presentation, teamwork, and time management. Activities include direct teaching, group discussion, vocabulary building, role-playing of scenarios and games. Modifications are made to ensure the learning opportunities align with the needs of visual learners and build on their strengths. As an example, closed-captioned employment skill videos are used to teach and reinforce learning. By the end of this program the learners will:

• Know many employment-related words to add to their vocabulary
• Know how to ensure they understand materials presented
• Know how to use coping skills to get through difficult work scenarios
• Know how to use other experiences to help understand concepts
• Be able to be more confident in making decisions with a broader understanding of the information
• Be able to practice filling out forms, tests, worksheets
• Be able to use memory and thinking skills to incorporate the information into what they already know
• Be able to self-reflect on past mistakes to see what has held them back in the past