UBC Press Teaching Pre-Employment Skills to 14–17-Year-Olds book Paperback 264 pages

Based on the Autism Works Now!® Workplace Readiness Workshop, this interactive resource shows how to help students aged 14-17 develop the necessary transition skills for getting and keeping a meaningful job, with accompanying worksheets available to download.Structured around 2-hour weekly sessions over an eight month period, the program is ideal for teaching to groups of students with autism. It covers essential topics such as organization and time management, interview skills, appropriate workplace attire, and networking. It advises on how to arrange a field trip to local businesses so students can gain experience of being in the workplace. Worksheets and questionnaires help to track progress and discover what types of job will be appropriate based on an individual's skills and interests, and the book also includes a template for creating effective resumes.

Joanne Lara, MA was a professional dancer before becoming a classroom education specialist and university professor. She is the founder of the nonprofit organization Autism Movement Therapy®, based in Los Angeles, California, which certifies, trains, and licenses dancers, educators, parents, and professional service providers in AMT. Joanne is a Core Adjunct Professor at National University in LA, California and teaches weekly Autism Movement Therapy classes in Van Nuys, CA, where she has a private ABA behavioral consultation practice. She produced the documentary Generation A: Portraits of Autism and the ARTS, was the executive producer of the LA musical event Temple Grandin & Friends: Autism Works Now and is a columnist for Autism Asperger's Digest and Sensory World.Susan Osborne is Director of Autism Works Now (AWN), and also delivers the AWN curriculum. She was the former programme director at the College Internship Program in Long Beach, California, where she implemented and developed career training and job placement for young adults with autism.