Adaptive Ed

This is one of my best-selling individual social stories, and I don't think I've talked about it enough 🚗

"Riding In a Car" walks students through the safety steps with simple language and clear visuals — buckle, tighten, check. It's been a go-to for so many of you for car safety routines, community trips, and life skills goals.

Here's a peek inside 👇

Link in bio if you want to grab it!

Quick tip for today 💡

Teaching safety skills? Don't just read the story once and move on. Read it as a "preview" right before the real situation happens — like reading "Wearing a Seatbelt" in the car rider line, right before your student buckles up.

That timing is what makes it click. The story becomes a cue in the moment it's needed, not just a lesson from earlier in the day.

Try it this week and let me know how it goes! 👇

FREE READING COMPREHENSION FOR YOUNG ADULTS

Finding reading materials that don't feel too young can be difficult.

That's why I created this FREE sample specifically for young adults with autism and developmental support needs.

Students practice reading comprehension with functional, relevant topics rather than childish stories.

The free resource includes reading passages and comprehension activities you can use for:

— Independent work
— Small groups
— Special education
— Life-skills programs
— Reading intervention

Want the FREE sample?

Comment READING and I'll send you the link.

Functional vocabulary should connect to what students actually do.

Instead of only asking students to identify a kitchen item, practice connecting the word or picture to its real-life use.

What is it?

What does it look like?

What do you do with it?

What is it used for?

The Life Skills Functional Kitchen Vocabulary resource uses real photos and functional activities to help students build vocabulary connected to cooking and meal preparation.

Designed for older learners with autism and developmental disabilities.

Use it for:

— Functional life skills
— Special education
— Transition programs
— Speech therapy
— Independent work

The TPT link is in the first comment.

WANT TO TEACH COOKING & MEAL PREP SKILLS?

I created a FREE starter unit from the Adaptive Ed Functional Life Skills Curriculum.

The Cooking & Meal Prep Starter Unit gives you a sample of how I approach functional life-skills instruction for older learners.

You'll see:

— Functional vocabulary
— Real photos
— Differentiated activities
— Following directions
— Problem solving
— Sequencing
— Functional communication opportunities

It's designed with teens, transition-age students, and young adults in mind.

Want to try it?

Comment COOKING and I'll send you the FREE starter unit.

You don't need a special "AAC activity" to practice communication.

Everyday routines are full of communication opportunities.

Think about cooking.

A student might communicate:

HELP — I need assistance.

MORE — I want more.

OPEN — I need something opened.

ALL DONE — I'm finished.

WANT — I want something.

WHERE? — I need to find something.

Instead of only practicing these words during structured AAC activities, look for opportunities to use them during real routines.

The activity itself creates the reason to communicate.

Save this idea for your next life-skills activity.

What functional communication skill are you working on right now?

I'm curious what you're seeing in your classrooms and therapy sessions.

Are you working on:

— Requesting help
— Initiating communication
— Answering questions
— Using AAC
— Expanding vocabulary
— Social communication
— Self-advocacy
— Communicating during daily routines

Tell me in the comments.

I'd love to hear what skills your students are working on this year.

FREE VISUAL CONVERSATION STARTERS

Need an easy way to get students practicing conversation about hygiene and self-care?

These Visual Conversation Starters use real photos and visual supports to help students practice answering questions and talking about everyday hygiene topics.

The free resource includes:

— 25 hygiene topics
— 2 levels of support
— Real photos
— Data sheets

It's a quick, printable activity for special education classrooms, speech therapy, life-skills programs, or individual practice.

Want the FREE resource?

Comment HYGIENE below and I'll send you the link.

A lot of reading comprehension work stops at fiction and general nonfiction passages — but for young adults heading toward employment, comprehension practice should include the content they'll actually encounter: workplace scenarios, job expectations, coworker interactions. Swapping in passages about real work situations builds the same comprehension skills while making the content immediately relevant to their goals.

This 10-week unit has quietly become one of my top sellers because it takes the guesswork out of AAC lesson planning for an entire quarter. If you've been piecing together AAC activities on your own, this does it for you. Comment SEND IT and I'll DM you the link.