Social Relationships

Support Your Students’ Social Relationships!

Our next stop on The Transition Expedition, we will be covering social relationships for your students. It is never too late to start working on social skills or planning for your students’ future social endeavors. Rachel E. Maunder from the Journal of Further and Higher Education states that, students with stronger peer attachments have better grades and have better opportunities in post-secondary schools than students with fewer social attachments. On this leg of the journey, we will be making a few stops along the way including: High School Hall, College Corner, Vocational Station, Friendship Freeway, Romantic Roadway, and Netiquette Central.

Stop #1: High School Hall

Making sure your high school student has unlimited access to different ways of harvesting social relationships is key for the personal and communal growth of your student. In high school, many students build foundational social relationships that can last a lifetime.

Introducing students to various popular culture references, including appropriate social media, music, art, appropriate ASL slang, and events in the world can help your students bring abstract ideas into conversations with their peers. Conducting an interest inventory at the start of your school year can aid in pairing students up with compatible peers. (There is a free survey included.)

Student Interest Inventory/Survey

While students are still in high school, make sure they are involved in extracurricular activities that can help them build social relationships. Encourage students to sign up for school sports, submitting into art or writing competitions, involving them in the drama department, or even giving them leadership opportunities within the school. The Florida School for the Deaf and Blind has students write and direct their own videos about the school and then present that to the school board. Helping students apply for ambassador programs for their school or other activities they may enjoy gives the student an opportunity to build their confidence by talking to other people about something they admire. If your student is not interested in any of the above, start your own club. Farnell Middle School in Tampa, Florida created their own Diamonds Club to help empower young girls to believe in themselves and others.

Stop #2: College Corner

Assuming you and your student have talked about their future, and they have decided to make the post-secondary step to college, you’ve gotten off here at College Corner. Attending a university, state college or community college can be overwhelming for anyone, but for our students, it can be even more overwhelming with a disability.

If your student has a preferred college in mind, it is important to keep in check with your student. Ask them if they know about the school’s academic standards for admission, make sure the school has the student’s desired program of study. Help the student advocate to their parent or guardian to take a school tour. Knowing about each college’s disability resource center is also crucial for them to become familiar with.

Another tip for making sure your student is successful in college (and beyond) is to teach concepts like time management to help them achieve independence, create a social life, and keep up with their school work.

Introducing your student to all of the different clubs their school may have can help them prepare to join the club, or reach out to the club members in advance to help build those connections. Informing your student of going through formal sorority recruitment or fraternity rush is also another outlet for building social relationships while giving back to the community.

Teaching students about self-defense is also recommended. Under the Clery Act, each university must report their crime log, meaning this information is public data. Sitting down with your student of possible crime on campus, teaching them about consensual sex, and preventing themselves from being in uncomfortable situation that can be harmful will go a long way. This should be a slow process as to not overwhelm your student or make them apprehensive about attending school.

Gallaudet’s Clery Act Defined

University of North Florida's Clery Act Defined

Stop #3:Vocational Station

If your student has decided to take the vocational education route, have them start by looking at themselves intrinsically to see what they like to do or what jobs they enjoy performing. Making a collage with your student to have a better grasp on their professional skills can help bring abstract ideas into concrete evidence.

Building a vocational profile can also help your students lay a professional foundation that they can slowly build on throughout the transition process. Paul Wehman suggests listing family members, friends, neighbors, employers, and social groups, and businesses around the student’s home. This list can help students input information into a CV (curriculum vitae) or a resume.

Sitting down with your student to conduct mock interviews is also a huge role in preparing them for the social interactions with potential employers and coworkers. Have them pick out their outfit. and present themselves in the most authentic way. You can then offer feedback based on their experience.

Stop #4: Friendship Freeway

Students may have a close friendship with someone from school, work, or home and this friend can help your student be the most authentic version of themselves. This person can play a pivotal role in your student’s social development. How do we make sure that our students maintain this relationship and create new ones in the process?

Informing students of different social cues can help them. Going through a body language and facial expressions lesson can help your student pick up on the unique subtleties of human emotion. Describing those emotions by connecting them back to personal experiences can create concrete comprehension for your students.

Stop #5: Romantic Roadway

Thinking about your student having a romantic relationship can make you want to cringe and never talk or think about it ever again. It is a fact of life. Student’s from the ages 14-22 will experience romantic feelings for others, so making sure you are there to support them and being an ally with information is crucial!

Let your student come to you about any romantic relationships or feelings they may have. Being inquisitive can show great intentions, but it can possibly cross personal boundaries with your student. Mending those awkward moments can be hard. If they are willing to share with you, thank them for being open, but keep it professional.

Make sure your student knows about safe sex. Again, another cringe worthy topic, but it is important that ALL students get the information they need. Talk with the student’s parents to make sure they are on board with the conversation and giving them the opportunity to have the talk -not you! If parents are opposed to the conversation, have the student talk to a school counselor if they are curious or need help with planning for safe sex. It is always better to let a trained professional have the conversation as some things can go awry.

Consent Explained Video

Stop #6: Netiquette Central

A new side of social relationships today is online social networking. Social networking can be on various social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. Giving your kids an opportunity to explore different ways in which they can have the best Internet Etiquette will aid them in forming those online friendships.

Netiquette Tips and Tools