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IL Skills Resources
Available at DSS by Topic: (non-web resources are available for check out at FCDSS)
Alcohol/Drugs/Tobacco
I Can’t Breathe. A Smoker’s Story—make smoking history. DVD.
Smoke Screen—DVD educational program to help young people decode smoking in the movies.
Women and Tobacco, Seven Deadly Myths—learn the truth…quit for good. DVD.
Apartments
Apartment Hunt—An animated curriculum that takes the learner through the entire process of securing a place to live, from figuring out personal “needs and wants” to checking out apartments, and even coming up with a realistic budget. Interactive exercises give viewers valuable tools for real-life apartment hunting.
Our Place—CD-rom covering housing needs and wants, setting a budget, sharing an apartment, searching for an apartment, inspecting the apartment, reading and negotiating a lease, and identifying supportive community resources. Mainly designed for group settings.
Careers
The Big Books of Jobs—detailed information on hundreds of exciting careers, techniques to write winning resumes and cover letters, proven advice for job-search success in any field.
In Their Shoes—extraordinary women describe their amazing careers
202 High Paying Jobs You Can Land Without a College Degree—little or no training required, expand your horizons, earn a great living!
Cars and Transportation
Car Dreams—A fun interactive CD that teaches the learner how to buy a car.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Car Care and Repair—simple steps you can take to extend your car’s life.
Cleaning
2,001 Amazing Cleaning Secrets—faster, easier, better ways to clean your home, and everything in it.
Cooking/Nutrition
The Beginner’s Cookbook
Consumer Advice on Food Safety, Nutrition, and Cosmetics—Food Storage Q&A
Cool Food Planet—Eating and Health
The Cook’s Thesaurus—a cooking encyclopedia that covers thousands of ingredients and kitchen tools. Entries include pictures, descriptions, synonyms, pronunciations, and suggested substitutions.
Food Link—food storage, preparation and food safety.
Fueling the Teen Machine—nutrition information for teens.
Healthy School Meals Resources System—food pyramid.
Microwave Cooking (cd-rom)—the complete guide to microwave cooking.
My Meals--menu planning, measurement conversion tables, older self teaching, more advertisements.
Nutrition Café—for younger youth, information about nutrition.
Nutritional Analysis Tool—web-based nutritional calculator. This resource assesses the nutritional content of foods and includes foods that youth eat, including fast food.
Produce Oasis—source of information about selecting, preparing and using fresh fruits and vegetables.
Teach Teens Cooking (video)—planning a meal.
University of Illinois Extension Thrifty Living—Food Freshness
Culture
Fourth Annual Media That Matters Film Festival (DVD)
Dating and Relationships
Boundaries: A Guide for Teens—how to build relationships that protect your personal space and respect your feelings.
Dateable: are you? Are they?—we expose the inside world of guys and girls in this tell-all book.
The Teen Survival Guide to Dating and Relationships—real-world advice on guys, girls, growing up, and getting along.
Toothpaste (DVD)—deals with dating, pregnancy prevention, communication, self-esteem, friendship, and commitment.
Driving
Department of Education's 45-hr Parent/Teen Driving Guide - With freedom comes great responsibility.
Road Rules—a complete interactive driver’s education course. DVD.
Teens and Driving: A Reality Check—DVD
Education and Financial Aid
Search Colleges, SAT prep, and sign up for the SAT's - http://www.collegeboard.com
Search Virginia Colleges, take career assessments, financial aid assistance - http://www.virginiamentor.com
Federal Student Aid - Audio and Video Programs
GED (book and cd-rom)—the most complete and reliable study program for the GED tests.
High School Dropout (DVD)—a reality check for teens whose goals don’t include a diploma.
The High School Graduate—
The Educational System—Advanced Training, Job Corps, Americorps
LD Pride—Learning Styles
Money for Education (DVD)—start here, go further with Federal Student Aid.
Profiles of American Colleges 2007—in-depth profiles of more than 1650 schools.
The Real ACT Prep Guide—get insider test-taking tips, learn strategies to do your best on the ACT, get all the facts about he new ACT writing test.
12 Practice Tests for the SAT 2007—the most practice available.
Emotional and Psychological
Hot Stuff to Help Kids Chill Out: the Anger Management Book—this book offers a unique approach to one of the most pressing problems of our time…anger in children and adolescents.
The Feelings Book—the care and keeping of your emotions.
Help Yourself For Teens—real-life advice for real-life challenges.
I’m Not Crazy—a teen guide to getting mental health help
Life Success—A guide describing the attributes of successful youth with learning disabilities. It includes content on self-awareness, pro-activity, perseverance, goal-setting, presence and use of support systems, emotional coping strategies and suggestions on how to develop these attributes. Designed for parents.
SEALS III-- The newest edition to this popular series is now available. SEALS III includes fun and creative activities that inspire self-exploration. Some of the topics include: Grief, Making Changes, Positive Outlook, Recovery, Spirituality, and Fear.
Teen Esteem—a self-direction manual for young adults.
Employment
Career Spins—a fun way for teens to understand their potential career goals. CD-Rom
Center for Disease Control—Employee Rights
The Everything Job Interview Book—answer the toughest job interview questions with confidence.
It’s My Life Employment Guide—Guide to employment and career development.
Job Search Handbook for People with Disabilities—a complete career planning and job search guide.
Quintessential Careers--Finding Jobs
Take This Job and Keep It-- In this entertaining, animated presentation, we see the work world through the eyes of Boarder, an irreverent but loveable skateboarder and the star of the story. Like most teens, Boarder does some things right and he does some things that aren't so right. But, he listens, applies what he hears and grows in the process. And, he keeps his job. DVD
Young Person’s Guide to Getting and Keeping a Good Job—covers finding and maintaining a job. There is a student workbook and instructor’s guide.
Youth Rules—Employee Rights
Home Repair
Yes You Can!—home repairs made easy.
Insurance
Quicken Home—Homeowners/Rent Insurance
Internet
Business Netiquette—Covers Email Etiquette, Using the Internet
Safe Surfing (DVD)—using the internet safely.
Legal
American Bar Association—consumer’s guide to finding legal help on the internet
Law Help—helps people find legal assistance
Teens at Risk: Youth and Guns (video)—guns at home, suicide, and guns in school.
What are My Rights? 95 Questions and Answers About Teens and the Law—covers responsibilities and rights.
Life Books
Finding Our Place: the inside story on foster care.
For When I’m Famous—a teen foster/adopt lifebook
Life Skills/Independent Living Skills Collections
“Cool Stuff” they should teach in school—cruise into the real world with style. Jobs/people skills, attitude, goals, money.
Creative Life Skill Activities—collection of 100 group activities from the nation’s life skill training programs. The activities in this collection are arranged in the same way a group session is organized. A total of 22 skills are covered.
Do You Have What It Takes?—a comprehensive guide to success after foster care.
I Can Do It! A Micropedia of Living on Your Own—includes budgeting, housing, daily living, and relationships.
I’m Getting Ready. I Can Do It.—interactive workbook. Its activities are created to motivate learning. The “lessons” encourage involvement of friends, groups, family, community, and/or the individual. Apartment search, legal issues, safety, nutrition, consuming, home management, money management, and goal setting.
Life Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs—activity sheets, discussion questions, applied exercises, and evaluation suggestions. 190 activities. Covers interpersonal skills, communication, academic and school skills, practical living skills, vocational skills, lifestyle choices, and problem solving. Adult directed resource.
Living on Your Own: An Independent Living Simulation (student and teacher guide)—activities on banking and housing and other activities for life skills.
Microlife—Mini micropedias and resource workbooks for special subjects.
I Need a Place to Live! A Mini-Micropedia—information to help find a place to live and furnish it.
I Need a Place to Live! Activities for Real Life Learning—creative, reproducible worksheets, teaching ideas & tests. Included are lease and rental applications; apartment check-lists; cost planning sheets; needs and wants analysis; furnishings inventory; and preplanning guides.
Cleaning My Place: A Mini-Micropedia—comprehensive information for cleaning a living area.
Cleaning My Place Activities for Real Life Learning—creative, reproducible teaching activities such as role playing examples; demonstration sheets; training videos; research; cleaning plans; family of roommate involvement; interviews; questions to analyze; group work; community visits; activities for washing dishes and vacuuming.
Lookin’ Good! A Mini-Micropedia—ways to use line and design to “look good”.
Lookin’ Good! Activities for Real Life Learning—reproducible sheets. Includes clothing plans; line and design; grooming; color analysis; mending, chopping challenges; thrift shop style show; laundry & stain removal activities.
Hungry? Eat Healthy! A Mini-Micropedia—has information on nutrition for everyday life.
Hungry? Eat Healthy! Activities for Real Life Learning—reproducible sheets which include meal analysis and plans; grocery store shopping; reading labels; scavenger hunts; time management sheets; cooking and restaurant experiences; and community involvement.
Money Matters: A Mini-Micropedia—helps youth learn to make decisions for spending money wisely.
Money Matters: Activities for Real Life Learning—reproducible sheets which include goal setting; visioning; needs and wants analysis; budgeting; banking; balancing check books; personal insurance and saving plans; consumer protection; letters of complaint; credit; banking choice analysis; and envelope budgeting process.
Teaching Moments (video)—how parents can teach life-skills to teens.
The New Making It On Your Own—workbook of lifeskills exercises that will help youth make it on their own. Employment, housing management, health, leisure time, and money management.
A Pocket Guide to Independent Living (distributed to all youth 14 and over in FCDSS custody in their school supplies) and Teacher/Leader’s Guide for it.
Preparing Adolescents for Young Adulthood (PAYA)
Module 1: Money, Home, and Food Management
Module 2: Personal Care, Health, Social Skills, and Safety
Module 3: Education, Job Seeking Skills, and Job Maintenance Skills
Module 4: Housing, Transportation, Community Resources, Understanding the Law, and Recreation.
Module 5: Young Parents Guide
Ready, Set, Fly! A Parent’s Guide to Teaching Life Skills—developed by foster parents for foster parents. There is an activity book to use with the guide book. For use with ages 8 and up.
Quick Start Guide
Instructions for Use
Medical
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Prescription Drugs—take the mystery out of your medicine cabinet.
Money Management
Credit for College: Tools for Managing Your Money—A workbook for high school aged youth focusing on money management (eg. Financial aid, budgeting, credit). Includes career development.
I Know Where I’m Going—a 2-part workbook for ages 12 and up focusing on all aspects of money management. It includes a section on career development.
I Know Where I’m Going—Caregiver’s Guide. Tips on how to use the youth workbook listed above. It includes supporting activities to use with youth as part of daily living.
Mapping Your Future--balancing a checkbook.
Money Smart (CD-Rom)—training program to include banking, borrowing, checking accounts, savings, credit, loans, and owning a home. (2 copies)
Practical Money Skills—banking, consuming, budgeting.
Non-fiction
Beyond the Foster Care System: The Future for Teens—richly detailed exploration of the foster care system.
Cut—story about self-mutilation.
Not Me, Not Mine: Adult Survivors of Foster Care (video)
On Their Own—what happens to kids when they age out of the foster care system.
Through the Eyes of a Child (video)
Fitness and Eating Disorders
Eating Disorders (video)—what appearance is important; the difference between anorexia and bulimia; why eating disorders are dangerous; what to do if you suspect an eating disorder; why diet pills and fads are dangerous; good nutrition for teens; and where to turn for help with eating disorders.
Workouts for Dummies—how to book on working out.
Parenting
The American Academy of Pediatrics—provides parenting and pregnancy information by topic.
Heading Home with Your Newborn—from birth to reality.
Parent Soup—covers many parenting topics, advertisements.
Personal Hygiene and Your Body
4 Girls—covers body, fitness, nutrition, illness, disability, mind, relationships, safety, and your future.
The Care and Keeping of You: The Body Book for Girls-- This bestselling guide answers all the questions growing girls have about their bodies - from hair care to healthy eating, bad breath to bra buying, pimples to periods. It offers guidance about basic hygiene and health without addressing issues of sexuality.
Kids Health—information about physical, mental, and emotional health for children, teens, and adults. (medical, first aid and safety, nutrition and fitness, general, system, emotions, diseases and conditions, infections, your mind, drugs and alcohol, food and fitness, recipes, watch, feel better, feeling, stay healthy, and more.
The Teenage Human Body: Operators Manual—information on how to maintain one’s body. There are 11 parts to the manual.
Setting Goals
Life Strategies for Teens—first guide to teenage life that won’t tell you what to do, or who to be, but rather how to live life best.
What Not to Do When You Graduate!—make the most of your post-graduate opportunities without a single embarrassing misstep using this complete pocket guide to social and career etiquette!
Sexuality
It’s Perfectly Normal—comprehensive, contemporary and candid information on the mechanics and consequences of puberty, sexual activity, birth control, pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases.
Power Through Choices: Sexuality Education for Youth in Foster and Group Care—10 sessions on adolescent pregnancy/HIV/STI prevention curriculum for youth ages 14-18 in out-of-home care.
Sex Explained—honest answers to your questions about guys & girls, your changing body, and what really happens during sex.
Social Skills
Advice from Dr. Dave and Dr. Dee—table manners Q&A, older youth self teach.
Bullies & Harassment On Campus—DVD
Oops! The Manners Guide for Girls—illustrated, practical guide to learning manners for every day and tricky situations.
Social Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs—a two-part curriculum for high school students who need to practice social skills.
The Social Skills Program—inventories, activities, and educational handouts.
VStreet. $24/year and can be purchased by DSS. It teaches life skills and offers additional resources. It is a password community, so it is private and can be individualized.
Software/Computers
Office 2007 for Dummies—covers word, excel, powerpoint, outlook, and access.
Taxes
Bank Rate—Tax Forms.
EconEdLink—taxes and consuming.
Internal Revenue Service—taxes and tax forms.
Understanding Taxes—tax related resources from the IRS to help teach youth about taxes. It is a complete toolkit with 15 modules.
Voting/Government
Learning to Give--teaching the importance of voluntary action for the common good in a democratic society.
Quizzes
A Future Near Me—contains questions to guide a young adult towards self-sufficiency.
What Would You Do?—quizzes about real life situations.