Teaching high schoolers to advocate for themselves is an important social skill to acquire. With Everyday Speech’s self-advocacy lesson, students can learn to independently advocate for themselves in order to respect their own differing needs. This in turn will boost their confidence and self-esteem, as well. To teach your next high school lesson on self-advocacy make sure to download this free high school self-advocacy worksheet.
Teaching High Schoolers Self-Advocacy
As an educator, you know the importance of teaching your students the skills they need to succeed in the classroom and beyond. One critical skill that high school students with differing abilities need to learn is self-advocacy. Advocating for oneself is the ability to express your own needs, wants, and preferences in a clear and assertive way. In this lesson plan, we will provide you with everything you need to teach your high school students how to advocate for themselves effectively.
Lesson Plan – Using Your Free Self-Advocacy Worksheet
1. Teach the Concept of Self-Advocacy
Start by discussing with your high school students what self-advocacy means and why it is essential for them. Use examples to illustrate how self-advocacy can help students achieve their goals and overcome obstacles.
2. Practice Self-Advocacy
Have your students practice advocating for themselves in a role-play scenario. Encourage them to use a communication strategy, like ‘I-Statements’ or asking for clarification to be assertive in expressing their needs.
After the role-play, ask students to reflect on their experience. Did they feel comfortable advocating for themselves? What communication strategies did they use? What could they do differently next time?
3. Use Your Free Self-Advocacy Worksheet
Your free PDF worksheet is our “Advocating For Yourself” activity! Download, print, and have your high school students complete this activity to reinforce the concept of self-advocacy.
Sample Video:
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