How do I Teach Self-advocacy Skills?

Students with disabilities need to learn how to speak up for themselves—to self-advocate. Teachers want to pass on these skills, but we seldom discuss them. Here are a few self-advocacy skills and some ideas for teaching them.

  • Know your Rights: To learn about their rights, students can review the U.S. or Indiana Constitutions, the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act, or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. To make this even more engaging, have your students make posters about key topics to present in English or History class.
  • Compose and Collect: Students can learn to organize their materials by writing down and making records from important meetings using 3-ring binders and pocket folders. Students can partner with a peer to check each other’s binders to make sure they are up to date.
  • Advocate Through Writing: Students can learn how to write an advocacy letter or social media message. They could find a cause or right that interests them and write and send a letter to their representative during a state legislative session. Students could also follow online disability advocates and take notes about how they support causes and use accommodations.
  • Self Care: Self advocates need to take care of themselves so they can continue to advocate when necessary. In a PE or health class, students could make a list with pictures or words of forms of self-care. They could choose one to participate in and then report back how it helped them.

Teaching self-advocacy skills to your students will help them to understand their rights and become more confident, independent, and successful in their lives.

Resources: