About this resource
This checklist helps people and their supporters talk about everyday living skills. For each skill, the person notes whether they can do it on their own, with some help, or would like to learn, which makes it easier to choose meaningful goals.
Purpose
To explore everyday living skills and choose meaningful skills to build.
Who it is for
Primary profession: Disability support workers. Also relevant for occupational therapists, NDIS providers and support coordinators.
Client or participant group: Young adults and adults, completed with a support worker, practitioner or family member.
Practice setting: Supported living, transition planning and planning conversations.
Suggested uses
- Planning conversations, including for NDIS goals
- Identifying skills to build next
- Tracking progress over time
- Transition planning, such as leaving school or moving out
Instructions for practitioners
- Go through each area with the person, at their pace.
- Mark each skill as on my own, with some help or want to learn.
- Celebrate the skills the person already has.
- Choose one or two skills to work on and link them to goals.
Instructions for clients or participants
- Tick one box for each skill.
- Choose skills to work on next.
Accessibility considerations
Use photos or demonstrations and complete over several sessions.
Scope and limitations
This checklist is a planning tool, not a formal functional assessment. Use the person's own priorities to guide which skills matter.
Research basis
Active support, which gives people real opportunities and just-enough help to take part in everyday activities, increases engagement for people with intellectual disability. Specific goals, if-then plans and regular progress monitoring all improve the chances of reaching goals.
- Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation Intentions and Goal Achievement: A Meta‐analysis of Effects and Processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 69–119. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0065-2601(06)38002-1
- Harkin, B., Webb, T. L., Chang, B. P. I., Prestwich, A., Conner, M., Kellar, I., Benn, Y., & Sheeran, P. (2016). Does monitoring goal progress promote goal attainment? A meta-analysis of the experimental evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 142(2), 198–229. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000025
- Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705–717. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066x.57.9.705
- Mansell, J., & Beadle-Brown, J. (2012). Active support: Enabling and empowering people with intellectual disabilities. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
What is included
A 3-page printable A4 PDF, including a practitioner notes page with the research basis (version 1.0).
Originality
Original Practitioner Plus content: wording, activity structure and layout were created for this resource. No third-party worksheets, illustrations or text were reproduced.
