Life Journey Portfolio Course
- Getting Ready for Journey of Your Life
What is the Life Journey Portfolio Course?
The Smart Transitions Life Journey Portfolio Course is designed to help youth between 14 and 16 make a stronger, more effective transition from middle school to high school to improve academic engagement and on-time graduation by focusing on critical success skills.
The Success Skills:
- Introspection and Self-Awareness (have a strong sense of their talents, skills, passions, values, and aspirations)
- Social-Awareness (understanding their place in the community and how to engage with it)
- Self-Management (knows how to handle high school with an emphasis on progress over perfection through calendars, checklists, and prioritization)
- Self-Efficacy (knows how to set reasonable goals and how to track and reward progress)
- Relationship Skills (has effective skills and strategies for asking for help, especially of adults and teachers)
Who is it for?
The Smart Transitions Life Journey Portfolio Course is designed for late middle school and the transition into high school (14-16).
How does it work?
The Smart Transitions Life-Work Portfolio Course is designed to help youth develop a personal “brand” which defines and clarifies how they want to be seen by the world and what kind of image they want to present. They also develop a set of practical tools for success in the adult world, including life-work plans, professional resumes, personal presentation portfolios, and refined personal presentation skills (their ability to present themselves professionally).
- Students will have a professional portrait made.
- Students will create a personal portfolio for organizing information relating to their navigation through high school, newly-developed skills, and expanded sense of self.
What teens usually want to know: How is this going to help me?
High school can be overwhelming. In order to succeed in high school and beyond you need to have some core success skills in the areas of self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, self-efficacy, and relationship/communication skills. You also need:
- a vision of where you are going;
- a plan for getting there;
- the motivation and determination to continue in the face of challenges and setbacks; and
- a support network.
An added benefit of completing this class is our Connections Fund. Sometimes youth in transition need financial or material support to help them stabilize and pursue education or vocational training. As a Smart Transitions Life-Work Portfolio Course graduate, teens can apply for grants for short-term aid for housing and education.
Hosting a Class/Group
We provide this program to schools, human services agencies, departments of juvenile justice, Redevelopment and housing authorities, churches, and non-profit agencies serving at-risk populations. This is usually six-to-eight 1-hour classes (but we can customize it to better match the needs of your population). The program is portable and we can bring it to you. This program works best with small groups of 10-20 youth at a time. If you have youth to refer to this program or would like to host a course at your site, contact us by clicking on the contact button below.