
Heather
Over 50 Community Based Instruction Outing Ideas
Updated: Jul 21, 2021
Sometimes, you just need a long list of community based instruction outing ideas!
“Here at the Transition Center our young adults are out in the community the large majority of the time.” That’s one of my most frequently used opening lines when people ask me, “What is the Transition Center?” or “What do you do?” Let me break that down a little. The Transition Center is a post high school program for students with disabilities who are 18-22 years old. My staff and I refer to our ‘students’ as young adults as we like to distinguish the difference between school and the ‘real life experience’ they have at our program.
So, what do we do when we are ‘out in the community?’ you ask? Well, we do a plethora of things. Below is a list of 50+ community based instruction outing activities we do, some are daily outings and others are once a year type activities. Either way, I hope this gets your creative juices flowing!
50+ Community Based Instruction Outing Ideas
Grocery store
Bank
Bulk grocery store
Fitness center (YMCA)
Craft store (check out their group classes too)
Toy store
Mall
Museum
Zoo
Park
Adaptive equipment park
Water park
Driving range
Mini golf
Pumpkin patch/apple orchard
Trampoline park
Community college- vocational or continuing education classes, free concerts
Bowling
Bocce
Bags/corn hole
Medieval times
Arcade
Roller rink
Art gallery (extra points for galleries that have artists with special needs- yes, they do exist)
Decorate cookies/cupcakes
Lowes/Home Depot (or local hardware store) classes
Gardening store
Volunteer for local senior citizens (raking leaves, for example)
Paint ceramics
Take public transportation (bus, train, etc)
Calculate tip at sit-down restaurants
Arcade
Horseback riding
Adaptive sailing
Arboretums
Conservatories and botanical gardens
Tour local businesses to learn about different job opportunities
Make pizza at local pizza restaurants
Taken clothes to the dry cleaners
Class at the Apple store (learned about different apps and technologies)
Yoga
Visit a sensory room or snoezelen room
Assist at an animal rescue center
Tie dye shirts/pillow cases/socks
Set up an obstacle course at a local park
Frisbee golf
Check out a movie from a library or RedBox/Movie Rental store
Visit a therapy dog
Get a Clean-Up manicure or pedicure (parents usually take care of this task and might appreciate a week off)
Flower arranging class
Guided painting class
Watch a play at a local theatre
Make-up lesson (for ladies who might be going on interviews in the future)
Dance class
Thrift store shopping
(I’ll add more as I discover more!)

There you have it! Taking community based instruction outing is the only way for your students to access their local community and learn the skills in the actual environment, so go- get out there!