Teens get work experience on farm
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Alexandra Brazelton, 15, of South Fayette, places sunflowers in a bucket Tuesday after they were trimmed at Simmons Farm as part of the Watson Institutes new summer program, Camp SCALE. Participants work four days each week at the farm.
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There was a flurry of activity Monday morning at Simmons Farm in Peters as a group of teens chatted and giggled while loading freshly picked corn into burlap bags.
The teens were special needs students working under the supervision of professionals from the Watson Institute in Sewickley.
They are participants in Watson's summer SCALE Camp. SCALE stands for Social Community Activity for Life Experiences, said Leslie Corey, coordinator of Watson's community-based instruction program. Most of the teens participating in the camp have been diagnosed with autism, although some have other cognitive disorders.
The goal of the camp is to teach them social and work skills to prepare them for future employment, Ms. Corey said.
"We are working with adolescents to teach age-appropriate functioning skills, work skills, job readiness and appropriate behavior," Ms. Corey said. "This is a way to expose them to an area they might be sent to work and to teach them how to take direction and constructive criticism."
Working together with their peers "helps pull them out of their shells," Ms. Corey said.
Students eligible for the camp range in age from 14 to 21 and must be recommended by their school districts. That age range, Ms. Corey said, is considered a transitional time in the students' education, one in which they are prepared for what they will do after they graduate.
Bridget Rosati, 19, of South Fayette, has come to the camp for four years. "The staff is nice," she said.
The corn-packing exercise taught the students how to work in groups and how to prepare the corn for shipment. Other tasks they performed at the farm included cutting flowers, assembling fruit baskets, planting seeds and sorting zucchini.
Watson has operated a similar camp at its Sewickley headquarters and the Sewickley Creek Greenhouse in Franklin Park for the past four years, Ms. Corey said. It started the program at Simmons Farm at the request of school officials in the South Hills, who wanted a local program for students.
First Published July 28, 2011 5:50 am
