2025-2026 HANDS Foundational Supports 3-Session Training
We are excited to announce the upcoming HANDS Foundational Supports 3-Session Training, designed specifically for educators and/or staff who supervise or provide community based or in-home services!
Who should attend?
Educators and staff who supervise or provide community-based or in-home services, including professionals from various disciplines (e.g., social work, psychology, medicine, justice), service delivery settings (e.g., home, school, clinic, community), and those who work in multiple roles (e.g., direct service personnel, case managers, therapists, first responders, general community members).
What is this training about?
Educators, providers and support personnel access many trainings ongoing as aligned with their professional service responsibilities. These trainings help them adapt and perform in the everchanging and evolving landscape of opportunities and needs for those we serve.
Despite the many trainings, however, professionals often miss the chance to see strategies and concepts modeled. Similarly, they often don’t get to engage in hands-on learning that supports effective application, implementation, and understanding that allows them to carry training content back to their settings.
HANDS trainings feature interactive individual and group activities designed to provide a chance to see then do or practice a range of strategies. HANDS trainers work alongside participants and then support learning thru scheduled feedback, question and reflection times. In this format, participants have a chance to learn the concepts, practice them and then consider application for their own settings.
Building on the longstanding efficacy, adaptability and transportability of the HANDS Model (learn more at HANDS in Autism® Model), selected modules or evidence-based practices specific to foundational supports will be covered within the HANDS Foundational Supports 3-Session Training as follows:
- Evidence-based practices
- Implementation supports: Strategies that are essential across intervention and programming inclusive of (1) Prompting, (2) Differential reinforcement, and (3) Collaboration.
- Physical structure
- Visual structure
- Schedules
- Work systems
- Choreography
- Ongoing data-driven decision-making
Want to learn more and coach or train these topics in your organization?
Participants who complete the HANDS Foundational Supports 3-Day Training will be able to opt in to the HANDS Foundational Supports Internal Coach Badging cohort. Those within this train-the-trainer process will further their learning and skills across 3 phases where they (1) work with HANDS trainers to master implementation of the above topics, (2) gain instruction and practice in coaching, and (3) assess, plan and coach a provider within their organization. The structured facilitation and mentoring model aims to enhance the capacity to coach other providers and build capacity within organizations through a structured skills training and internal coaching development process.
Objectives
Participants within the HANDS Foundational Supports 3-Day Training will:
- Improve their knowledge of disabilities and evidence-based practices in the field of disabilities
- Increase their skills in apply training curriculum content
- Enhance their implementation of and ability to individualize training curriculum content
- Build their set of practical resources and tools to implement and coach trained strategies with individuals and caregivers
Objectives will be accomplished thru a combination of asynchronous or virtual learning modules and synchronous or face to face (either online or in person) training times.
Both asynchronous and synchronous learning is steeped with application and feedback opportunities; however, the synchronous sessions will provide opportunity for hands-on work with individuals individually and in groups. During sessions, you will need to have your camera on and be working from a laptop or other device that allows you to engage with Google docs, to work with individuals and/or to respond within sessions verbally or via chat.
Cost
$500 3-Session Training
$1250 Internal Coach Badging Cohort (3-session training + badging)
Dates: (3 days of training, choice of AM or PM sessions)
2026 [In-person(Bloomington) or Virtual]
Wednesday, March 4, 9-12a or 1-4p ET CLOSED
Wednesday, March 11, 9-12a or 1-4p ET CLOSED
Wednesday, March 18, 9-12a or 1-4p ET CLOSED
Wednesday, October 4, 9-12a or 1-4p ET
Wednesday, October 14, 9-12a or 1-4p ET
Wednesday, October 21, 9-12a or 1-4p ET
Register here: https://iu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0DlennJkdTzXrds
If you have any questions, please email hands@iu.edu.