Basic Skills for School Custodians

Objectives - Participants will be able to:

GOOD WORK HABITS

• Describe the importance of proper appearance.
• Identify positive work attitudes.
• Identify positive work behaviors.
• Recognize poor work behavior and the consequences that may result.
• Determine individual areas of needed improvement.
• Identify strategies for improving individual work habits.

COMMUNICATION

• Define Communication.
• Discuss the process of communication.
• Understand the role of the sender in the communication cycle.
• Identify communication rules.
• Ask questions effectively.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

• Identify customers in the school setting.
• Recognize the importance of attitude on the work environment.
• Understand the impact of having both negative and positive attitudes on customer service.
• Identify external and internal customers.
• Demonstrate good customer service.

OBSERVATION SKILLS

• Understand why observation is important.
• Separate perception from observation.
• Identify strategies used when observing someone or something.

TIME MANAGEMENT

• Recognize the importance of scheduling activities.
• Develop a plan or schedule.
• Identify ways to maintain focus.
• Identify organizational skills that maintain focus on a plan of action.

TEAMBUILDING

• Define the team concept.
• Identify advantages of forming teams.
• Define basic beliefs of teams.
• Identify team guidelines.
• Identify the difficulties teams face.

PROBLEM SOLVING

• Identify the steps in a problem solving process.
• Apply a problem solving process to a workplace problem.

TECHNICAL VOCABULARY

• Define common vocabulary custodians use.
• Define common safety terms.
• Identify symbols and signs used on the job.

FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS

• Simplify written directions into small, more manageable pieces.
• Use more effective measures to read key documentation specific to job performance.
• Define the purpose when reading directions to follow them more effectively.

FILLING OUT FORMS

• Perform the steps involved in effective writing procedures.
• Identify why understanding the purpose for writing affects the way something is written.
• Correctly fill out a job related form.

MEASUREMENT

• Identify different types of measurement.
• Measure length.
• Measure area.
• Measure capacity.
• Measure temperature.
• Properly dilute solutions.

WORKPLACE SAFETY

• Recognize the purpose of safety procedures.
• Locate information on an MSDS.
• Identify safe practices to use in giving assistance to others who may be injured.
• Identify proper lifting techniques.
• Identify personal protective equipment used on the job.
• Identify common causes of workplace slips, trips and falls.
• Understand ways to avoid hazards when operating fuel powered devices.

LEADERSHIP (for lead custodians)

• Understand the capacity for leadership that exists within all of us.
• Recognize the competencies associated with effective leadership.