WHAT ARE LIFE SKILLS

Life skills are the skills that prepares us for daily life. These skills are required to deal with the daily chores and challenges faced during the course of life’s journey. Life skills are beyond academics and are very essential to lead a healthy, happy and successful life. We also need life skills to conduct our self cognitively, emotionally and socially in a well-balanced manner.

Life skills have been defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as “the abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life”.

It is always found that people with life skills or rather practical skills are better at handling any job and situations in life. As academics alone is not enough to deal with life, these skills, such as problem solving, creative thinking, interpersonal skills, coping with stress and few more help sail through the various phases of life in an effective manner. When children grow up, they will require these skills more than anything else.

10 Life Skills recommended by WHO

Self Awareness

Critical Thinking

Creative Thinking

Decision Making

Problem Solving

Coping with Stress

Managing Emotion

Empathy

Interpersonal Skills

Effective

Communication

Thinking

Skills
Self Awareness
Critical Thinking
Creative Thinking
Decision Making
Problem Solving

Emotional

Skills
Coping with Stress
Managing Emotion

Social

Skills
Empathy
Interpersonal Skills
Effective
Communication

NEED FOR LIFE SKILLS EDUCATION

The real purpose of education is to enable us deliver our best in various spheres of life. The education should nurture an individual holistically beyond the three R’s [reading, writing and arithmetic]. It is something deeper which facilitates all faculties of our mind, body and heart to work in sync.

Many a times, we see when we prepare a speech for an event, we undergo anxiety and nervousness. And we are clueless on how to cope with it. An education should not only teach to prepare a speech but also deal with the restlessness & anxiety associated during preparation. In effect one should be able to take care of Emotional Health.

Similarly a historical figure should not be taught as a person who has done numerous things. Rather we should be taught to think and suggest few measures which could have been implemented during his/her regime. This approach helps in developing Thinking/Cognitive Skills.

We have seen people good at writing but is not able to express while talking to family and friends. Education should enable a person communicate well in any mode of communication, thereby develop Social Skills.
In today’s world of information, gadgets, technology & cut throat competition, people are often lost in understanding their aspiration, worth and capability to lead a stress less life. In such scenario, life skills are the need of the hour to empower individuals to manage and lead the life successfully.

WHY LIFE SKILLS FOR EARLY YEARS

The sole mission at Hurray Kids is to educate children on life skills from early years. Early years from 2 to 10 years is the time when child’s grasping and adaptive powers are at its best. This period should be the sowing period for life skills training to yield better outcomes. According to WHO [1997], “Ideally, this learning should occur at a young age, before negative patterns of behaviour and interaction have become established”.

Usually a child is always assessed in our country on the basis of academic performance and grades attained. Unfortunately the other attributes and skills which a child is having get little importance and acknowledgement. Let’s take an example of a child who is good in sports, dance and is very compassionate & helpful, but not very bright in academics. Here the child may score lesser marks in the class exams but is surely getting better prepared to face the world compared to someone else who is only into academics. Usually such child will grow into a well-balanced human being.