YouAsk Kim
Four friends of different ages walking arm in arm along a stone street at dusk, one carrying flowers

Together · 30 min

One life skill a season

Teach a child one practical life skill each season: cooking a simple meal, doing laundry, mending a bike, making a call.

30 minutesFrom the library, free to readFour steps
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There are practical skills every young person needs before they leave home, and many are easiest to learn bit by bit. Choosing one skill each season and teaching it properly means they build up a toolkit over the years, and you get some help along the way.

The steps

Four small steps,in your own time.

  1. Make a list together of skills they would like to learn or will need: cooking a simple meal, laundry, mending, making a phone call, reading a bus timetable.

  2. Choose one for this season, and plan a few sessions to practise it together.

  3. Show them once, then do it together, then let them do it with you nearby, then on their own.

  4. Celebrate when they can do it alone, and ask them to teach someone else in the family.

The reason

Why it helps

Learning skills step by step builds confidence and independence. Teaching a skill properly means they are more likely to keep using it. Asking them to teach it to someone else helps them remember it and feel proud.

A gentle variation

For younger children, choose small parts of a skill, such as cracking an egg or sorting laundry by colour. For teenagers, let them choose a skill they want to learn, even if it is not one you would pick.

One hand resting over another on a wooden table

WE · TRIBE

Try itwith someone.

Ask a grandparent or friend with a particular skill, such as baking, sewing or fixing things, to teach it to your child.

Make it a plan in HIVELIVE, with WE

Try it today

This week, choose one life skill to teach your child this season, and plan the first session.

Add it to your day

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