8 essential life skills for children
You may or may not know, but not all the knowledge and essential skills can be obtained at school. Our children are not taught how to live by themselves wisely and comfortably in the real world. Some life skills should be known at an early age as they have a powerful impact on our success in the future, peaceful life and, career path. That’s why it is definitely parents’ job to teach their children these essential life skills as soon as possible.
Some of us think that enrolling children in different extracurricular activities will be enough for them to learn and remember to survive in this rapidly growing world. But it’s not! If you are now freaking out as you have no idea what these skills are and how to explain them to your children, then keep reading!
First-aid and how to take care of your health
Emergency care that is given immediately to an injured person is called first-aid. It is essential to know how it works as first-aid is supposed to relieve pain and minimize the injury.
Life is very unpredictable, and you cannot be around your child forever. Anything can happen: from an abrasion to a bite, so make sure they know exactly how to take care of themselves in any emergency.
That’s why, to calm ourselves down and make sure that your child can still take care of himself alone, your need to give several “lessons”. You may tell and show them in detail what to do in case of a burn, cut, and so on, as there are stressful situations when it is so important not to hesitate.
Now on the Internet, there is a vast number of educational videos for both parents and children. There, step by step, they talk about the types of injures and how to use the first aid kit. Let talk about the kit. Be sure to show the children what it looks like and what it contains. Children tend to memorize the information quickly so that this knowledge will stay in their minds.
It is also important to remember the state of health. Teaching a child to take care of his body is just as important as teaching a child to use a first aid kit. Become an example for your child:
- do not drink alcohol or smoke,
- eat more vegetables and fruits,
- cut down on sugar and fast food,
- go in for sports.
The child is always watching you. Remember it.
You also can speak about various diseases, their causes, the dangers of smoking, alcohol and drugs, the importance of sex education, and more. Many parents neglect it, but these are extremely serious topics that are necessary to discuss.
Financial literacy
Financial literacy is a combination of various financial skills and knowledge like budgeting, investing, and financial management.
Some parents believe that children don’t need all of that. However, it is a must for a child to know how to save and earn money for a dream purchase. You have to teach them the value of money as it does not grow on trees, and you need to make an effort to earn it.
Every financial situation at home is unique, so you can start with understanding all the difficulties your child faces. Explain to them what financial literacy is, how it affects your future, your relations with money, and so on. Be patient! Children hardly understand some things at first, but you must say it again and again until it is obvious.
Cooking skills
It is entirely clear what these skills are. The importance of knowing how to cook is very high. As it was said earlier, you cannot be around your child all the time, there are situations when you come home late at night and he/she is starving.
You must teach your child how to cook. Start with something easy: how to cook eggs, make a sandwich, heat a soup. When they learn it, try something more challenging like pancakes, pasta, and so on. It is more useful for children to gain these skills from their parents than YouTube videos as you can give them some advice on how to cook a meal better and tastier.
Emotional intelligence
Not all of us really know the meaning of this term. It is basically a skill of understanding your own and other people’s emotions, motivation, desires, and intentions. It is a need to teach it to your child as soon as you can.
This skill is necessary for having better relations with people and also improving your mental health. By the way, some scientists say that high emotional intelligence is linked to high IQ, as evidenced by higher grades at school.
Teach your child to differ emotions and express them in healthy ways. Most children don’t fully understand what emotions they feel. So it is our job to help them to recognize their feelings as soon as possible. You can find a lot of great articles online where the professionals give you tips that can help you develop emotional intelligence in your child.
Time management skills
These skills are essential as they include planning, organization, delegation, prioritization, and more. It helps us to realize how little time we have and how to organize it right. It is essential not to waste it on something useless or meaningless.
Besides, managing your time well can help you improve in your future career. Organizing each day allows you complete tasks on time and gives you space to be creative and proactive in your projects. Having strong time-management skills can ultimately lead to accomplishing key goals as a grown-up.
Give your child a planner or a notebook and show him how to plan your day from the very morning to the very evening. It is also useful to buy them a watch that will help to keep track of the time. They will understand what’s a priority and what’s just fun.
Time runs so fast that you need to distribute it correctly and spend as little time as possible on meaningless things. Teach this truth to your child!
Problem-solving skills
Problem-solving abilities contain many other skills: adaptability and flexibility, analytical skills, creative thinking, and much more. Each of us faces problems. That’s why it is our duty to teach our children how to solve them no matter what.
Employers always require problem-solving skills in their workplace as an essential part of any employee’s skill set, even if it is not specified on the job description.
It is a need for children to know how to solve problems when parents are not around.
Firstly, you must identify the problem, state it so that kids will realize what it is exactly. Secondly, try to develop at least five possible solutions, teach your child to have not one, not two, but five answers to one problem. It is always important to have backups if things don’t go as planned. Thirdly, think about the pros and cons of each solution, see all the risks. Finally, pick the best one. Your child must remember not only the result of his actions but also their process.
Decision-making skills
Decision-making skills are those that allow you to make the right decisions and take responsibility for them. These skills are necessary for everyone because growing up, we have to make numerous important decisions that will affect our future life.
One of the best things you can do, in this case, is to explain to your child that every decision has advantages and disadvantages, and it is only up to him/her which one will be right. Don’t forget to tell them that decisions also have consequences, which sometimes can be harmful or heartbreaking. Give your child examples of situations and your choices, and then tell about the effects, so it will be more evident to them to understand what’s going on.
Independent task completion
Basically, it is a skill that makes you finish things to the end by yourself. You are not allowed to delegate the task, as you have to complete it independently.
This skill develops responsible adults. That’s what we need, right? There are a lot of reasons why one cannot finish his job: limited attention, laziness, distractions, and what’s more.
You may do several things:
- make the task motivating,
- ensure your child that it is achievable,
- reduce all distractions and break it down into steps.
These tips will help them to stay concentrated while working or studying something.
If you are looking for more, just go online. There is an insane amount of information on this topic.
All in all, all these skills are generally useful and vital in every child’s life. Parents’ duty is to develop them as early as possible. You will see how your child becomes independent and responsible, how he/she can look after himself/herself without getting into trouble. Life skills will also be useful for understanding their future goals, dreams, and priorities.
Developing these skills is essential, but don’t forget to teach kids positivity, kindness, patience, and other traits of the character everyone needs.
Educating our children is a must, but it is also possible to make the process fun and entertaining for them to be interested in it as well!
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