Life Skills
Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what matters is best
Bob Talbert.
Education
As the quote says, we can teach kids to count, read, write, and learn about the world, but it is also essential to teach them how to live in this world. Life skills education is a significant way to lead one’s life as one ought to lead to be justified to others and oneself. It is a pointer to one’s development in diverse dimensions—physical, mental, emotional, social, aesthetic, cultural, etc. To deal with stress, anxiety, day-to-day problems, behavioural issues, and many such social situations, Life Skills are of help. Being a branch of social psychology, the subject of life skills concentrates on the social behaviour of human beings in different social situations.
Definition
The abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life.
Life skills are essential for every individual, especially for students. These skills equip students with the necessary tools to succeed personally and professionally.
Reasons for Teaching Life Skills
Life Skills Education contributes to primary education, gender equality, democracy, good citizenship, child care and protection, the promotion of lifelong learning, quality of life and peace. The skills must be repeated again and again. Thus, the knowledge is remembered repetitively, making the brain remember 90% of the information. Hence the need to repeat, recap, reinforce and review.
Students should develop essential life skills to enhance their well-being and success:
Decision-making skills
You can practice and improve by learning a good decision-making process emphasizing how you decide, not what you choose. Everyday life is an endless sequence of decisions. Good decision-makers are those who overcome biases that might affect their choice. Employers expect managers to make excellent choices based on facts and data rather than intuitions. Decision-making is the thought process of selecting a logical choice from available options. Rational decision maximizes our chances of happiness, successful living and fulfilment.
Critical Thinking: Critical thinking will enable you to express your thoughts, ideas, and beliefs better. Better communication helps others to understand you better, resulting in less frustration for both of you. Critical thinking fosters creativity and out-of-the-box thinking that can be applied to any area of your life. Students should develop the ability to question, reason, and use logic and evidence.
Interpersonal Skills: Interpersonal skills are essential for students to develop as they build relationships. Students should learn to listen actively, empathize, negotiate, and resolve conflicts.
Time Management Skills: Time management skills are crucial for students, as they need to balance their academic, social, and personal lives. Students should learn to prioritize their tasks, set goals, and manage their time effectively to meet deadlines and achieve their objectives.
Leadership Skills: Leadership skills are essential for students to develop as they prepare to take on leadership roles in their personal and professional lives. Students should learn to communicate effectively, delegate tasks, inspire and motivate others, and make tough decisions.
Self-awareness: Resilience is the ability to bounce back from adversity. It is a necessary skill for coping with life’s inevitable obstacles and one of the key ingredients to success and learning to bounce back and bounce forward. Resilience skills are essential for students to develop when facing challenges and setbacks. Students should learn to bounce back from failures, cope with stress, and adapt to change.
Students must develop life skills as they prepare for their personal and professional lives. These skills allow them to attain their objectives, establish healthy relationships, and lead fulfilling lives. By becoming independent learners who can manage change, take accountability for their work, and lead others, students are better equipped to produce outstanding results. Moreover, acquiring essential life skills can help individuals navigate life’s challenges effectively. Remembering that good mental health is vital to overall well-being is critical.
By
Ms. Pooja Nagpal
Teaching Staff
Ekya Schools, JP Nagar
Solar power is the most abundant energy and an essential renewable resource. Our term one field trip was to Supreme Solar Projects in Yelahanka. We had an exciting day and learned much about manufacturing solar heaters and other solar-powered products.
We started our journey by bus to the factory and, amidst the traffic, went towards our destination. Our class exchanged jokes and chips during our trip and laughed and sang. A pleasant surprise came as we stopped at a toll booth to see another bus filled with students from CMR. Our class had a jolly time on the bus and a growing curiosity about the place we would visit.
Upon arrival, I saw the immense factory and got off the bus in awe. Our class and the CMR students lined up in batches and entered the factory. The first thing I noticed was the numerous processes and proceedings of the factory. Metals were being cut into strips, circular cutting, cutting by laser and various other things in motion. The guide explained the types of heaters they manufacture- Tube and Panel heaters- and told us about the dimensions and proportions used.
We walked around to see how the tank for the heaters was being made and were explained the procedures around the factory. There were various processes to create a seemingly simple thing. Hole punching, rolling, welding, cutting and setting, leakage testing, sand rupturing, coating, heating, painting, thermal insulation, securing and assembly were all processes shown to us. Seeing how something familiar was manufactured at such a large scale was intriguing.
While my batch was waiting for the other set to finish their tour, I realized that this trip was an extension of our learning in school. We have been learning about renewable resources in Social Science, and solar heaters are a way to harness the monumental energy of the sun in our daily lives. After hearty lunches on our bus, we returned to school in the afternoon heat, feeling the sun's power again.
This field trip was an informative, fun journey to see how solar heaters are made. I enjoyed going there and was fascinated by the multitude of processes and operations around the factory. This was an excellent extension of our learning at school, and I look forward to more trips like these next term.
Written By: Ira Dwivedi (Student of Grade 7A) Ekya Schools, Byrathi
अगर किसी भी व्यक्ति को किसी भी कार्य में सफलता पानी है तो इसके लिए उसे स्वस्थ होना बहुत ही आवश्यक है, क्योंकि जब तक स्वास्थ्य अच्छा नहीं होगा तब तक सफलता प्राप्त नहीं की जा सकती। किसी भी व्यक्ति के सफलता में उसकी जीवन शैली सबसे महत्वपूर्ण होती है,इसलिए किसी भी इंसान को सफल होने के लिए अपनी जीवन शैली या जीवन कौशल को सुधारना सबसे जरूरी होता है। जीवन कौशल वो सकारात्मक योग्यता है जो व्यक्ति को रोजमर्रा की जरूरतों तथा कठिनाइयों से गुजरने में समर्थ बनाती हैं।
क्या है जीवन कौशल? (What is life skill?)
हर इंसान के जीवन में उसका सकारात्मक व्यवहार व आउट-स्पोकन, वह योग्यता होती है जो उसको सफल बनाती है। किसी भी व्यक्ति की आउट-स्पोकन उसके जीवन को दिशा देती है। अगर किसी के जीवन में आउटस्पोकन, समय प्रबंधन, सात्विक चिंतन, संबंधों में सुधार, स्वयं की देखभाल के साथ-साथ पूर्णतावादी होना जैसी जीवन कौशल है, तो वह अपने जीवन में चुनौतियों का सामना कर सकता है।
आउटस्पोकन होना (Be Outspoken)
आउटस्पोकन होना एक ऐसा कौशल है जो हमारी भावनाओं, आवश्यकताओं, इच्छाओं तथा विचारों के स्पष्ट तथा विश्वासपूर्ण संप्रेषण में सहायक होता है। यह ऐसी योग्यता है जिसके द्वारा किसी के निवेदन को स्वीकार करना, किसी विषय पर बिना आत्मचिंतन के अपने मत को अभिव्यक्त करना, प्रेम, क्रोध इत्यादि को अभिव्यक्त करना संभव होता है। यदि आप आउटस्पोकन हैं तो आप में उच्च आत्म-विश्वास एवं आत्म-सम्मान तथा अपनी अस्मिता की एक अटूट भावना होती है।
समय प्रबंधन करना (Time Management)
कोई भी इंसान जिस तरह अपना समय व्यतीत करता है वह आपके जीवन की गुणवत्ता को निर्धारित करता है।। समय प्रबंधन का प्रमुख नियम यह है कि आप जिन कार्यों को महत्व देते हैं उनका परिपालन करने में समय लगाएं या उन कार्यों को करने में जो आपके लक्ष्य प्राप्ति में सहायक हो।
आहार
संतुलित आहार व्यक्ति की मन: स्थिति को ठीक कर सकता है, ऊर्जा प्रदान कर सकता है, मांसपेशियों का पोषण कर सकता है| संतुलित आहार व्यक्ति की रोग प्रतिरोधक क्षमता को मजबूत बना सकता है तथा व्यक्ति को अधिक अच्छा अनुभव करा सकता है। जिससे वह जीवन में आने वाले दबावों का सामना और अच्छी तरह से कर सके।
व्यायाम
व्यायाम ऐसी प्रक्रिया है जिससे हम अपने शरीर की देखभाल करते है। बड़ी संख्या में किए गए अध्ययन, शारीरिक स्वास्थ्य एवं स्वास्थ्य के बीच सुसंगत सकारात्मक संबंधों की पुष्टि करते हैं। व्यायाम जीवन शैली में वह परिवर्तन है जिसे व्यापक रूप से लोकप्रिय अनुमोदन प्राप्त हैं। नियमित व्यायाम वज़न तथा दबाव के प्रबंधन में महत्वपूर्ण भूमिका निभाता है तथा दबाव, दुश्चिंता एवं अवसाद को घटाने में सकारात्मक प्रभाव प्रदर्शित करता है। अच्छे स्वास्थ्य के लिए जो व्यायाम आवश्यक है, उनमें तनाव या खिंचाव वाले व्यायाम जरूरी है। जहाँ खिंचाव वाले व्यायाम शांतिदायक प्रभाव डालते है, वहाँ वायुजीवी व्यायाम शरीर के भाव-प्रबोधन स्तर को बढ़ाते हैं।
By Ms. Shivani Singh Teaching Staff Ekya Schools, JP Nagar
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