The life Skills course contains essential ‘back to basics’ living skills we use in our daily lives. This will increase the learners level of independence, as they make the journey into adulthood. From the moment we wake in the morning, we go through certain tasks, known as ‘life skills’. These tasks could include getting dressed, making meals, communicating, brushing teeth and so on.

The learners can develop essential skills required to foster independent living. This goes beyond telling learners how to practice these essential life skills, learners will be guided in a practical way so that they not only learn about what is being taught but learn how to apply it in the real world.

 

The course will cover the 7 Essential Life Skills;

1. Personal care – Importance of balanced diet, exercise, hygiene, getting dressed, and learning to tie shoelaces.
2. Managing money – How to count money and make correct change, tell time, good spending habits and importance of savings, and how to manage a bank account.
3. Household skills – cleaning the house, how to use the washing machine, iron, food shopping, how to store food properly, and how to check for use by/best before dates.
4. Essential reading – how to read maps and road signs so they can travel within the community by themselves.
5. Safety – Safety signs and their meanings, awareness of fire and other safety hazards.
6. Cooking – How to make a hot drink safely, a simple breakfast, a variety of healthy snacks and meals, and how to set the table.
7. Charity and Community work –  Charity of their choice, by baking for Acorn Café on Fridays, and collecting donations.

           

 

At school we work on gaining important life skills such as independent travel, road safety, shopping, money-handling and telling the time.

Gaining work related skills is the main thrust of our transition programme.  Each learner is given the opportunity to take part in enterprise projects, e.g. working in the Acorn Café, or running the school Tuck Shop, contributing as part of a team to establish a business.  We also volunteer within the community e.g. through litter picking and helping out at a local care home. The learners gain SQA qualifications through their work in these projects.

As part of getting ready for the world of work, we offer the learners opportunities to develop employability skills.  This involves compiling a CV, form filling, letter writing and interview practice.

We try never to lose sight of the fact that the rationale behind all that we do is to prepare all of our young people for life beyond school.

In recent years all of our leavers have left school going on to an identified positive destination with some moving on to college, day placements at a specialist provision or a package built up around them to meet their needs.

Through participating in the above we offer a range of certification including,

Personal Achievement Awards (National 1/2),

Personal Development Awards (National 2),

Business in Practice cluster award (National 2),

Employability Awards (National 2), and various other National 1 units.