Life Skills

Life Skills deals with the holistic development of the learner throughout childhood. It equips learners with knowledge, skills and values that assist them to achieve their full physical, intellectual, personal, emotional and social potential. The subject encourages learners to acquire and practice life skills that will assist them to become independent and effective in responding to life’s challenges and to play an active and responsible role in society. The subject aims to develop learners through three different, but interrelated study areas, that is, Personal and Social Well-being, Physical Education and Creative Arts.

The subject Life Skills aims to:

1. Guide learners to achieve their full physical, intellectual, personal, emotional and social potential

2. Teach learners to exercise their constitutional rights and responsibilities and to respect the rights of others

3. Guide learners to make informed and responsible decisions about their health and environment

4. Develop creative, expressive and innovative individuals

5. Develop skills such as self-awareness, problem-solving, interpersonal relations, leadership, decision-making, and effective communication

6. Provide learners with exposure to experiences and basic skills in dance, drama, music and visual arts including arts literacy and appreciation

7. Allow learners to enjoy the health benefits of exercise and develop social skills through participation in Physical Education.

Grade 4

Link to Resources >>

Term 1:

• Personal strengths: identify, explore and appreciate own strengths

• Respect for own and others’ bodies: privacy, bodily integrity and not subjecting one’s body to substance abuse

• Dealing with conflict: examples of conflict situations at home and school

• Weekly reading by learners: reading for enjoyment

Term 2:

• Emotions

• Personal experience of working in a group: at school and home

• Bullying: how to protect self from acts of bullying

• Children’s rights and responsibilities: name, health, safety, education, shelter, food and environment

• Weekly reading by learners: reading for enjoyment

Term 3:

• Cultures and moral lessons

• Knowledge of major religions in South Africa: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Baha’i Faith and African Religion

• Dangers in and around water: at home and public swimming pools and in rivers and dams

• Weekly reading by learners: reading for enjoyment

Term 4:

• Traffic rules relevant to road users

• Personal and household hygiene

• Dietary habits of children

• Healthy environment and personal health: home, school and community

• HIV and AIDS education: basic facts including blood management

• Weekly reading by learners: reading for enjoyment

Grade 5

Link to Resources >>

Term 1:

• Positive self-concept formation

• Giving and receiving feedback: giving feedback to peers and receiving feedback from peers and adults

• Coping with emotions: empathy, compassion, anger, disappointment and sadness

• Relationships with peers, older people and strangers

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and using a dictionary

Term 2:

• Concepts: discrimination, stereotype and bias

• Child abuse

• Dealing with violent situations

• Issues of age and gender in different cultural contexts in South Africa

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and using a dictionary

Term 3:

• Festivals and customs from a variety of religions in South Africa

• Safety measures at home and the environment

• Water as an important basic need

• Healthy eating for children

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and using a dictionary

Term 4:

• Local environmental health problems

• HIV and AIDS education

• Substance abuse

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and using a dictionary

Grade 6

Link to Resources >>

Term 1:

• Positive self-esteem: body image

• Abilities, interests and potential

• Peer pressure

• Problem solving skills in conflict situations: keeping safe and how to protect self and others

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and fluency

Term 2:

• Self management skills

• Bullying: reasons for bullying

• Cultural rites of passage

• The dignity of the person in a variety of religions in South Africa

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and fluency

Term 3:

• Caring for animals

• Caring for people

• Nation-building and cultural heritage: definition of concepts

• Gender stereotyping, sexism and abuse: definition of concepts

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and fluency

Term 4:

• Basic first aid in different situations: cuts and gazes, burns, scalds and sunburn, stings and bites, bruises, poisoning, bleeding, choking

• Food hygiene

• Communicable diseases such as mumps, tuberculosis, common colds, chickenpox, athletes’ foot, etc

• HIV and AIDS education: myths and realities about HIV and AIDS including risks and perceptions about HIV and AIDS

• Reading skills: reading with understanding and fluency