Life skills for adults

Adult life adds other people: a partner, a shared home, children, a job offer to negotiate, savings that have to last. This stage has 13 units, from childproofing and caring for a newborn to wills, insurance and shared finances. Below them is the full adult checklist: every skill in the curriculum written as an "I can" statement, so you can see which ones you were never taught.

13

units

40

outcomes

8

lessons

150

on the checklist

People

Relationships

• Can be looked at closely without performing
• Can say it first
• Can tell someone what you need instead of hinting

Handling conflict

• Can call a pause and come back the same day
• Can argue about the issue, not the other person's character
• Can apologise after an argument, specifically, without “but”

3.17 Pausing an argument

Caring for a baby

• Can hold a newborn, supporting the head and neck
• Can put a crying baby down safely and step away, and never shake one
• Can say no to a child calmly, once, and mean it

3.10 How to burp a newborn

Staying close to family

• Can call your parents without a reason
• Can ask them the things you will want to know later
• Can talk with them about care and wishes before it is urgent

Money

Negotiating pay

• Can negotiate a job offer with a number ready
• Can ask for a raise with evidence
• Can talk about debt and spending with a partner before moving in

4.16 Ask for a raise with a number

Emergency savings

• Can say how many months of costs you could cover with no income
• Can build an emergency fund toward the common target of 3 to 6 months
• Can decide what “enough” is, in numbers, before you have it

4.11 What is a high yield savings account4.17 Know how long your savings would last

Shared finances

• Can split bills fairly when incomes differ
• Can choose joint accounts, separate accounts or both
• Can share debts and credit history openly

Wills and insurance

• Can make a will and name a guardian for children
• Can name beneficiaries on accounts
• Can work out whether you need life insurance, and how much

4.12 What is a contingent beneficiary, and how to name one

Safety

Infant safety

• Can put a baby to sleep on its back, alone, in an empty crib
• Can fit a rear-facing car seat
• Can help a choking infant with back blows and chest thrusts, and do infant CPR
• Can cut grapes and hot dogs lengthwise for small children

5.17 When can an infant car seat face forward

Kitchen

Cooking for others

• Can cook dinner for six with every dish ready at once
• Can ask about allergies before cooking, not after
• Can cook regularly for someone whose tastes differ from yours

7.17 Cooking dinner for six, all ready at once

Take the 2-minute test