Life skills are generally considered to be those skills and abilities that allow us to deal effectively with the demands of everyday life. They are those skills which will assist an individual to interact with his/her environment and help them be as independent as possible. In particular, behaviours associated with good sleep hygiene, feeding and healthy eating, and independence in toileting are essential adaptive daily living skills. These skills have benefits that extend well beyond the individual child.
These skills not only influence a child’s health and well-being, but impact the whole family. Frequent disruption of sleep or mealtimes can interfere with quality family time, and cause significant stress to both parents and siblings.
Teaching life skills can mean the difference between an independent child thriving in his/her environment and a dependent child, who gets their needs met by engaging in challenging behaviour. Life skills, such as toileting or feeding, can be very complicated and need to be broken down into much smaller steps.
At Reach Children’s Services, we’ll work with you to help establish a realistic plan to suit you and your family. Plans and levels of support will be dependent on your child’s individual needs. To learn more about these programmes, read more on Toileting Training Programme Consultation, Sleeping Difficulties and Feeding Interventions or get in touch.