LIFE SKILLS

This page is one small part of Good Sites for Kids!

Here are sites that are designed to teach skills kids will need in the working world when they are adults. Another small but growing section of Good Sites!

Activity TV  This truly excellent site has at least a couple of hundred good instructional videos on subjects like paper airplanes, science projects, magic, making jewelry, crafts, origami, juggling, cheerleading, cooking (!), and more! It also has Lego action videos and several good games! The videos are really world-class, with adult instruction, printable parts lists, and recipes. Projects on the videos can be accessed by skill levels, categories, most viewed, etc. You need to look at Activity TV!

Chess For Kids - from ThinkQuest. " Chess for Kids is a resource for chess players of all skill levels, from beginners to advanced tournament players. We provide tutorials to improve your strength, as well as chess puzzles to practice on and learn from."

Cool School (NEW URL!) From Curriki - a site you need to see! "Part computer game, part educational classroom tool, COOL SCHOOL: Where Peace Rules! is a whimsical interactive game where children, ages five to seven (grades K-2), journey to the fanciful world of Cool School, where everything -- from erasers to desks to books to basketballs -- are alive and full of personality. Here, in a vibrant and fun setting, children are taught invaluable social, communication, and problem-solving skills that promote conflict resolution through negotiation, compromise, cooperation, and reconciliation." Lots more at their web page. We played this and it was great. It's a BIG download.

Dance Mat Typing "Learn keyboard familiarity and finger positioning as you work your way through 12 different typing lessons. Animated characters and dances are triggered by your very own ten fingers." Four levels starting with new beginner. Another great BBC site.

Game On! The Ultimate Wellness Challenge How to build an around the year program to educate kids in nutrition, health and physical education before, during, and after school. Includes ideas, activities, and how to set up challenges for kids. This is from Action for Healthy Kids of Skokie, Illinois, USA. Their mission statement and program layout explains it all in detail. We need this sort of site. Thanks for another one, Shelly.

Gardening - Classroom Projects from Kids Gardening. Here are 26 gardening projects for school kids, with lesson layouts and notes. Nice for cross-curriculum springtime activities.

Gardening - Thematic Explorations Library from Kids Gardening. Here are 26 thematic units, most with Lessons & Activities and Resources sections. There is a lot of good resources and planning material in here.

H.I.P. Pocket Change is the US Mint's kid site. Very lively, features games, fun online activities, and cartoons, all of which is to teach children about coins and coinage.

Hands On Banking presents basic money management in an easy to use format.  Customized for four age groups from 4th & 5th grade, 6th-8th grade, teens, and adults. From Wells Fargo, requires Flash.

Happy Healthy Songs from Sesame Street. "Listen to these great songs about eating healthy foods and keeping your body fit." Five songs (with lyrics) to reinforce the idea of eating healthy.

Hillbilly Housewife has weekly menus, inexpensive recipes, planners, and advice for people on a budget. "The focus here is on low-cost, home-cooking from scratch. The recipes are all tested in a real kitchen. The ingredients are affordable and readily available in most areas. " This is timeless advice for people on a budget, and it's free.

Interactive Bills from US Bureau of Engraving & Printing. "The interactive bills provide an animated tutorial of the security and design features of the new $5, $10, $20 and $50 bills." Interesting. Flash and non-Flash versions.

It's My Life from PBS Kids. Practical advice for adolescents. Sections on Friends, Family, School, Friends, Emotions, and Money. Advice, games, voting, videos, too. Kinda like Miss O but for boys, too.Thanks for yet another one, Shelly.

Kids Bank Kid-friendly site that teaches kids about money (US$), interest, loans, borrowing, checking and savings accounts, even Electronic Funds Transfer.  Quizzes and activities, too. A good online introduction to money and banking for kids. From Sovereign Bank.

Kids Memory section of KidsKnowIt.. Here are some activities designed to help train the memory.

Kids Running "is a site about kids running for kids of all ages. Inspire your kids to embrace fitness, physical activity and exercise...Hello and welcome to KidsRunning.Com. It won't take you more than a few moments of browsing the site, to see that we are building a Web site devoted to promoting the sport of running for kids so that they can enjoy the benefits of a fit and healthy lifestyle both at school and home. We integrate academics when we can. It seems that both learning and running are more fun for kids when they are combined."  Owned and operated by working teachers. Isn't staying fit a life skill?

Miss O and Friends "By girls...for girls."  Advice, discussions, interviews, activities, music, videos, "personality quizzes", and much more for tween and young teen girls. There's a lot in this site, the more you explore, the more you find!

teaching children what to watch out for online with fun, interactive games and activities. Fun safe internet links for kids to Learn about Wizzywigs, Webville outlaws, and internet safety rules.

Social Skills for Elementary Students Laura Candler's advice on teaching social skills to elementary kids basically walks you through the steps of teaching these skills. Well worth trying.

Social Skills for Middle School Students Yes, the site you have dreamed about really exists. With four main sections and several sub-sections, this site offers lesson plans, activities, role playing, whatever it takes to instill social skills through practice! We did up a set of questions to go with "American Table Manners" and had middle-schoolers engaged!  You need to use this site!

WSSA - World Sport Stacking Association.  Wait, the what? "The World Sport Stacking Association (WSSA) promotes the standardization and advancement of sport stacking worldwide. This association serves as the governing body for sport stacking rules and regulations and provides a uniform framework for sport stacking events, and sanctions sport stacking competitions and records." This is cup-stacking, where kids learn to stack paper cups! Sure, it builds hand-eye coordination, but also builds brain integration, reading and thinking in sequences, dexterity, and teamwork. Seriously. Read more here.

to top of page to Good Sites!

My life skill is getting some of that ice cream!