Life Skills Education Toolkit

LIFE SKILLS EDUCATION TOOLKIT FOR ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN INDIA 1•

The first module is the introductory one that helps

in Getting Started and the last module concludes

the Life Skills Education Program with Setting

Goals for the future. The other modules are related

to Core Life Skills as defined by the World Health

Organization (WHO) such as communication,

decision-making, critical thinking, self awareness

and empathy in the context of HIV/AIDS. That is

why the modules on Growing Up (which

introduces sexual issues), Preventing and Living

with HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse follow the

Core Life Skills modules.

Each module is divided into sessions, each of which

is further divided into activities. The toolkit

addresses children aged 10 to 18 years with

variations in the activities for younger children.

Each of the sessions informs facilitators of the Key

experiences from the field illustrate the adaptations

tested in the field.

Gender issues have been interwoven into each

module addressing different life skills because

gender affects how children look at themselves,

communicate, make decisions and relate to others.

Since gender is a part of our identity, it cannot be

separated from individual lives. Accordingly, this

toolkit seeks to integrate gender throughout. The

role plays, problem statements and other examples

in any activity provide the facilitator with an

opportunity to address gender continuously

throughout the program.

Children who are affected and infected by HIV are

children with many other developmental needs.

HIV/AIDS and issues related to it cannot be dealt

with in isolation, as children’s lives are never

he Life Skills Education Toolkit is

divided into ten modules with a

number of sessions and a variety of

activities under each session. The

facilitator may select life skills activities from the wide

range of activities offered in the toolkit to form a

mini-curriculum suited to the needs of the children.

The users of this toolkit are encouraged to use these

tools to provide a rationale and framework for

selecting and adapting the sessions and activities.

The Modules Include:

One Getting Started Six Coping With Emotions

Two Knowing Myself Seven Growing Up

Three Communication Eight Preventing and Living with HIV

Four Relationships Nine Substance Use

Five Decision-making Ten Reaching My Goals

Points and the Objectives of the activities. The

facilitator can then select the sessions and activities

most suitable to the needs of the particular group

of children. Each activity has a Review and Linking

Learning with Life activities to link sessions to the

real life experiences of children. To ensure follow-up

of what the children have learned in the session and

in the Linking Learning with Life, a Group Check In

at the beginning of the next session helps children

and the facilitator reflect on experiences. Tips and

T

LIFE SKILLS EDUCATION TOOLKIT FOR ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN INDIA 1•

PART THREE: Life Skills Education Modules

Design of the Modules