Life Skills Every (kid) Should Know

Hayden Fox, a dedicated author and educator, developed the "Life Skills Every ___ Year Old Should Know" series to address the gap in traditional education regarding essential life skills. Each book, tailored to specific age groups from 5 to 13, aims to equip children with practical knowledge and abilities to navigate life's challenges confidently. Fox’s background in crafting engaging and educational content has resulted in this widely appreciated series, praised for its accessibility and effectiveness in nurturing young minds.

Differentiation

What sets this series apart is its age-specific focus, ensuring the content is developmentally appropriate and engaging for each age group. Fox combines fun, practical exercises with insightful lessons, making learning life skills enjoyable and relevant.

How to Get Started

To incorporate these books into your homeschooling routine, start by selecting the appropriate age-specific book for your child. Each book is designed to be open-and-go, requiring minimal preparation.

How it Works

The series is structured for ease of use, with daily or weekly activities that parents can facilitate or children can explore independently. Each session takes about 20-30 minutes, offering flexibility to fit into any schedule. Activities range from interactive discussions to hands-on tasks, promoting both independent and guided learning.

Educational Content

  • Emotional Intelligence: Understanding and managing emotions

  • Communication Skills: Effective speaking and listening

  • Problem Solving: Approaches to everyday challenges

  • Time Management: Organizational skills

  • Financial Literacy: Basic money management

  • Safety Skills: Basic first aid and emergency response

  • Social Skills: Building healthy relationships

What’s Good About It

Parents and educators appreciate the series for its practical, age-appropriate content that keeps children engaged while teaching them valuable life skills. The books are filled with activities that are easy to implement and fun, making learning a seamless part of daily life.

What Could Be Improved

Some feedback suggests adding more interactive digital resources to complement the books. Additionally, expanding the financial literacy sections could provide a more comprehensive understanding of money management.

Advice from Parents

Parents recommend using the series as a starting point for broader discussions about life skills. Integrating the book’s lessons with real-life applications, such as budgeting for family outings or practicing emergency drills, can enhance the learning experience.

Ideal Fit

These books are ideal for homeschooling families looking to equip their children with essential life skills. They are also suitable for educators seeking supplemental resources to enhance their life skills curriculum.

Not a Fit For

Families seeking a purely academic focus might find this series too broad. Additionally, those looking for a highly structured curriculum with strict academic rigor may need additional resources.

Grades

Each book is tailored for a specific age group, ranging from 5 to 13 years old.

Cost

Each book in the series typically costs between $12 and $25.

Ways to Get It

The series is available on major online retailers such as Amazon, in both paperback and e-book formats.

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Explore More Life Skills Programs We Recommend

Manisha Snoyer (co-founder of Modulo)

For the last 20 years, I’ve taught over 2000 children in 3 countries (of all socio-economic backgrounds). I pioneered an English language program in a conflict region in the Middle East. I’ve worked as a bilingual public school teacher at some of the highest and lowest performing public schools and in all five boroughs of NYC. I’ve tutored 18 subjects in three languages to some of the wealthiest families in NYC, San Francisco and Paris to make up for shortcomings in private schools they were paying up to $60,000 a year to attend.

Since 2015, I’ve helped hundreds of parents start microschools (way before this was a household buzzword). I founded CottageClass, the first marketplace for microschools and learning pods that was part of the Techstars 2018 class. In 2019, I created a virtual learning program to help families through the pandemic, a free online math tutoring program (masteryhour.org), and schoolclosures.org, a hotline developed in collaboration with Twilio and 80 other partners including Khan Academy, Revolution Foods and the Crisis Text Line, that served 100,000 families impacted by school closures.

I’ve climbed trees with children in forest schools in San Francisco, and tested new digital apps with kids in seven countries.

I’ve also coached dozens of families at different stages in their homeschooling journey. Most recently, I founded Modulo with homeschooling dad, best-selling author and tech entrepreneur Eric Ries, to help families curate their children’s education, social and childcare experiences drawing from a diverse array of in-person and online resources.


During the last three years, I’ve devoted much of my time to reviewing and testing secular homeschooling curriculum and other resource. I’ve spent the last three years talking to thousands of secular homeschooling families, and poring over tens of thousands of secular curriculum reviews and testing physical curriculum and digital apps for with hundreds of students to find the highest quality, most engaging, personalized learning materials for every type of learner.

I’ve spoken about homeschooling and modular learning at multiple venues including SXSW EDU, NY Tech Meetup, and on the LiberatedEd podcast.

In 2022, Modulo was one of 8 organizations who were awarded the Bridge Grant from the Vela Education Fund to expand access to homeschooling and modular learning to under-resourced communities.

My experience in education and homeschooling has led me to believe that there is no perfect education for every child, but families have an extraordinary amount of wisdom they can apply to building the perfect education for their individual child.

My goal with Modulo is to make it possible for any family to easily build a customized education that their child will love, and that will empower the whole family to thrive, taking into account, social, emotional and academic needs.

I love to answer questions from parents and receive feedback on how we can improve Modulo, so feel free to reach out anytime! I personally answer all the questions and comments readers leave on my blogs.

In my free time, I like hiking, traveling the world, tasting ceremonial grade matcha, enjoying dark chocolate.

I graduated Summa Cum Laude from Brandeis University with highest honors, with a double degree in French Literature and American Studies and minors in Environmental Studies and Peace & Conflict Studies.

And I love to learn!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/manisha-snoyer-5042298/
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