Sunday, September 1, 2013

Life Skills and Social Skills Activities & Ideas for Special Education


life skills special education

Building Life and Social Skills in Special Education

Are you looking for engaging ways to teach life and social skills in your special education classroom? One of the biggest challenges in any lesson is keeping students motivated while ensuring they learn essential real-world skills. If you’re searching for creative and effective ideas, keep reading!

Bonus Tip: Keep It Real

The best lessons are those that connect to everyday life. When teaching life and social skills, it’s important to create a safe space where students can practice before applying these skills in real-world situations. The activities below focus on practical, hands-on learning experiences that your students will find relatable and engaging.

Silly Interviews

special education life skills job interview

Interviewing is an important life skill, not just for job applications but for everyday conversations. To make the process fun and stress-free, start with silly interviews! This activity helps students practice social interactions in a relaxed setting.

How It Works:

1. Model the Process – Demonstrate a fun interview with a few students to set expectations.

2. Use Lighthearted Questions – Ask questions like:
    • If you could be any animal, what would you be?
    • Would you rather wear the same socks for a year or the same pants?
    • Would you rather be an early bird or a night owl?
3. Student-Led Interviews – Have students pair up, join small groups, or even interview the teacher.

4. Focus on Social Cues – Teach active listening skills, such as maintaining eye contact, nodding, and responding thoughtfully. 

Why It Works:

Students are constantly engaged in informal “interviews” when they meet new people, make friends, or introduce themselves. This activity helps them gain confidence in asking and answering questions while improving their listening and conversation skills.

Newspaper Activities

using a newspaper in the classroom

If you have access to newspapers (online or printed), they can be a great tool for teaching a variety of life skills, from budgeting to current events.

How It Works:

1. Budgeting with Ads – Use grocery store ads to create a shopping list within a set budget. Incorporate play money for hands-on learning.

2. Comic Strip Creations – Let students pick their favorite comic strip, discuss the humor, and create their own class comic.

3. Reading and Summarizing – Have students skim through newspapers to find articles that interest them, then summarize the key points.

4. Vocabulary Building – Create a class list of unfamiliar words found in articles and discuss their meanings.

5. Letters to the Editor – Encourage students to write letters about topics they care about, practicing professional tone and persuasive writing.

Why It Works:

Newspapers provide a variety of engaging content while helping students develop literacy, financial literacy, and critical thinking skills. Plus, learning how to navigate and analyze news sources is an essential life skill!

Cooking Life Skills

cooking life skills functional math reading
Cooking is one of the most practical life skills students can learn, and it covers everything from reading comprehension to math.

How It Works:

1. Choose a Simple Recipe – Opt for no-bake or easy-to-follow recipes like healthy cereal bars or trail mix.

2. Teach Measurement Skills – Have students measure ingredients, reinforcing math concepts.

3. Follow Written Instructions – Guide students through reading and understanding a recipe.

4. Discuss Nutrition and Planning – Talk about meal planning and making healthy choices.

Why It Works:

Cooking lessons provide a hands-on approach to learning that directly applies to everyday life. Plus, they encourage independence and confidence in the kitchen!

Quality Over Quantity

When planning life and social skills lessons, focus on meaningful, high-quality experiences rather than cramming too many activities into your schedule. These engaging, real-world lessons don’t require extensive prep time but leave a lasting impact on students.

Look for teachable moments throughout the day—model proper etiquette, greet students with a handshake, and think aloud as you read to demonstrate comprehension strategies. The best lessons often happen in everyday interactions!

What Are Your Go-To Activities?

Do you have favorite lessons that help your students develop life and social skills? Share your ideas in the comments below!


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Shelly Anton is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. ** This means there are Amazon affiliate links in these blog posts. This does not mean you pay a dime more when you purchase a product through the link. It just means I am trying to save you valuable teacher time by making it easier for you to find great resources for your students, and I earn a few cents for my research and time. Thank you for all you do for kids!


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