GCF Teacher Guides: Everyday Life

Lesson 10: Everyday Life

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Everyday Life

How to use this guide:

This guide explains how you and your students can use multiple activities to build basic life skills. It includes nine distinct learning plans you can follow and adapt for instruction in a classroom, with a small group, or with individuals. Each plan addresses a specific set of skills students may be interested in learning.

The plans encompass a variety of everyday life skills, ranging from money management to job skills to cooking and more.

Each plan has three (or sometimes four) components:

  1. Objectives: These are the goals learners have entering this course of study. Objectives can help you identify the best plan for your class.

  2. Outcomes: These are the skills learners should have gained after successfully completing the plan.

  3. Learning plan: This is a group of related activities. You can find summaries and links for the activities mentioned in our Tutorial Descriptions lesson, or you can view our All Topics page to find any tutorial you want.
  4. Other tutorials you may want to use: Some of our plans include additional tutorials on our site that you may want to reference or include in the learning plan, depending on the skill levels and needs of your students.

Using our learning plans:

To get started, choose the learning plan that best suits your students’ needs. Once you’ve found a plan, you can customize it to make it more relevant to and appropriate for your learners. This can include:

  • Adding your own content. To get the most out of our site, we encourage you to use it in combination with your own assignments and assessments.
  • Removing redundant or unnecessary content. Not every activity will be useful for every learner. Review the activities, and assess your students’ knowledge and needs. You can then omit any content that is irrelevant or unnecessary for your learners.

Learning plans

Working with money

This plan is intended for learners who want to improve their money handling and management skills.

Objectives:

  • To understand the value of coins and bills in U.S. currency
  • To learn how to carry out common financial transactions
  • To become familiar with the forms used for paying bills and taxes

General outcomes:

  • Learners will have a better understanding of U.S. currency values.
  • Learners will understand how to count bills and coins to pay or give money.
  • Learners will understand how to use vending machines and ATMs.
  • Learners will improve basic banking skills, including paying with a debit card and depositing money.
  • Learners will be familiar with the process of paying bills and filling out tax forms.
Counting and Handling Money
Paying and Banking
Money Management

Other GCFLearnFree.org tutorials you may want to use:

Basic math

This plan is ideal for learners who are looking to improve their basic math skills. An emphasis is placed on taking basic math and applying it to real-world situations like money and medication.

Objectives:

  • To improve counting and addition skills
  • To learn money values

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be better at counting and adding various real-life things, including cash, coins, pills, and stamps.
  • Learners will have a better understanding of U.S. currency values.
Adding
Counting

Other GCFLearnFree.org tutorials you may want to use:

Job skills

This lesson is designed for learners who are interested in developing skills that will help them to seek, obtain, and/or maintain employment.

Objectives:

  • To learn how to find and apply for jobs
  • To be prepared for the demands of an hourly job, including handling money and completing a time sheet

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be able to count and handle coins and cash.
  • Learners will be able to use classified ads to look for suitable job openings.
  • Learners will be able to complete a job application and time sheet.
Paperwork and Processes
Counting

Other GCFLearnFree.org tutorials you may want to use:

Basic literacy

This plan is intended for learners who want to improve their reading ability as it applies to real-life scenarios. You may want to supplement this learning path with activities from our Reading program.

Objectives:

  • To improve reading in real-life situations
  • To be able to identify important information in a functional text

General outcomes:

  • Learners will feel more comfortable using their reading and writing skills in everyday life.
  • Learners will be able to identify, generate, and enter information into forms.
  • Learners will recognize common forms, like job applications, tax documents, and time sheets.
  • Learners will be able to identify information on nutritional labels.
Filling Out Forms
Identifying Important Information

Visual literacy

This is for learners who want to develop the skills of interpreting visual aids like maps and diagrams.

Objectives:

  • To improve understanding information that is presented graphically
  • To be able to use transportation maps and building safety plans

General outcomes:

  • Learners will feel more comfortable using their reading skills in everyday life.
  • Learners will understand how to use public transportation maps to plan a travel route.
  • Learners will understand common symbols on public transportation maps and fire escape plans.
  • Learners will be able to identify paths out of a house in case of a fire.
Reading Maps
Reading Plans

Keeping track of time

This plan is ideal for learners who want to learn how to tell time and manage their time better.

Objectives:

  • To be able to tell time on digital and analog clocks
  • To be able to use schedule charts to plan activities
  • To be able to complete a time sheet

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be able to tell time and set an alarm.
  • Learners will be able to use public transportation schedules to plan travel.
  • Learners will be able to correctly interpret a pill schedule.
  • Learners will understand how to complete a schedule on a time sheet.
Telling Time
Using a Schedule

Grocery shopping

This plan is intended for learners who are looking to build skills commonly used in grocery stores, including locating food, interpreting nutritional information, and using various payment methods.

Objectives:

  • To be able to independently locate food in a grocery store
  • To be able to identify healthy food based on food labels
  • To be able to handle money and purchase food

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be able to locate specific items grouped by type in a grocery store.
  • Learners will be able to use labels to evaluate food for nutrition and other qualities.
  • Learners will understand how to pay for groceries with cash or debit.
  • Learners will know how to read a receipt and check it for accuracy.
Selecting and Finding Food
Paying

Cooking

This plan is for learners who want to gain and improve their cooking skills. This includes both proper cooking methods and safety precautions to take while cooking.

Objectives:

  • To become familiar with basic cooking processes
  • To be able to prevent and deal safely with fires

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be able to measure ingredients.
  • Learners will understand the importance of following a recipe in order.
  • Learners will be able to use an oven and an oven timer.
  • Learners will understand the basic principles of grill safety.
  • Learners will be able to read and follow a fire safety plan.
Cooking Basics
Fire Safety

Health and safety

This plan is intended for learners who want to educate themselves on proper health and safety practices.

Objectives:

  • To learn how to manage medicine
  • To be able to prevent and deal safely with fires

General outcomes:

  • Learners will be able to count pills accurately.
  • Learners will be able to fill in personal and health information on medical forms.
  • Learners will understand the basic principles of grill safety.
  • Learners will be able to read and follow a fire safety plan.
Managing Medicine
Fire Safety

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