The missing piece: Skills for success

Early Life Skills Training for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Early school-based life skills education is an important and often underused tool for improving independence and quality of life for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

The World Bank (2013, p. 1) defines life skills as “a set of social and behavioral skills—also referred to as ‘soft’ or ‘non-cognitive’ skills—that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands of everyday life.” The CAR Autism Roadmap (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 2020) describes functional skills as “necessary for daily living and for establishing quality of life. … They are skills that are useful and can be immediately applied to the individual’s environment including safety, self-care, and vocational skills” (para.1).