Life skills for autistic and ADHD teenagers
Exam marks are not the whole of growing up. This page is the practical half: dressing, food, money, safety and looking after themselves — taught in the house they actually live in.
Written by the Inclusive Developmental and Therapy Center therapy team — our Speech & Language Therapist, psychology and ABA staff. This page is awaiting its clinical review.
A short list that is actually teachable
Pick from this list, not all of it. Two skills done daily beat ten skills discussed at the weekend.
- Getting ready. Clothes laid out the night before. One step they own: socks, then shirt, then bag at the door.
- Food. One snack they can make without you. Later, one hot meal with a written sequence on the wall.
- Personal care. Teeth, deodorant, period care, a shower that has a start and a finish. Puberty, autism and ADHD covers the body side; this page is the routine.
- Money. A small amount for one shop, with a list of two items. Counting change is more useful than a lecture about saving.
- Safety. Name, phone number, what to do if they are lost. Road crossing on a real street, not a worksheet.
If reading and writing are still the wall, do not wait for literacy to “finish” before teaching these. A teenager can follow a picture sequence for making chai long before they can write the recipe. See learning and life skills and the school-age hub.
Life skills — questions parents ask
My teen can do it if I stand there. Does that count?
That is the first stage, not the finish. Independence is when they start, keep going, and finish with you in another room. Fade your help on purpose: prompt, then point, then wait. Our printable chores by age chart is a useful tracker for the two or three jobs you choose.
They refuse every chore. Is it laziness?
Often it is load. The task is too big, the instruction is too long, or the day has already used them up. Shrink it to one step they can succeed at. If refusal is the pattern across the day, read when demands feel impossible and homework battles.
What about money, travel and phones?
Start tiny and real. Count change for one shop. Walk one known route together, then behind them. Agree one rule for the phone before you hand it over. These are safety skills, not extras — they sit next to what comes after school.
Can you work on life skills in therapy?
A consultation is Rs 1,500 and lasts up to 50 minutes.. We pick one or two skills that would change the week, break them into steps, and coach you to practise them at home. The longer programme is learning and life skills.
Which skill would change next year?
A short, friendly conversation is the best first step. Call, text or WhatsApp us — we’ll listen and guide you, with no pressure.
MPS Road, Block A Model Town, Multan (near Bloomfield Hall School, Street No. 2) · Mon–Fri, 2 PM – 6 PM