Public health and life skills (folkehelse og livsmestring) is one of three cross-curricular themes in Norway's LK20 curriculum, alongside sustainable development and democracy and citizenship. It is not a school subject. There is no slot on the timetable, no textbook, no end-of-year test. Instead, it is a thread that runs through every subject from year one through year ten.
What the theme actually covers
Life skills in LK20 means the competence to live: to recognise feelings, to understand the connection between sleep and concentration, to make small daily choices, to build friendships, to ask for help. The theme is rooted in everyday life rather than in clinical psychology. A first-grader names three feelings. A sixth-grader reflects on what made a hard day hard. A tenth-grader thinks about identity and values. The progression is gentle, the practice is constant.
The surprising part for many parents: this is not extra content added on top of school. It is a competence treated on the same level as reading or arithmetic — something children build by doing, not something teachers can hand over in a single lesson.
Try it at home: the family life-skills week
Run a small five-day experiment together. Five days, five themes. Five minutes each evening. No tests, no reports.
Suitable for: 6–13 years What you need: an A4 sheet per family member, coloured pencils, and five minutes at the kitchen table each day.
The five themes:
- Monday — Sleep: Draw how you slept last night. A sun, a rain cloud, a lightning bolt.
- Tuesday — Feelings: Write three feelings you noticed today. Don't judge them. Just name them.
- Wednesday — Food: Count the colours on your plate. Which was new?
- Thursday — Friends: Draw five people who matter to you. Why these five?
- Friday — Choices: Write three choices you made today — one big, one medium, one small.
At the end of the week, lay the sheets side by side. What patterns appear? What happens if you try the same next week and look for connections?
Wonder questions
- Why do we sometimes feel happy for no reason?
- How many choices does a child make in a normal school day?
- How does the body know it's tired before the head catches up?
Every child is made up of good atoms
Life skills aren't taught in a single lesson. They are built minute by minute, through small routines and safe conversations. LK20 has given Norwegian schools a shared language for this work — and parents can use the same language at home.
If you'd like your child to practise this exact muscle alongside a mascot that helps them name feelings, choices and small wins, start a free 14-day trial at goodatoms.com.