Hayden Fox

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know

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Recommended Ages

For 12 year olds

Twelve-year-olds are often navigating new academic demands, online life, and shifting friendships all at once. “Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know” focuses on decision-making, basic money management, communication, and self-advocacy through short lessons and actionable exercises. Written directly to the tween reader, it aims to build confidence by breaking big ideas into approachable steps. We love that it includes real-world scenarios—like handling peer pressure or planning a small purchase—rather than staying abstract. It’s a strong fit for grades 6–7, especially when adults are willing to discuss and model the same skills. Some kids may initially resist workbook-style activities, but framing the book as a toolkit rather than “homework” can help. Pro tip: use individual chapters as prompts for family meetings, inviting your 12-year-old to help create or revise household rules and responsibilities.

Families with 12-year-olds who are starting to juggle heavier academics, extracurriculars, and social lives and who would benefit from explicit guidance on boundaries, planning, and self-advocacy.

Pros

Builds on the same series approach with age-appropriate topics for early teens—time management, digital citizenship, emotional regulation, and taking more responsibility at home and in the community—organized in short, conversational sections with simple action steps.

Cons

As with the rest of the series, coverage is broad but not deep; families wanting intensive executive-function coaching, therapy-level social skills work, or detailed budgeting instruction will need to layer on additional resources, and older or very mature teens may find some examples a bit young.

As a general life‑skills book, some ESA and charter programs may reimburse it under health, SEL, or electives budgets; families should confirm with their program since vendor lists and rules differ by state.

$14.95

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know
$15.00 USD

Skills

What kids will learn

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know Mission

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know is designed to support kids on the cusp of the teen years as they navigate more freedom, bigger emotions, and growing responsibilities. The book uses short, conversational chapters to teach communication, time management, digital citizenship, and basic money habits so 12-year-olds can practise making thoughtful choices before high school.

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know Story

As the Life Skills series expanded, Hayden Fox wrote the 12-year-old volume to address specific questions families raised about preteens—friend drama, device usage, school stress, and shifting family roles. He structured the book as a mix of mini-lessons, reflection prompts, and real-life challenges that can be tackled in 10–20 minutes at a time. Because it’s written directly to kids but easy for adults to skim, many parents use it as a springboard for deeper conversations about independence and values.

About Modular Learning

FAQ: Additional Details about Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know

Maybe on a weeknight you sit with a snack and open to a chapter on handling conflict; your preteen reads a short scenario aloud, then the two of you role‑play how to respond kindly but firmly. They jot a few notes in the margin about what they want to try at school or in activities, and you check in a few days later about how it went.

Life Skills Every 12 Year Old Should Know follows the same friendly, exercise‑based format, but nudges kids toward more independence with chapters on goal‑setting, managing school pressure, friendships, online behavior, and basic money sense. Families often treat it as a once‑a‑week “life skills check‑in,” reading a section, talking about real situations from the week, and choosing a concrete action step to practice. 

The book is written directly to kids, yet parent guidance makes a big difference in helping them apply ideas, troubleshoot sticky social situations, and stay consistent with new habits.

Designed for about age 11–13; kids should be comfortable reflecting on their own behavior and reading a few pages at a time, but no advanced academics are required.

At this stage, the focus on organization, responsibility, and social navigation is particularly relevant to ADHD and autistic preteens. Families may wish to adjust expectations and explicitly teach scripts and routines, using the book as a shared planning tool rather than a rigid checklist.

Refunds are handled by the marketplace where you purchase the book; check that seller’s return window and condition requirements.

Not ideal for kids already doing a more advanced teen life-skills or therapy program where goals and strategies are highly individualized, or for families who prefer story-based picture books over direct “how-to” style text.

Alternative or companion options include teen-focused titles like Adulting Made Easy, How to Raise an Adult (for parents), and structured executive-function planners or courses for students who need more intensive support.

This title is part of an expanding series that now spans multiple ages and formats, including audiobook and e‑book options, so you can match the format to your learner’s preferences. 

Invite your 12-year-old to pick the chapters that feel most relevant to them right now—maybe screens, friends, or money—and let them lead on which goal to tackle first so buy-in stays high.

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Meet Hayden

Hayden Fox is a children’s author and publisher who creates practical, upbeat books for families, including life skills guides, joke collections, and parenting life-hack books. Through his Hayden Fox Media imprint he focuses on short, engaging chapters and hands-on exercises that help kids build confidence and real-world independence. He developed the Life Skills Every Kid Should Know series to give parents an easy, age-targeted way to talk about independence, emotional regulation, and everyday responsibilities with their children.