Life Skills-Based Education for Girls

From Self-Awareness to Social Impact

At Zindagi Trust, our mission has always been to empower girls not just academically, but emotionally, socially, and ethically. Through our Life Skills-Based Education (LSBE) program, students at Khatoon-e-Pakistan Government Girls School and SMB Fatima Jinnah Government Girls School continued to grow into confident, reflective, and resilient young women capable of making thoughtful decisions for themselves and their communities.

Supporting Emotional Growth: Understanding Self and Others

Across both campuses, this quarter’s LSBE curriculum helped students build emotional awareness and explore their identities. At KPS, a Grade 7 session on active listening sparked lively roleplays where girls practiced responding with empathy. In the reflection circle, one student said, “I never noticed how often I interrupt others. Now I try to really listen.”

At SMB, students discussed emotional bullying and the importance of naming and navigating difficult feelings. One Grade 8 student, after a session on unpleasant emotions, shared how understanding her anger helped her respond more calmly at home in a small but powerful shift.

Building Safe Spaces: Protection, Consent & Boundaries

Understanding safety, physical, emotional, and digital remained a priority. At KPS, classes focused on topics like good and bad touch, peer pressure, bullying, and phishing. The sessions on child protection policies gave students clarity about their rights and how to seek help. Teachers reported that more girls felt confident speaking up and asking questions about their boundaries and safety.

Meanwhile, SMB introduced complex but essential themes like sex vs. gender, physical abuse, and digital safety in Grade 9 and 10. In one lesson, girls were asked to anonymously write down unsafe situations they had heard of or witnessed. The exercise opened up a conversation about consent and reporting on one that had never been held so openly before.

“I now know I have the right to say no and to report it if I feel unsafe. No one had ever told me that before.” Grade 9 student, SMB

Exploring the World Around Us: Civic Sense and Responsibility

This quarter also encouraged students to think beyond themselves. In younger grades, girls discussed animal care, home safety, and the impact of family ailments, topics that deepened their empathy and broadened their understanding of care and responsibility.

At both schools, conversations about values led to thought-provoking reflections. Students shared examples of how values differ between home, school, and friends. One Grade 6 class at SMB created a “Values Tree,” writing leaves for each trait they admire: honesty, kindness, and fairness. It was later displayed in their corridor as a daily reminder.

Digital Literacy & Life Planning

Older students at KPS participated in digital literacy lessons that discussed phishing, cyber safety, and the risks of misinformation. In one standout session, a Grade 8 student demonstrated how she identified a suspicious message pretending to be from a classmate, a real-world application of what she learned in class.

Over at SMB, LSBE sessions for Grade 10 girls integrated goal setting, career reflection, and even CV writing. One teacher shared how a previously shy student wrote a heartfelt goal letter to her future self, vowing to become a lawyer and help girls in her neighborhood.

A Teacher’s Reflection: “They Are Learning to Speak Up”

One teacher at KPS noted:

“What’s changed is not just what students say, but how they say it. They pause, think, and speak with more awareness. One girl recently stopped a peer from making fun of another’s appearance. She said, ‘We learned this is emotional bullying.’ That moment stayed with me.”

These stories show that the LSBE curriculum is doing more than informing; it’s transforming.

What’s Next: Continuing the Journey

As we look ahead, we remain committed to evolving the LSBE program to meet the changing needs of our students. In the coming months, we aim to:

• Introducing deeper sessions on mental health and gender equality
• Launch student-led projects that promote community awareness
• Strengthening our support for teacher training on trauma-informed education

The LSBE program continues to be one of the most impactful parts of our schools, not just teaching students about life but equipping them to shape it.

Thank you for walking this journey with us. Every skill, every insight, every breakthrough is possible because of your support.