12 mins confidence:   peer agreement (net): +3 life skills
Explanation:
It means things like the ability to dress himself, tie his shoes, etc.
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Note added at 16 mins (2010-02-19 19:00:42 GMT)
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More broadly, "life skills" can include aspects of socialization, like readiness to do some chores, getting along with people, etc., but in the context of talking about candidates for adoption, and with the other things in the list, I think it would be clear what's intended.
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Note added at 48 mins (2010-02-19 19:33:06 GMT)
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For David - Yes, there is a danger that it's too broad. How about if you add "basic"? - "basic life skills." I've often seen "life skills" used for very basic things, in the case of developmentally disabled adults, people with autism, etc. And, while for prisoners, etc., it might include behavioral issues (already taken care of on your list), "basic life skills" for sure is used in the case of little kids. For example:
/Many of the children lack basic life skills. Informal sessions on topics such as manners, hygiene, and other early-childhood developmental skills are held. "Recently we had four children in the shelter, ages 7, 8, 9, and 12, who did not know how to tie their shoes. We held a short lesson on how to tie a shoe. The goal is to have the children leave the shelter with more basic life skills than they came in with," said Daniel Valdez, Activities Coordinator./
http://www1.usw.salvationarmy.org/USW/www_usw_southwest.nsf/...
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Note added at 53 mins (2010-02-19 19:37:42 GMT)
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Another phrase I've seen in such contexts is "to take care of himself," but I don't like that when talking about a candidate for adoption because it hints that maybe the kid doesn't need to be adopted, since he can take care of himself already, thank you very much. Still, see here, for example:
"One of our first objectives in helping a boy is to bring order to his life. This is accomplished through helping a boy learn to take care of himself, i.e., personal hygiene, making a bed, sweeping a tent, raking a trail."
http://www.fairplaycamp.net/Program.aspx
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Note added at 22 hrs (2010-02-20 17:07:15 GMT)
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"Maria Montessori believed that when children master ***practical life skills***--such as tying, buttoning, latching, assembling, cutting, pouring and simple courtesy--that they build their confidence as they master their environment."
http://www.livingplaying.com/waldorf-and-montessori-practica...
"Our occupational therapists work with your child to help build skills for daily activities, such as ***dressing, grooming, bathing and toileting.*** We help children learn these skills for the first time or relearn them after injury or illness. When appropriate, we use adaptive equipment and assess the physical spaces where your child spends time (ergonomic assessment) to help your child master ***these life skills***."
http://www.seattlechildrens.org/clinics-programs/occupationa...
| Rachel Douglas
United States
Local time: 07:48
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 235
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| | Notes to answerer
Asker: This gets us away from the "self" answers, but aren't these usually higher-level skills, like getting on with people, filling in forms, dealing with officialdom, etc.? I might say "Most prisoners have no life skills", but they can tie their shoe-laces. Maybe the phrase is now used in educational development - I just don't know.
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