Primary PSHE that builds emotional regulation and resilience
A fully inclusive, story-led PSHE and RSHE curriculum from Reception (EYFS) through KS1 and KS2. It helps children understand and manage their feelings, bounce back from setbacks, build positive relationships and get ready for secondary school. Designed for adaptive teaching, with skills progress you can measure. Switching from your current scheme is easy, with set-up support included.
Emotional regulation and resilience
Help every child understand and manage big feelings
Emotional regulation is one of the biggest challenges in primary classrooms. Children who can’t yet name or manage their feelings find it harder to learn, make friends and cope when things go wrong.
Life Lessons puts emotional literacy first. Every unit gives children explicit, regular practice of regulation and resilience strategies, through stories and characters they come to know well.
Name it
A vibrant cast of characters, including Joy, Anger and Confusion, gives children the words to describe how they feel.
Understand it
Lessons are aligned with the Zones of Regulation, so the language matches the rest of your school day.
Manage it
Children practise calming and coping strategies they can use in class, in the playground and at home.
Bounce back
Regular, structured practice builds mental strength and resilience, so setbacks feel manageable.
Aligned with the Zones of Regulation
Characters that help children name their feelings
Every emotion character sits in one of the four Zones of Regulation. Children learn to recognise each feeling, notice which zone they are in, and use the same language in PSHE as in the rest of the school day.
Sad
Blue zone
Disappointed
Blue zone
Embarrassed
Blue zone
Rejected
Blue zone
Unconfident
Blue zone
Guilty
Blue zone
Happy
Green zone
Joyful
Green zone
Confident
Green zone
Worried
Yellow zone
Confused
Yellow zone
Grumpy
Yellow zone
Overwhelmed
Yellow zone
Angry
Red zone
Scared
Red zone
Story-led learning
Characters bring learning to life
Lessons feature a cast of illustrated characters, families and friendship groups designed to represent communities across Britain. Our characters help children safely explore risk, challenges, relationships and behaviour.
Measurable impact
Track skills development in five key areas
See how pupils are progressing, not just what they’ve been taught. Our skills metric tracks cohort and individual progress, so you can spot children who need more support early.
1
Emotional regulation
Recognising, naming and managing feelings.
2
Empathy
Understanding how others feel and responding with kindness.
3
Critical thinking
Questioning, weighing up choices and spotting risk.
4
Oracy
Speaking and listening with confidence, in pairs, groups and class.
5
Mental strength and resilience
Coping with challenge and bouncing back from setbacks.
- Contextual skills activities in every lesson bring learning to life and inform teacher judgement
- Observation guides help staff assess skills across the school day, not just in PSHE
- Evidence you can share with leaders, governors and parents
Adaptive teaching
Designed for adaptive teaching, so every child can take part
Inclusive by design
Built for every child from the start, not adapted afterwards, with a preventative, positive approach.
SEND friendly
Differentiated scaffolding so all learners can take part meaningfully. Lessons are working towards WCAG 2.2 compliance.
Consistent lesson structure
A predictable routine reduces anxiety and helps children know what to expect.
Story-led and visual
Illustrated characters in real-world situations make abstract ideas concrete and safe to explore.
The primary curriculum
A complete EYFS, KS1 and KS2 PSHE curriculum
230
ready-to-teach lessons
A full curriculum from Reception to Year 6, covering the PSHE Association Programme of Study learning outcomes.
1-hour
lessons
Storytelling, discussion and fun activities in every lesson, with teacher notes throughout.
Year 1
Enhanced Provision
Plus an optional printable worksheet for every lesson.
Online
safety from Year 1
Peer-led videos build safe online habits early, in line with children’s real experience of the digital world.
Life Lessons stays current with a fast-changing world. We respond to your requests and update lessons across the curriculum throughout the year.
Transition readiness
Ready for the move to secondary school
Moving up to secondary school is a big change. Life Lessons helps Year 6 pupils approach it with confidence, using the regulation and resilience skills they have built since Reception.
- Managing change, worries and new routines
- Making and keeping friendships in a new setting
- Growing independence and personal safety, including online
- Knowing where to get help and support
Videos that model the conversation
We film with young people across the UK. Their candid views bring diverse voices and fun into your classroom, and model discussions that pupils can find hard to start without support.
The work done on Life Lessons for Primary is truly remarkable and will provide schools with a clear, comprehensive and meaningful curriculum that will make a real difference in children’s lives.
Daniela Grasso
Executive Principal, Ark Multi-Academy Trust
Switching is simple
Easy to switch from your current PSHE provider
1
Tell us what you use now
We’ll talk through your current PSHE scheme, priorities and timetable.
2
Curriculum mapping support
We help you adapt and sequence Life Lessons to fit your school’s context.
3
Half-termly Community Forum
Meet other schools every half term for best practice sharing.
4
Ongoing expert support
Our team is on hand to help you get the most from Life Lessons.
Pricing
Simple pricing, based on the size of your school
1-year subscription
From £400
a year for your whole school
- 1 to 50 pupils £400
- 51 to 350 pupils £550
- 351 to 800 pupils £650
- 801 or more pupils £700
Prices exclude VAT. Pupil numbers are for Years 1 to 6.
- Multi-year discounts available
- Whole-MAT pricing available
- Your IMF allocation can be used to pay
Included in every subscription
- Full EYFS, KS1 and KS2 PSHE and RSHE curriculum
- Activity sheets accompany every lesson
- Printable, full unit workbooks, for every year group
- British Values, protected characteristics and the UN Rights of the Child mapped to every lesson
- Skills progress tracking
- Annual impact survey to demonstrate effectiveness and support planning
- An invitation to our Half-termly Community Forum meeting for best practice sharing
- Switching and set-up support
- Ongoing expert support
Inclusive Mainstream Fund
You can use your IMF allocation to pay for Life Lessons
Primary schools receive Inclusive Mainstream Fund allocations too. See how Life Lessons maps to the seven IMF principles, and how we measure the impact of our work together.
Five evidence-based approaches in every primary PSHE lesson
We take an evidence-based approach to PSHE, drawing on academic research and the experience of the Life Lessons curriculum team.
Evidence shows that positivity addresses and builds the following:
- Emotional wellbeing
- Self-construct and self-belief
- Values of kindness, consideration and support
- Healthy relationships
- Constructive approaches to challenges
- A sense of fun and shared enjoyment
Kern, Wehmeyer (2021)
There is significant evidence that storytelling has high impact in a range of areas.
We help teachers use storytelling across our curriculum through narratives, illustrations and scenarios.
- Through stories, children learn about different cultures, experiences, and emotions, promoting understanding and compassion.
- A sense of community and belonging in the classroom, foundations for supportive and reflective conversations.
- Ways of thinking that children may not naturally come across.
- Encouraging children to contribute to stories with their own experiences and advice helps them link the learning to real life and apply learning to their own stories.
- Relatable, engaging and familiar characters that the children build relationships with.
Hibbin (2016)
We place children at the centre of our resources.
- A peer based approach fosters collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills
- Caters to different learning styles and paces, as students can learn from peers who may have different strengths and weaknesses
- Empowers students to take ownership of their learning by actively engaging with the material and teaching each other
William and Leahy (2015)
Lessons are designed so every child can see themselves in the learning.
- Questions in the lessons place pupils at the heart of the learning
- Learning is linked to scenarios that children actually face
Ofsted highlight that ‘PSHE education plays a crucial role in demonstrating a school’s commitment to safeguarding and personal development.’
Ready to get started?
Whole-school primary PSHE from £400 a year (ex VAT). Switching is easy, with set-up support included. Questions first? Book a 20-minute call.
Get started with Life Lessons for Primary
Tell us about your school and when you’d like to start, and we’ll reply with your price and next steps. 1-year subscriptions cost £400 to £700 (ex VAT), depending on the number of pupils in Years 1 to 6. Multi-year discounts and whole-MAT pricing are available.